The
history of the Northern Territory began over 40,000
years ago when Indigenous Australians settled the
region. Makassan traders began trading with the
indigenous people of the Northern Territory for
trepang from at least the 18th century onwards, and
very likely for 300 years prior to that, while the
coast of the territory was first seen by Europeans
in the 17th century.
The
British were the first Europeans to attempt to
settle the coastal regions in the 19th century;
however no attempt was successful until the
establishment of a settlement at Port Darwin in
1869. Today the economy is based on tourism,
especially Kakadu National Park in the Top End and
the Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park (Ayers Rock) in
central Australia, and mining.
Kakadu National
Park:
Kakadu National Park is in the Northern Territory of
Australia, 171 km southeast of Darwin. Kakadu
National Park is located within the Alligator Rivers
Region of the Northern Territory of Australia. It
covers an area of 1,980,400 ha (4,894,000 acres),
extending nearly 200 kilometres from north to south
and over 100 kilometres from east to west. It is
about one-third the size of Tasmania, or nearly half
the size of Switzerland.
There
are six main landforms in Kakadu National Park: the
Arnhem Land plateau and escarpment complex, known as
the stone country; the outliers; the lowlands; the
southern hills and basins; the floodplains; and the
tidal flats. Each landform has its own range of
habitats. Kakadu’s varied landscapes and the
habitats they contain are features that contributed
to its listing as a World Heritage Area. Most of
Kakadu was under a shallow sea approximately 140
million years ago, with the escarpment wall formed
from sea cliffs and Arnhem Land from a flat plateau
above the sea.
Currently the escarpment rises 330 metres above the
plateau and extends approximately 500 kilometres
along the East edge of the park and on into Arnhem
Land. The escarpment varies from near vertical
cliffs in the Jim Jim Falls area to isolated
outliers and stepped cliffs in the North.
Chasms
and gorges form a network that dissects the rocky
platforms on the plateau. The plateau top is a
harsh, dry environment where water drains away
quickly and top soil is scarce in most areas Sparse
pockets of open forest and woodlands have developed
in these areas. However creeks have carved deep
gorges in the escarpment in which tall monsoon
forests grow.
These
areas form microclimates for plants and animals and
often serve as a refuge during the dry season.
Allosyncarpia ternata, a large shady tree found only
in the Kakadu and Arnhem Land, is the dominant plant
species.
Uluru - Ayers
Rock:
Uluru is
one of Australia's most recognisable natural icons. The
world-renowned sandstone formation stands 348 m (1,142
ft) high (863 m/2,831 ft above sea level) with most of
its bulk below the ground, and measures 9.4 km (5.8 mi)
in circumference.
Both Uluru
and Kata Tjuta have great cultural significance for the
Aṉangu Traditional landowners, who lead walking tours to
inform visitors about the local flora and fauna, bush
foods and the Aboriginal dreamtime stories of the area.
Uluru is notable for appearing to change colour as the
different light strikes it at different times of the day
and year, with sunset a particularly remarkable sight
when it briefly glows red.
Although
rainfall is uncommon in this semiarid area, during wet
periods the rock acquires a silvery-grey colour, with
streaks of black algae forming on the areas that serve
as channels for water flow. Kata Tjuta, also called
Mount Olga or The Olgas, is another rock formation about
25 km (16 mi) from Uluru. Special viewing areas with
road access and parking have been constructed to give
tourists the best views of both sites at dawn and dusk.
Uluru is
an inselberg, literally "island mountain", an isolated
remnant left after the slow erosion of an original
mountain range. Uluru is also often referred to as a
monolith, although this is a somewhat ambiguous term
because of its multiple meanings, and thus a word
generally avoided by geologists.
The
remarkable feature of Uluru is its homogeneity and lack
of jointing and parting at bedding surfaces, leading to
the lack of development of scree slopes and soil. These
characteristics led to its survival, while the
surrounding rocks were eroded. For the purpose of
mapping and describing the geological history of the
area, geologists refer to the rock strata making up
Uluru as the Mutitjulu Arkose, and it is one of many
sedimentary formations filling the Amadeus Basin.
Kata Tjuta:
Kata Tjuta,
sometimes written Kata Tjuta, and also known
as Mount Olga (or colloquially as The Olgas), are a
group of large domed rock formations located about 365
km southwest of Alice Springs, in the southern part of
the Northern Territory, central Australia.
Uluru, 25
km to the east and Kata Tjuta form the two major
landmarks within the Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park. The
36 domes, covering an area of 21.68 km², are composed of
conglomerate, a sedimentary rock consisting of cobbles
and boulders of varying rock types including granite and
basalt, cemented by a matrix of sandstone.
The
highest point, Mount Olga, is 1066 m above sea level, or
approximately 546 m above the surrounding plain (203 m
higher than Uluru). Kata Tjuta is located at the eastern
end of the Docker River Road.
Kings Canyon:
Kings
Canyon is part of the Watarrka National Park in Northern
Territory, Australia. Sitting at the western end of the
George Gill Range, it is 323 km southwest of Alice
Springs and 1,316 km south of Darwin.
The walls
of Kings Canyon are over 300 metres high, with Kings
Creek at the bottom. Part of the gorge is a sacred
Aboriginal site and visitors are discouraged from
walking off the walking tracks. Two walks exists at
Kings Canyon. The 2 km (return) and approximately 1 hour
Kings Creek Walk traces the bottom of the gorge. At the
end of the walk is a platform, with views of the canyon
walls above.
The 6 km
(loop) and 3-4 hour Kings Canyon Rim Walk traces the top
of the canyon. A steep climb at the beginning of the
walk, which locals call Heartbreak Hill (or Heart Attack
Hill, due to its steepness), takes visitors up to the
top, with spectacular views of the gorge below and of
the surrounding landscape. About half way during the
walk, a detour descends to Garden of Eden, a permanent
waterhole surrounded by lush plant life.
The last
half of the walk passes through a large maze of
weathered sandstone domes, reminiscent of the Bungle
Bungle. A slow descent brings the visitor back to the
starting point. The loop can also be done in reverse
(anti-clockwise), but the National Park Rangers
encourage visitors to walk in one direction. The 22 km
Giles Track connects Kings Canyon to Kathleen Springs
and is popular with more adventurous hikers
This
article is licensed under the
GNU Free Documentation License.
It uses material from the Wikipedia articles:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kakadu
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uluru
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kata_Tjuta
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kings_Canyon,_Northern_Territory
