Sunday, August 07, 2005
View of Kings Canyon from the rim
'Lost City' at the top of the canyon. Eroded domes that look like the ruins of a city.
The early start to watch sunrise on two days at Uluru has done us good and we are now able to start our days earlier. Today we were up at 6.00 and were on the road before 7.00. We got to a lookout just as the sun was rising and watched sunrise over Mt Connor which wasn't very spectacular. Then hurried on to Kings Canyon. Here too, there is no camping in the national park. There is a resort within and that's where the campground is. Our first stop within the national park was at Kathleen springs. This is an interesting gorge, with a waterhole at one end. It was much used by aboriginals as the waterhole is permanent. So in times of drought they converged here. During good years they spread out and allowed the gorge to recover. Later when the Europeans came to the region and started their cattle farms they used the gorge to keep their stock, because of the reliable water supply.
Both the aboriginals and the Europeans made use of the gorge as a trap. The aboriginals allowed emus and kangaroos in to drink water and then formed a human barrier, blocking the escape route of the animal and hunted them for food. The Europeans used a similar technique to muster their cattle. A path lead from the mouth of the gorge to the waterhole at the end which is sacred to aboriginals. Along the way were the remnants of the stockyards and pens of the European cattle musterers. The aboriginals believe that the waterhole is guarded and preserved by the rainbow serpent, a mythical ancestor of the local tribe. They took care, respected and protected the waterhole, never camping near it, so that animals which came to drink water would not be frightened away.
After Kathleen Springs we went to the Kings Canyon Resort, which is run by the same company that runs the one at Yulara. Booked a campsite and pitched tent. This is also as expensive as Yulara, but nowhere near as crowded there. Once the tent was up we set off to Kings Canyon. There were two walks there. One which follows the creek bed into the canyon and the other which ascends the walls of the canyon and traces the rim. We took the short walk along the creek bed. The creek of course was dry. But there were magnificent gum trees along it. Kings Canyon too is sacred to the aboriginals. The walk went upto a point from where we could see what looked like the end of the canyon. On either side the walls towered above the valley floor. On the north the walls were orange and jagged and looked like they'd been constructed with blocks of stone, this pattern due to the weathering of the layers of sandstone. On the south side the wall, especially near the rim was a dark brown, the colour of chocolate, and even too. In fact it looked like a giant slab of chocolate had been broken, the edge looked sharp, and the sides smooth. Some trees were clinging to the sides tenuously, as were some cycads. There was birdsong in the air and we even managed to glimse one of the singers, who were quite hard to spot.
After retracing our steps to the mouth of the canyon we embarked on the longer rim walk. First we had to climb steep steps and ascend the walls of the canyon. Once we got to the top there was a good view of the canyon and the plains beyond it. We had lunch there before continuing. We saw that we were actually between two canyons. Aerial photos show that the canyon is actually like a tear or a crack in a sandstone plateau. There were few more of them. The top of the plateau wasn't flat though. Here ancient hills or mountains had once stood, but had eroded away leaving behind domes. The walking track went along the rim of the canyon, passed through some of these eroded domes. This part was referred to as the Lost City and it was easy to see why. The domes with the flat spaces between them was like walking down the streets through the ruins of some old city. There was a lookout from where one could see and appreciate the sheer smooth drop nearly down to the floor of the valley on the souther wall of the canyon. From here the wall looked less smooth. In fact it looked like it had been built of stone blocks and then been plastered. In some places the plaster seemed to have come off and the block beneath showed through. In fact what seemed to have happend is that the harder material which forms the crust of the plateau and the top layer of the wall, had dissolved in rain water and flowed over the wall, forming a protective coating like a plaster. The lookout also afforded a good view of the end wall of the canyon.
But progressing down the track we came to another lookout from where we could see, with surprise, that the canyon did not end there, but turned sharply and then continued, like a second canyon. A waterhole marked the point where it turned. In the second canyon there was lush vegetation, and what seemed to be like a long creek-like waterhole. There was a bridge and steep metal steps to descend the wall of the canyon into this second canyon. In the valley it was like being transported to another world. There were many gum trees and cycads crowding the floor, and there was plenty of birdsong. We went to the waterhole at the turn of the canyon. It was late afeternoon and the sun made the walls glow, which were also reflected in the water bathing the whole area in gold. There were birds flying around, sleeping, or grazing. They seemed completely unperturbed by our presence, walking within a foot of us, looking completely relaxed. This place is so aptly named. It is called the Garden of Eden, and was as enchanting as its name suggests. We could have spent much longer but had to carry on as the sun was moving rapidly towards the horizon. We ascended some steps and followed the path which continued along the rim. There were more dome-like structures on the southern side, and all the way into the distance. The path then descended and returned to the car park. It had taken us a good four hours or so.
Another view of the Canyon. 'Garden of Eden' - a pool of water that supports a variety of birds, animals and plants, many found only here
