Thursday morning has us up early and on the road North again from Roma. The road was fairly quiet and in good condition. We stopped for morning tea and a stretch at Injune. They have a nice Visitor Centre with a cafe there. The countryside has changed a bit, with a lot more green and a bit more hills. We completed a fairly steep descent prior to getting to the Gorge turnoff. Glad we weren't going the other way as would have been a good test for the Jeep pulling the caravan to the top. Takarakka Bush Resort is located about 40 Km off the Carnarvon Highway with the last 13 Km gravel. Lots of flood-ways, cattle grids to cross, and cattle on the road so we took our time. We arrived at the Bush Resort at noon and got a huge site with quite a bit of shade. The Resort is fairly expensive at $35/night but lovely big sites separated by logs and trees. We could have easily parked two of our van and Jeep in the site we were given.
The host that checked us in ran us through some of the walks available and gave us some good advice as to how to approach our stay. After some lunch we headed out on a couple of short walks at Mickeys Creek and Warrumba Gorge. Warrumba is the right fork on the walk and was spectacular. Water way narrows to a very narrow canyon which you can walk through. You can touch both sides in some parts and it is about 40 metres high. The walls are covered in green moss and the water is crystal clear.I had to walk through the water to get to the end which was quite dark and cool. The pictures had to be brightened up on the computer to see, so hopefully will show OK. Well worth the effort and only 1.5 hours to complete. Lots of Cycads, Staghorns, Pandanus Palms, and ferns along both walks.
The next morning saw us up early and taking on the main walk in the park. This one is about 14 Km and takes about 5 hours to complete. There is very little breeze in the Gorge and it gets very hot. We were a bit early in the season which has the disadvantage of being quite hot. The big advantage was that there were very few other walkers. As such we were able to enjoy the sights and sounds of the Gorge almost alone. The recommended strategy is to start early and walk directly to the furthest point in the Gorge you are planning to visit. You then make your way back venturing into the various side walks that lead to the really impressive sights of the Gorge. Our farthest destination was the Art Gallery and it took us about 2 hours to get there. The main path is quite good with lots of ups and downs and numerous river crossing where rocks are strategically placed. We also spotted a few parrots and a butterfly or two.
The Art Gallery is an Aboriginal Art area which involves a bit of climbing to reach. The final ascent is a set of stone steps up through two huge rocks. The art display involves a number of stencils/paintings and sculptures or carvings along a huge sandstone rock wall. I'm not the biggest fan of Aboriginal art but found this display quite impressive. We had the place to ourselves for a quarter of an hour and because of the setting it really did feel like a spiritual destination.We made our way down to the main path again and began to head back the way we had originally come.
Our next significant stop was Ward's Canyon. This involved a fairly steep climb to a small waterfall. More impressive however was the section on top and behind the waterfall. You walk into a small gorge with rock overhanging the walk way. Beautiful clear creek with Tree Ferns and King Ferns. The King Ferns are very rare! The temperature was significantly cooler and we again enjoyed several minutes alone observing the Canyon.
After returning to the main trail we journey a few kilometres before turning off towards the Amphitheatre. This one involved quite a walk with a number of steep climbs. At the very end of the trail there is a series of metal ladders that lead you up to the entrance to the Amphitheatre. Sandra needed quite a bit of encouragement as she dislikes ladders and heights. Fortunately, she was a brave girl as the reward was well worth it. You end up in a natural rock Amphitheatre with a water pond and lots of moss/lichen growth. The walls completely enclose you rising to a circle of sky. We enjoyed 10 minutes alone enjoying the peace and quiet. Beautiful!
After returning to the main trail our last excursion was to the Moss Garden. This one involved about 600 meters of mostly climbing stone steps etc. The legs were burning by this one but once again the effort was worthwhile. Ended up in another secluded opening where the water was continually leaking out of the rock walls. This led to the walls being covered in moss/lichen which was continually dripping water. Spent about 15 minutes enjoying this one all by ourselves and regaining a bit of energy to complete the trek back to the Visitor Centre.
Another 3.5 Km back to the Visitor Center brought our 14 Km walk to an end. Thank goodness as I don't think either of us could have handled too much more. The afternoon was pretty quiet and relaxing as we recovered from our efforts.
We had planned Saturday as a recovery day which was probably a good decision. Neither of us was suffering too much but I think having an easy day was in order. We did a couple of quite short walks in the morning to the Rock Pool and Baloon Cave. Only a few km in total and not too challenging. Baloon Cave is another Aboriginal art display. Not nearly as impressive as the Art Gallery but is the only walk that is wheelchair accessible. The Rock Pool walk was not that well marked and the path was a bit overgrown in areas. Water appeared stagnant and we wouldn't recommend swimming there.
We did a bit of organizing and cleaning during the afternoon between rests.
Sunday morning we were up early again as we were tackling Boolimba Bluff. While only 7 Km return, this trail was rated as Category 4 and contains approximately 1000 step/stairs/ladders rungs. We weren't too sure how Sandra would handle the Ladders so we arranged to do the walk with another camper named Frank that we had met. If Sandra couldn't make it to the top, I would have a hiking partner to finish the walk with. We got away from the Visitor Centre by 7 AM and made good progress for the first few kilometres. While there were lots of climbing and steps it turned out there was only 300 metres of very steep terrain/steps/ladders. This was quite an effort and required a number of stops to catch our breath and drink water. Sandra handled it like an old pro and we made it to the top of this section with no problems. The final part of the walk was mainly flat on top of the bluff which led to the lookout point. We made it in just over an hour and enjoyed 15 minutes alone soaking in the view and physically recovering. We passed a few other climbers on the way back down. The down hill journey was fairly difficult as well as was quite jarring going down the steps. We made it back to our cars without incident and less than 3 hours.
We had a relaxing afternoon and had Frank over for drinks at 5. We packed up most of the campsite in the late afternoon so we could get a good start for Emerald on Monday.
We had booked an Astronomers tour for Sunday evening. Phil who manages the Takarakka Bush Resort was our tour guide for the evening. He has a fairly impressive computerized telescope setup on top of a hill with outdoor seating. Was a beautifully clear night and there were thousands of stars on offer. Enjoyed an hour and a half learning about the solar system and viewing a number of solar phenomenon through the telescope. Among other things we saw a Nebula, a dead star, a dying star, Magellan cloud, and Jupiter. Jupiter was quite impressive as we could make out all 4 of its Moons and the stripes around it. Phil was very informative and the tour was money well spent. Highly recommended!
Carnarvon Gorge is a beautiful place to visit and would recommend it highly with a few caveats. The real wonders of the Gorge can only be seen with a fair amount of effort and walking. While not terribly difficult it would be challenging for a number of people. We met a number of people during our trip that weren't able to take part in the walks or did only a few small ones with considerable difficulty. There are no really easy walks and most involve climbing and river crossings. The other unfortunate but unavoidable fact is that there is only one way into and out of the Gorge so you can't really break up the large 14 Km walk we did into two shorter walks (as would involve a lot of repetition and backtracking). That being said the effort is well worth it for those that are physically able! I've included a picture of the walking trails with the walks we completed below.
Just realized I have forgotten my all important amenities rating for the Takarakka Bush Resort. The amenities were quite good and fairly clean. Sandra reckons the cleaner could be upgraded. We'll give them a 3 Star although could easily be 3.5 or 4 with a bit more effort. The Bush Resort itself is beautiful and would be at least a 4 Star.
No comments:
Post a Comment