OurTripDreaming: Day 16 – Ormiston Gorge to Hilltop Lookout Camp (Sections 10 and 11 Larapinta)

Mt Sonder at sunrise, from near Ormiston Pound

We were up at 5:15am and left just after 7am. The path for the majority of Section 10 was a good quality across rolling hills with a few small technical sections. The views of Mt Sonder kept increasing steadily.

We arrived at Finke River trailhead about 10:15am. This is a really pretty campsite with an attractive creek bed to explore. In hindsight we could have walked here yesterday afternoon, rather than remaining in camp at Ormiston Gorge after the pound walk.

https://nt.gov.au/_media/docs/parks/bushwalking-and-hiking/larapinta-trail/larapinta-trail-section-11-information-sheet-and-map.pdf

We took an extended break and filled our water bottles to be able to do a dry camp tonight. We crossed the Finke River, the waterhole was easy to avoid and there was one small muddy patch to cross. The path was easy walking across Mereenie Valley to the next ridge line.

Finke River

When we reached Davenport Creek, there was a large amount of water in the creek, and we needed to explore along the creek downstream (East) to locate a place where we could cross.

Davenport Creek

Today we again saw Australian Ringneck Parrots. From Serpentine Gorge onwards, where we came to the southern side of the Heavitree Range, the underlying soil has not been as hard underfoot as prior.

After crossing the flat plains, we climbed quickly and solidly to Hilltop Lookout - awesome views, particularly of Mt Sonder. At times we were walking along a narrow edge. The climb this afternoon was in full sun and very hot. Once we made the ridgeline there was a light breeze, which helped greatly.