Flinders Ranges

A day to explore so we decided on one of the longer walks that branch out from the station. We set off to Clem Corner which was a moderate graded walk of around 5km. The walking was made a little more difficult because of the rocky, uneven trail and we had decided to break in our new boots. Band-aids were required by about half way around. The views from Clem Corner lookout were spectacular and the walk back along a narrow ridge track was very interesting. Not sure why but my camera's photos were all coming out washed out so our memories will have to suffice. It's amazing how many wildflowers manage to survive and thrive in such harsh rocky terrain.
After lunch we decided to take the scenic drive north through the ranges. We visited Wilpena Pound Resort and several of the lookouts that could be driven to. Spectacular views. At the end of the bitumen was the quirky little town of Blinmen. Faye commented that it looked like something from the wild west, I think because there were no kerbs or gutters. From here we could either head back to Rawnsley Park on the same bitumen road or head west on the dirt through Parachilna Gorge to the small town of Parachilna. We had heard so much about the gorge we took that option even though it was getting on in the day. The drive through the gorge was really interesting and we were surprised to see people camping and groups of caravans spread throughout. There aren't any structured campsites but the ones that were there looked to be well used. The gorge area wouldn't see too much sunlight throughout the day so I'm sure it would get really chilly at night. Campfires would be a must. Something we hadn't struck before was the ban on collecting firewood from the roadside. There were multiple signs warning against it and not just in the National Park. Our neighbours confirmed it is a state wide thing in SA. The firewood at Rawnsley Park Station was selling for $23 a bag and I had none left from our travels so no more fires for us while camped there.
About 100km of dirt road that was not really in bad condition to get back to camp. We were a little worried by the sharpness of the rocks though and were proven to be right when we discovered a rear tyre with a slow leak the next dayRead more