Dalhousie Springs Campground, Witjira National Park

Situated almost 900 km north-west of Port Augusta, on the western edge of the Simpson Desert, is Witjira National Park. The park is home to more than 120 mound springs, including the National Heritage-listed Dalhousie Springs, used by Aboriginal people for thousands of years as a source of food, shelter and medicine. Dalhousie Springs’ Main Pool is open for swimming, and with a year-round temperature of about 37 degrees, it’s the perfect spot to unwind. Dalhousie Springs are part of a chain of mound springs extending along the outer rim of the Great Artesian Basin. The artesian water rises up from a considerable depth through cracks and fissures in the subterranean strata. At the point of exit, the water, which originally entered the complex system in the Finke River area in the Northern Territory, is millions of years old.