The Bungle Bungle |
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View of the western Bungle Bungle from Kungkalanayi Lookout |
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Looking north over the termite mounds from Kungkalanayi |
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Campsite at Kurrajong |
Sunset over the western Bungle Bungle |
Short Walks of the Bungle Bungle Mini-Palms Gorge (5km) |
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Soon we reached the mouth of the gorge, guarded by 200m high red cliffs and the first fan palms. Entry to the gorge was negotiated by passing a jumble of large conglomerate boulders, then wending our way along a narrow path that wound upward and emerged into a broad circular opening. Here we were surrounded by tall orange cliffs and a lush almost rainforest vegetation. It was a spectacular sight, but the best lay ahead. |
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The entry to Mini-Palms Gorge |
Squeezing by the conglomerate boulders |
Livistona palms in the gorge |
Looking back out of Mini-Palms Gorge |
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Echidna Chasm (3km)
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Entry to Echidna Chasm |
Beneath the palms at the chasm entrance ... |
.... which suddenly narrows to a 180m high cleft |
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They say that when the sun reaches the chasm floor at celestial noon, spirits may appear |
Sometimes it is good that the chasm walls are so close |
the superb interplay of light and shade at midday in Echidna Gorge |
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The Domes and Cathedral Gorge (3km)
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Start of the Cathedral Gorge Track |
Wandering around the beehive domes |
Late afternoon shadows on the Bungle Bungle |
Rock pool in Cathedral Creek |
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Shadows creeping over the waterhole |
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Evening falls over the layered domes of the Bungle Bungle |
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Picanniny Gorge day-walk (20km) |
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Beehive domes lining the bed of Picaninny Creek |
The eroded sandstone bed of the creek |
Looking back down Picaninny Creek |
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Bungle Bungle reflections |
Goanna tracks in the sand |
An isolated waterhole in the creek bed |
A larger waterhole |
One of many curiously shaped termite mounds |
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Picaninny waterhole fish |
Dome formations and spinifex |
A touch of lush green near a seep |
Entering the series of horseshoe bends in the creek |
Occasionally, high on the beehives or in a nook on their eroded sides, we could see tall statuesque shapes. In Asia, these would be buddhas, in Latin America, they would be statues of the virgin - here they were the mounds of termites, those magnificent architects and builders of the Australian outback. Thus we continued for several kilometres until the creek butted up against the southern edge of the Bungle Bungle Range, forcing it into a series of horseshoe bends as it deflected its way between the large rock outcrops. |
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Not buddha ...not The Virgin ... just termites |
The blackened chute of a dry waterfall |
Nice shady place for a swim .... later |
Water-eroded bedrock in Picanniny Creek |
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Crossing the spinifex slopes |
Sandy section of Picaninny Creek |
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Picaninny Gorge - where eroded domes change to sheer-walled cliffs |
Looking deeper up Picaninny Gorge |
The contrasting red cliffs and black boulders of Black Rock Pool |
But this was not our destination - at a small dry cascade on right bank, we climbed up to follow a jumble of sharp-edged boulders up to a large cirque on the eastern side of the gorge. Here, hidden behind a jumble of blackened boulders, in the deep shade of the sheer, slick-red rock walls lay the dark, icy waters of the superb Black Rock Pool. It was the ideal spot to have an hour's break and appreciate the atmosphere of the gorge.
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Reflections in the still icy water of Black Rock Pool |
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The best reflections were saved till last |
Time for a swim beneath the red rock walls |
In parts the walls shaded us from the hot sun |
Orange and black banded domes |
The sight of our campervan at the track's end was a welcome one indeed. |
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Relaxing at Walardi Camp after the walk |
Blue-winged kookaburra |
The ubiquitous peewee |
A pair of corellas |
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