Discover the beautiful green oases of Whistleduck Creek and the Old Police Station Waterhole in Davenport Ranges National Park. Shady gums provide a haven for birds and the waters are full of fish. Enjoy swimming and camping in this tranquil area of the Barkly Tablelands.
The Davenport Mountain Range is an important indigenous site. Known as Iytwelepenty, it is the meeting point of the Kaytetye, Warumungu and Alyawarre people’s lands. The lands were settled for cattle farming and mining early in the 20th century and a police station was built to manage stock rustling disputes.
Set up your tent or campervan in the rustic camping grounds of Old Police Station Waterhole and go swimming surrounded by ducks. Take the track from the campsite across to the other side of the water to the ruins of the Old Police Station, now little more than rubble.
Birdwatchers will love Whistleduck Creek’s camping ground, which lies near a semi-permanent waterhole. Green budgerigars flock noisily in the trees at sundown, cormorants dive for fish and emus and Australian bustard birds can be seen by the water. During mating season the male Australian bustards inflate a sac in their necks and make a mating call that resembles a lions’ roar.
The Davenport Ranges National Park is located south of the town of Tennant Creek, 508 kilometres (315.66 miles) north of Alice Springs. More than half of the road to the national park from Tennant Creek is unsealed and navigable by four-wheel drive vehicle only.
Stop off along the drive at the old Hatches Creek mining site. Look out across rusted equipment once used to mine tungsten. You can still see the headframe for the old Pioneer Mine and ruins of miners’ houses. Explore four-wheel drive tracks with an experienced off-road driver. Many of the access tracks are impassable in heavy rain. Check with locals before driving out to the park.