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Published: October 27th 2012
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True Words
Certainly our feet and legs knew we had been on a long hike after the two days of trekking! You cannot help but realise the vastness of Carnarvon National Park when you see the Mountain Range loom up upon the horizon 60 kms away and then take a further 3 hours to drive along the unsealed roads to arrive at the park entrance. Despite its name after the explorer who thought it reminded him of Carnarvon in Wales, (or not?!) the huge gorge opens up infront of you as you drive between its vast sides past cattle and wildlife in abundance, we also saw two or three different species of wallabies and a family of emus. Due to the permanent presence of water Carnarvon Gorge is able to sustain a rich variety of plants and animals and due to its natural beauty and the Traditional owners wealth of cultural history the 16,000 hectars of land was made a National Park in 1932 and only opens during school holidays to restrict viistors trampling and interfering with the delicate countryside.
So having booked our safari tent at the Takarakka Bush Resort we settled down to afternoon tea on the small deck outside our canvas abode and watched Echidnas and Wallabies and a very old Kangaroo graze and hop around
Carnarvon Gorge
This National Park is hidden in the rugged ranges of the Capricorn's Central Highlands. in the dry riverbed right infront of us, shame about the rain though! The next morning the rain made gone and we had the promise of a sunny day, which was just aswell as we planned to walk a round trip of 26 kms to the furthest point in the gorge, criss crossing the river across boulders of various size and stability! The paths were under some shade and were reasonably easy to manage although we were all on snake watch as warnings were out that they were waking up from their hibernation and could not resist a nice warm, sunny spot on a path to sunbathe!
Our first stop was The Art Gallery about halfway into the gorge were 2000 engravings, orche stencils and free hand paintings adorned the 60 metre long sandstone walls which is a pretty significant Aboriginal site showing examples of life and stories as far as 3000 years ago. From here we went past Cathedral Cave a massive wind eroded overhang of sandstone and Boowinda Gorge and sat and enjoyed our picnic lunch at Big Bend, the only place on the east side of the park where people can bush camp over
Luxury Camping! Well almost.
A tented structure raised above the ground to avoid the chill factor at night. night. Having recharged our batteries and soaked our feet in the cool water we headed back along the gorge to Ward's Canyon. This small but beautiful side gorge was much cooler in temperature and is home of the world's largest fern; the King Fern a step back in time when dinosaurs roamed the earth, most impressive.
The following day we planned to climb the steep ascent up to Boolimba Bluff with the offer of views of the gorge from above the tree line and a talk by a warden to introduce and explain the wonders and history behind this huge park. The 3.5 km climb consisted of large boulders and metal steps that clung off the side of sheer rock face and took us directly straight up the side of the gorge. The climb was well worth it and offered panoramic views of the south east sections of the gorge and beyond.
We then retraced our steps back along the track to The Ampitheatre, an amazing natural 60m deep chamber hidden inside the walls of the gorge, gouged by the rock by thousands of years of running water. The towering stone walls created an awe-inspiring atmosphere
Umbrellas and Ponchos
Fortunately the rain had stopped by the morning! within and was a great place to have our lunch. Criss crossing again back over the creek we navigated our way to the Moss Garden another gorge created by water running through the sandstone walls and creating a waterfall, falling into a cool shady rock pool supporting a lush carpet of moss, liverwort and ferns all straining for sunlight in this damp moist environment. Raised decked platforms had been built to allow you to walk along the side of the rock face and take a closer look at the fauna without damaging their delicate roots.
After all this walking we decided to stop and enjoy the cool water by resting and sunbathing with our feet in the creek, a perfect spa experience!
One thing to be said about the outdoor life is that you do work up an appitite and back up at the bush resort we were able to share our experiences and cook our meals at the communal kitchen area outside under the stars with other fellow walkers and families, we even sat in and listened to a Park warden next to the open log fire and learnt about Platypus and the 15 species of Walllabies
Before the Walk
Reading up on the 26 km return route into the furtherest point of the gorge. and how the delicate balance between nature and man has been successfully managed and sustained. A great place to visit and somewhere we shall be adding to our list of places to visit and explore again.
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