Wilpena Pound was the furthest into the Outback that we ventured on
our holiday in Australia. The pound itself is a large crater-like enclosure
surrounded by the hills of the North Flinders. The pound is a green oasis in
the parched landscape of central Australia, and has been a popular holiday
destination for many years. The Wilpena Pound Resort
provides a range of accommodation from camping through to fully featured hotel
rooms.
On our first full day (New Year’s Eve) we climbed St Mary’s Peak,
the highest top in the North Flinders. The summit gives stunning views in all
directions, as in this image looking south into the Pound.
The view northwest into the heart of Australia: on the horizon can
be seen the salt beds of Lake Torrens around 100 miles distant.
We were lucky that the temperatures were a moderate mid-30’s, and
made for a comfortable climb to the summit a little less than 4000ft.
The summit walk from the resort is excellent – but another few
degrees-C and the climb would have been impossible.
After the walk we got back to the resort, showered, and got ready
for the New Year celebrations.
Biting insects were a problem, hence the disguise.
We did several nocturnal walks, and were rewarded by seeing echidna
And some BIG creepy-crawlies.
And, of course, we did see lots of the more recognisable critters
On our second full day, New Year’s Day, we explored Sacred Canyon
Sacred Canyon is the location of Adnjamathanha
Engravings
The engravings are a total mystery: the local native population
have no oral history relating to them
For our last full day at Wilpena Pound we walked through the pound
itself. The 19th century farmstead, inside the pound, has been
restored, and informative panels describe the hard life of the farming family
that lived there.
We were not alone in the pound; a large population of grey kangaroo
live within the pound.
The walk through the pound takes you past trees and shrubs thriving
on the natural water supply.
And yet more interesting beasties.
Including our only view of emu.
There are a lot of lizards in Australia – many of them, like this
chap, very happy to pose for the camera.
Before moving on in our holiday I must mention the Dawn Chorus. On
each morning we were awoke at around 6am by a cacophony: hundreds of Little
Corella welcoming the dawn at, what felt like, 200dBA. Click the video, if you
don’t believe me!
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On 3 January we headed south for 7-hours to visit McLaren Vale to
fulfil a long held ambition: to visit the d’Arenberg vineyard.