One of the defining mountain ranges of Central Australia are the MacDonnell ranges. They run east to west for 644 kilometers with the town of Alice Springs almost in the middle. Along that range of mountains are many places worth visiting. One could spend 2 weeks exploring places of interest in these mountains. However I chose to visit Standley Chasm in the West MacDonnells as it is truly magnificent.

The website below says of this place: ‘The narrow chasm is truly spectacular. At lunch time, when the sun is right above it, the steep walls light up in orange and the bottom of the chasm fills up with tourists.’.

Please view these 2 websites for a few more details of this major tourist attraction.

http://www.outback-australia-travel-secrets.com/west-macdonnell-ranges.html

http://www.outback-australia-travel-secrets.com/east-macdonnell-ranges.html

After a good night’s rest in Alice I took off for Standley Chasm which is 50km west. I travelled along Namatjira drive which is named after the famous Aboriginal painter Albert Namatjira. The website tells me that the highest point in the ranges is over 1500 meters above sea level. The turn off is a distance from the actual hills that house the Chasm. The site contains a shop that provides food and beverage for the weary traveler. Don’t forget that this is Central Australia and it does get very hot here.

There is a path that leads into the Chasm. What struck me most is the diverse flora and foliage on the hillside leading into the Chasm. Many trees with amazing shapes and many coloured trunks are to be seen. Speckled amongst those are ferns, palm like plants with pale palm leaves and diverse shrubs. You can probably tell by now that I am no botanist, but I enjoyed the diversity of the plant life on display.

The hills on both sides narrowed into a gorge of sheer rock devoid of plant life. The walls rise up straight as the gap wound its way through the mountain. Often it seemed that the two sides of the chasm were reciprocal; that is to say they mirrored each other and could have fitted into one another.

It was glorious. I took many snaps, some of which I am sharing here. After that I wound my way back and had a cup of tea. On the way back to Alice I once again took in the splendid West MacDonnell Ranges. Day 5 was to take me north west of Alice onto the Tanami track.