30 June Oxley and hancock Gorges

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30 June

Another cool night, 7c at 7:00am but there is not a cloud in the sky. A very light breeze seems to cut through to the bone as soon as you leave the direct sun and step in to the shade. But in a strange way it feels good.

After breakfast we are to head off to Oxley lookout and Hancock Gorge.

Before we head off I decided to adjust the shock absorbers on the rear of the car as it was feeling a bit soft and loose during the drive yesterday. They have a range of 1 - 12 on the Off Road Boss heavy duty adjustable shocks, the one on the left was set to 8 which should be fine if not perhaps a little too high and when checking the one on the right notice it is no longer connected! That explains the loose feeling in the rear of the car. On inspection the shaft that connects to the piston of the shock absorber has disappeared, presumably back on one of the roads or tracks along the way. There is a thread that is visible on the remainder of the shock absorber and presumably a thread on the top mount (I have left this connected for now). But without the shaft there is no possibility of being mounted on the car and working. The remnants of the shock absorber are removed and will stay removed for the remainder of the trip to prevent possible further damage. Fortunately I do have a spare sitting in the garage at home.

Sandy and I are in our car and the others in Steve's car as we head off to Oxley lookout. A short easy walk from the main car park takes us to Oxley Lookout, a viewing platform overlooking the point where the 4 gorges converge into 1. As we peer down to these gorge 350 million years in the making from the vantage point above the gorges it is once again another spectacular view.

On our return to the car we take over one of the picnic tables in the picnic ground and enjoy Debbie's freshly cooked muffins for morning tea before descending into the gorge to check out the handrail pool. A more demanding walk than the Oxley lookout due to the decent but still fairly easy as the steps down are all concrete steps. After exploring the area around the pool it's back up to the cars to refill drink bottles before heading off on a loop walk that also finishes at the concrete steps to re-emerge from the gorge. This one is a bit harder with some undefined pathways, creek crossings and the usual walking along narrow ledges to avoid getting your feet wet. A lovely walk with lots of small waterfalls, ponds and of course big red rock faces of the gorge.

After another short break we head off to Hancock Gorge. The track is a bit steeper this time, at one stage there are ladders to assist with the decent. Once down the bottom there are numerous large ponds in the gorge. Getting yor feet wet can be avoided on the way throught to spider walk gorge, except one. You need to get wet. Moyle and I decide to continue through the pool whilst the others stay behind, as beyond this is the infamous spider walk. After all, I can't come all this way and not do it. Others coming back out of the spider walk are advising that the water is up to their waist but some are coming out relatively dry. There has to be a way to stay dry, as this water is COLD. There is no choice for thef first part, so it's off with the boots and socks and wade through the knee deep water. Once through the pond it looks like there is a way to get past the next lot of ponds and creek with a bit of creative rock climbing. That's exactly what I do. Leaving Moyle at this stage, as he was finding the rocks a bit too slippery I start my way carefully from one ledge to another, planning the next ledge as I go along. A few hundred meters further on past the ponds which I have managed to avoid slipping into there it is, a narrow opening with waist deep water cascading through it. It looks harder than it is. Once moving through the spider walk I start to feel more confidant, looking like I am doing a permanant star jump with one leg on either side of the water but it is not too hard. The last part of the passage is feet on one side and hands on the other until finally emerging dry and unscathed into what looks like a cavern with a large deep pond. This certainly has the wow factor, both from the vista as well as the method of getting here. The passage beyond this point requires abseiling certification so this is as far as I go. A few photos then it's back up to where it all started. The trip back to meet up with the others is slow. There are more people coming down the gorge, and as the gorge only allows room for passage in one direction unless ou want to wade through the water!

Back to camp for a hot shower, yes, a hot shower! Arriving back to camp around 3:00 means that the solar hot water system in the shower has hot water in it. This is the first hot shower at Karijini. The hot water feels really good, but I still can't get the red stain off the feet. I guess it will just have to wear off. Dinner tonight is a BBQ over at Debbie and Steve's with Steve doing the cooking of the BBQ. After dinner the chop bones are thrown into the bushland around the camp. Later we can hear the sound of dingos chomping through the bones. It sounded like they enjoyed the BBQ too.

After dinner it's time for another couple of games of 500. Steve decides not to play so Veronica takes his place. I'm pleased to say the result was Debbie and Veronica 1 Gary and Sandy 1. Yes, we finally won a game. Getting a few decent hands goes a long way!

An early night again around 9:00 for our last night in our tent. Tomorrow we move into one of the Eco Tents, with their own ensuite with permanent running water, king sized bed and their own solar systems it should be a luxurious change from our $100 tent and $150 self inflating mattress.

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Photos

Oxley Gorge lookout
Where the 4 gorges meet