Alice Springs

Location

Situated in the arid heart of Australia (the Red Centre) and surrounded by the beauty of the MacDonald Ranges and Mt Gillen, Alice Springs has a unique environment that is a popular tourist destination.The Stuart Town Gaol built in 1909, is the oldest building in the Alice Springs Township. Visit Mecca Date Garden, Australia's oldest Date plantation and the Transport Heritage Centre, the Transport Hall of Fame and take a scenic ride on the Old Ghan train. See the Royal Flying Doctor base in operation and the nearby Aviation Museum.

Home to a diverse range of people, from the traditional Arrente owners, the Americans who work at the space base at Pine Gap, those who found the lure of 'The Alice' too strong to leave, as well as descendants of families who have settled in the past. Many people come and go, Alice is, after all a a cross roads town famous for it's Bangtail Muster,The Camel Cup and Henley-on-Todd boat races, quite an achievement in a dry river bed!.

Traditional History

According to tradition, Mparntwe was created and established by the ancestral figures such as Ntyarlke, Utnerrengatye, and Ayepe-arenye. Since then, the aboriginal people known as Arrernte have been peacefully living in and around the area. The Aborigines continue to implement and obey their traditional law, protect their country and educate their young ones about the significance of Arrernte culture using their very own language.

Modern History

Before the place became known as Alice in the early years of the1930's, it was first called Stuart. The place was named after John McDouall Stuart, the leader of the 1862 expedition in the place presently known as Alice.

The next significant event in Alice was the establishment of the Overland Telegraph Line connecting Darwin and Adelaide in 1872. During that time, the large area was still unpopulated. However, this situation changed when resources of alluvial gold were discovered in 1887 in Arltunga, around 100 km. from Alice Springs. The population increased fast and the town quickly developed.

At the time of the expedition, the pioneers saw a waterhole in a river. The natural pool or pond was called after Alice Todd, wife of Charles Todd who was a former South Australian Postmaster General. At this newly named springs, the station of telegraph repeater was established. When the station was transferred to the town several years after, it still carried the name Alice Springs and was soon used to refer to the entire town. When this happened, the place became known by the two names creating confusion among the people. To settle the matter, the authorities decided to officially call the town Alice Springs on August 31, 1933.

Sites and Events

As a major tourism hub in central Australia, Alice Springs has much to offer travelers. To thoroughly explore and enjoy the sites and the activities, a week or more may be required.

You can use the Alice as your base to explore the rugged chasms, gorges and waterways of Simpson's Gap, Stanley Chasm, Trephina, N'dhala, Ormiston and Glen Helen Gorges, Palm Valley and Finke Gorge National Park. Kings Canyon and Rainbow Valley are spectacular. Ewaninga is the site of many Aboriginal Rock Carvings. Visit Ross River Homestead or the old goldfield township of Arltunga. Cross over the Charlotte Ranges to get to Castle Rock and Chambers Pillar, jutting some 30 metres above the surrounding Simpson Desert, real outback country and little changed in hundreds of years, with undulating sand dunes and weird rock formations.

Tourists can start tracing the history of the very first station of telegraph by visiting the Overland Telegraph. This station was established in 1872 to serve as a medium for Australia to communicate with other countries around the world. A section of the Western Australian line that was constructed in 1877, it was considered one of the greatest achievements in the history of Australian engineering.

Alice boasts of its Araluen Center for Arts Entertainment, the cultural precinct of Alice Springs. Visitors should not miss the town's surrounding deserts and numerous hills, mountains and gaps with profound traditional significance. Tourists commonly include in their list the Olive Pink Botanic Garden, a place that colors the community with happiness and character. The next stop commonly chosen is the Simpson Desert, a great wilderness where the longest parallel dunes of sand can be found.

Alice has many trails for hiking and holes for swimming like the gorges of Ormiston, Glen Helen and Red Bank. These trails and holes are apart of the Macdonnell Ranges that extend from the eastern up to the western portion of Alice Springs. Visitors who love nature and physical activities will surely enjoy exploring these breathtaking places.

Alice Springs hasbecome a meeting place for the Aboriginal and western cultures. In fact, the town has galleries of Aboriginal arts and schedules of community events including the Beanie Festival and the race on Todd River.

The race on Todd River is more famously known as the Henley-on-Todd Regatta. This yearly racing event is held on a dry river of sand and is commonly held around September; it is the only regatta or boat race held on a dry river. The boats are constructed out of metals with advertisements and banners, and the teams will row to run these boats through the sand. Aside from the constructed metal boats, participants also use washtubs, large mouse wheels, and other modified structures for the competition. To make the event more fun and exciting, people participate in full costumes and arm themselves with water cannons and flour bombs. They fire not only the opponents but the spectators as well. The event is full of excitement, challenges, and laughter, that most tourists will appreciate and never forget.

Climate

The temperature in Alice Springs varies from 7.5 degrees Celsius during winter and may reach up to more than 30 degrees Celsius during summer. Due to the surrounding deserts, the town commonly experiences periodic insufficiency of rainfall; the average rainfall reaches 286 mm. yearly.

Population

In 2005, records show that the population of Alice Springs had reached 26,486, and roughly 17% of this figure was Aborigines coming from different local groups. Although Aborigines are commonly suburban residents, they regularly visit the town to access the services they require. Arrernte, the original town settlers, are composed of more than one local group speaking different languages and vernaculars. Some of these are Alyawarre, Kaytetye, Luritja, Ngaanyatjarra, Pertame, Pintupi, Pitjantjatjara, Waripiri and Yankunytjatjara.

Getting There

Travelers can easily go to Alice Springs by train, plane or private vehicles. The town can be easily accessed through rail. In fact, a tourism and rail operator called Great Southern Railways runs a train transportation--The Ghan. It has a major station in Alice, traveling two times a week in its south and north rail. In 2004, the trains' railway was linked to Darwin, making it easier for those who will come from the capital of the Northern Territory to comfortably visit Alice. Although the area is not that large, it has an airport making travel easier for guests to come and go out of the area. For those who will drive their own cars, they can pass through the Stuart Highway to reach Alice. People may also prefer to ride public transportation directly servicing people to Alice Springs.

Alice Springs Photos