Larapinta Trail hiking guide: route map, stages & where to stay

The Larapinta Trail is Central Australia's great long-distance walk. It follows the rocky spine of the West MacDonnell Ranges, in Tjoritja / West MacDonnell National Park, from the Alice Springs Telegraph Station west to the summit of Mount Sonder (Rutjupma). NT Parks gives the length as 231 km in 12 official sections, graded 3 to 5. There are no huts or lodges on the way: you camp every night at designated campsites, most with a ranger-filled water tank, and you carry your food between food drops.

The route

The trail leaves the Telegraph Station on the edge of Alice Springs, crosses Euro Ridge and reaches Wallaby Gap and Simpsons Gap. Section 2 crosses open mulga country to Jay Creek, and Section 3 climbs through Millers Flat to Standley Chasm, the only private land on the trail. Sections 4 and 5 are the hardest: a steep climb to Brinkley Bluff (1,209 m), long ridge walking to the 4/5 Junction near Birthday Waterhole, and the rough descent into Hugh Gorge, where you may have to wade or swim. Section 6 runs along the plain via Rocky Gully to Ellery Creek North, near Ellery Creek Big Hole. The trail then crosses the Heavitree Range to Serpentine Gorge, climbs to Counts Point and reaches Serpentine Chalet Dam. Section 9, long and dry, passes Inarlanga Pass, Waterfall Gorge and Mt Giles Lookout to Ormiston Gorge. A short Section 10 reaches the Finke River, and Section 11 climbs past Hilltop Lookout and Rocky Bar Gap to Redbank Gorge. The last section climbs Mount Sonder and returns the same way.

This guide follows the route on OpenStreetMap, east to west in the official section order, and splits it into 16 stages, about 13.8 km each, ending at campsites that NT Parks lists in its own itineraries. Stage 16 is shown one way to the summit; walkers return 7.3 km to Redbank Gorge. You can also walk west to east from Redbank Gorge, which many people do.

Highlights

• Brinkley Bluff: a summit campsite at 1,209 m with one of the best sunrises on the trail
• Hugh Gorge: a narrow red gorge with pools you may have to wade or swim through
• Simpsons Gap: black-footed rock-wallabies on the rocks at dusk
• Ellery Creek Big Hole, Serpentine Gorge and Ormiston Gorge: permanent waterholes below red cliffs and ghost gums
• Counts Point: a ridge-top view west along the ranges to Mount Sonder
• Finke River: a wide sandy riverbed lined with river red gums
• Mount Sonder (Rutjupma): the end of the trail and its highest point, usually climbed in the dark to see the sunrise from the summit cairn

When to walk the Larapinta Trail

NT Parks says the best time is April to September. Days are warm and dry; June and July nights can drop below freezing. From October to April temperatures can pass 40°C, and heat illness is a real danger. If you walk in the shoulder season, start at first light, rest in the shade in the middle of the day, drink at least a litre an hour, and postpone if more than 32°C is forecast. Parks can close without notice for bushfire, flooding or heat, so check the Larapinta Trail current conditions page and Bureau of Meteorology warnings before you start. The mountain hakea flowers in September and October.

How many days do you need?

Most end-to-end walkers take 14 to 16 walking days. This guide uses 16: 15 nights on the trail and a final morning on Mount Sonder. NT Parks suggests allowing about 20 days if you add rest days, side trips and resupply stops. Times allow for rocky ground and a heavy pack; the grade 5 sections (4, 5 and 9) take longer than the distance suggests. Many people walk only part of it, such as Ormiston Gorge to Mount Sonder in 3 or 4 days.

Getting there and logistics

Alice Springs has an airport and is on the route of The Ghan train. The Telegraph Station is about 4 km north of the town centre: walk the riverside path or take a short taxi ride. There is no public transport to the trailheads. Book a commercial transfer or arrange a support driver before you go; Redbank Gorge is reached by 5 km of unsealed road off Namatjira Drive, and several trailheads need a high-clearance 4WD. In 2026 the Jay Creek trailhead has no vehicle access, and Glen Helen (Discovery Parks) is closed until further notice, with no food, fuel or rooms.

Bookings and fees: every night on the trail must be booked and paid online at parkbookings.nt.gov.au before you go; you cannot pay in the park. The multi-day walking fee is $25 per person per night, capped at $125 for one walk, and camping costs $10 per adult per night at the category B campsites. Visitors from outside the Northern Territory also need an NT Parks Visitor Pass, for example $45 for one month. Standley Chasm is private and charges its own camping fee.

Water and food: rangers keep tanks filled at Wallaby Gap, Simpsons Gap, Mulga Camp, Jay Creek, the 4/5 Junction, Hugh Gorge, Rocky Gully, Ellery Creek North, Serpentine Gorge, Serpentine Chalet Dam, Finke River, Rocky Bar Gap and Redbank Gorge, with taps at the Telegraph Station and Standley Chasm. Treat all water. Brinkley Bluff, Waterfall Gorge and the other bush camps are dry, and on Section 9 you must carry two days of water. For food, use the lockable storerooms at Ellery Creek South, Serpentine Gorge and Ormiston Gorge (key from the Tourism Central Australia visitor centre, $50 deposit and $10 fee), drop boxes at Standley Chasm ($5 each), or a commercial food-drop service.

Money and phone signal: after Standley Chasm there are no shops or ATMs, and the Ormiston Gorge kiosk closes for the hot season, so buy everything in Alice Springs. Mobile signal is patchy at best: do not rely on your phone.

What to pack

A light tent (there are no huts), a fuel stove (fires are banned), water bottles for a long dry day, a sun hat and sunscreen, a warm sleeping bag for frosty nights, sturdy boots, a toilet kit, a personal locator beacon, blister care and electrolytes.

Difficulty

NT Parks grades the sections 3 (moderate) to 5 (difficult). The track is well marked, but much of it is loose, sharp rock on steep ridges, with long dry stretches. Heat and dehydration are the main dangers, then falls. Tell a trusted person your plan, sign the log books, and in an emergency call 000 or activate your PLB.

History

The ranges are the country of the Western Arrernte people, whose sacred sites lie along the trail; Larapinta is the Arrernte name for the Finke River. The trail was planned in the 1980s by NT park planner Alan Ginns as the centrepiece of the West MacDonnell National Park. In the 1990s it was only half as long; the western part from Ellery Creek to Mount Sonder was finished around 2000. The plan to continue to Mount Zeil was dropped because the country beyond Mount Sonder is too hard to reach for rescues.