Walpa Gorge Walk

Moderate

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An out-and-back walk into the gorge between two of the tallest domes of Kata Tjuta, with drinking water at the carpark.

☰ Trail details

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Distance

1.31 km

Est. time

35 min

Elevation gain

133 m

Route type

Out & back

Steepest stretch: +82m over ~300m (around the 0.8km mark)

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In an emergency

Call 000 for police, fire or ambulance — Australia's emergency number works even with a weak signal, and without a SIM if any carrier has coverage.

You're in Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park, Central Australia, NT. Mobile reception in this area is not guaranteed — this is exactly why the offline map and GPS position on this page work without signal.

Tell someone your plan and expected return time before you set off. A PLB is the most reliable backup where there's no reception at all.

Tracks & plans

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Species to look for on this trail

Ancient trees and rare flora confirmed in this park. Spot one? Add it as a sighting pin below.

Mulga

Acacia aneura

Signature arid-zone acacia▾

Signature arid-zone acacia

A variable shrub or small tree, typically 2.5-7 m tall, that dominates vast tracts of inland Australia and gives its name to the 'mulga country' bioregion. Its flat, narrow phyllodes conserve water and its cylindrical yellow flower spikes appear after rain.

How to spot it

Flat, narrowly linear-to-elliptic grey-green phyllodes 40-100 mm long standing near-vertical to reduce sun exposure; bright yellow cylindrical flower spikes 15-25 mm long; flat, winged seed pods.

Family Fabaceae · Source: Wikipedia: Acacia aneura

Mark Marathon, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Desert Oak

Allocasuarina decaisneana

Iconic tree of the Uluru-Kata Tjuta dune fields▾

Iconic tree of the Uluru-Kata Tjuta dune fields

A slow-growing, long-lived tree of Central Australia's sand dune country, known to the Anangu as kurkara, reaching 10-16 m with deeply furrowed corky bark and drooping, sheoak-like foliage. Mature desert oak woodlands are a defining feature of the plains around Uluru and Kata Tjuta.

How to spot it

Thick, deeply furrowed corky bark on mature trees; long drooping branchlets to 500 mm with tiny scale leaves in whorls of four; cylindrical woody cones present year-round. Young trees are narrow and spire-like before broadening with age.

Family Casuarinaceae · Source: Wikipedia: Allocasuarina decaisneana

Genet, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Lobed Spinifex

Triodia basedowii

Blue-grey hummock grass of the red centre▾

Blue-grey hummock grass of the red centre

A tussock-forming hummock grass widespread across the sandy plains and dunes of Central Australia, distinguished by its blue-grey foliage. Green-to-purple flower scapes rise above the dense foliage at almost any time of year.

How to spot it

Compact, blue-grey hummocks up to 1.3 m, contrasting with the greener clumps of Triodia pungens; long flowering scapes bearing green-to-purple flowers; grows on red sandy soils and dune country.

Family Poaceae · Source: Wikipedia: Triodia basedowii

Kevin Thiele, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Honeysuckle Grevillea

Grevillea juncifolia

Nectar-rich desert shrub▾

Nectar-rich desert shrub

A bushy shrub or small tree, 2-7 m tall, of inland Australia's sandplains and stony hills, with erect needle-like leaves and clusters of bright yellow-to-orange flowers rich in nectar. Peak flowering runs from June to November.

How to spot it

Linear leaves 100-300 mm long and only 1-2 mm wide; branched flower clusters of 15-50 bright yellow-orange blooms; hairy seed follicles 15-29 mm long.

Family Proteaceae · Source: Wikipedia: Grevillea juncifolia

Mark Marathon, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Desert Bloodwood

Corymbia opaca

Red-barked tree of the Alice Springs ranges▾

Red-barked tree of the Alice Springs ranges

A tree of Central Australia's desert ranges, 3-15 m tall, with rough, tessellated reddish-brown bark and creamy-white flowers. Several parts of the plant have long been used in Aboriginal traditional medicine.

How to spot it

Rough, dark reddish-brown tessellated bark on the trunk; lance-shaped adult leaves 110-190 mm long; club-shaped flower buds in groups of seven; urn-shaped woody fruit capsules. Grows on sandy alluvial soils on lower hillslopes.

Family Myrtaceae · Source: Wikipedia: Corymbia opaca

Mark Marathon, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Wildlife you might see on this trail

Animals confirmed in this park. Spot one? Add it as a sighting pin below.

Bilby

Macrotis lagotis

Endangered — AUS: Vulnerable, NSW: Extinct, QLD: Endangered, SA: Vulnerable, WA: Vulnerable, NT: Vulnerable▾

Endangered — AUS: Vulnerable, NSW: Extinct, QLD: Endangered, SA: Vulnerable, WA: Vulnerable, NT: Vulnerable

Macrotis is a genus of desert-dwelling marsupial omnivores known as bilbies or rabbit-bandicoots; they are members of the order Peramelemorphia.

How to spot it

Real occurrence confirmed near Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park (Atlas of Living Australia, 1969) — no separate physical description was available on Wikipedia for this species, see the source link for more.

Family Thylacomyidae · Source: Atlas of Living Australia + Wikipedia: Bilby

Yellow Chat

Epthianura crocea

Endangered — QLD: Vulnerable, NT: Endangered▾

Endangered — QLD: Vulnerable, NT: Endangered

The yellow chat is a small passerine bird endemic to Australia. They are known for their remarkable adaptions that aid their survival in their arid habitat.

How to spot it

Real occurrence confirmed near Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park (Atlas of Living Australia, 2018) — no separate physical description was available on Wikipedia for this species, see the source link for more.

Family Meliphagidae · Source: Atlas of Living Australia + Wikipedia: Epthianura crocea

Red-Tailed Phascogale

Phascogale calura

Endangered — AUS: Vulnerable, NSW: Extinct, VIC: Vulnerable, SA: Endangered, WA: Conservation Dependent, NT: Vulnerable▾

Endangered — AUS: Vulnerable, NSW: Extinct, VIC: Vulnerable, SA: Endangered, WA: Conservation Dependent, NT: Vulnerable

The red-tailed phascogale, also known as the red-tailed wambenger, red-tailed mousesack, or kenngoor, is a small, carnivorous marsupial found in inland areas of south-western Western Australia, and has been reintroduced in sanctuaries in WA and the Northern Territory. It is listed as near threatened by the IUCN Red List and vulnerable under the federal EPBC Act, and its status varies between extinct and conservation-dependent under respective legislation in other states and territories of Australia.

How to spot it

The red-tailed phascogale is smaller and browner than its close relative, the brush-tailed phascogale. It is around 10 cm (3.9 in) long and weighs about 60 g (2.1 oz). As in the brush-tailed phascogale, male red-tailed phascogales die following their first mating as a result of stress-related diseases.

Family Dasyuridae · Source: Atlas of Living Australia + Wikipedia: Phascogale calura

Short-Tailed Hopping-Mouse

Notomys amplus

Endangered — AUS: Extinct, SA: Endangered, WA: Extinct, NT: Extinct▾

Endangered — AUS: Extinct, SA: Endangered, WA: Extinct, NT: Extinct

The short-tailed hopping mouse is an extinct species of mouse in the family Muridae, endemic to the central and western arid zones of Australia. It inhabited open stony (gibber) plains with desert grasses, low shrubs and sand ridges in the area around Charlotte Waters, near Alice Springs in Central Australia. The last record is from June 1896. Only two complete specimens were collected, probably from Aboriginal Australians. It was among the largest Australian hopping mice, with an estimated body mass of around 80 grams, roughly twice that of extant species, although fossil evidence suggests the extinct great hopping mouse may have been of similar size. The short-tailed hopping mouse was predominantly brown in color, its tail probably being as long as its body. This species' decline was due to a number of factors, some of which were being hunted by predators such as foxes, cats and habitat alterations.

How to spot it

Real occurrence confirmed near Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park (Atlas of Living Australia, 1983) — no separate physical description was available on Wikipedia for this species, see the source link for more.

Family Muridae · Source: Atlas of Living Australia + Wikipedia: Notomys amplus

Wedge-tailed eagle

Aquila audax

IUCN Least Concern — common but iconic▾

IUCN Least Concern — common but iconic

The wedge-tailed eagle is Australia's largest bird of prey, with a wingspan of up to 2.84 metres. Once persecuted as a livestock threat, it is now widespread and secure across virtually every Australian habitat from desert to alpine woodland.

How to spot it

Unmistakable in flight: a huge dark raptor with a long, diamond-shaped tail, often seen soaring high on thermals over open or rocky country. Adults are blackish-brown with tawny-rufous hackles on the neck; juveniles are paler and more rufous. Despite its size, its call is a surprisingly thin, high whistle.

Family Accipitridae · Source: Wikipedia

Photo: JJ Harrison (CC BY-SA 3.0) via Wikimedia Commons

Perentie

Varanus giganteus

IUCN Least Concern — Australia's largest monitor lizard▾

IUCN Least Concern — Australia's largest monitor lizard

The perentie is Australia's largest lizard and the world's fourth-largest living lizard species, reaching up to 2.5 metres in length. It's a shy, wide-ranging predator of the remote rocky arid interior, rarely encountered simply because of how sparsely populated its desert habitat is.

How to spot it

Huge for a lizard — up to 2.5m nose to tail — with a cream-and-black reticulated head and neck, a yellowish body patterned with brown rosettes, and dark, white-spotted limbs. Look for it basking near rocky outcrops and gorges in the arid interior; if disturbed it will bolt for the nearest crevice or tree, or rear up on its hind legs to look around.

Family Varanidae · Source: Wikipedia

Photo: Bernard DUPONT (CC BY-SA 2.0) via Wikimedia Commons

Thorny devil

Moloch horridus

IUCN Least Concern — arid-zone icon▾

IUCN Least Concern — arid-zone icon

The thorny devil is a small, spine-covered lizard of Australia's arid interior, its entire body armoured in conical thorns for defence. Its ridged scales channel dew and rain straight to its mouth, letting it drink from damp sand alone.

How to spot it

Unmistakable: a small lizard (up to 21cm) entirely covered in hard conical spines, in mottled desert browns and tans that darken or pale with temperature and mood. It has a bizarre false 'head' — a spiny knob on the back of its neck — which it presents to predators while hiding its real head. Moves with a slow, jerky rock-and-freeze gait across sandy desert country, mostly on warm days when the ants it feeds on are active.

Family Agamidae · Source: Wikipedia

Photo: Bäras (CC BY-SA 3.0) via Wikimedia Commons

Central bearded dragon

Pogona vitticeps

IUCN Least Concern — iconic arid-zone dragon▾

IUCN Least Concern — iconic arid-zone dragon

The central bearded dragon is a robust, spiny lizard of the semi-arid and arid woodlands of central Australia, named for the spiky, inflatable throat pouch ('beard') it darkens and flares as a threat and social display. It has since become one of the world's most popular pet reptiles, but the wild population remains a genuine outback local.

How to spot it

A stocky, flattened lizard up to 60cm long (over half of that tail), mottled in browns, reds, yellows and greys that shift with temperament and background. Look for it basking on fence posts, rocks or dead branches in open woodland during the cooler morning and evening, flattening its body and puffing out its spiny black 'beard' if it feels threatened.

Family Agamidae · Source: Wikipedia

Photo: Frank C. Müller, Baden-Baden (CC BY-SA 2.5) via Wikimedia Commons