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The facilities along the Larapinta Trail are quite good and provide walkers with most, if not all, the essentials (namely water) to complete the walk comfortably. In fact, without the water tanks at each trailhead and some intermediate points it would be near impossible to complete the trail. In any case, the facilities are continuously being improved by Parks ( i.e. like the new trailheads at Jay Creek and Finke River) to provide walkers with modern and practical facilities |
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There are trailheads at each section start point |
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Water Tanks are located at each trailhead |
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The trail is well sign posted |
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Most sections have basic shelters |
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Most sections have basic toilets (open pit) |
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There are bush campsites along each section |
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Most trailheads have gas BBQ’s |
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Shower Facilities: Standley Chasm & Ormiston Gorge (Main Campground) |
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| Most of the Larapinta Trail campsites (not to be confused with the main national park campgrounds) are found at each trailhead or intermediate point. |
| The campsites are often poorly marked (there are no signs which clearly indicate where you can camp or put your tent). The most obvious campsite indicator is where walkers have cleared areas for their tents. Campsites can also be found in between trailhead and intermediate points such as Brinkley’s Bluff |
| A campsite matrix is coming soon |
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 Tent Pads |
| Tend Pads (pictured below) are found along many parts of the trail. Some are under sheltered areas, others are in the open. They are a solid wood construction about 3ft off the ground and wide enough to place a two-person tend on top of it. |
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 Tables & Chairs |
| Wooden table and chairs are not common along the trail, but a few places have them such as Mulga Camp (S2) and Simpsons Gap (S2). You will find most the table and chair duo at major visitor use areas such as Ormiston, Simpsons Gap, Ellery Creek and Redbank Gorge. |
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There are a number of BBQ and fire places around the national park and the trail and ALL are in clearly designated areas. Park Rangers have gone to great lengths to ensure these facilities are available. NOTE: It is strictly prohibited to have open fires outside these points |
 Gas BBQ |
 Open Fireplaces |
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| Parks have provided free gas BBQ's at a number of locations along the trail. The gas BBQ's provide excellent alternative to using your own gas stoves (and plundering nearby natural resources for open fires). |
Open fires, as a park rule, are restricted to only designated areas along the trail or the national park. Fires are NOT permitted anywhere else and Parks discourages walkers from having campfires. |
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 Trail Markers |
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| The trail is marked by matt green metallic posts with blue rectangular arrows on a white background. They are generally spaced every 1km, but in some sections, like Section 12, they can often be between 200m-300m apart. Every so often a marker will have the total distance remaining on the entire trail and will frequently show how many kilometres remain for that section. |
| Multiple Trail markers ( see image below left) which have both a blue and red triangle indicate smaller trails (not part of the Larapinta Trail) leading off it. Some of these secondary or additional 'linked' trails include the magnificent Ormiston Pound Walk. |
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| Other Trail Signage |
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 Interpretation
(Interp) Boards |
| Interp boards, large and small, are mostly concentrated around the main car park areas of Ormiston Gorge (S10), Ellery Creek (S6) and Simpson Gap (S2). The interp boards provide fantastic illustrations with good information about flora, fauna, history and some do;'s and don't's |
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Advisory Boards |
| Advisory Boards have been placed along some sections of the trail to provide warnings, recommendations or instructions in sensitive, restricted or key areas concerning health and safety, cultural heritage or environmental protection. |
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Junction Signage |
| Permanent signs have been placed at main junction areas, the most obvious junction point being at Section 3 (Tangentyere Junction and Millers Flat) where walkers can decide to take the higher or lower route option. |
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| At the start of each section there are permanent trailheads providing walkers with information and advice on the upcoming section. These are large metallic boards with information on distance, going, health and safety and occasionally, information on flora and fauna. |
| There are also perplex/glass fixtures which contain updated information (i.e. such as closures, dangers, floods etc...) placed by the Park Rangers and are worth checking for updates or warnings. Each trailhead also has a steel box containing the log book (which we highly recommend you fill out) |
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Intermediate Points are half way points within sections. Intermediate points divide up some of the longer sections and provide walkers with facilities such as water tanks, shelter, campsites and some campsite furniture. Some of these intermediate points include Wallaby Gap (S1), Mulga Camp (S2) and Rocky Gully (S6). |
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 New (Flash Looking) Shelters |
| Parks has constructed two new excellent and stylish shelters at Jay Creek (S2/3) and Finke River (S10/11). There are two platforms inside the shelter which walkers can sleep on. Each platform could hold about 3-4 people. There are tables and chairs, cupboards and BBQ facilities as well. |
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Thatch Roofed Shelters |
| These large (thatch roofed) shelters provide good cover and protection from the sun and reasonably good cover from rain. These types of shelters are the most common along the trail. They are also quite breezy (great during hot days, dreadful during rainy/cold days) |
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Steel Corrugated Roofed Shelters |
| These are similar (in design) to the thatched roof shelters (but corrugated steel instead) and also provide a good place to get away from the sun. A lot better for rain protection, but also breezy and offer little protection from wind. While not as common as thatch roofed shelters, these shelters are nevertheless quite common along the trail.. |
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 Water Tanks |
| Please visit our water page which contains a detailed breakdown of man made and natural water sources along the trail. In summary though, water tanks can be found along all 12 of the trailhead's along the trail and also along some intermediate points. Park Rangers regularly fill these tanks with water throughout the year. |
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| There are three locations to store food for any extended walks. These are: Ellery Creek (storage room located in toilet block), Serpentine Gorge (a creepy looking shed at the trail campsite) and at Ormiston Gorge ( room located at the western end of the Visitors Centre). There is a Larapinta Trail sticker on the doors of each room/shed to identify the food drop facility. |
| Each facility is locked. Keys are available from the Tourism Central Australia Visitor Centre and a refundable deposit of $50 is required. Food can also be left at Standley Chasm, but walkers will need to seek permission from the owners. |
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 Bush Toilets (Unisex) |
| Bush toilets are located at all trailhead's except at Section 5 and 6. They are your standard, drop pit, smelly bush dunny, but, are enclosed, have a dunny seat and in most places, toilet paper - which is pretty good considering. Flushing toilets are only found at major trailheads like Simpson's Gap (S2), Standley Chasm (S4) and Ormiston Gorge (S10). |
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Website Updated January 2012 | Site Developed, Managed and Owned by Explorers Australia |
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