Monday 27th May – Karratha to Millstream

Packed up and set off early (7:30am) as the Prado was the first vehicle on the hoist at Pilbara Toyota.  Looked for somewhere to have breakfast but a bit early for any of the cafes.  Ended up with a GF muffin and coffee at the Cento Shopping Centre.  Karratha is the largest place we have been in since leaving Roma – it’s also quite new and buzzing with lots of construction work happening.  It’s very much a mining town but there’s also lots of families around which is good to see.

The car was finished about 11:30.  We met up with Margaret and Arthur and headed for the port of Dampier.  It’s quite a view from the lookout where you can see where the salt and Iron Ore are loaded.  Was also interesting to see where the salt is produced – shallow areas that are flooded with sea water and then left to evaporate leaving the salt easy to be harvested.

Red Dog statue at Dampier

Salt waiting to be shipped at Dampier Harbour

Dampier Harbour

Dampier is the “home” of Red Dog and there is a statue of him along with lots of other information on the area, both history (much about William Dampier) and the mining operations in the area at an information booth leading into town.

Had lunch at the Mermaid pub overlooking the water – served by another skimpy (barmaid in underwear).  Jill and I shared a grilled groper with salad and chips – excellent.  The view out to sea was interesting with lots of activity of ships being loaded with ore and small tug pushing ships about.

Back to Karratha for grocery shopping before heading off to Millstream.  An interesting drive with lots of hills covered with different coloured Spinifex.  Also lots of patches of very red rock poking through the Spinifex.  Hamersley Ranges in the distance are quite spectacular.  Were driving along beside the railway line that brings the iron ore from Tom Price to Dampier.  Passed several very long trains – 3 locomotives and hundreds of trucks.  Most of the road was bitumen except for the last 40 or so kilometres which was fairly corrugated gravel.

Ore train between Karratha and Millstream

The Hamersley Ranges - Mulla Mulla in the foreground

Arrived at Crossing Pool campsite in Millstream to be met by camp hosts Flo and Jim (and Karen and Mark).  This is a lovely spot where you camp right on a large pool on the Fortescue River.  Devilled sausages for dinner.

Tuesday 28th May – Millstream National Park

Bacon and eggs and tomato for breakfast followed by an Otto coffee.

Camp at Crossing Pool

After breakfast we walked to the Millstream Homestead along the Murlamunyjunha Trail – about 8km return.  This was a lovely walk.  The first part was across the Fortescue floodplain which had been quite badly eroded in a recent flood.  Other sections included quite exposed ridge areas and then wetland areas with lots of melaleucas.  There was much variety in vegetation and it was great to see lots of plaques naming many of the trees.

Amazing rocks on Murlamunyjunha Trail

The homestead/visitors centre was unattended but had an excellent display on the area and its history.  This would have been an amazing spot for a homestead with lots of water.  Apparently they had a Chinese gardener who irrigated a large area to grow vegetables and bananas, date palms etc.  The even had a tennis court and a bath house built into the permanent water flowing in Millstream Creek.  It was amazing to see Sturt's Desert Pea out in flower – it's such a beautiful flower.

Great to see the Stuart's Desert Pea in bloom

Millstream Homestead

The Lilly Pond at Millstraem Homestead

Met the ranger (only one on duty at the moment – usually three) who was working with a group of Karratha High School students pulling out a feral fern from one of the water courses.

After the walk back we had a swim at Crossing Pool – was quite cold but very refreshing.  Lunch and a lazy few hours, reading, napping before happy hour with Flo, Jim and other campers.

Wednesday 29th May – Millstream to Tom Price

Packed up and away at 8:30am heading for Hamersley Gorge.  The countryside was a repeat of the other day – Spinifex covered ridges, red rocks and the beautiful Hamersley Ranges in the distance.  We had heard that this road was badly corrugated but managed to strike when the grader was busy at work.  You can be in the right place at the right time sometimes.

On reaching the range we drove up through the Rio Tinto Gorge (very narrow) before arriving at Hamersley Gorge (part of Karijini National Park).  This place is just amazing.  The rock strata has been twisted and folded into amazing shapes – just incredible shapes, form and colours.  We climbed up the gorge a little way (rock hopping you could call it) to find a quite large swimming hole.  Again the water was cold and refreshing.  At the beginning of this swimming hole there was a small, round, almost enclosed pool with a tiny waterfall running into it.

Hamersley Gorge

There were lots of roadworks on our way into Tom Price, at one point to accommodate a new railway shifting ore.  Tom Price is a very tidy and green mining town.  Booked into the Caravan Park and did a load of washing before heading back into town to the Thai Restaurant recommended to us by the Information Centre lady.  The food was good, the service was very ordinary.

Thursday 30th May – Tom Price to Karijini

We had booked a mine tour this morning so it was a quick breakfast and a fuel up to be at the information centre at 9:30am.  Had to get our hard hats and glasses before piling onto the bus with 38 others.  The driver did not stop talking for almost two hours of the tour – lots about Rio Tinto, the mine, the equipment, the trains, the processing of the ore etc.  Six trains per day move the ore from Tom Price to Dampier.

Tom Price Mine Tour

The trains are 2.5 kilometres long with up to 234 trucks carrying up to 30,000 tonnes of ore – something like $3 million worth of ore per train.  Other interesting facts include:  the dump trucks use 20 litres of fuel per 1 kilometre when pulling up out of the pit; trucks have 200 litre motors that run generators that run electric motors on the wheels; women are encouraged as drivers as they are gentler on machinery.

Visited the op shop looking for pillowcases to store stuff in (pots, wok and the like) in the front locker of the camper – stops the rubbing against each other.  Also bought a couple of sheets as we had only bought one pair with us.

After lunch at the man made lake just out of town we headed for Karijini.  Stopped off at Mount Bruce (WA second largest mountain – 1,235m).  Walked to a lookout where you could see another mine (Manandoo) in operation.  Lots of wildflowers along the way.  More and more appear to be coming out each day.

Arrived at Dale’s Campground in Karijini and set up camp in Euro Loop

Friday 31st May 2013 – Karijini National Park

We set out soon after 8am to do the Dale’s Gorge Walk.  The initial walk was along the gorge rim.  It’s great to see the wildflowers coming out – hakeas and grevilleas as well as the wattle and lots of smaller flowers.  

The grevilleas are blooming

Cork tree

  

There are quite a few lookouts overlooking the gorge – very spectacular, particularly the ones over Fortescue Falls and Circular Pool.

Fortescue Falls Lookout

Dale's Gorge

Circular Pool Lookout

Near Circular Pool we climbed down the steps and ladder onto the gorge floor.  It wasn’t as difficult as it first looked as the National Parks people have done a great job with the path – made easier with the way the shale is in layers and naturally breaks off to make steps.

Climbing down to the floor of the gorge

The 'paved' floor off the gorge

Amazing rock formations

Circular Pool

We walked to circular pool, a really beautiful spot and a great place for morning tea.  We then walked back up the gorge to Fortescue falls.  The walk was relatively easy and quite picturesque.

There is an amazing lot of water coming over Fortescue Falls.  You would wonder where it all comes from in this environment.  

Fortescue Falls

From the falls we walked on up the gorge to Fern Pool which would have been a great spot for a swim in the weather had been warmer.  It’s quite overcast today and definitely not swimming weather.

Fern Pool

Backtracked to Fortescue Falls and then climbed up the path to the top – an easy climb with lots of steps.  The whole walk took about 4 hours and has to be one of those “must dos”  - this really is gorgeous country (amazing rock formations, vegetation hanging from the rock walls, beautiful waterfalls, even a colony of flying foxes) made even more so by the fact that they’re in this quite arid environment.  Looking across the countryside there is no evidence that the gorges exist.

Back to camp for lunch and then a read and a rest.  Kaye and Phill arrived just on dusk having driven from Exmouth that day.  Dinner was stir-fry veg and beef with rice.  Good to know the wok could fit enough for 8 people.  Kaye had made a g/f cake with plums while she was sitting around in Exmouth.  With custard, yoghurt and cream it was delicious.

Sunset over Karijini

Saturday 1st June – Karijini National Park

Big breakfast (we needed to use the bacon), then off to the Visitors Centre (which was still closed at 8:30 am.  It’s quite cool this morning (11 degrees C and an icy wind).  To warm up we decided to do the Kalamina Gorge walk instead of waiting.  We’re back on gravel in this part of the park and the road is quite corrugated in places

Kalimana Gorge

Kalamina Gorge is another lovely walk.  As you climb into the gorge there’s a pool being fed by a small waterfall.  The walk then heads downstream alongside and crossing the stream.  A bit of rock hopping required but quite an easy walk.

Junction Lookout

Next was Junction Lookout, a spot where 4 gorges meet – an amazing view.  Large columns left by the erosion – slices of shale packed up sitting on one another.  Oxer lookout a short distance away gives another view of this amazing spot.

Weano Gorge

Desert Rose

After lunch in the car park (no dilly dallying as it was too cold) we climbed to the valley floor in Weano Gorge.  To go further downstream you would need to wade – not something anyone was keen to do today.  We walked a few hundred metres upstream, past a lovely pool and waterfall.  There’s much more vegetation on the floor of this gorge.

Heading back towards Dale’s we had a quick look at the Eco Retreat but it didn’t jump out at us and say you must stay here ($38 per night compared to $6 at Dale’s but you do get showers for that price.)

Joffrey Falls

Joffrey Falls were very spectacular.  From the lookout you look up the gorge towards the falls.  The cliffs and the falls are amazing as they are shale layers – something quite different.

The last lookout was at Knox Falls – another beautiful spot looking down on the red gorge walls.  By this time of day we probably didn’t do it justice as we were a bit keen to get back to the visitors centre before it closed at 4 pm.

And what an amazing spot this is.  The visitors centre is built from rusty steel to blend in with the natural environment – and it does.  Bought a book a few post cards and a T shirt.

Back to camp for an Italian night – Pizzas cooked on the barbecue, pasta and red wine.  What more could you want.