22.07.2023 - (Star) hikes in Karijini National Park

After we and our car made it safely out of Purnululu National Park, we were able to continue our journey to the Australian west coast. As regular readers of this blog, you know the game by now. A visit to a national park is usually followed by a short detour to a city, and then on to the next national park. It was the same this time, although not as planned. We actually wanted to stay in Broome for a few more days and not just make a quick stop for laundry and shopping. However, the tense camping situation in the northern part of the west coast prevented us from making a longer stop. We would have liked to explore the northern countryside, but in the end, we only had time for some shopping, a visit to the launderette, and a quick trip to Gantheaume Point. Not only does the turquoise-blue Indian Ocean meet the red sand of the mainland here, but you can also admire a 135 million-year-old secret. Covered by water at high tide and only visible at low tide, the world's best-preserved dinosaur footprints are hidden in the rocks here. After our short stay in Broome, we continued towards Karijini National Park, with a three-day stop at a campground right by the sea on the way. Here, we mainly used the time for travel organization and a holiday from traveling. The long car rides of the past weeks had taken their toll. We also addressed a problem that had been present since the beginning of our journey. Due to the heavy weight on our rear axle, the tires had always been slightly tilted. The tires were therefore more worn in some places than in others, so we wanted to change this. Before visiting Karijini National Park, we made an appointment with a tire dealer in Port Hedland, about six hours south of Broome on the coast, to correct the tire alignment. After dropping off the car, it took less than ten minutes for the mechanic to come to us and announce that there was a ten-centimeter long crack on the inside of one tire. We don't know exactly where it came from, but it is likely that the car did not survive the trip to Purnululu National Park unscathed. In the process, the mechanic also told us that our spare tire was no longer functional. So we needed two new tires. The problem was that the workshop did not have our tires in stock. Fortunately, the mechanic called a few workshops and finally found one that had our tires in stock. And because we had to wait a bit at the beginning, the workshop did not even charge us for adjusting the tire alignment - Australians are just nice like that.

After another two hours at the next workshop, we were able to continue our journey with two new tires and finally adjusted tire alignment towards the national park. Since the afternoon was already advanced, we decided to drive to the national park on the following day and spend the night at a rest area on the highway. But the next morning, we finally set off.

Karijini National Park is the second largest national park in Western Australia and is a highlight when visiting the west coast. In addition to unique gorges, the area is known for its waterfalls and rock pools, which are also suitable for swimming during the dry season.

We spent the first day at the visitor center and planning the following days. We had planned four days in total to explore the highlights at a leisurely pace.

On the second day, we headed to our first destination, Weano Gorge. Of course, there was no normal road here either, so we had to struggle through the 40-kilometer off-road track. Although we have been doing this for several weeks now, we still haven't gotten used to it. Eventually, we finally arrived at the gorge car park and started our descent. Even though the path into the gorge was only two kilometers long, it was challenging. Over rock ledges, past water edges, we went deep into the gorge until we reached a natural pool where you could theoretically swim. But after both of us dipped our fingers in the water, we quickly decided against it. The water was icy cold. So we went back, only to hike into the next gorge an hour later. Even though the water temperature was no higher than in the previous gorge, we were forced to swim here. In order to reach the end of the trail, you had to cross a passage by swimming. But in the end, it was worth it. In the late afternoon, we visited the third and last gorge for the day. In addition to a waterfall that is large during the rainy season, there were several smaller pools to see. Of course, we couldn't resist taking one last swim, even though it was bitterly cold.

On the third day, we visited Dales Gorge. The hiking trail here leads from one end of the gorge to the other, along a small river surrounded by eucalyptus trees. Here too, the trail ends at a large pool where you can swim. In the evening, we embarked on a slightly different kind of hike. Karijini National Park is one of the top ten places in the world to observe stars. By chance, we saw a sign advertising a star hike, so we spontaneously signed up for it. With the onset of dusk, we set off and spent four hours gazing into the past. In addition to interesting information about various constellations and celestial bodies, we also looked through various telescopes into the sky. Among other things, we saw a constellation that is 6,419 light-years away from Earth. The light that reaches us is a whole 6,419 years old. We were able to take a picture of the star formation, although it is a bit blurry. Incidentally, it is called the "Jewel Box" because the three largest stars shimmer like jewels in different colors.

After a short night, we continued early the next morning. We packed up our things and drove to the second highest mountain in Western Australia, which is also located in the national park and can be climbed. The path to Mount Bruce is only 4.5 kilometers long, but it leads over scree fields, cliffs, and many steep drops. In addition to endurance, climbing skills are especially required. After two and a half hours and over 500 meters of altitude gain, we made it and were rewarded with a breathtaking view. Before heading back down, we had a short lunch break with delicious pasta salad, because we needed some energy for the descent.

We took it a bit easier on the last day in Karijini National Park. We walked a 400-meter track to Hamersley Gorge, where we were rewarded with a bath in the Spa Pool in the end. A great ending to an even greater stay in Karijini National Park.