Discover the Northern Territory and Explore the Geodiversity of Karlu Karlu the Devils Marbles
- Wayne Munday
- Apr 18
- 3 min read
Updated: Apr 19
Sip back and discover the Northern Territory of Australia and explore the geodiversity of Karlu Karlu or the Devils Marbles. This geologically and culturally significant site is located 96 Km south of Tennant Creek and roughly a 4 hour drive north from Alice Springs on the Stuart Highway. Karlu Karlu is a 18Km2 Conservation Reserve featuring clusters of scattered and massively rounded granite boulders that began to take shape from between 1.6 - 1.7 billion years ago during the Paleoproterozoic Era. Molten magma upwelled and intruded a layer of sandstone to form granite. The weight of the sandstone caused the granite to fracture into rectangular blocks. Over millions of years the overlying sandstone was weathered and eroded away by the influence of wind, water and temperature fluctuations. The outer layers of the granite blocks were gradually peeled away and rounded-off due to extreme temperature variation between day and night by the process of exfoliation. Karlu Karlu holds a deep spiritual significance for the First Nation Aboriginal Australians of the Warumungu, Alyawarre, Kaytetye and Warlpiri peoples.
The name Karlu Karlu translates to “round boulders” and these boulders are composed of predominantly of arkosic granite a coarse-grained rock rich in quartz, feldspar and mica. The landscape of Karlu Karlu still today continues to change over time as the boulders are actively being eroded by the elements.
Entry into Karlu Karlu requires an NT Parks Pass before you visit the Karlu Karlu / Devils Marbles Conservation Reserve as you will not be able to pay on arrival.
The area is under Aboriginal custodianship and the entire reserve is listed as a registered sacred site where the traditional owners have requested that visitors do not climb the boulders. The most recommended bush trail to take and experience Karlu Karlu is the Nurrku Walk a 3.5 Km with a modest elevation gain of only 56 meters.
The deeply spiritual Dreamtime stories of the traditional custodians of Karlu Karlu explain how the Karlu Karlu boulders were formed. The Dreaming tells a story of interconnectedness between all things including humans with the land and the spiritual realm. The Karlu Karlu boulders are believed to be the eggs of the Rainbow Serpent a powerful ancestral being in Aboriginal mythology.
The Rainbow Serpent is a powerful and sacred figure and is widely regarded as a creator deity and guardian of water. Prominent in Dreamtime stories and Aboriginal art is the Rainbow Serpent shaping the land, forming waterways and landforms during the Dreamtime.
As a water guardian it is believed to inhabit and travel between waterholes even during drought and plays a crucial role in maintaining the natural order and fertility through its presence in water.
The Karlu Karlu story tells of the Rainbow Serpent passing through this area of the Northern Territory during the Dreamtime. As the Rainbow Serpent travelled through the region it laid its eggs in the soft sandstone that would later hardened an weathered into the massive round granite boulders.
As the Rainbow Serpent is a creator, life giver but also a guardian its presence in the region gives Karlu Karlu the status as a living spiritual site.
Karlu Karlu is located in the arid heart of the Northern Territory and supports a diverse range of flora and fauna specially adapted to its desert conditions and granite landscape. Among its birds are the Zebra Finches, Painted Finches and Fairy Martins who build bottle-shaped mud nests under boulder overhangs.
The crevices between rocks offer shelter and hunting grounds for a number of reptiles including snakes and the small crevice-dwelling Black Headed Goanna and the larger Sand Goanna sheltering in the spiky spinifex grasses and drought-resistant desert shrubs that endure poor soils and intense heat.
Some of the boulders at Karlu Karlu appear to be delicately balanced. Some of the boulders are split cleanly in half whilst others rest on top of one another in seemingly impossible arrangements.
If you are visiting the Northern Territory of Australia consider a visit to Karlu Karlu / the Devil’s Marbles. It has a unique combination of geological significance, biodiversity and cultural depth that makes it a must-see of Australia’s natural and cultural heritage.