"Country is always calling," our tour guide Benjamin (Benji) Kenny said on the first day of our immersive trip with Indigenous-owned tourism enterprise, 100% Finke River Culture and Adventure.

Those words set the tone as we set out early for a hike to Thwatharra gorge, located on the Western Arrente community homeland, Rodna, around 120km west of Mparntwe (Alice Springs).

Mr Kenny had much to show us, knowledge to share, and stories to tell.

As we walked on the red dirt, each step grounding us in the landscape's history and culture we reached our first destination, the bank of the Finke River, where he told us the story of the giant dogs—his totem.

Mr Kenny spoke of how the Finke River is a place where the spiritual dogs gather and how many visitors to Rodna have had similar dreams, where they find themselves becoming the dog, connected deeply to the spirit of the land.

When we came upon a tree with red sap seeping from its bark, he shared a Dreamtime story about the giant dogs chasing two goannas; Known for digging holes all over the landscape, the goannas were pursued by the dogs, and the red sap symbolised the blood of the goannas, forever etched into the trees as part of the land's story.

We then arrived at an unusual rock formation known as "Money spot," named for the coins occasionally found around it. Mr Kenny explained that, back in the Ice Age, this very formation had been part of a glacier.

The rock itself was perched on a hill, the rugged side, jagged and rough, contrasted sharply with the smooth surface on the other side—smooth enough to imagine the icy slide it might have once been.

"It looked like someone came with a laser and cut the top part of the rocks. You can see where it's flat, there was a piece to it," said Mr Kenny.

"So, with the school groups, like the teachers explained it, how it happened…over thousands of years ago there used to be a glacier when all this was covered by ice, and it showed evidence of where it cut the top part of the area."

The most captivating story Mr Kenny shared was about the Seven Sisters, known as the "dancing ladies" who appear throughout Aboriginal culture. These ancestral beings were sky people who descended to Earth, only to be pursued by a group of men.

For the men, it was the first time they had ever seen women, and they were overcome with desire. However, the Seven Sisters managed to escape, evading their pursuers, and their story became an enduring part of the land's cultural fabric.

While Mr Kenny told the story, he pointed out a series of rocks lined up beside each other, explaining that these rocks represent the Seven Sisters—the dancing ladies.

In front of them were more rocks, symbolising the men and women in the ceremony—an ancient tradition marking the transformation of young boys into men.

"This is a reenactment of what the ladies are doing in a straight line and the men and women are singing and the ladies they dance to set the boys free to become men," said Mr Kenny.

When we reached the breathtaking Thwatharra gorge, Mr Kenny showed us a traditional way to welcome ourselves to the land.

He instructed us to pick up a rock, throw it into the river, and then wash our faces with the water, a gesture of respect and connection to the land and its spirits.

It made for a perfect Day 1 for our journey; combining unique cultural experiences and insights with a stunning natural landscape.

Note: The author was a guest of the 100% Finke River Culture and Adventure and Intrepid Travel.