Finke Gorge National Park is a
protected area in the
Northern Territory of Australia
The Northern Territory (commonly abbreviated as NT; formally the Northern Territory of Australia) is an Australian territory in the central and central northern regions of Australia. The Northern Territory shares its borders with Western Aust ...
located about south of the territory capital of
Darwin.
The national park covers an area of , and includes the impressive desert oasis
Palm Valley, home to a diverse range of plant species, many of which are rare and unique to the area. There are good opportunities for bushwalking and bushcamping in the national park.
Heritage
The national park is noted for its ancient palms and Aboriginal cultural sites. The
Central Australian Cabbage Palm
''Livistona mariae'', also known as the central Australian or red cabbage palm, is a species of flowering plant in the family Arecaceae.
It is found only in Australia with the best-known occurrence found in Palm Valley in Finke Gorge National P ...
is found only in Palm Valley and prolifically here.
There are around 3000 full grown palms and thousands of small seedlings sprinkled across the park which can get easily trampled by the visitors. Thus the visitors are required to walk along the marked paths to avoid destroying the seedlings. The
Finke River is claimed to be one of the oldest catchments in the world,
with areas dating back 350 million years.
The national park and nearby areas hold cultural significance to the
Western Arrernte
Arrernte or Aranda (; ) or sometimes referred to as Upper Arrernte (Upper Aranda), is a dialect cluster in the Arandic language group spoken in parts of the Northern Territory, Australia, by the Arrernte people. Other spelling variations are A ...
Aboriginal people and there is also evidence of early European settlement.
[https://nt.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0012/200037/finke-gorge-national-park-fact-sheet.pdf Particularly note the "Police Station Ruins"]
In 1980, it was listed on the now-defunct
Register of the National Estate.
Access
A four-wheel-drive route down the Finke River to Illamurta Springs and
Watarrka National Park
Watarrka National Park is a protected area in the Northern Territory of Australia located about 1,316 kilometres (817 miles) south of the territory capital of Darwin and southwest of Alice Springs.
It contains the much visited Kings Canyon a ...
begins at Finke Gorge. Bush walking is another common activity. Kalaranga lookout is an easy 20 minute climb, with views of the rock amphitheatre encircled by rugged cliffs. The Mpaara Walk introduces the mythology of the Western Arrernte Aboriginal culture. In Palm Valley, the Arankaia Walk and the longer Mpulungkinya Walk meander among slender palms, returning across a scenic plateau.
Gallery
file:PalmValley.jpg, Palm Valley, located in the national park
File:Finke Gorge NP.jpg, Amphitheatre
See also
*
Protected areas of the Northern Territory
The protected areas of the Northern Territory consists of protected areas managed by the governments of the Northern Territory and Australia and private organisations with a reported total area of being 24.8% of the total area of the Northern Te ...
References
External links
Official webpageOfficial fact sheet and map
{{authority control
National parks of the Northern Territory
Protected areas established in 1966
1966 establishments in Australia
Northern Territory places listed on the defunct Register of the National Estate