Ormiston Gorge

One of the best spots we have come across in central Australia is Ormiston Gorge.  Ormiston is set in the West macs and is about 150kms west of Alice.  Ormiston Creek cuts through the macs and eventually joins up with the Finke River.  There is an almost permanent waterhole at Ormiston and the gorge is a lot bigger than some of the other gorges and gaps in the range.

The walls of the gorge are many hundreds of metres high and the whole area is stunning.  There are a couple of good walks in the area, we did the Ghost gum walk.  This climbed up and around a small portion of the gorge and gave a good aerial view.  We wanted to do the longer pound walk but is involved swimming through a lot of cold water and we weren’t set up for that clothes wise, bags, cameras etc.  The ghost gum walk said we would have to swim too but we were able to walk along the rocks beside the river to get by without getting wet. 

Corinne actually went for a swim in the fish infested water at lunch time which was very brave.  Not only did she take on the small man eating fish but the water was also pretty freezing. 

The entire gorge is amazing and you could spend days just exploring the various parts of the large gorge and surrounding cliffs.  I would probably rate Ormiston as a top 3 spot around Alice Springs due to its size, water and general beauty.

Corinne surveying the first large pool at Ormiston. 

Looking back towards the start of the gorge

Looking deeper into the gorge with the sun unfortunately in an awkward position

The view of the gorge from near where we had some lunch.  This is not really even the gorge, it starts around the corner to the right and goes for a long way.

The Red bluff has a great lookout on top of it that is reached via the Ghost Gum walk.  You can just see a tiny bit of metal protruding fro the rocks at the very top of the cliff.

Ormiston Gorge

Redbank Gorge

Redbank gorge is another gap in the West Macdonald range which runs in an East to West direction from Heavitree gap in Alice Springs.  Waters have carved their way through the range in many spots, like Heavitree, Redbank, Ormiston, Glen Helen, Ellery Creek etc. 

Redbank has a virtually permanent waterhole but when we visited it the water was really starting to dry up.  The central Australian rivers and ponds are teeming with water life and when the water disappears then the life dies. 

As we walked into the gorge along the sandy riverbed we started to get a sniff of the death around the pools in the gorge.  We came across diminishing pools with hundreds of fish sharing a very small amount of water.  Sooner or later these guys run out of oxygen and food and die.  When some die then the water quality drops quickly and the rest die too. 

This all sounds terrible but is just part of the natural cycle of things in these dry parts.

The fish are all very pretty and it is quite interesting to be able to see them so close up.  The actual gorge waterhole was getting really smelly and had a lot of dead fish in it.  It is still quite large but the colour is changing and it is becoming an opaque green colour. 

The gorge was very pretty as usual and was interesting to visit.

Collection of fish in a small pond about a metre wide.

Dead fish about hand sized in the main waterhole.

Corinne standing in front of the main waterhole.  There was a dead kangaroo nearby which really added to the atmosphere of the area.

Dead fish floating in the main waterhole.

A nice panorama of the the gorge taken from the waterhole. The sun was behind me and a so this was the best angle to see the gorge.  The actual gap in the range is only a metre wide in a lot of spots.

Redbank Gorge

Redbank Gorge Camping

We camped at Redbank gorge this week when we had a few days off.  We were going to camp at Ormiston gorge but the campsite was quite bad and full.  We drove out to Redbank which is only 15 minutes further along the West Macs. 

There are two campsites to choose from, the woodland campsite on the flats and the ridgetop campsite which overlooks the flats and hills.  We chose a nice private spot at the ridgetop campsite and only shared the whole place with one other couple.

The weather was great for our 2 days off, with unseasonably warm weather and blue skies.  There was some controlled burning being done nearby though so there was a fair bit of smoke at times, but mostly on the horizon.

We were once again surrounded by an army of mice once night fell and easily saw 40-50 mice at a time.  They were in our shoes, running over our feet and trying to climb the sides of the tent. 

We had a relaxing afternoon, reading, snoozing and visiting Redbank gorge itself.  Next day after a fine brekkie we packed up and drove back to Ormiston Gorge to check out the gorge and do some walking and swimming.

 

Our little secluded spot up on the ridge at Redbank gorge cliff top campsite.

The sun setting behind a tree and a haze of smoke

The West Macs with Redbank gorge hidden in the gap on the left, smoke over the hills.

Our stoney, mouse filled campsite and tent nestled between the bushes.

Redbank Gorge Camping

Dingos on the Finke River

Last week we had a few days off so we drove out to the west Macs and camped at Redbank Gorge.  On the way home we stopped at a lookout near Glen Helen Gorge.  Whilst surveying the beautiful scenery of the Finke River we caught site of a large Dingo Trotting about. 

The big fella looked to be about 30-40 kgs and was dark orange.  We were a long way off and I only had my normal lense on my camera so i wasn’t able to get any close up pics.  The area was amazing and we found probably the best camping site we have seen in central Australia.

The view of the Finke River from the lookout.  The Finke River is one of the largest rivers in Central Australia and eventually disappears into the Simpson desert.

Dingo – We started howling to get the Dingos attention.  It workd for a few seconds and then we were spotted as imposters and the dingo ran off.

 

 

 

 

The finke river, a great little spot in the West Macs.

Dingos on the Finke River

The Ernest Giles Road.

While we were driving back from Kings Canyon along the Ernest Giles road we came across some great birds.

There are lots of beautiful birds in central Australia but as always you have to be fast to get a good pic or have your big lense on before they fly away. 

We have seen so many beautiful raptors (birds of prey) whilst driving out west.  We have never bothered or been able to stop and get a good pic.  Whilst driving along the Ernest Giles Rd we stopped to a get a few nice pics a a brown Falcon.  The Raptors often sit in dead trees by the side of the road and wait for road kills or scurrying mice etc. 

We also came across a very rare and difficult to find parrot.  The Major Mitchel Cockatoo.  These guys are hard to see and find as they are dry land nomadic birds and do not stay put for long, but instead follow the rain and the food, like seeding trees, grasses etc.

We drove into a flock of the cockatoos feeding on a desert She-Oak (Casurina).  They are amazingly striking birds with stunning white wings, pink chests and splashes of red and orange on the crest and wings.  People come on tours around Australia just to try and spot these guys.

The drive home was a good time, we saw some great birds and drove on another famous Central Australian track – The Ernest Giles Road.

 

The start of the Ernest Giles road, named after a famous explorer.  Not really that rough or exciting, but we have seen and done it.

Red, rough dirt with some sand too.

 

Major Mitchel Cockatoos, named after the explorer.

 

 

 

 

 

A brown Falcon, perching on a rock by the side of the road, a handsome fellow.

 

The Ernest Giles Road.

Stone and Wood–Kings Canyon 3

There is a lot of beautiful plants and geological features to be seen in and around Kings Canyon.  Here are a selection.

Dead tree, probably a ghost gum, daytime moon and perfect blue sky as a back drop

Ghost gum, growing out of the rock above the canyon

Grevillea wickhamii, Holly Grevillea.

 

The sharp spiny leaves that give the Holly Grevillea its name

swirling colours and textures in the sandstone walls of the Kings creek walk

Sandstone walls, gum trees and blue skies

A patch of water on the Kings creek walk, in the bed of Kings Canyon

Stone and Wood–Kings Canyon 3

Kings Canyon–The Rim Walk

 

There are a few walks you can do at Kings Canyon, but by far the best and the only one really is the Rim walk.  This takes you from the canyon mouth, up to the rim and you walk right around to the other side.  The start is steep, quite steep, with lots of little stop spots for all us people that have issues breathing after 10 steps.  You can see from the first pic that they don’t muck about, you just go straight up to start with.  Eventually when you get to the top though things flatten out and you start to appreciate the size and grandeur of the canyon.  This is no Grand canyon, nothing like it, but it is still impressive and very beautiful from many angles.

The usual central Australian colours of ochre red, blue sky, green trees set off the canyon beautifully.  The odd white barked ghost gums stands out starkly in the rocky environment.  There are many places where you can fall a good 300 metres to your death if you so please and there are no rails or boundaries of any sort.

Halfway along the walk you have to cross down  into a smaller canyon and then up again via stairs.  Down in the canyon though you can visit the garden of Eden.  This is a not a biblical spot and there was no apple tree.  The garden is a couple of great water holes carved into the rock by heavy water flows over the years.  The water holes are surrounded by sheer smooth cliffs back up to the canyon rim.  There were multiple hungry spinifex pigeons by the water holes and lots of people tempted to swim in the very cold water.

The walk was amazing with so many cool views and scenery.  It is actually hard to encompass the views into a photo, panorama or not.

The start of the walk, straight up, with a few false peaks along the way to disappoint you.

Brilliant Ghost Gum, blue sky, red rock and daytime moon

Corinne and Kaz, on the edge of a 300 metre cliff.  The other side of the canyon is in the background.

Corinne and I, again on the edge.

The sheer smooth cliffs on the other side of the canyon, many walkers gathering.

Corinne sneaking over the edge, Kaz, strangely brave.

Kaz standing very close too or on a piece of sandstone that will one day fall, probably with a stupid tourist standing on it waving.  Kaz was lucky and is still with us.

The ledge on the left and a view of the cliffs opposite.

The bridge crossing a smaller canyon near the garden of Eden.

Panoramas of the mouth of the canyon

and looking down the canyon.

Kings Canyon–The Rim Walk