Singapore to Sydney

The hills surrounding Alice Springs with the typical spinifex grass covering the dry ground.

The town of Alice Springs is home to around 30,000 people, nestled between the ridges of the West and East MacDonnell ranges.

From the air it is easy to see how the MacDonnell Ranges have been eroded and weathered to the form they take now - each gap in the range has been forged by rivers.

The dried up bed of the Todd River which once ran through Alice Springs. Once a year, the Henley-on-Todd regatta is held here; a festival where revellers gather for a 'boat race' on the dry river.

Rivers cut their way through the ridges of the MacDonnell Ranges creating gaps in the mountain.

Gorges and gaps in the MacDonnell mountains provide habitats for a diversity of species.

The shady gorges enable plant and animal species to thrive in the cooler climate.

Along the length of the MacDonnell Ranges gaps cut through the ridges, created by rivers that have since dried up.

Heavitree Gap on the northern boundary of Alice Springs is the main route through the mountains and into or out of the town.

From the air, the ridges of the MacDonnell Ranges are obvious, stretching for more than 220 kilometres.

The ridges of the MacDonnell Ranges can be seen clearly in this false-colour satellite image. The range was created by faulting and thrusting of the Earth's crust.

Some of the tallest peaks along the 223km long MacDonnell Ranges.

From the air it is easy to see how the MacDonnell Ranges have been eroded and weathered to the form they take now - each gap in the range has been forged by rivers.

Alice Springs, the 'centre of Australia', is also the mid-point along the Ghan trainline. The red line represents the route of the Ghan, while the blue route is the Indian Pacific, linking Sydney with Perth.

The Ghan at its final destination, Darwin. The northern extension opened in 2004, finally completing the cross-country train line.

The Ghan train navigating its way through the MacDonnell Ranges that surround Alice Springs at the centre of the line.

The Ghan at Alice Springs station. This is the only train route in and out of Alice Springs, carrying passengers between Adelaide in the south and Darwin in the north.

This map shows the original route of the Ghan train, in gold, compared with the current Ghan route, in red - completed in 2004.

The Ghan railway follows the route of the original Overland Telegraph Line that connects the north and south coasts of Australia.

1870 - Engraving of the planting of the first Overland Telegraph pole. The line was completed in two years.

One of the longest ridges in the MacDonnell Ranges passes north of Alice Springs. The Heavitree Gap allows transport and communication lines to travel north of the town.

The Ghan train was originally named the Afghan Express after the Afghan camel trains that first penetrated central Australia.

The first train on the new track extension which links Alice Springs and Darwin, opened in January 2004.

The Overland Telegraph Line has been upgraded since its original poles were constructed in 1872, but they still follow the same path.

The railway line runs through Alice Springs, following the line of the Overland Telegraph Line.

Gosses Bluff crater stretches five kilometres across, and the ridge reaches heights of 180 metres. It is thought that it was originally 22 kilometres wide.

According to Arrernte Dreaming, Gosses Bluff, or Tnorala, was created by a fallen star, symbolising the baby of the Evening and Morning Stars falling to Earth in a basket.

The enormous Gosses Bluff crater is dwarfed by the surrounding ridges of the MacDonnell Ranges.

The Arrernte use the brightly coloured ochre found in the MacDonnell Ranges for artwork and bodypaint.

Ochre from pits such as this across the MacDonnell Ranges have been used by the Arrernte for thousands of years for painting.

1920 - An Arrernte man in a hut made of porcupine grass that protects him from the heat of the central Australian sun.

Gosses Bluff is thought to have been the result of a meteor impact 142 million years ago.

Gosses Bluff crater would have had a much more pronounced rim and a central peak, which have been worn down by millenia of erosion and weathering.

c. 1922 - An Arrernte boy holding a toy shield. The Arrernte are the original land owners of this part of Australia.

Standley Chasm is one of the most dramatic examples of the spectacular geology of the MacDonnell Ranges.

1920 - Kai Kai, an Arrernte doctor, was present at the time of the first white people to reach the region in the 1860s. Not long after, the Overland Telegraph Line was built.

Many of the gorges of MacDonnell Ranges display paintings from the Arrente people.