On our last trip we spent one night camping in Purnululu (the Bungle Bungles). Even though we did the walks we wanted to it felt very rushed. This time we left our van in storage at the caravan park near the highway for three nights so we would have two full days to walk. The road in was quite corrugated and took us nearly three hours, but we were happy poking along and enjoying the scenery.
After setting up we went for a short walk around the camp and to the nearby creek.
Even though it was around 30 degrees during the day it was below 10 at night and it was really hard to keep my fingers warm while making lunches for the day.
Mini Palms Gorge
This was my favourite walk last time so I was keen to see if it lived up to expectations. It didn't disappoint! It started off walking along the edge of the range. Part of this was quite open, and there was also a section that went through wattle trees in full bloom. Of course, this meant more bird photos...
Black-chinned Honey-eater
Termite nests were in some precarious places...
... as were the palms.
As the gorge narrowed there were boulders to negotiate.
The atmosphere and colours were as good as I remembered.
My favourite photo from this walk.
Echidna Gorge
We knew the optimal time for seeing Echidna Gorge was sometime between 11am and 1pm, but the visitor centre was closed for lunch when we came into the park the previous day, so we didn't know exactly when it was. While we were in Mini Palms Gorge we talked to some people who told us it was 11:30am. We knew that we wouldn't have enough time to walk out, drive up to Echidna and walk in there, so we knew we'd be late. As we drove into the carpark there were lots of people leaving, which at least meant it wasn't very crowded.
As we approached the chasm there was still light bouncing around.
Kungkalanayi Lookout
The only other stop on our list for the day was the Kungkalanayi Lookout. Since it was over half an hour back to camp on a rather corrugated road we decided not to stay until sunset.
The Southern Walks
There are a number of walks in the southern part of the park. Initially we thought we would try to go as far as Whipsnake Gorge, but after experiencing the heat of the previous day we decided we'd rather walk less and spend more time enjoying the ambience and taking photos. The morning light is great for photos in this part of the park, so it was an early start.
The Window
Pied Butcherbird
Birds around the Walardi Campground
White-winged Triller
Scenery from our trip back to the highway
