Wilpena Pound and Gorges

Wednesday 2^nd November

As we drove out to the main road to head for Wilpena Pound, we came across a dead snake on the side of the road. We had a close look at this one, and are sure it was an eastern brown, and that it was the same as the live one we had seen, only quite a bit smaller.

Wilpena Pound National Park and Visitors Centre is about 20 km north of Rawnsley Park.  We drove in and after a quick look around continued on north.  Wilpena Pound viewed from the air is quite impressive, like a huge meteorite crater, but is in fact a natural formation, but unfortunately from the ground you are unable to get any idea of what it’s like.

On the road into the Visitors Centre we came across several groups of Emus with anything from 5 to 12 in each group, some of them with chicks, as well as several on their own, or in pairs.  In fact it was to be a day of Emus, and by the time we had completed our day’s outing we reckoned we must have seen close to 100 altogether.  We also spotted about 20 kangaroos in the course of the day.

We drove north from Wilpena with plans to visit the Bunyeroo Gorge, and from there continue on to see the Brachina Gorge, before continuing on to the ruins of the Aroona Homestead.  From there we would head back out onto the main road leading back to Rawnsley Park.  A round trip of about 170 km, with about half of it on rough metal roads.

About 10km north of Wilpena we turned off on to the metal road that we would follow for about the next 80 km.  The road was pretty rough and windy with nasty little dips down into dry creek crossings, making our speed limited to about 25kph.  We drove through some amazing scenery as the road wound its way through the hills and gullies.

We stopped at one spot with some old cattle yards and a hut.  It seemed crazy to us that anyone would ever think of farming this sort of land, but they obviously did. 

As we walked over to have a look at the hut, I saw a small animal crouched under some trees. It looked like a very small kangaroo, but with no sign of any adult kangaroos about we decided it could be any of several animals that live in this area.  It was much too small to be on its own if it was a kangaroo.

We sneaked up closer to get some photos, and as we got closer realised it was in fact a baby kangaroo, and by the looks of it, not very healthy.  It had obviously been abandoned by its mother.  It looked quite weak, and was as skinny as a rake.  When we got right up to it, it tried to hop away but just fell over.  We picked it up and then came the question, what do we do with it.

In Cameron’s mind there was no question.  We keep it and look after it.  He became quite emotional about it, which was quite touching.  He realised we couldn’t keep it, but there was no way we were going to be allowed to leave it to its own devices.  We finally all agreed we would take it with us and drop it back at the National Park Headquarters at Wilpena on our way home later in the day.

In the meantime it was carried back to the car and wrapped in a spare jersey, and Cameron nursed it as we continued on.  Talk about a mother hen.  He chatted away to it, and became concerned for its welfare every time we went over a bump, which, given the nature of the road, was quite often.

We managed to persuade him not to worry too much about the bumps, explaining that while it was in its mothers pouch he was continually getting bumped as his mother bounded along.

Soon after we came to a lookout over the Bunyeroo Gorge and stopped for a look and some photos.  From there the road wound down a ridge into the river bed which cut through the hills forming the gorge.  The road travelled along the river bed itself for a couple of kilometres before climbing out of the gorge again.

We stopped at a picnic area for lunch and transferred our hitchhiker into a small back pack to make it feel more at home.  It soon fell asleep snuggled up in the jersey inside the backpack.  Just like mum’s pouch.

The next gorge, Brachina, was very similar with the road going along the river bed through the gorge. 

We then headed to the Aroona Ruins, which were the remains of the Aroona Sheep Station. Although nowhere near as big, like Kanyaka, this was also once a thriving sheep station, until it too was beaten by the droughts of the 1880s.  Aroona is literally miles from anywhere, and I can’t help but admire the fortitude of those early settlers who trudged for miles through some of the harshest country imaginable, and then had to turn around and build houses and sheds out of whatever rocks they could find, as well as trying to make a living for themselves.  How many people would be prepared to do that these days?

Part of the Aroona ruins was this vertical slab hut, erected as an out station and for use by visitors.  One of the more famous visitors to stay in this hut was the Australian Artist, Sir Hans Heysen,  and if you’ve never heard of him, neither have we. Apparently one of his most famous paintings was of the ranges directly in front of the hut.

Leaving Aroona, we continued for another 12 or so kilometres along the gravel road out to the main road, before heading back to Wilpena National Park to deliver our hitchhiker. At the Visitors Centre they contacted a Wildlife Officer, who just happened to be an ex-Wellington girl, and we soon handed our hitchhiker over to be taken good care of.

Tomorrow we head north for about 260 km for an overnight stay at Marree.  We are booked into the Marree hotel for the night, and will leave the caravan here at Rawnsley Park.  Marree is right on the edge of the South Australian Outback, and is also the meeting point of the Birdsville and Oodnadatta tracks, so we are looking forward to the trip.