← Australian Outback Marathon·1 night

Kings Canyon: A Night in Watarrka

A sandstone canyon with 100-metre walls, reached along the flat creek bed on the first day and from the rim only when the legs have forgiven the marathon.

Duration1 night
TransitAbout 3.5 hours by car from Yulara via the Lasseter Highway and Luritja Road
DepartsYulara

After the Australian Outback Marathon: Kings Canyon

The Route: Yulara → Kings Canyon → Yulara (Ayers Rock Airport) or onward to Alice Springs Logistics: Hire car, about 3.5 hours each way on sealed roads, or an organised tour from Yulara. Marathon Month: July Duration: 1 night

Yulara ──(approx. 3.5 hrs by car, Lasseter Hwy / Luritja Rd)──> Kings Canyon, Watarrka NP
                                                                     │
     Ayers Rock Airport (AYQ) ◄──(approx. 3.5 hrs by car)─────────────┘
     or Alice Springs Airport (ASP) ◄──(approx. 4.5 hrs by car)

The Australian Outback Marathon finishes near Yulara on the last Saturday in July. Kings Canyon, in Watarrka National Park about 300 km to the north-east, is the Red Centre's third great landscape after Uluṟu and Kata Tjuṯa, and its most famous walk begins with a staircase. This trip is designed around that problem.

July at Kings Canyon is winter, with cold, clear mornings and mild days, the best time of year to walk. In the hotter months the Rim Walk closes from 09:00 on very hot days; in July, heat is not the issue. Water is. The air is dry, and the walks have little shade.

The drive from Yulara follows the Lasseter Highway east and then Luritja Road north, all sealed, through open country with very little traffic and fuel only at the roadhouses. Allow about three and a half hours, and avoid driving at dusk and dawn, when kangaroos and cattle are on the road. Organised tours from Yulara also cover Kings Canyon, some with an overnight stay.

Night One: Kings Canyon

Kings Canyon is a gorge cut into the edge of the George Gill Range by Kings Creek, with sheer walls of red sandstone rising about 100 m above the creek bed. The rock is around 400 million years old. The Luritja people are the traditional owners, and the park is their country.

The first walk is the right one for post-marathon legs. The Kings Creek Walk follows the creek bed into the canyon for about 2.6 km there and back, on a mostly flat path of compacted earth and some rocky sections, to a viewing platform looking up at the canyon walls. It takes about an hour at a slow pace, with benches along the way.

The Rim Walk is the famous one: a 6 km loop around the top of the canyon, past the domes of the Lost City and down to the Garden of Eden, a permanent waterhole in a side gorge. It starts with a steep climb of about 500 steps, known locally as Heart Attack Hill, and involves rough, uneven rock and further steps down into and out of the Garden of Eden. It takes three to four hours. Two or three days after a trail marathon, most runners can manage it slowly. On the Monday, it will hurt. If the legs are not ready, the Kings Creek Walk is the better choice, and the Rim Walk is a reason to come back.

Where to stay: Kings Canyon Resort, about 10 km from the canyon, has hotel rooms, a campground and the area's restaurants, and is the only full-service option nearby. Kings Creek Station, a working cattle and camel station outside the park, offers cabins and camping for a simpler night; check what is included.

Where to eat: Dinner is at the resort, which has a restaurant and a more casual bar and grill. Book ahead in July, when every room is full, and buy water and snacks at the resort store before an early walk.

Getting Home

Drive back to Yulara for Ayers Rock Airport (AYQ), about three and a half hours, allowing time to return the hire car. Or continue to Alice Springs Airport (ASP), about four and a half hours north-east via the Lasseter and Stuart Highways, which usually has more flights. Unsealed short cuts such as the Mereenie Loop need a permit and a suitable vehicle, and are not worth the risk on a tight flight schedule.