Karijini Park

Article by: Jay
Last updated: Tuesday, 11-Jul-2006 00:00:00 CEST

Karijini (formerly Hamersley Range) National Park is the second largest national park in WA. A party led by explorer F.T. Gregory explored the area in 1861. He named the Hamersley Range, on which the park is centred, after his friend Edward Hamersley. Situated just north of the Tropic of Capricorn, the park's climate can best be described as tropical semi-desert. A highly variable, mainly summer rainfall of 250–350 mm, often associated with thunderstorms and cyclones, is accompanied by temperatures frequently topping 40 degrees Celsius. The ideal times to visit the park are late autumn, winter and early spring. Winter days are warm and clear, but nights are cold and sometimes frosty.

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Things you need to know

Where is it?
310 km from Roebourne and 1400 km from Perth.

View map (pdf, 406kb).

Traveling time:
5–6 hours from Roebourne, 3–4 days from Perth.

Access:

* From the west. Leave the North West Coastal Highway near Nanutarra and head towards Tom Price. Enter the park via Marandoo Road.
* From the east. Leave the Great Northern Highway 35 kilometres south of Munjina Roadhouse and travel west along Karijini Drive to the Banjima Drive intersection. Turn right and travel 8 kilometres to the Dales Gorge turnoff or continue west along Banjima Drive to Kalamina, Joffre, Weano and Hancock Gorges and Oxers Lookout.
* From Roebourne. Head south to Millstream Chichester National Park, then continue east along the Roebourne-Munjina Road, finally turning south-west along the Nanutarra-Wittenoom Road through Rio Tinto Gorge past the Hamersley Gorge turnoff and south-east onto the Hammersley-Mount Bruce Road.

PLEASE NOTE: Yampire Gorge Road is closed. There is no access.

Facilities:
Camping (separate fees apply), Karijini Visitor Centre, toilets, water, information shelter, picnic tables, gas barbecues.

The new Savannah Campground is 10km south of Weano. Generators are permitted between 7am and 9pm.

Camping is no longer permitted at Weano and Joffre.

Self registration (entrance fee applies) at two entrances, near Ranger Station and Mount Bruce Road.

Best season:
Late Autumn and Winter (May–August)

Karijini National Park protects many different wildlife habitats, landscapes, plants and animals of the Pilbara. Wildflowers vary with the seasons. In the cooler months the land is covered with yellow-flowering cassias and wattles, northern bluebells and purple mulla-mullas. After rain many plants bloom profusely.

It is also home to a variety of birds, red kangaroos and euros, rock-wallabies, echidnas and several bat species. Geckos, goannas, dragons, legless lizards, pythons and other snakes are abundant. Huge termite mounds are a feature of the landscape and the rock piles of the rare pebble mound mouse may be found in spinifex country.

In the north of Karijini National Park, small creeks hidden in the rolling hillsides—dry for most of the year—suddenly plunge into sheer-sided chasms up to 100 metres deep. These are the Park's famous gorges. They are spectacular but can be extremely dangerous. Further downstream, the gorges widen and their sides change from sheer cliffs to steep slopes of loose rock.

Rocks exposed at the gorges originated as fine grained sediment which accumulated on an ancient sea floor 2,500 million years ago. At this time, the atmosphere contained much less oxygen and the only forms of life were simple bacteria and algae. Many of these sediments laid down in the oceans were rich in iron and silica.

Over hundreds of millions of years, the iron-rich deposits were transformed by the pressure of further sediments laid down over them, and they gradually turned into tough well-bedded rock. The gorges were eroded when a sharp drop in sea level caused the rivers to downcut rapidly—a process enhanced by the onset of a more arid climate, which depleted the protective vegetation cover on the valley sides.

In Dales Gorge, a stream, pools, waterfalls, and ferns contrast with the red, terraced cliffs weathered by centuries of exposure. The occasional snappy gum can be seen perched on rocky ledges. But every gorge is different, and each one is worth a visit. At Oxer Lookout, the junction of Weano, Red, Hancock and Joffre Gorges, tiers of banded rock tower over a pool at the bottom of the gorge. To explore these gorges you must be fit and prepared to submerge in near-freezing water, follow narrow paths and cling to rock ledges.

The Park is the traditional home of the Banyjima, Kurrama and Innawonga Aboriginal people. The Banyjima name for the Hamersley Range is Karijini. Evidence of their early occupation dates back more than 20,000 years. During that period, Aboriginal land management practices such as 'fire stick farming', resulting in a diversity of vegetation types and stages of succession, have helped determine the nature of the plants and animals found in the park today.

Karijini National Park is situated in the Pilbara region of Western Australia and hosts the fantastic Hamersley Range and its stunning rocky contours. You can find out about the park from the Karjini people at the Interpretive Centre, situated to the south west of the park.

From the Interpretive Centre you can head along the Joffre Falls Road, the Juna Downs Road, or the Yampire Gorge Road. There are some magnificent gorges within the Karijini National Park, as well as some fabulous lookouts and walking trails into the gorge.

Dales Gorge isn't far from the Interpretive Centre and where you will find the pretty Circular Pool and the lovely Fortescue Falls. You can walk to the Fortescue Falls from Circular Pool, as well as from a walking trail just before you get to Circular Pool. Other attractive gorges within the park include the Hamersley Gorge, the Knox Gorge from where there is a pleasant walking trail to the Red Gorge Lookout and the Rio Tinto Gorge.

For spectacular scenery head to the Oxers Lookout which offers offers views over Joffre Gorge, Hancock Gorge, Red Gorge and Weano Gorge. This is one of the best lookouts in the park, offering a spectacular view. There are two walks from here, with the more difficult trek leading to Hancock Gorge and the slightly easier walk leading to Weano Gorge.

It is also possible to drive through the small town of Wittenoom, and pass the old asbestos mines within the Wittenoom Gorge. You can also drive past the Yampire Gorge, where you can see the blue flecks of asbestos within the rock. (Please see Warning).

It is possible to camp within the Karijini National Park, at one of the basic campsites at Dales Gorge, Joffre Falls, and Weano Gorge. There is also a selection of accommodation at Wittenoom, with varying prices.

WARNING: There is still a potential health risk due to asbestos fibres in the air, from 25 years ago in particular around Wittenoom and the Wittenoom and Yampire Gorges. If you do drive through these areas it is best to keep windows closed, especially on windy days.