Mornington Station |
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Dimond Gorge and Cajeput Hole
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![]() Fatboy boab |
![]() Whistling kite |
![]() Adcock River Crossing |
The route in to Dimond Gorge was 24 km long and took over an hour, which gives an indication of this single lane track’s condition; fine in parts, but with some interesting creek crossings and the odd bits of sandy, rocky or rutted surface. After a few kilometres we crossed the Adcock River, which had flowed down here from the gorge we were in yesterday. On the far side we passed across savannah woodland and black cracking-clay plains beneath the gaze of Fitzroy Bluff, a massive mesa that dominates the landscape here. |
![]() View over the woodlands to Mt Brennan |
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![]() Black clay country |
![]() View across the flowering spinifex to the dark massif of Fitzroy Bluff at the end of the King Leopold Ranges |
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![]() Riparian habitat of a creek near Dimond Gorge |
![]() Fitzroy River rapids beneath the paperbarks |
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![]() The stark beauty of Dimond Gorge
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![]() Goanna basking on the bank |
![]() Archer fish lurking near the surface |
![]() A freshwater crocodile drifting in the waterhole |
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Sir John Gorge |
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Not a good start to the day – we had been to a very interesting talk by a ranger about the management practices at Mornington and the consequent recoveries of key indicator species. I was still thinking about the frequencies of late dry-season fires and its effect on the health of seed-feeding birds, when I ran over a piece of fencing wire and punctured a tyre in the campsite. Still, it could have happened halfway down the Dimond Gorge track, so one can’t complain. We changed the tyre and left it at the station for repairs, before picking up our paddles and lunch hamper, and heading off toward Sir John Gorge. One of the many possible activities on Mornington is a canoe trip up the Fitzroy, where it cuts through the low, eroded 2 billion year-old rocks of the Sir John Range. Moreover, the gorge is yours exclusively; only one canoe and two persons are allowed to visit each day – a little expensive, but the ultimate getaway. |
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![]() Lone boab in the grasslands |
The track took us in an easterly direction across the flatter landscapes of Mornington, past grasslands dotted with the massive mounds of termites, those great recyclers and soil-builders of the bush. The track was better than that to Dimond Gorge, punctuated (but fortunately not punctured) by one hairier-than-average creek crossing just before the gorge – not much water, but a steep climb out up a curving jumble of large rocks. It was the only time we needed to engage low range and it was amazing how the absence of a sump guard (see Bungle Bungle section for this story) increased visual acuity. |
![]() The worst creek crossing of the trip |
![]() The mounds of spinifex termites |
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![]() How curious - a boab that has not dropped its leaves |
![]() The Fitzroy River just below Sir John Gorge |
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Passing a jumble of blackened boulders that blocked the river and forced it into a series of shallow rapids, we spotted a glint of yellow. We had reached the second waterhole and our first canoe.
We loaded our gear and set off, paddling several hundred metres up beneath rugged red cliffs, lined with spinifex where rock wallabies lived (though in a most discrete way for us). This brought us to a jumble of black boulders marking the end of the waterhole. We beached the canoe and set off on foot again, boulder-hopping across the water-rounded stones and climbing the water-polished slabs of red and tan sandstone that tilted gently upwards toward the east. Once across the barrier we spotted our second canoe on the rocks at the beginning of the third and longest waterhole.
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![]() In the heart of Sir John Gorge |
![]() A rocky section of the course |
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![]() End of the third waterhole ... |
![]() ... to reach a set of cascades ... |
![]() ... for a bit of hydrotherapy on a hot day |
![]() Exploring the upper gorge |
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![]() Spa's-eye view of the cascades |
![]() Looking back down our route up Sir John Gorge |
![]() The tree-lined fourth waterhole in the upper gorge |
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![]() The waterhole in the side gorge |
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![]() The entry of the side gorge |
![]() Lunch spot view beneath 2 billion year old cliffs |
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![]() The narrow forest strip along Annie's Creek |
![]() Purple-capped wren (the uncapped female) |
![]() Pandanus-lined tortoise habitat |
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