Australia Red Center in Photos
Last Updated on November 23, 2021
Hot, dry and harsh, Australia Red Center is extremely inhospitable, and at the same time, intriguing. But as we found out over the past week in Central Australia, it is far from empty and lifeless. Dotted with patches of spinifex and eucalyptus trees, the desert is home to massive sandstone mountains as well as unique rock formations, many of which are sacred spots for the Aborigines. And underneath these layers of sand and vegetation lies an equally abundant amount of wildlife. Kangaroos, wallabies, eagles, crested parrots and all types of bizarre lizards roam freely in this vast desert.
In a desert as full of life as this, we had much to discover over the week. Starting our journey in Alice Springs, we got face to face with the area’s wildlife at the Alice Springs Desert Park, before getting even closer to the lizards and giants at the Reptile Center. Onboard our funky camper van, we then headed out to the West MacDonnell Ranges where we hiked through gorges, waterholes and beautiful rock formations. The last part of the trip was by far the highlight for us: a 3-day camping safari to the Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park where we trekked around the world-famous site and learned all about the Aboriginal roots of this area.
We feasted on stunning scenery each day, from organ-shaped sandstone cliffs, to oasis-like waterholes and majestic rock formations, and yet we’ve barely covered a quarter of this massive desert. We’ll be sure to return again someday, but in the meantime, we’re sharing some of our best photos from this trip into the Red Center, hope you enjoy them!
Australia’s Red Center in Photos
The world famous Uluru rising from the sands of the desert
The oddly shaped domes of Kata Tjuta
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On board a hot air balloon, we saw the sun rise over Alice Springs
Standing at the edge of the impressive Kings Canyon
The sun peeks over the water at Ellery Creek in West MacDonnell
That’s us looking happy as we hike through the beautiful Ormiston Gorge
Hallelujah for this beautiful day and gorgeous sight at Glen Helen Gorge
A black kite eagle soars through the skies above Alice Springs Desert Park
A yellow bearded dragon shows us its fancy scales at Alice Springs Reptile Center
My favorite reptile so far: the aptly named thorny devil
One of the many kangaroos we saw hopping freely in Alice Springs
Our trusty companion for the trip: the Britz Bushcamper, an awesome 4WD campervan that took us all over the Red Center
Disclaimer: Thanks to Tourism Northern Territory for making this trip possible! While the trip was sponsored, all opinions expresses above are our own.
The Comments
Gordon Lethbridge
Great photos. I love the one of the black kite. I'm heading out to Northern Territories next year and I hope I come back with some equally special photographs
Nellie
Gordon LethbridgeThanks Gordon! Alberto took all these photos. He took the shot of the black kite in the desert park – plenty of photo opps there! Have fun in the Northern Territories!
Sarah Wills
Great photos! I just got back from Central Australia a few weeks ago and it is by far one of the most amazing places! Uluru is just magical. Looks like you had just as much fun as I did!
Nellie
Sarah WillsYes, we absolutely loved it! The red color of the desert just fires up the whole landscape. We hope to go back soon!
@WildJunket
hey Yeity, thanks for the kind offer! We wish we'd connected earlier, that would have been so cool!
Jocelyn
What wonderful pictures! We just finished up a little more than a week in the Red Centre and LOVED every second of it! I'd rank it as one of my top trips, and you captured it all perfectly here!