West Macdonnell Ranges

[sievo Lurker Find all posts View Profile Close sievo]

Hi All,
I am planning on towing my Jayco Outback Expanda through the West Macdonnell Ranges early July and need to get some feedback from any-one on road conditions,places of intrest and where we can stay with our Expanda,hope some-one can help,thanks

[Dupes68 Member Find all posts View Profile Close Dupes68]

Hi Sievo,

We towed ours up there at Easter, but based ourselves in Alice and day-tripped from there, which you may want to consider. You can cover everything easily from Alice by doing day trips. Road conditions through the West Macdonnell Ranges are fine; in fact almost all of the main road is sealed, and that which is dirt would be easily-navigable with your van in tow. Some of the entry roads to places like Ellery Big Hole, Serpentine Gorge you may find pretty rough with the van in tow. There are camping areas but not sure about getting vans in. I believe Glen Helen Resort is well worth a visit, and has van facilities.

The above points of interest, as well as Palm Valley & Standley Chasm (get there at midday) are well worth it. You won't get the van into Palm Valley - 4wd access only. If you want something to do for half a day then the Alice Springs Desert Park is excellent.

Hope this helps.
Cheers

[derek11 Advanced Member Find all posts View Profile Close derek11]

Hi Sievo,

East McDonnell Ranges are really good to visit also, so if in Alice also do the East and you will be OK with your camper to most spots.

Cheers Derek

P.S. try your hand at fossicking for Garnets north of Alice, I found a big one that I turned into a ring for my wife.

[Bushbasher Out of control poster! Find all posts View Profile Close Bushbasher]

Have a look at the parks website, they specify whether each location is suitable for vans, trailers, etc. They will also give you costs for camping, etc.
http://www.parksandwildlife.nt.gov.a.../westmacdonnel...

[ntp Addicted PP Member Find all posts View Profile Close ntp]

Both the West MacDonnell and East MacDonnell Ranges are fantastic places to visit.

There's already a bunch of good trip reports for this area (links below) along with some of my personal favourites;

Roma Gorge, West MacDonnell Ranges
N'Dhala Gorge, East MacDonnells


Also see the 2009 PP GTG threads, including:

2009 PP GTG In The Red Centre.

Click on these threads to whet your appetite:

Alice Springs PP East Macdonnell Ranges Trip
TRIP REPORT : Alice Springs Trip Ellery Big Hole 3/08/09
TRIP REPORT: Finke River Gorge - LOTS OF PICS
Finke River National Park - Boggy Hole
Glen Helen Weekend
Palm Valley NT Mothers Day 08
TRIP REPORT : A weekend in the East Macdonnell Ranges
TRIP REPORT : Night run on Owen Springs Reserve
N'Dhala Gorge 15 June 08 Trip Report
TRIP REPORT : NT - Hermannsburg to Glen Helen
TRIP REPORT : Birthday Waterhole Revisited Alice Springs NT
TRIP REPORT :Trephina Gorge and John Hayes Water Hole NT
West MacDonnell Range tracks 10/08/08 ( Large Photo files)
A quicky to Owen Springs Reserve with Prado4x4.
A Quick trip Out To Gem tree
TRIP REPORT :Chambers Pillar - NT
Binns Tack Reccie. Sunday 03/08/08 ALICE SPRINGS
Glen Helen - Ayers Rock - Alice

4X4 Guide To Central Australia 2007/2008

[Pete t pops Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Pete t pops]

If you are worried about the van base yourself at glen Helen "resort" for a few days. Can be hard to get a spot for a van at the np campgrounds. We didn't have any dramas with a ct though



Ps if you've been to echidna chasm in the Kimberly then skip Stanley chasm, bit underwhelming on reflection