Day 68

Wednesday 13th May 2015, light breeze wispy cloud, perfect for bushwalking

Karijini National Park

It was as black as pitch last night one of those when you have to feel your way to the bathroom.

At the visitor’s centre we learn about the history of the area and life for the Aborigines after the Europeans arrived. There is a delightful story about a woman who learned to count while mustering sheep, all 29,000 of them. We meet the wife of the elder in charge of the park and she talks of the ‘yah yahing’ in government over what was to become of this land. I reckon she’s right, there’s a lot of yah yahing that goes on in government.

At the Savannah end of the park we check out the Eco Retreat and its cute little glamour tents. 

The lookouts all hang over the cliffs giving spectacular views. We look down hundreds of feet to the valley floor below and count the tiny red and black dots that are walkers in climbing gear in Hancock Gorge. Twenty metre high trees appear tiny. This place is not for the faint hearted and we are constantly reminded of those who have lost their lives in the gorges. There are very few safety rails and we make sure that we don’t go beyond class 4 (experienced) trails. Class 5 is for the mountain goats.

The Joffre Falls are delicate and the gorge is beautiful. We stand and applaud the climbers making their way up. Each gorge seems to be better than the last and at Kalamina Gorge we are able to easily climb down to the valley floor and enter that other world of tall white paperbarks, tessellated ‘pavements’, green rushes, a milky green pool and fairy like falls. The gorge walls soar high above us like building blocks.

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Accom: $13.20

Travelling Kms: 0