Tjoritja National Park, Redbank Gorge – Woodland Campground

 4 – 7 May 2022

We set off from Kings Canyon along the Mereenie Loop road which was not in great condition this time. Last time it wasn’t too bad, but this time it was quite corrugated and there were quite a few small washouts as well as a couple of patches of bulldust. Nothing too drastic, but it did make for a slow and challenging drive. We stopped at the only designated rest area for a late morning tea then continued on. Instead of going into Alice Springs we took the turn that would take us into the West MacDonnell Ranges and our next destination – Redbank Gorge.

Before entering Tjoritja National Park we stopped and collected some firewood which we knew we would need with forecast lows of 6° overnight on two of the nights we would be there. We had booked our campsite in the Woodland Campground for three nights and arrived mid-afternoon.

In the morning we headed the few kilometres down the road to the gorge for the walk. It’s an out and back walk, rated Grade 3, with some walking on sand in the river bed, as well as some fairly serious rock hopping. We stopped for a while at a small waterhole before continuing to the large waterhole at the end of the walk. We returned to the carpark and made coffee at the picnic area before driving back to camp.

We returned to the gorge the following morning and again went for the walk then had coffee at the picnic area. We enjoyed some beautiful weather but the nights were very cold. We lit the fire and sat around enjoying the atmosphere with very few people around. Friday was my birthday so we cooked dinner over the fire and Mick made date scones in the camp oven. It was a lovely way to spend a birthday.

On Saturday morning we packed everything up, cleaned up the barbecue plate over the firepit and headed off to Ormiston Gorge. You cannot book camping sites there so we just hoped we would be there at the right time to get a spot.