Alice Well
Designation:
Australia-NT_Alice_Well
Location:
| Latitude | Longitude |
|---|---|
-24.898033° | 134.239283° |
Locality and ownership:
Inarme Aboriginal Land Trust. Access road goes through Maryvale Station NT Pastoral Lease 01063.
Access:
Travel 150km SSE of Alice Springs on following the old Ghan railway line. Turn off to a the dry bed of the Hugh Creek.
Local contacts:
None
Nearest services:
Kulgera
Risks:
Flash floods are a potential risk. As well as the area surrounding the river being subject to inundation, flooding may seasonally disrupt access. The high degree of vegetation may make the area subject to periodic fires.
Terrain:
river channels, sand dunes
General:
Site descriptions:
- Lower terrace of Hugh River. This consists of pale, reddish grey quartzite sand, vegetated by large, old, eucalypt trees. The history of this terrace may be established by examining small gullies which have cut into these layered deposits. The river banks are 3-4 metres high.
- Central sandy river channel. The riverbed consists of moderately sorted medium quartz sand. Occasional coarse sand grains and small pebbles are seen on the surface. The sand is built up into sand bars that are progressively moving downstream.
- Cemented gravels. Cemented gravels are visible on the eroded eastern bank of the Hugh river. An outcrop of pebble and cobble comglomerate made up of various sandstone lithologies have been cemented by calcite cement that filled empty pore space. This openwork congolmerate indicates very high velocity flow in the river. This outcrop is 150cm high, the upper 50cm of which was distinctly layered and contained a sandy matrix indicating reducing currrent flow. Downstream, the conglomerates were locally crossbedded.
- Sand dunes. This site is at the tail of a longitudinal dune, eroded portions of which display steep cross-bedding of fine to medium well sorted orange quartz sand. On climbing a sligher sand dune to the east, the grain size decresaed to fine, well sorted, intensely orange sand, rippled on the surface. Tracks and trails of various animals and birds could be seen. The general direction of movement has been from south to north.
Climate:
Average monthly maximum temperature is 38 deg and the average monthly minimum (July) temperature is 6 deg. The average annual rainfall is 150 mm. Nearest BOM Weather Station: Alice Springs
Flora and fauna:
Vegetation is dominated by saltbush (Altriplex spp.), with kerosene grass, blackheads, bindyi and samphire. The larger creeks have groves of river red gum (Eucalyptus camaldulensis), coolabah (Eucalyptus microtheca) and gidgee (Acacia cambagei).
History:
First reached by John McDougal-Stewart in 1861. Formed an important source of water for the overland telegraph of 1871, and following that the old Ghan railway, which ceased operation in 1982.
Analogue value:
The geology is of great interest, although well studied. The craters will serve as excellent analogues for small craters on Mars. The crater walls, sparse vegetation, dry creeks, and rolling plains are potentially a good Marsupial testing surface. The sparse vegetation over much of the area makes this a good visual analogue for Mars. Provided access is possible the area is rated good.
References:
- van Oosterzee, P. A Field Guide to Central Australia. Marleston, SA: J.B. Books, 2000.
Map reference:
Geology
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