Day 46 - West McDonnell Ranges

25/05/11

Today we expore further west of Glen Helen.  First stop is Gosse Bluff - an unusual place which is the result of a meteor impact making a circular range about 80M high and 2km across.  Many rock formations where the earth was twisted and pushed up from the impact.


Climbed a track to the top of the bluff with a great view out over the remainder.


Next Redbank Gorge on the track back towards Glen Helen.  A lovely 1.5km walk along the creek which ends at the gorge.  Another permanent water source - amazing how much water there is in this otherwise arid country.  All these creeks in the area end up draining into Lake Eyre - easy to see why it's got plenty of water in it at the moment.

After some lunch - more backtracking to Ormiston Gorge just east of Glen Helen.  A short walk into the gorge itself.  This one famed for its ghost gums surrounding the area - what an idyllic place!  The other walks around the area both required swimming due to the high water levels at the moment so we gave them a miss.

Then back to camp to realise that today is State of Origin game 1 - went over to the bar to check if it was on - turns out the manager is a Queenslander so its a definite YES.  Able to watch the game in the bar with the fire going (very cold outside) - a great game and good to see the right team win!

The Campbells