The Far North is a

region In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as areas, zones, lands or territories, are portions of the Earth's surface that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and ...

that covers about 70 per cent of the Australian state of

South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a States and territories of Australia, state in the southern central part of Australia. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories by area, which in ...

. It extends across the entire width of the state – about – for approximately the northernmost . The

state government A state government is the government that controls a subdivision of a country in a federal form of government, which shares political power with the federal or national government. A state government may have some level of political autonom ...

defines the Far North region similarly, although it separately delineates the Maralinga Tjarutja Lands, the Yalata Aboriginal community and other unincorporated crown lands in the state's far west, which are officially considered part of the Eyre and Western region. Colloquially, South Australians regard anywhere north of

Port Augusta Port Augusta (''Goordnada'' in the revived indigenous Barngarla language) is a coastal city in South Australia about by road from the state capital, Adelaide. Most of the city is on the eastern shores of Spencer Gulf, immediately south of the ...

as the Far North. The Far North is by far the least populated region of South Australia.

Wilderness and deserts

The landscape comprises mainly rugged

outback The Outback is a remote, vast, sparsely populated area of Australia. The Outback is more remote than Australian bush, the bush. While often envisaged as being arid, the Outback regions extend from the northern to southern Australian coastli ...

wilderness and desert, including some of the most arid parts of the continent, with a

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...

of BWh hot desert. In the north-east are the

Simpson Desert The Simpson Desert is a large area of dry, red sandy plain and dunes in the Northern Territory, South Australia and Queensland in central Australia. It is the fourth-largest Deserts of Australia, Australian desert, with an area of . The Wangka ...

Tirari Desert The Tirari Desert is a desert in the eastern part of the Far North region of South Australia. It stretches 212 km from north to south and 153 km from east to west. Location and description The Tirari Desert features salt lakes and ...

, Painted Desert and Pedirka Desert. To the north and north-west is the

Great Victoria Desert The Great Victoria Desert is a sparsely populated desert ecoregion and Interim Biogeographic Regionalisation for Australia, interim Australian bioregion in Western Australia and South Australia. History In 1875, British-born Australian explore ...

. The Far North is also known as the ''Arid Lands'' as a more descriptive term than "

desert A desert is a landscape where little precipitation occurs and, consequently, living conditions create unique biomes and ecosystems. The lack of vegetation exposes the unprotected surface of the ground to denudation. About one-third of the la ...

Governance

The Far North includes the following

local government areas A local government area (LGA) is an administrative division of a country that a local government is responsible for. The size of an LGA varies by country but it is generally a subdivision of a state, province, division, or territory. The ph ...

: Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara (APY),

City of Port Augusta The City of Port Augusta is a local government area located at the northern end of Spencer Gulf in South Australia. It is centred on the town of Port Augusta. History The Port Augusta region is a natural crossroads and aborigines have been ...

, District Council of Coober Pedy,

Flinders Ranges Council The Flinders Ranges Council is a local government area (LGA) located in the Flinders Ranges of South Australia. The LGA is approximately 100 km from north to south, and 45 km from east to west, with a total area of 4,198 square kilome ...

and Municipal Council of Roxby Downs. Since most of it lies within what is known as the

unincorporated area An unincorporated area is a parcel of land that is not governed by a local general-purpose municipal corporation. (At p. 178.) They may be governed or serviced by an encompassing unit (such as a county) or another branch of the state (such as th ...

municipal services Municipal services or city services refer to basic services that residents of a city expect the local government to provide in exchange for the taxes which citizens pay. Basic city services may include sanitation (both sewer and refuse), wa ...

to communities outside of the foregoing local government areas are provided directly by the

South Australian Government The Government of South Australia, also referred to as the South Australian Government or the SA Government, is the executive branch of the state of South Australia. It is modelled on the Westminster system, meaning that the highest ranking mem ...

via the

Outback Communities Authority The Outback Communities Authority (OCA) is a statutory authority in South Australia (SA) created under the ''Outback Communities (Administration and Management) Act 2009''. It has been established to "manage the provision of public services and f ...

. It is within the extent of the state electoral districts of Giles and

Stuart Stuart may refer to: People *Stuart (name), a given name and surname (and list of people with the name) * Clan Stuart of Bute, a Scottish clan *House of Stuart, a royal house of Scotland and England Places Australia Generally *Stuart Highway, ...

, and at a national level the

Division of Grey The Division of Grey is an Divisions of the Australian House of Representatives, Australian electoral division in South Australia. The division was one of the seven established when the former Division of South Australia was redistributed on 2 ...

Tourism

The region has abundant national parks and reserves and widely scattered tourist attractions and facilities. Experiences and attractions include farmstays on sheep stations, unique native flora and fauna, a museum and underground accommodation where opal is mined, natural springs, and vast landscapes of salt lakes, sandstone tablelands, and vividly coloured hills.

Permits

Permits are required to enter Aboriginal-owned land. , a

National Parks and Wildlife Service South Australia The National Parks and Wildlife Service South Australia (NPWSSA), formerly a government agency known as National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) and later a service under variously named government departments and branded National Parks and W ...

Desert Parks Pass was also needed to visit the Simpson Desert Conservation Park and Regional Reserve and east of

Dalhousie Springs Dalhousie Springs, also known as Witjira-Dalhousie Springs, is a group of over 60 natural artesian springs located in Witjira National Park on the western fringe of the Simpson Desert, 180 kilometres northeast of Oodnadatta in northern South ...

in Witjira National Park.The Desert Parks Pass includes unlimited vehicle entry and camping in another 5 areas. A tourist pass was also required to enter the Woomera Prohibited Area. Some significant roads in the area include the

Stuart Highway Stuart Highway is a major Australian highway. It runs from Darwin, Northern Territory, Darwin, in the Northern Territory, via Tennant Creek and Alice Springs, to Port Augusta in South Australia; it has a distance of . Its northern and souther ...

from

Alice Springs Alice Springs () is a town in the Northern Territory, Australia; it is the third-largest settlement after Darwin, Northern Territory, Darwin and Palmerston, Northern Territory, Palmerston. The name Alice Springs was given by surveyor William ...

, the

Oodnadatta Track __NOTOC__ The Oodnadatta Track is an unsealed outback road in the Australian state of South Australia, connecting Marla in the north-west via Oodnadatta to Marree in the south-east. Along the way, the track passes the settlements of Oodnadatt ...

, and both the

Birdsville Track The Birdsville Track is an outback road in Australia. The track runs between Birdsville in south-western Queensland and Marree, a small town in the north-eastern part of South Australia. It traverses three deserts along the route, the Strzel ...

and the

Strzelecki Track Strzelecki Track is a mostly unsealed outback track in South Australia, linking Innamincka, South Australia, Innamincka to Lyndhurst, South Australia, Lyndhurst. History In 1870, the track was pioneered by Stockman (Australia), stockman, D ...

to Queensland.

Notes

References

External links

Regional Development Australia Far North
{{South Australia Regions of South Australia