> Visitor Information
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> Visitor Information
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Planning Your Visit To Our Parks And Reserves The Territory's fascinating Aboriginal culture, recorded in vast galleries of rock art, the many examples of early pioneering life, and an incredible diversity of wildlife all set against a backdrop of incedible natural beauty, make the Northern Territory's parks and reserves a unique experience offering something for everyone. To make your visit as pleasurable as possible, we have assembled some helpful hints for visitors, and to protect the often fragile environments that these parks seek to protect, there are also a series of rules and regulations that you are required to abide by. Darwin And The Top End With its tropical climate, the parks of the Darwin and the Top End offer a wealth of outstanding scenery to enjoy. A dramatic coastline reveals stretches of sparkling sand, towering cliffs and peaceful coves. Large areas of tropical woodlands are broken by rugged escarpment country, where deep gorges have been carved by flooding rivers. Spectacular waterfalls tumble into crystal clear pools, and pockets of lush rainforest, billabongs and vast wetlands abound with wildlife. The transition from tropical coastline, and adjacent wetlands, to the tropical savannah and woodlands of the interior of the Top End can be experienced through the parks of Katherine and surrounding region. While still technically the Top End, a whole new environment waits for you to discover. The Top End has two distinct seasons ('the wet' and 'the dry'), so you need to plan carefully when you will visit. The dry season extends from May to September, temperatures are lower, and road access to parks is reliable. The wet season (from October to April), can be uncomfortably hot and humid, but the frequent and spectacular thunderstorms and the abundance of wildlife make a wet season visit to the Top End well worthwhile. Central Australia In contrast, the Centre is a low-rainfall area of vibrant red sands and clear blue skies. Its vast deserts and jagged ranges are sprinkled with waterholes and gorges, each a lush oasis for wildlife and a delight to visitors. In Central Australia, most visitors will want to combine visits to Ayers rock and the deserts with the scenic attractions closer to Alice Springs in the East and West McDonnell Ranges. To do this, you should allow at least three days to see the Rock, then another week or two to see a selection of the nearly 30 parks of Central Australia. The best time of the year to visit the Centre is in the cooler months, from April to September, when the days are pleasantly mild. Early morning and night temperatures are cool to cold from June to August, but the days are wonderfully sunny and rain is rare. Summer is a hot dry time that suits vehicle touring and swimming more than bushwalking. Tennant Creek Between the Top End and the Centre, the Tennant Creek area hosts numerous small natural and historical reserves, as well as the proposed Davenport Range National Park, and is the ideal stopover for those travelling by road between Darwin And Alice Springs. The parks and reserves of Tennant Creek bring alive the pioneering history and fragile ecology of the region. More Information
Gaymark Building, (PO Box 496), Palmerston NT 0831 Tel: 08 8989 4411 Conservation Commission - Katherine Regional Office Conservation Commission - Alice Springs Regional Office |
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