Page 285 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide - Australia

the Nor ther N territ or y  283

THE RED CENTRE

the red Centre stretches roughly from tennant Creek tennant Creek t
to the South Australian border, and is made up almost
entirely of huge desert areas. the region occupies the
centre of the Australian continent, with its main town,
Alice Springs, at the country’s geographical heart.
its signature colour is red: red sand, soil, rocks and
mountains are all pitched against a typically blue sky.
The Red Centre contains some of the is one of many tribal rituals still practised.
finest natural scenery in the world, much By comparison, the history of white
of it dating back about 800 million years. settlement here is recent. Explorers first
At that time, central Australia was covered arrived in the area during the 1860s.
by an inland sea; here sediments were laid Alice Springs, founded in 1888, was a
down which form the basis of some of the tiny settlement until improved
region’s best-known topographical features communications after World War II led to
today. These include the huge monolith the town’s growth. It is now a modern,
Uluru (formerly Ayers Rock), the domes of bustling town with much to offer. Tennant
Kata Tjuta (also known as the Olgas), the Creek, the only other sizeable settlement
giant boulders of Karlu Karlu/Devil’s in the area, lies on the main Stuart
Marbles and the majestic MacDonnell Highway that bisects the Red Centre.
Ranges. Between these sights are vast Much of the Territory has now been
open spaces where remnants of tropical returned to its Aboriginal owners (see
plant species grow beside desert-hardy pp266–7), and today many Aborigines
stock. Verdant plants fed by occasional are actively involved in tourism. Access
rains flourish next to animal skeletons. to Aboriginal lands is restricted but
Aboriginal people have lived in the visiting them is a rewarding encounter
region for more than 30,000 years, and to add to the unforgettable experience
their ancient tradition of rock painting of the Red Centre.

Trekking through the desert landscape on a camel safari near Alice Springs
The red monolith Uluru (Ayers Rock), sacred to the Aborigines