Karajini National Park

We spent a few days going into Karajini NP about 50km/31 miles from Tom Price (pop. 3200??) where we parked ourselves in our trusty tent for 4, count 'em, 4 nights! The caravan park was nestled at the bottom of Mount Nameless (elev 1128m/3700 ft) a few minutes outside of town.

Mount Nameless - Tom Price, W.A.

We had a nice grassy spot, set up cam in what seemed like a quiet location and then headed into town for a pub meal and to watch the footy (Collingwood vs. Western Bulldogs).

When we got back from town, about 8.30 or so, we discovered a tour bus full of foreign exchange students (I counted at least 30) had set up in the three sites immediately surrounding our site. They had tarps laid out, and their gear and sleeping kits piled up. Next to the bus was a kitchen assembly line, cafeteria style. Luckily, they had a group meeting and we could hear that the were headed into Hammersley Gorge the next morning, but unfortunately would be returning to our caravan park for a second night. We actively decided to avoid that are of the park and so decided to check out Mt Bruce



Mount Bruce - Karijini NP, W.A.

 near the western edge and then into the heart of the park to the main attraction. Gorges that appear out of nowhere with most retaining some water year around. Seriously, if you were trotting along on a horse and did not know where you were, it would be incredibly easy to picture someone dropping off into the gorge, they come up that suddenly!

Cutting deeply through iron rich rock, the drastic nature of the gorges is stunning at a glance and fascinating with study. Being rich in iron, the rocks are the deepest shade of red.



Entrance to Weano Gorge - Karajini NP, W.A.


Climbing down into the Weano, walking along the gurgling stream, weaving back and forth across the bottom of the gorge,


Weano Gorge - Karajini NP, W.A.


criss-crossing the stream until we suddenly stumbled upon a deep green pool of chilly water.



Cooling my feet in a pool of Weano Gorge - Karajini NP, W.A.

 We started by putting our feet in and watching tadpoles swim around and dragon flies buzzing close to the water surface. Then we went back to the car, changed into our swimming gear and headed down to Hancock Gorge. This gorge is even narrower and the water moves quickly with stunning tiny waterfalls and dramatic 'swimming lanes'.



Swimming lane - Hancock Gorge, Karajini NP, W.A.




A slippery path - Hancock Gorge, Karajini NP, W.A.

 Making it all the way to Kermit's Pool, we finally both got into the icy water. It was tremendous. With the ridge temperatures hovering just above 30 degrees C/86 degrees F, the chill of the water was very refreshing.

Having nearly exhausted our daylight hours we trudged back to camp and made dinner at the camp kitchen where we met the current manager of the park who was here with his wife from NSW (New South Wales) for 'as long as they'll have us' taking care of the park for the owner who is based down in Perth. He told us a bit of his daily/weekly routine and how he came to be in the job.

The next day we headed back into the park, stopping at the visitors center and the heading to Joffre Falls and Knox Gorge where we once again hiked down and swam in the fresh pools deep in the canyon.



Matt sitting in Joffre Falls - Karajini NP, W.A.



Signs of Flash Floods - Karajini NP, W.A.




Note the rubbish in the half way up the tree - Karajini NP, W.A.



Our third day, we went to go to town and see about organising a mine tour but as we went to leave we discovered a very flat tire. Out came the spare and off to town to find a repair shop we went. Luckily, they could fix us up in a few hours so we hung around town, washed the car, made a round of phone calls to check in with people back in Melbourne and then went back to pick up the tire. Late in the afternoon we climbed to the top of Mount Nameless (Jarndrunmunhna is the aboriginal name) from camp. It was a long, steep climb, but as the sun began sinking to the west at our backs we watched the mountain turn to a shimmering red and gold before our eyes. We had a few minutes at the top to view the town, the mine and the untouched land to the north and west of the mountain.