Kings Canyon

Kings Canyon has no mobile/internet coverage so now we are back in civilisation in Alice here is the news

Monday 30 April – Yulara to Kings Canyon

We arrived around lunchtime and checked into the caravan park. Not too bad considering we are really in the middle of nowhere. I would hate to be here in summer as the temp today is only supposed to be 23 degrees but I’m sure it must be closer to 30. Certainly feels like it anyway. A swim was just what the doctor ordered but once again to my absolute annoyance the water is much too cold for me to swim in. Brian had a quick dip but you really couldn’t stay in for any length of time.

We waited til around 4ish when some of the heat was gone and headed down to Kings Canyon for the King’s Creek Walk. It is an hours walk around the bottom of the canyon to a waterhole at the end. The walls of the canyon are very steep with amazing red walls towering above us. It must have more water being retained there as there was a lot more varied and different flora than at Uluru. We also saw lots of different birds as well. The sunset was amazing with the walls and domes of the canyon glowing red with the reflection of the setting sun.

We had dinner at the Aussie BBQ, Brian had chicken and I had barramundi, and sat for a short time listening to the “Roadies” a really quite ordinary pair of grey nomads who travel around “entertaining” the guests. Dinner was good though

Tuesday 1 May – Kings Canyon

Another early start, 6am as it was supposed to be a very warm day today, to be at the beginning of the Rim Walk by 7am just before sunrise! I have been quite nervous about this walk, a 6.5 km walk which begins with a 500 step straight up clamber over rocks for about 1km. I made a few stops to take in the view, take a few snaps and yes to also catch my breath and slow my beating heart! Once again just like everything else we’ve seen lately, it is amazing and totally different. The colours on the cliffs and domes with this time the rising sun is just brilliant. When you get closer to the top it’s like you are walking on rock shelves at the beach, which I suppose you are except this beach is millions of years old. There are ripples in the rock like the waves on the shore, indentations that look like dried up rock pools and the most amazing strata and rock formations. There are also vast flat areas with large trees and in more sheltered spots even cycads. The canyon is a u shape, so near the middle you go over a little bridge that looks into ‘the Garden of Eden’ which is a permanent still waterhole as there is a slate level that the water can’t soak into. The reflections were just like a mirror. We continued on up and down until about 1 km before the end when you begin to come down the other side of the canyon fairly quickly. I wasn’t sure if I could do it and I’m not really a morning person but I was very glad I made the effort on both counts. A quiet day for the rest of the day! 

Snap of the day

Rim Walk at Sunrise, Kings Canyon, NT