Escape to the Red Centre

You can travel by train overnight on the Ghan which leaves once a week from Adelaide and runs through to Darwin, but the dates didn't fit in with the Uluru camping trip we'd already booked.

So, we ended up flying to Melbourne then catching an onward three-hour flight to Alice Springs.

Halfway between Adelaide and Darwin, this outback town in the red heart of Australia is reputedly a redneck paradise.

A week before our trip, I saw Tracks author Robyn Davidson speak at the Christchurch writer's festival. Recounting her arrival in Alice Springs as a young woman in 1975, she told of how she found work in the local pub; upon completing a shift one night, she went upstairs to her room and found a human turd neatly deposited on her pillow. 

Needless to say, it wasn’t a place where female travellers were made to feel welcome.

But that was 44 years ago.

Now it's a bustling base for tourists keen to see the famous rock, as well as a magnet for some of Australia’s finest Aboriginal art.

Mia Wasikowska portrayed Robyn Davidson in the film adaptation of Tracks. Robyn walked solo from Alice Springs to the Indian Ocean.

The annual Desert Mob exhibition was on while we were there. This event has been held for a quarter of a century and now has such a reputation it attracts 5000 art-lovers and collectors over its opening weekend.

Our flight arrived early afternoon, so we spent a couple of hours exploring the town, starting with a wander up Todd Mall.

Alice Springs is the third biggest population centre in the Northern Territory with 24,000 people. There're at least a dozen art galleries, a handful of cafes and a few chain stores. Leafy trees provide shade from the desert sun, and there’s a sleepy, peaceful vibe.

Todd Mall is lined with fine art galleries

It’s a hub for people from remote Aboriginal communities, and their visible presence gives the town an other-worldly feel.

Coming to the end of the mall, we clambered up big stone steps to the top of Anzac Hill, enjoying 360-degree views from the top.

The town nestles on floodplains beneath the McDonnell Ranges, which stretch east and west 400km into the desert. 

Looking over Alice township from Anzac Hill

We'd booked a three-day camping tour of Uluru, Kata Tjuta and Kings Canyon with a 6.30 am start so we wandered down the hill and bought a bottle of bubbly then taxied out to our nights' accommodation at Squeaky Windmill B&B.

Most of the accommodation in Alice is with big hotel chains, so we opted for this boutique glamping experience 20km from town.

It's a beautiful spot on a small farm with three permanent tents ranged about 50 metres apart facing the western ranges. 

We were lounging on the deck, basking in the late afternoon sun when owner Michelle putt-putted over on a four-wheeler motorbike towing a trailer containing a barbecue and basket of goodies for us to cook up for dinner, including butterflied lamb, fresh greens, strawberries and a tub of Bailey's ice-cream. 

The stars were still out at 6 am when a taxi collected us, headlights streaming across paddocks setting the roosters cock-a-doodling as we crunched down the driveway.

We'd arranged to be collected by the tour company from outside the BIG4 Holiday Park on the outskirts of Alice Springs.

Squeaky Windmill owner Michelle drops off a basket of goodies for dinner 

While waiting in the pre-dawn darkness, two police cars pulled quietly off the highway and stopped in front of us. The officers climbed out with torches and asked if we'd seen anyone running in the area? 

No, we said, nothing (feeling slightly jumpy all of a sudden!)

They thanked us; then parked nearby and went into the holiday park. 

Thankfully our bus arrived shortly, fitted with giant Mad Max wheels. There were 19 of us on board, ranging from early 20's through to early 60’s. Our dread-locked driver/guide Jayden stowed our bags in the hold then headed straight for Uluru, stopping on the way for breakfast at one of the huge outback roadhouses. These giant petrol stations-come-takeaway-joints appear out of nowhere in the desert. I had fruit salad, cappuccino and hot, buttered raisin toast. Yum.

We bought a trashy magazine because I’d forgotten to take my book out of the luggage stowed in the hold. The bus was super comfortable; up on those big wheels, it was like travelling on a train. The roads were straight, and we nodded off for a while, waking to watch the earth become redder and redder as we drew closer to Uluru.

We saw dingoes on the side of the road, and when we entered Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park, Uluru came into sight. The bus pulled over, and we piled excitedly out to take our first pictures. Even though we'd seen its image many times, it was still a "wow" moment to lay eyes on this huge and glorious rock.

Driving closer, we could see people inching down its rocky surface like Lilliputians on Mars. At least 35 people have been killed walking on Uluru, and the traditional owners and park board closed the climb for good in October this year. 

We walked around the base with a local Anangu woman called Bessie, who told us about how people traditionally lived in the area, showing us some of their tools and taking us to see key sites where they bathed, ate and slept. 

Over the next two days, we visited Kata Tjuta (also known at The Olgas), and Kings Canyon, sleeping in fixed-floor safari tents and rising at 5.15 am to get our walking done before the heat kicked in around 11 am. We ate dinner around the campfire and roasted marshmallows under the stars. 

Showering in style at the campsite near Kings Canyon

Marshmallow time

Approaching the Valley of the Winds at Kata Tjuta, we saw a wild camel cross the road. Its blackened fur and angry demeanour told us to keep driving. Evidently, half a million camels are roaming the interior, but they're not often spotted by humans. 

The valley lived up to its name, a cold wind gusting into our faces as we set off on a three-hour walk, the path rocky underfoot. The name Kata Tjuta means 'many heads', and as we hiked along the valley floor, the vast red and brown rockfaces encircled us like a natural colosseum.

Bessie spoke about how the Aboriginal people lived in the areas surrounding Uluru

This fierce looking wild camel crossed our path as we headed towards the Valley of the Winds

Fact Box

• Best time to visit: April - September.
• Desert Mob is held annually in September at the Araluen Art Centre. 
• One of Australia's newest walks, the 223km Larapinta Trail begins 4km north of Alice Springs.