[2] From here, the river meanders for about 600 km (370 mi) to the western edge of the Simpson Desert in northern South Australia.

[citation needed] Usually the river is a string of waterholes, but it can become a raging torrent during rare flood events, fed by tropical rains upstream.

[4] After several bridges on the now-closed Central Australia Railway were washed away by floods, rails were laid permanently on the bed of the river.

In February 1953, after two days waiting at Finke township nearby, the river level was low enough for a steam-hauled train – The Ghan – to proceed slowly across.

[5] The Aboriginal name for the river in parts of the Northern Territory, usually taken as Larapinta, may have been incorrectly translated by its first transcriber, the explorer Ernest Giles.

In August 1872, while camped at Charlotte Waters Telegraph Station, Giles was the first "outsider" to record the Arrernte name for the Finke River.

[citation needed] The 2023 six-part documentary series Larapinta looks at the people, stories, and science of the Finke River.

Created by Arrernte and Luritja woman Talia Liddle, the series features historians, scientists, and traditional owners, who share their stories and knowledge.