If you’re in Alice Springs and would like to go north, this itinerary is for you. This driving adventure follows the Binns Track up to the Davenport Ranges before exploring the pioneering history and Aboriginal heritage of Tennant Creek.
Day 1
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East MacDonnell Ranges and Davenport Ranges
Depart Alice Springs heading east. This morning is a part of the four-wheel-drive adventure, the Binns Track. This section of the route takes you through the East MacDonnell Ranges, up to Plenty Highway and through cattle stations into Davenport Range National Park.Spend the day exploring N’Dhala Gorge Nature Park and Arltunga Historical Reserve before setting up camp by the gem fields at Gemtree.
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Day 2
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Davenport Range National Park
Depart early as you’ll need 8 hours to complete the 442kms to Old Police Station Waterhole in Davenport Range National Park. The drive today is along a challenging four-wheel-drive track through cattle station country into the Davenport Ranges.
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Day 3
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Davenport Range National Park
Spend this day resting up, swimming at Old Police Station Waterhole and exploring the rest of the Park. You can overnight at Whistle Duck Creek in the Park or head in to Tennant Creek for the night.
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Day 4
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Nyinkka Nyunyu and Battery Hill Mining Centre
Spend the morning, exploring the Aboriginal heritage of the area at the Julalikari Arts and Craft Centre and the Winanjjikari Music Centre, finishing up at Nyinkka Nyunyu Cultural Centre. Spend the afternoon at the Battery Hill Mining Centre, touring the underground mine and learning about how life was on the mine during the gold rush days. Remember to pick up a key for the Telegraph Station for your day tomorrow.
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Day 5
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Lake Mary Ann and Devils Marbles
Head off to the Tennant Creek Telegraph Station. Then, continue on to The Pebbles (Kunjarra), a sacred place to the Waramungu Aboriginal people. Take a packed picnic lunch and make your way out to Lake Mary Ann, just 5km north of Tennant Creek via Stuart Highway. Leave Tennant Creek mid afternoon to ensure you arrive at the Devils Marbles Conservation Reserve just before sunset, the most dramatic time to be at the Marbles. Set up camp in the nearby camp ground.
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Day 6
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Stuart Highway
Take your time driving back to Alice Springs, being sure to experience the historic stories of the Explorer’s Way tourism drive. Learn about UFOs at Wycliffe Well; discover John McDouall Stuart’s route at Central Mount Stuart; relive the Overland Telegraph history at Barrow Creek and sample fruits from the desert at Ti Tree.
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