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Tom Price, Western Australia, Australia

Karijini National Park

Enjoy spectacular gorges and stunning lookouts in WA's second largest national park

Karijini National Park
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Duration: Multiple days
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Overview: In the north of Karijini National Park small creekbeds, hidden in the rolling hillsides and dry for most of the year, suddenly plunge down chasms up to 100 metres deep. These are the park’s famous gorges. Further downstream, the gorges become wider changing from sheer cliffs to steep slopes of loose rock. The gorges are a refreshing retreat from the arid plains above.

Karijini National Park is situated 493 km from Karratha and 1400 km from Perth. Allow 5 hours to travel to the park from Karratha via the Northwest Coastal Highway and then Great Northern Highway, or 2 days from Perth on the Great Northern Highway.

If driving to the park from the west, leave the North West Coastal Highway near Nanutarra and head towards Tom Price. Enter the park via Karijini Drive. From the east, leave the Great Northern Highway 35 kilometres south of Munjina Roadhouse and travel approximatley 30 kms west along Karijini Drive to the Banjima Drive intersection. Turn right and travel 8 kilometres to the Dales Gorge turn-off or continue west along Banjima Drive to the Visitor Centre or continue on to Kalamina, Joffre, Knox, Weano and Hancock Gorges and Oxer and Junction Pool Lookouts.

If driving from Karratha, head south along the Warlu Road into Millstream Chichester National Park, then continue east along the Roebourne-Wittenoom Road, finally turning south-west along the Nanutarra-Wittenoom Road through Rio Tinto Gorge past the Hamersley Gorge turn-off and south-east onto the Hamersley-Mount Bruce Road.
PLEASE NOTE: Yampire Gorge Road is closed. Unauthorised access is prohibited. Asbestos fibres and dust are present in the gorge.

For information on camping at Karijini please visit www.dec.wa.gov.au/campgrounds/north-west.html

Tips: Visitors need to bring in adequate supplies of food, cooking fuel (not firewood) and drinking water. Gas barbecues are provided. Camp fires are not allowed in the park. Rubbish bins are not provided, and visitors are asked to take rubbish out after their stay to disposal points along main roads and in nearby townships. Visitors are strongly recommended to check road conditions before traveling to the area, especially during the summer months when road closures can take effect at short notice after monsoonal rains.

Visitors are urged to select trails that are appropriate to their ability and fitness. Please take care: the gorges are hazardous. Many require moderate to high levels of fitness and experience. Some gorge trails require walkers to have qualifications in rock climbing and abseiling and approved equipment.

Fatalities have occurred in Karijini's gorges. Hazards to be aware of include:
* slipping and falling
* hypothermia from cold water and low overnight temperatures during winter months,
* heat stress and dehydration,
* becoming disoriented and lost

Please read and observe all park warning signs and consider the risks before undertaking activities that may potentially require rescue and emergency services.

WARNING: Flash floods do occur. Please pay attention to all warning signs. Do not enter the gorges if significant rain falls in the area. Please leave the gorges promptly if heavy rain falls.

Points of Interest

Viewpoint
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Hamersley Gorge
Rocks exposed in the gorges of Karijini National Park 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 erode the landscape rapidly — a process enhanced by the onset of a more arid climate, which depleted the protective vegetation cover on the valley sides.

From the Hamersley Gorge car park you can take a 400m, 1 hour return walk to Hamersley waterfall or a 1 km, 3 hour return scramble through Hamersley Gorge into the ‘grotto’, a fern-lined chasm, partly hidden in the side of the gorge.
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Park Entry Station
Visitors need to stop and self register (entry fee applies) before proceeding into the park.

Karijini 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 30,000 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.
Mountain
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Mt Bruce (Punurrunha)

There are three walks of varying lengths and difficulty that you can take from the Mount Bruce (Punurrunha) car park:
Marandoo View is 500 metres and takes 30 minutes return.
Honey Hakea Track is 4.6 kilometres - allow 3 hours return.
The walk to Mt Bruce Summit is 9 kilometres - allow 5 hours for the return trip. This walk is recommended only for fit and experienced walkers. Begin early in the morning and try and avoid walking in the heat of the day.
Viewpoint
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Marandoo View
Marandoo View overlooks the Marandoo iron ore mine. Extraction of iron ore for overseas markets began here in July 1994. Marandoo is an open pit operation with site-based processing facilities, with a capacity of 15 million tonnes per annum.
Mountain
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Mt Bruce (Punurrunha)
There are spectacular views from the top of the second tallest peak in WA (1235 metres) known as Punurrunha by the local Aboriginal people.
Viewpoint
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Joffre Falls (Jijinjurna)
Soft, easily eroded shale and dolomite, occurring beneath the main iron formation layers, have enabled the creeks to cut back rapidly into the range. Spectacular gorges and waterfalls are the result. Plunge pools occurring at the foot of many of the falls, such as Joffre Falls, are a valuable source of permanent water in the park.

From the Joffre Falls car park, you can follow the marked route into the bottom of the gorge to the first pool downstream of the waterfall. (3 Kilometres - 2 hours return, Class 4-5). Do not climb down the waterfall as accidents have occurred here. Access to the gorge is via a side gorge. Do not enter the gorge if there has been significant rain in the area. The trail crosses the creek that flows down to the waterfall. Turn back if the water in the creek is deep and flowing strongly.
Campground
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Karijini Eco Retreat
The privately operated Karijini Eco Retreat, located in the Savannah Campground 35km from the Visitor Centre and 10km south of Weano, is owned by the Gumala Aboriginal Corporation.

This development offers a range of accommodation options and on-site facilities, from basic camping sites to eco- tents with ensuites, for those who like to camp in a little luxury.

For more information or to book visit karijiniecoretreat.com.au
Water
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Hancock Gorge
Hancock Gorge is one of the most spectacular gorges in Karijini National Park, but at the same time can be one of the most dangerous. To be trapped in here during a flash flood can be life threatening and deaths have occurred. If there is heavy rain in the area, do not enter the gorges. If it rains while you are in the gorges, please leave promptly.

Hancock Gorge is for experienced bushwalkers. A flat, formed track leads from the car park to the Hanock Gorge trail-head sign. The track showcases gorge-top vegetation. When you reach the trail head sign, review the information to see if you meet the requirements for the rest of the trail.

A rough track leads from the sign towards the edge of the gorge. You will need to negotiate a vertical ladder to access the gorge. Once you reach the bottom you will experience uneven and difficult sections as you make your way down to Kermit's Pool. Stay in the bottom of the gorge and be prepared to get your feet wet. Do not climb high along the narrow ledges as this is where falls are likely and injuries can be serious.

The trail finishes at the stop sign (end of Class 5). Do not proceed beyond here without permission from DEC. Penalties apply.
Water
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Handrail Pool, Weano Gorge
Two walking track options from the Weano Day Use Area at this site lead visitors down into Weano Gorge and to Handrail Pool. Take care, as the the rocks can be very slippery in places. be prepared to get your feet wet. The final descent to the pool is via a handrail and rock steps, requiring upper body and leg strength. Use with caution. Do not proceed beyond the end of Class 5 section at Handrail Pool. Penalties apply. It is not recommended for young children.
Restroom
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Weano Day Use Area
Shaded picnic tables, gas barbecues and toilets are provided at the Weano Day Use Area. From here you can decide where you'd like to go next. You can follow the trail around the rim of Weano Gorge and take in the views from Oxer and Junction Pool Lookouts, or if you are prepared, follow the trail into either Weano or Hancock Gorges. An emergency radio is located adjacent to the short walk track to Weano Gorge.
Viewpoint
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Oxer Lookout and Junction Pool Lookout
Junction Pool Lookout offers spectacular views down to Junction Pool, 100 metres below. A track suitable for wheelchair assisted access joins the main track to the right, approximately halfway between the trailhead sign and the lookout.

Continuing on from this lookout is a slightly steeper, narrow trail to Oxer Lookout, which provies visitors with a view of the junction of Weano, Red, Hancock and Joffre Gorges. Here, tiers of banded rock tower over deep pools at the bottom. The track to the lookout is not univerasll accessible. Immediately to the north of the lookout is Weano Gorge, with Red Gorge more or less straight ahead, but slightly to the east. Joffre Gorge lies to the south of Red Gorge, and Hancock Gorge is on the south side. Oxer Lookout was named after Dr Gordon Oxer, who was one of the first doctors to take up residence in the Hamersley Range area.
Viewpoint
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Knox Gorge Lookout
From the car park take a 300 m return trail to Knox Gorge lookout. The paperbarks below are approximately 15 metres high. This gives you an inidcation of how deep this gorge is.

From the information at the car park, a walking track meanders around the edge of the gorge before descending into a small side gorge. This track is 2 kms and takes about 3 hours return. It is a class 5 track.

To enter Knox Gorge,negotiate a talus slope (loose scree). This is a slope that is created when slabs of banded iron formation have fallen away from surrounding gorge walls to accumulate on the sides of the rock slopes. Take care as you negotiate this section as loose rocks are slippery underfoot.

Near the bottom of the gorge there are a few very large natural steps approxiamtely half to one metre high. Keep your gear in a backpack, and keep your hands free to help you negotiate this descent.
Viewpoint
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Kalamina Falls (Nhamurrunha)
Kalamina Gorge is popular with families, as the access is not quite as steep as some of the other gorges. Visitors can view the gorge pools and a small waterfall from a natural rock platform. Take care as there is no natural barrier and there may be loose rocks underfoot. Follow the steps down into the gorge and turn right to view the falls.

Visitors can continue following a creek downstream of teh falls to Rock Arch Pool (3 km, 3 hours return). Some tributary creeks and gorges flow into Kalamina Gorge, however the main gorge is very obvious. the walk track surface in the bottom of the gorge is generally flat and hard, but there are also some sections of gravel, which have accumulated after floods. Walkers will need to cross from side to side around small freshwater pools. About 300 metres downstream from the car park, there are two large boulders in the middle of the gorge. Follow the gorge to the right, over a large area of fallen rocks. The trail ends at Rock Arch Pool. The rock arch is basically a large hole in the rock wall.
Information
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Karijini National Park Visitor Centre
The Karijini Visitor Centre design reflects a stylised goanna moving through the country and is symbolic to local Banyjima Aboriginal people. The tail represents their history, the head the future direction of the traditional owners, and Aboriginal Law is in the centre or stomach. The high, weathered steel walls of the visitor centre mimic the sheet-sided gorges that are a feature of the park. The building's construction materials, lack of openings and minimal places to trap debris, all help reduce the threat of fires that are a regular feature of the area from entering or damaging the building.

Inside, a range of static and interactive displays take you on a journey of places and people, past and present, through stories of geology, plants, animals and Aboriginal people and their culture. The centre provides employment opportunities for local Aboriginal people and gives visitors a chance to speak with them and learn about their association with the land.

The visitor centre is located a short distance from Banjima Drive North, near the airstrip. From April to October the centre is open daily from 9am to 4pm. From November to March, the hours are 10am to 2pm daily. Seasonal closures of the centre may take place over summer months.
Phone: (08) 9189 8121 or 9189 8157
Fax: (08) 9189 8113

Facilities include a telephone, shaded seating area, and toilets and showers (including for people with disabilities) adjacent to the car park. Products for sale in the shop include cold drinks and souvenirs.
Information
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Karijini National Park entry station
Visitors need to stop and self register (entry fee applies) before proceeding into the park.

Wildflowers of Karijini National Park 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. Common Plants of the Pilbara is available at the visitor centre for just $6.50. This full colour pocket-sized Bush Book will help you identify many of the plants you will see in the park.

The park is 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 pebble-mound mouse may be found in spinifex country.
Campground
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Dales Camping Area
Campground facilities include gas barbecues, picnic tables and pit toilets.
Please see DEC's volunteer campground hosts on arrival for help with camping sites, camping fee payments and information about the park.

There are both generator and non generator loops.
Dingoes may be heard and seen around the campground. They are wild animals and must not be fed.
Parking
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Fortescue Falls car park
Park here and view the information panels to decide which walks you'd like to take.
Walktrails are classified using the Australian Standards for walk trails.

Follow the trail to the Fortescue Falls viewing area. This provides wonderful views of the falls, and the track 800m, one hour return track down to the falls begins here.

You may choose to view the gorge from above by following the Gorge Rim trail around to Circular Pool. this trails is 2 km, 1.5 hours return.
Water
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Fortescue Falls
Fortescue Falls is one of Karijini's most popular gorge pools and waterfalls, although the walk is strenuous and demands caution. The 800 m, 1 hour return Fortescue Falls track has narrow, uneven stretches that may be loose or slippery underfoot, and the steps are uneven in height. Hold young children securely, and do not let them run ahead. The fence marks the trail, but it is not a safety fence, so avoid holding or leaning on it.

The track bring walkers out on top of a permanent waterfall. Smooth terraced rocks form a natural amphitheatre and stairway down to the water's edge. Negotiate your way down the natural steps to the bottom of the waterfall.

Swimming is excellent here but remember to check depths before jumping or diving into pools as there are submerged rocky ledges.
Water
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Fern Pool
From Fortescue Falls, follow a short track upstream to Fern Pool. Follow the northern side of the gorge for about 300 metres until you reach a constructed woodern platform allowing safe access to the water.

Fern Pool is a delightful spot hidden away amidst tall and very old silver cadjeput, rock fig and river gum trees. Flying foxes often roost here, feeding on the fruits of the common rock fig (Ficus brachypoda), which can be found growing close to the water, or perched on rocky outcrops along the gorge walls, their roots travelling many metres down to the fresh water. Take your camera and a towel and allow time to take it all in.

In one of Australia's hottest, harshest regions this is an absolute haven. Fern Pool is a special place to local Aboriginal people. To protect the heritage, cultural and environmental values of these areas, they ask that visitors enter the water quietly, and avoid making loud noises. Access to the area above Fern Pool is not permitted, and please do not climb or jump from the waterfall at Fern Pool.
Parking
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Dales Day Use Area
This recreation site has toilets, lookouts, shaded picnic tables and gas barbecue.

At Dales Gorge a stream, pools, waterfalls and ferns contrast with the red, terraced cliffs weathered by centuries of exposure. The characteristic slope and step appearance of the valley sides results from the alternation of weak and resistant rock types.

The 2 km return Dales Gorge rim walk from the Dales Day Use Area to the Fortescue Falls car park takes 1.5 hours. A 2 km, 3 hour return walk negotiates the bottom of Dales Gorge.
Water
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Circular Pool (Walhibindiminha)
An 800 m, 2 hour return walk from Dales Day Use Area involves a steep descent, then an easy ramble to the hidden gardens of Circular Pool.

The track to Circular Pool begins at the Three Ways Lookout, which you can access from the Gorge Rim Track via the information shelter or car park. The sight of the pool from the lookout will motivate you to go there, and the impressive height of the cliffs should remind you to take care along the way.

The track down veers past a large boulder and through a shady grove of acacias. Continuing down the gorge wall visitors reach a sign at the bottom, then head left towards the pool. Track markers should be visible on the rocks, but conditions in the gorges change after each flood. Remember that wet rocks are often covered with algae and can be very slippery, and loose rocks can be stable underfoot. Take care as you negotiate the terraced rocks towards the pool.

Circular Pool is fed by a permanent sprign far benetah the ground, and visitors will see and hear the trickle of water seeping from the gorge walls. This water sustains the delicate ferns growing out of the walls and ledges. The terraced, blocky rocks that surround the pool are banded iron formations, but higher up the rock type changes. Much of this is ancient river gravel that has undergone chemical weathering.

Circular Pool is an import site to local Aboriginal people and visitors are asked to enjoy the area quitely and do not jump from the ledges around the pool into the water.
Viewpoint
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Mount Meharry
Mount Meharry, south of Karijini Drive, is Western Australia's highest mountain, rising 1249 metres above sea level. The summit is located at -22º 58' 48'' S [Decimal Degrees -22.98º] 118º 35' 16'' E [Decimal Degree 118.5878º]

A four wheel drive track allows visitors to access spectacular views of Karijini National Park and surrounding areas. The track can be rough and difficult to find, and is not maintained regularly. Please contact park rangers for more information.
Pictures in this guide taken by: DEC, Tourism WA, DEC, Michael Phillips/DEC
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DEC
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