Day 7 (Ormiston Pound Walk, 9km) – aka the one with the flat white
Today was a much, much more relaxed day, but started with a very cold night. Apparently it was -2 degrees in Alice and it would have been colder out here – my water bottle had frozen bits in it and the toilet hand wash bucket was frozen across the top when I went to use it first thing, and I needed to bash it with a hiking pole to wash my hands!
Breakfast was at 7am, a veritable lie-in, and we left camp at 8.30 as the usual night before ritual of water bottles and packing for the day’s walk was of course left to the morning, but we knew it was going to be a much shorter walk so nobody was worried. We piled into the troopie and drove back to Ormiston Gorge, where we were to do the Ormiston Pound Walk. This is known as the best side walk on the Larapinta and is a 9km circular walk – so very short compared to previous days (especially yesterday) but an absolute stunner!
Along the way, we saw a Perentie, a type of goanna which the internet tells me is Australia’s largest lizard. Sam said he’s been looking for one for the whole of the season, but he missed it as he was at the back of the group and it skulked off by the time he reached where it had been!
The walk circles and takes its name from a huge “pound” where cattle were once kept with natural walls on 2-3 sides. A couple of km are through the Ormiston Gorge itself, which was magical. There are so many colours in the red rock, the reflections in the water were mirror perfect, and the ghost gums clinging onto the cliffs at crazy angles were extraordinary. Out of the gorge, we headed up to the right and the Ghost Gum Lookout, which had spectacular views back to where we’d come from, then down concrete stairs (Concrete! What is that?) to the car park.
Lunch was one of the best of the trip – a deconstructed sushi bowl which we each assembled before leaving camp – not something I’d ever expect to eat on a hike!
Along the way, we saw quite a few other people and far more than any previous days – they were mostly groups (a fancy World Ex one and another company) but a few people off their own bat too. I’d certainly recommend it as a short/medium day hike if ever in the area.
Once back in the car park, we bought coffee at the cafe (a PROPER FLAT WHITE!) and then enjoyed a wonderful swim in the gorge which was much warmer than Birthday and Ellery. Then back in the troopie and a 20 minute drive to our next and final camp at Finke River. There I found a lovely spot amongst the bufflegrass – just room for one swag and one tent, in my own little part of the site. It would do nicely as my home for the last two nights of the trip!
Day 8 (Section 11a, 17km) – aka the one where we walked into the sun
It may not have felt all that cold last night ,but it was effing freezing this morning – the condensation inside my swag had frosted as it got cooler towards dusk, along with the water left on my toothbrush! After the lie-in yesterday, we were afforded no such luxury today – we were into the troopie at 7.30 to drive to the middle of Section 11 (including some fairly serious 4WDing along the way that gave us a shake and ensured we were still awake!) and then walk the 17km back into camp.
It was the first time we’d walked west to east (other than the out and back day 1), and it was disorientating to have sun in our faces rather than at our backs in the morning but it transpired that it was the much the better way to do this section – the World Ex guys know what they are doing! Due to its length, Section 11 is one of two sections that it’s very common to do across two days, with Section 9 (which we knocked out in a day!) the other.
It had warmed up a fair bit by the time we started walking – I felt OK in a t-shirt and a thin long-sleeved top despite how cold it had felt a couple of hours earlier. We enjoyed 4km of “Larapinta flat” before hitting what we knew was the only climb of the day, but it was a fairly big one. It was my turn for the radio again meaning I took the lead and everyone else had to walk at my plod pace! There were amazing views of Mt Sonder throughout, especially at the top (originally named Hill Top Lookout) and we looked forward with some trepidation (keep reading to find out why the trepidation) to returning the next day. It was great to knock off the climb while it was still cool, but afterwards I switched to shorts – mostly because they were much, much cleaner than my trousers. I was very much getting to the stage of wearing what stank the least!
From the top, we walked along a ridge and then down a steep descent (I was very glad we were not climbing that!) with a howling gale into our faces. In the wind, we were lucky that the path was quite wide, unlike some of our other ridge walks. After the descent and about 8km into the day, we hit the flat – and this was true flat, not Larapinta flat! We had lunch around 12km in at a lovely shady spot by a river., then turned off the path at 16km to cut across to the campsite, across a wide creek. Thanks to Ollie, we managed to keep our feet dry!
We got into camp at a very civilised 1.30pm. I enjoyed a paddle (which doubled as a bit of a wash) in the Finke River, read a book in the sun, made breakfast of nutella croissants and hard-boiled eggs, and packed for the next day’s walk up Mount Sonder. This was to be a 2.25am departure to get to the top before sunrise, and we were told to take all our warm clothes as it would be baltic at the top. Eep!
After packing, we enjoyed the entree of sun-dried tomato damper cooked in the camp oven, which was nothing short of spectacular, along with the last beer of the trip while looking at the sunset across the creek. It was weird to think I’d be in Alice Springs at the same time tomorrow, and I was sad at the idea of leaving this world behind. The main event of roast chicken and root veggies was just as good as the damper, and the addition of fruit salad made it a three course meal!
After dinner, I suddenly felt light-headed – I think I had seen too much sun and had an allergic reaction to something. I crashed out at a record early time of 7pm in the hope of knocking it on the head and being ready for Sonder the next morning.
Day 9 (Section 12, 16km) – aka the one with the Sonder Sunrise
Section 12 is probably the most famous one on the Larapinta, the ascent (and of course descent) of Mount Sonder, the westernmost stage of the trail. It is customary to do it mega early to be at the top for sunrise, and after doing it I can see why, because (spoiler alert!) it was spectacular!
My alarm went off at 1.50am for a 2.25am departure. Thankfully, I felt a lot better than the night before and had slept pretty well. I threw on hiking clothes, put my contact lenses in at a record early time, chucked the last things in bag including several warm layers, went to the loo and got into the troopie. Thankfully, we would return to camp afterwards to pack up.
It was a half hour drive to Redbank Gorge, the base of the Sonder walk, from where we would walk up the western side. As instructed, we took layers off as we’d be going steeply uphill, and we started walking before 3.15am. All very surreal!
We’d been well briefed – it was 8km each way, with the ascent divided into three sections – 3km steep, 3km flatter, 2km steeper again to the top. We’d charged or replaced our headtorch batteries for maximum power. Sam led the way at a deliberate slow pace (a plod with minimal stopping suited me perfectly!), while the person at the rear had a red light around her neck so Sam could see we were all there.
After an hour, we reached the top of the first section, and stopped for a Nutella-filled croissant and a breather (with a puffer jacket thrown on). We saw the red moon rising in the distance, which was magical. But it was a slim crescent so it was probably the darkest sky we’d had all trip. There were a couple of other groups ahead of us, so could see how steep each little part of the climb was by seeing how far up the nearest collection of headlights was!
We proceeded onwards to the second section, which took another hour or so, and then had another short break and another croissant. It was getting a bit breezy and cooler, so I put on my waterproof jacket as wind protection. I had carried it around all 140kms of the trip so far, and this was the first time I wore it!
We started to see a bit of light and that there were some clouds forming overhead, and hoped (correctly, as it happened) that the clouds would enhance the sunrise. As we got fairly close to the top, the first red light peeped over the horizon, and this spread as we walked. I was close to the back and got a couple of photos of the incredible red sky with my friends walking ahead towards the bulk of the peak.
We reached the top (the “belly button” – the very top “breasts” of the pregnant lady are an indigenous sacred site) around 6.40am, 30 min before sunrise but the light was already fabulous. I put more clothes on, but it wasn’t nearly as cold as expected based on the previous couple of mornings. I enjoyed two cups of tea and a Tim tam dunked in each, while many photos were taken, and one of our group set up a time lapse on his phone which turned out brilliantly. It was fairly busy with other groups also around, but there were some fabulous views nonetheless and the other side of the mountain was lovely too.
We let the other groups head down first and then started making our way down around 7.45am. We just stopped once other than to take layers off and change headgear (this was essential as the sun got to work!), and it was nice to see everything we didn’t on the way up. But in the end, it felt like a bit of a slog. Perhaps the relentless down, or perhaps it was the knowledge that this was it – the last walk of the trip. It hurt a bit now too, because it could – my body didn’t have to “get up” for it again.
We had our final photo next to the sign at the bottom by the car park, then got into the troopie and back to camp, where Ollie was putting the finishing touches to brunch. And brunch was wonderful – scrambled egg, halloumi, mushrooms, bacon and toast. After that, packed up (oh god, everything stinks!) and got out of about 12.30.
An 80s/90s playlist accompanied the two-hour ride back to Alice, and we were demob happy but with a tinge of sadness that it was over – and a touch of the “Sonder Sillies” we’d been warned about due to the very early start. With mixed feelings, I took my phone off airplane mode and sent a few messages (mostly with Sonder sunset photos attached) to family and friends. The bubble was burst.
At the hotel, we said a fond farewell and profuse thanks to Sam and Ollie, who had been nothing short of wonderful – super knowledgeable, great fun, generous with their time, patient, and exceptional exponents of the camp oven!
The best thing about the return to civilisation was a hot shower, where I remained for a long, long time. I then met the rest of the group in the bar for a few beers and we headed for our farewell dinner at Indian restaurant, Hanuman. Even though there was no camp oven in sight, it was still delicious, and lovely to spend one final evening with my new friends. But boy was I ready for bed once we’d finished eating.
My 9 days on the Larapinta Trail genuinely constitute one of the best things I have ever done. I am putting the finishing touches to this blog nearly 5 months later and it’s been wonderful to look through the photos again and reminisce – I hope to be back one day, and perhaps I’ll even tackle it end to end!
Jump to: Intro | Part 1 (days 1-3) | Part 2 (days 4-6)
Trains, Tim Tams and Test Matches 