Around Straya
Karijini! The Jewel of the Pilbara! It really is exactly that! One of the most enjoyable adventures of the trip! The artwork of the rocks and gorges with the beautiful rock pools at the bottom was the work of a master artist!
Hancock Gorge
The first gorge we went too was Hancock Gorge. The gorge was a steep walk down and slowly got narrower and narrower until there was just a small alleyway where you put your hands on either wall and walked along the flowing mini river that forged its way through it.
The water was very deep in one point and baby Sophia had to be put on the shoulders in order for her to be able to stay afloat. We managed to avoid catastrophe!
Weanu Gorge (Handrail Pool) (written by Catherine Robles)
Weanu Gorge was even more fun! It was a great hike down into the gorge which took you through some hidden little pools of very cold water which you had to pick your way through – on the sides of the walls if you didn’t want to get wet, or wading through the waist deep water if you didnt mind. It finished off with a large drop into a huge pool where you had to pick your way down by holding onto a hand rail. It was very slippery and felt quite dangerous and when accomplished you felt like you had achieved something. You could swim through the large pool and go through a dark tunnel to the last section of the gorge. Gerson and I had to take turns doing this part of the gorge as you could not take Sophia down the cliff while holding onto the handrail unless you had a baby carrier, which we didn’t have. It was an amazing trek! But the water was very cold and caused pins and needles which didn’t finish until we were changed back up at the top again!
Joffre Falls
After hiking the first two gorges Joffre Falls was a little of a disappointment. It had some very nice steps all the way down (which did not really give us much adventure) and when you got down you simply waded through a small part of the pool and there you were – at the falls! It was a very beautiful place but we did not stay there very long as we wanted to continue on doing some of the more challenging hikes.
Knox Gorge
After Joffre Falls we went to Knox Gorge and this gorge is probably up there with our favourites. It had so many interesting things along the way and the water was a beautiful Aqua Green. It also had a section that we could swim with the younger kids. All of the other gorges so far had been so deep that Priscilla could not swim in there, but this one was really cool and mysterious and we could take the younger kids in there. The water was also not as cold as the previous gorges. A definite one to go too if you are up here!
Ferns Pool
Ferns Pool was listed as one of the favourite places of the majority. While it was a really beautiful place it was not as majestic and eye popping as some of the other gorges. But it really was a place of quiet beauty. It was a sacred place for the Aboriginal people so there was a sign asking us to respect that and be quiet in the area. Not many people were paying attention to that.
There were little fish in the pool that would come and nibble your feet. It was very cute. Again, this was not a kid friendly area as it was very deep and there were no shallow areas for the little ones to wade in. But it was a very beautiful place.
Hancock Gorge
Last but not least was Hancock Gorge. This was the kid’s number one! The reason being it was so interesting with all sorts of terrain and then it had these three little pools like spas that you could climb further and further up. The little pools got smaller and smaller until it was just big enough to sit in with a little waterfall tipping into it! Really beautiful rock formations as well. Definitely a favourite!
