Bungle Bungles

One of the must dos in Australia is the incredible Bungle Bungles or Pernululu National Park. It’s a formidable task requiring a 4WD with high clearance, offroad tyres at the right air pressure, GPS, nerves of steel, bulletproof vests and full emergency and military backup. OK, so I may have made some of that up but from the various people we’ve spoken to on the trip so far, you’d think it was the clutches of hell on earth that you were visiting.

 

The visitor centre in both Katherine and Kununurra were both scathing of Stan’s ability at 4WD and recommended us not to even attempt going in. Some serious 4WDers however simply said, “If it’s 4WD, you’ll be fine. Just take it steady!”. Much better advice.

Saying that, upon arrival, the biggest warning sign ever greeted us with a lot of the advice stated above (not the military backup though!!!) and the sight of 2 serious 4WDers with pneumatic air compressors and offroad trailers pumping up tyres was a little intimidating. This one was much friendlier…

Let’s not get too complacent. The journey to the visitor centre in the Park is 60kms and they recommend it taking a minimum of 2 hours considering the state of the access road. 2 hours for 60kms?! Are they sure?! We’d experienced Jim Jim Falls where the journey was similar but it was really only the last 10kms that caused a problem. Was there 60kms of that? Amber didn’t fancy that!!!

Setting off without changing tyres, air pressure, military backup or bulletproof vests (but with nerves of steel!!) Stan crept along for 10mins at 20kmph taking anything that came at him. Unfortunately there was nothing that was thrown at him apart from a bumpy road with a few protruding rocks and stones that could have caused a problem. The road was very windy often with blind corners and hidden crests but it seemed to be okay. I’m by no means an expert but have experienced some funny roads whilst in Australia and although the warnings were warranted, I never felt as though I was going to die! It did take approx 2 hrs but largely because of the blind roads and not the terrible road conditions although wouldn’t have attempted this in a standard 2WD car.

It seemed as though they needed to come along and sweep some of the sharp rocks off the road and it would become much more accessible although feel as this is the main point. By it being a little difficult and needing some dedicated souls to attempt it with all the warnings it keeps the visitor numbers fairly low, only 40,000 annually rather than the 100,000s if caravans and normal 2WD cars could come in.

The staff at the visitor centre were most helpful as with most that we’ve encountered along the route, helping us plan the next few days in the park. The roads don’t get much better once inside so its recommended that you’ve got plenty of fuel for 100km (we thought at first that was a little exaggerated but wasn’t far off!). The two campgrounds at Kurrajong in the north and Walardi in the south give visitors direct access to the site of some of the most scenic places we’ve encountered.

Our plan was to go North first experiencing Echidna Chasm and Mini Palms, and then South for the instantly recognisable beehive domes, Piccaninny Creek and Cathedral Gorge. The majority of tour groups don’t go north due to the distance and time-limits to see the main features. It was hot and dry so armed with many litres of water set off to explore.

Mini Palms is about an hours walk amidst huge speckled boulders made up of previous geological processes exerting pressure and picking up smaller rocks within them. They have the same appearance as Rocky Roads cakes but not quite as yummy!

Clambering between them for me was a little tricky but for Amber not a problem – they were a little narrow in places! The chasm interlinked with other gorges that weren’t accessible yet and strangely but from which the name is given, palm trees are growing amongst. It’s quite rare for the deep orange sandstone to be the backdrop for the deep green palm leaves.

“Echnida Chasm is a photographer’s heaven” states the brochure and they weren’t wrong. Between 11am-12pm the light channels through the chasm between the rock face creating a deep vertical orange glow. Happy snapping away I didn’t realise the sheer numbers of people turning up to snap with me but alas they were a little too late. It was easy to get caught up in the beauty of the place from many different angles. Amber was constantly being told, “Move there a bit to your left, bit to your right, forward”.

 

 

The evening of the first night we ended talking to a group of Aussie men who had just completed the Canning Stock Route; known in Australia as the most challenging 4WD expeditions you can do requiring airdrops of fuel, endless supply of food & water as well as the ability to be as self-contained as possible. They were pleased that we’d taken Stan into the Park and whilst not as extreme as the CSR, just having a go is half the battle. They were a good bunch and was a lovely evening.

 

Day 2 of the Bungle Bungles had Cathedral Gorge and famous beehive cones that both of us had assumed was the Bungle Bungles. It had been an added bonus having these other natural wonders to explore.

 

Cathedral Cave is the eventual destination up a long windy gorge that required a couple of ladders and moderate climb. It followed the natural river bed that although dry revealed the deep potholes and steep river bends that the torrents would cover during the wet season. I believe that concerts have been held in the gorge that is simply stunning. It was formed by the raging waters falling over the rocks creating a huge hollowed cave with under hangs that create the natural acoustics. Once filled the water would surge down the river bed to release the pressure inside the cave.

  

The beehive cones adorn the tops of these gorges creating the ranges but also appear as standalone formations that can be walked around. It’s difficult close up to really appreciate their structure as the effect as one is much more impressive. Several lookouts give better views but its the sort of place that you’d keep taking photos of as you see a ‘better’ image resulting in hundreds of identical photos.

The Piccaninny Creek during our visit is a dry creek bed, thank goodness, but during the wet season becomes a violent natural environment. The scale of the bed is vast and cannot compare to anything I’ve ever seen. Huge plates of rock are carved and shaped by the pressures placed on it by the rushing water as well as the high temperatures during the dry.

It needed some careful steps to ensure that an ankle wasn’t caught up and twisted. During the dry season it is accessible by tourists and for the more adventurous leads further up the gorge to reveal camping spots and more incredible rock formations. Obviously at this time of year tents, food and water and importantly a first aid kit and satellite communications are a must but all have to be carried.

The three days and two nights format was perfect giving us plenty of time to see and do everything PNP has to offer. It’s just a case of leaving and planning enough time to enter and leave before sunset as the drive in would be a nightmare in the dark. It took us half as much to leave as it did to enter but only due to understanding more about the road conditions and probably a lot of luck that we didn’t encounter any problems. The only issue with Stan was the flipper window bolt sheered off that required a bit of DIY!!