Kings Canyon is an iconic landmark of the Red Centre in the Northern Territory. It is located 300km north from Uluru or 360km west from Alice Springs via Mereenie Loop. It is part of Watarrka National Park.
Kings Canyon Rim Walk
The best way to appreciate the unique beauty of the canyon is to take Kings Canyon Rim Walk, 6km loop walk. It takes about 4 hours to complete. The walk starts with a steep climb to the top of the canyon but it gets easier as you reach the plateau. We found the most impressive part of the canyon was the ancient red wall soaring 100 meters above the Kings Creek to an amazing landscape of bee hive-shaped rocky domes.
The bee hive domes were quite spectacular.
These ripples are the evidence that millions of years ago there were shallow lakes there.
Emergency supplies at Watarrka National Park
What surprised us at Watarrka National Park (Kings Canyon) were a number of first aid points together with emergency satellite phones along the Kings Canyon Rim Walk. We actually had to use one of them when our older son got sick after filling in his water bottle with water provided at the park entry and drinking it. So we opened one of the boxes and took a bottle of water, after filling in the papers (discarding his water which didn’t agree with him). It is a great idea to provide these emergency supplies – something we have not seen before.
Unfortunately for us, after we shared our experience on social media, we were accused of “stealing” precious emergency supplies. The post both on Tiktok and Facebook went viral. But there was no glory in that. The vast majority of people who commented criticized us, providing negative comments, some injected with hatred, bulling and racist references. Internet can be very unforgiving, unfortunately.
That was another interesting thing we during our hike. A gate that separates two walking trails. Still not quite sure why it is needed there :).
Where to stay close by
You have an option to either stay at Kings Creek Station, which is further away from the canyon but provides a more unique rustic experience. Or you can choose convenience and stay at nearby Kings Canyon Discovery Resort. We chose the former and were quite happy with the choice. It was reasonably priced, provided free wifi, free laundry (now – these two were a really great bonus!) and nice walks along the property.
