It’s a long way to the top, Day 79 – Carnarvon Gorge

Day 79 Saturday Aug 23rd 2014 Roma to Carnarvon Gorge

It was a noisy night thanks to the passing trucks but the morning is clear and lovely. As we pass the Roma airport we are amazed to see the car park. It looks like a truck dealership as there are rows and rows of white utes waiting for fly in fly out workers.

We walk around the vibrant little hamlet of Injune and read about their most famous person who was a lady who won the Garyowen equestrian trophy.

The roads dips suddenly through a sandstone cutting and the scenery changes dramatically. There are ancient forests of bottle trees and palms and dried riverbeds that have carved the landscape.

We turn off the highway towards the Carnarvon Gorge winding through green grassy farmlands where the cows loll about. It is a hidden valley. In the distance the sun picks out the escarpments of Carnarvon. We pass the remains of an aircraft which crashed during World War Two killing the crew of Australian and US forces.

Lolling cows, I’d like a dollar for every cow we’ve seen on this trip

We ford small creeks and the road turns to corrugated dirt for another fifteen kms. Woody grits his teeth. We cross Carnarvon Creek and enter Takarakka Bush Resort. Damn we’ve found yet another paradise! There are tall palms and prehistoric looking Macrozamia palms and lots of bush. The park is protected by the towering gorge walls. The campground sites are spacious and we’re bounded by the Carnarvon creek. Which they say is home to platypus. Pretty Face wallabies and kangaroos bound about and there is the constant call of currawongs. Cheeky little Apostle birds play about our feet. They even wrestle each other rolling about in the dirt then cuddle up and preen each other. As they walk about searching for crumbs they make funny little grumbling sounds.

Apostle birds, the happiest little birds having a bit of grooming and a cuddle

Towing Kms: 242Kms

2021 Note: It’s not until you travel the back roads of this country that you realise the effect that World War Two had. From the sinking of shipping in Bass Strait in the south to the bombing of Darwin in the north, submarine attacks on Sydney harbour and bombing along the west coast. It seems that Australia must have been under constant attack.

Takarakka Bush Resort is a little piece of paradise. Even for those who aren’t into bush walking it is a delightful spot to enjoy the wildlife with little effort.