Alice Springs

Located halfway between Adelaide and Darwin and 200Kms south from the geographic center of Australia between the East and West MacDonnell Ranges is Alice Springs. It is home to an array of galleries displaying outstanding examples of Aboriginal art. It serves as the perfect step off point to visit the red centre, and is home to the famous Henley on Todd-a day of fun where teams and individuals race in the dry bed of The Todd River during the Dry season. People race in bottomless tubs and yachts through the deep coarse sand. In the wet the Todd is in full flood and therefore the necessarity of the several bridges across the Todd in Alice.
We visited the grave site of Reverend John Flynn who founded the royal Flying Doctors, bringing medical aid to the outback. His grave is marked by a large boulder that was brought to the site from the Devils Marbles-this did cause some unrest amongst the indigenous people who believe the stones from Karlu Karlu, Devils Marbles, to hold significant cultural significance . After sensitive discussions the stone remained , as it was believed that The Royal Flying Doctor service was for all people of the outback not just whites.
We visited the Olive Pink botanical gardens-this arid region native flora reserve was founded in 1956 by Miss Pink ,an unconventional anthropologist and outspoken advocate for Aboriginal rights. She was also a noted botanical artist and a women ahead of her time in the promotion of Australian native plant cultivation. She also held knowledge in regard to bush tucker and medicinal plants.
We were able to experience reptiles up close at the Alice Springs reptile center, including pythons, goannas, venomous snakes and the great little favourite-The Thorny Devil lizard.Read more