MacDonnell Ranges
Tjoritja
Sandstone Spine of the Red Centre
On the lands of the Arrernte people.
schedule 1 min read / Updated Apr 2026
A 644 kilometre east-west sandstone spine running across central Australia, with Alice Springs sitting in a gap in the range. The MacDonnells are home to deep gorges, ochre cliffs, ancient cycad palms, and the 223 kilometre Larapinta Trail.
The MacDonnell Ranges, called Tjoritja by the Arrernte people, are one of the oldest mountain ranges in the world. They were originally formed around 350 million years ago when the central Australian basin was uplifted, and have been weathering ever since. The range runs east-west for 644 kilometres, with Alice Springs in the gap between the West and East MacDonnells.
The West MacDonnells are the more visited half. From east to west they include Simpsons Gap, Standley Chasm (a sliced cleft that lights up red at midday when the sun is directly overhead), Ellery Creek Big Hole (a deep ice-cold permanent waterhole), Serpentine Gorge, Ochre Pits (where the Arrernte traditionally gathered ochre), Ormiston Gorge, Glen Helen, and Redbank Gorge in the far west.
The Larapinta Trail follows the spine of the West MacDonnells for 223 kilometres from the Alice Springs Telegraph Station west to Mount Sonder. It is a challenging multi-day walk and one of the great trails in central Australia. The full trail takes around 14 days, but most walkers do shorter sections.
The East MacDonnells are quieter and include Trephina Gorge, N'Dhala Gorge (with extensive Aboriginal rock engravings), and the Ross River Resort.
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- CSIRO ScienceImage 1744 Central Australian Waterhole.jpg · Robert Kerton, CSIRO · CC BY 3.0
- GlenHelenGorge NorthernTerritory Panorama.jpg · Toby Hudson · CC BY-SA 3.0
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