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Wednesday, 29 July 2009 11:10 |
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The Flinders Ranges & Outback - One of the World’s Oldest Landscapes
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| JULY 2009 - Situated approximately three hours’ drive north of Adelaide, the Flinders Ranges represent South Australia’s (www.southaustralia.com) gateway to the Outback. |
 Situated in one of the world’s oldest land and seascapes, last year the world’s oldest reef was discovered in the Flinders Ranges. Estimated to be 650-million-years-old, this reef is ten times higher than the Great Barrier Reef, 80 million years older than the oldest known reef and possesses fossil evidence of the earliest examples of primitive animal life.
Recognised as one of Australia’s outstanding national landscapes, the Flinders Ranges is also home to remarkable flora and fauna, clear waterholes, thermal springs and abundant bird life located against an awe-inspiring backdrop of red desert sands, spectacular gorges, pioneering history and Aboriginal art and culture.
HISTORY
When Australia was still attached to Antarctica, this region was covered by a vast inland sea dotted with icebergs and teeming with reptilian sea monsters. Known as the Gondwanan super-continent, Australia was located so close to the South Pole that it experienced freezing conditions, seasonal sea ice and long periods of polar darkness. The Outback was dominated by dinosaurs and vast forests while the sea was home to marine reptiles, by far the most common of which was the plesiosaur, a long-necked, squid-eating fish resembling the Loch Ness Monster.
Today this region remains home to one of the world’s oldest cultures - older than the Neanderthal carvings in Europe; there are 16,000 years old Aboriginal rock carvings to explore, whilst through Dreamtime stories it is possible to understand Aboriginals’ beliefs about the birth of the land, its animals and its people.
The Aboriginal Dreaming Trail is a two-day drive through Adnyamathanha land which includes rock art and interpretive sites, whilst Iga Warta is where the Adnyamathanha people welcome visitors to share their culture and knowledge of the Yarta (land).Iga Warta offers modern accommodation (safari tents or rustic cabins) and bush camping. Tours include visits to ancient rock art sites as well as bush tucker tours.
WHAT TO SEE & WHERE TO STAY
One of the best times to visit the Flinders Ranges is the Australian spring (Sept – Nov) when the landscape is quite simply blanketed with thousands of brightly coloured wildflowers including the State’s floral emblem, Sturt’s desert pea. Nearly half of South Australia’s plant species can be found in this rugged, nature lovers' terrain.
PORT AUGUSTA: CROSSROADS OF AUSTRALIA
Sandwiched between ocean and Outback 304 kms North West of Adelaide with routes joining the State capital to the Flinders Ranges, Alice Springs, Perth and Whyalla, Port Augusta is known as the Crossroads of Australia.
More than a transport hub, this is an ideal base from which to explore the Flinders Ranges, Eyre Peninsula and the Outback. Port Augusta offers a number of attractions of its own, not least of which is the Wadlata Outback Centre. Here visitors can experience a range of fascinating hands-on displays about Aboriginal Dreamtime, European settlement, regional geology and mining, to name but a few. www.wadlata.sa.gov.au
For those wishing to explore the coastline, an eco cruise around the tip of Spencer Gulf could be the answer. The cruises take place on board luxury pontoon boat, the DekyZayne, following in the wake of early Australian explorer, Matthew Flinders, through calm, scenic Gulf waters, taking in local bird and marine life, as well as the Redbank Cliffs, historic Old Salt Works and original Port Augusta wharf and barges. www.augustawestside.com.au
Just off the Explorer’s Way (the Stuart Highway) at Port Augusta West, The Australian Arid Lands Botanic Garden showcases a range of arid zones covering more than 200 hectares, special conservation areas, an extensive network of walking tracks and possibly the world’s largest garden of eremophila or desert-loving plants, and all against the spectacular backdrop of the Flinders Ranges and Spencer Gulf. www.australian-aridlands-botanic-garden.org
WILPENA POUND: 640 MILLION YEARS IN THE MAKING
 A trip to the Flinders Ranges would not be complete without visiting the 83 square kilometre rock amphitheatre that is Wilpena Pound. Situated approximately 400km north of Adelaide, this great natural showpiece was formed from sedimentary deposits under the sea 640 million years ago. The deposits were folded into mountains whilst 160 million years of erosion have resulted in the amazing chiselled formation that can be seen today.
Scenic flights ranging from 20 minutes to a couple of hours are arguably the best means of truly appreciating this stunning vast landscape. Flights are available from both Wilpena Pound Resort andRawnsley Park Station. For visitors who wish to keep their feet on the ground there are numerous trails to explore, giant red river gums, wild flowers, rocky bluffs, aboriginal rock art sites and spectacular sheer quartzite cliffs to admire.
RAWNSLEY PARK STATION is located at the base of Rawnsley Bluff which forms part of the southern wall of Wilpena Pound. This former sheep grazing estate set on 29,000 acres of land offers accommodation options suitable for every budget, great food and wine in its Woolshed restaurant and a range of activities. However, the property is probably best known for its eight award winning luxury eco-villas featuring rendered straw bale walls, polished timber floors over suspended concrete slabs and overhanging eaves and wide shady verandas. www.rawnsleypark.com.au
WILPENA POUND RESORT offers a range of accommodation options to suit all budgets including a caravan park and campground. Facilities include a swimming pool, bistro, bar and beer garden, licensed restaurant, general store and visitor information centre, not to mention a range of activities. Recently purchased by the Anthology Group this property is currently undergoing a major refurbishment programme. www.wilpenapound.com.au |
ANGORICHINA STATION, run by Ian and Di Fargher’s family for four generations, treats guests to genuine Outback hospitality. Guests can sample daily station activities, have the option of light aircraft day trips and are hosted to homemade meals with the family. www.angorichinastation.com
 ARKABA STATION, currently undergoing renovation under new owners, Wild Bush Luxury, Arkaba Station enjoys an enviable view of Wilpena Pound. The station, home to 8,000 merino sheep and 150 Hereford cattle, offers luxurious homestead accommodation on a bed and breakfast or full board basis in a two-bedroom self-contained cottage or the one-bedroom Coach House. www.arkabastation.com
NORTH BUNDALEER homestead in the southern Flinders Ranges offers a rich architectural heritage of formal rooms and indulgent hosted accommodation in grand surroundings. Hosts Malcolm and Marianne Booth offer four beautifully appointed bedrooms and a real sense of occasion in this historic homestead. www.northbundaleer.com.au
NILPENA STATION, featured in Outback films and TV adverts, is a well-known station in the Flinders Ranges on the edge of Lake Torrens. Accommodation is either in traditional shearer’s quarters or in the two-bedroom Nilpena Cottage.
COOBER PEDY
Australia produces 95% of the world’s supply of commercial opal, the largest proportion of which still comes from the 70 opal fields of Coober Pedy. Located 846 kms north of Adelaide and 685 kms south of Alice Springs, Coober Pedy has been an opal-mining town since the first gems were discovered there on February 1st 1915. Today it is recognised as the largest producer of opal in the world and offers visitors an enlightening insight into life in an Outback mining centre. Perhaps one of the most unusual elements of Coober Pedy is its underground homes or dugouts, believed to have been introduced by soldiers returning from the trenches of WWI, to escape the searing summer temperatures, occasional dust storms and cold winter nights.
Visitors can sample the unusual style of underground living by staying at the DESERT CAVE HOTEL(www.desertcave.com.au) or by visiting one of numerous restaurants, cafés, bars and shops includingCoober Pedy Underground Pottery and The Opal Cutter. There is even an underground art gallery, an underground gaming room and an underground Serbian Orthodox church.
The Old Timers’ Mine and Museum is the town’s premier tourist attraction giving visitors the opportunity to see three large opal seams in a mine dating back to 1916, and to find out more about mining through the ages. The attraction incorporates two underground homes, a walk-through mine, sandstone sculptures, a gift and souvenir shop, opal jewellery, information galleries and underground holiday cottages.
TOURING & ACTIVITY SUGGESTIONS
Over and above several different 4WD operators who run trips from Adelaide to this region, touring and activity options include:
 SUNSETS, SADDLES AND SHIRAZ is an exhilarating three-night cattle droving tour that captures the romance of cattle droving, provides gourmet food and wine as well as the opportunity to see native wildlife and stunning scenery. The tour includes two full days in the saddle working alongside drovers herding 200 cattle across the Outback.
The tour cost includes two nights camping under the stars and one night staying at Parachilna’s award-winning PRAIRIE HOTEL (www.prairiehotel.com.au) including all meals, drinks and live entertainment. The Prairie Hotel is perhaps the Flinders Ranges most photographed and instantly recognisable property with its welcoming red and white awning. This 100-year-old stone building located 30 minutes from Parachilna and Brachina Ranges not only offers famed Outback hospitality but is famed for its feral cuisine. It has also hosted the likes of Kate Winslet and Harvey Keitel.
Award winning ARKAROOLA WILDERNESS SANCTUARY offers visitors rugged mountain scenery, towering granite peaks, magnificent gorges and waterholes which attract more than 160 varieties of birds, as well as the endangered yellow-footed rock wallaby. Whilst the accommodation options are simple, Arkaroola’s signature RIDGETOP TOUR is memorable.
This amazing 4 WD adventure takes participants along razor-back ridges and across the peaks of Flinders Ranges’ most rugged mountains to the climax at Sillers Lookout. Here they are rewarded with staggering views across the white expanse of Lake Frome to the desert beyond. Arkaroola also boasts some of the best conditions for viewing the night skies in the Southern Hemisphere. Free of atmospheric and light pollution, the location provides an ideal base from which to enjoy an Astronomical Tour from one of Australia’s largest privately-owned observatories.
www.arkaroola.com.au
CAMEL SAFARIS
PICHI RICHI CAMEL TOURS is located in native bush land between Devil’s Peak and the Dutchman Range escarpment near the town of Quorn. Visitors wishing to enjoy the area’s natural beauty can do so on a selection of tours and tailor made camel safaris that range from half a day to four days in duration. Another popular option is the “Camel to Candlelight” dinner tour.
www.pichirichicameltours.com
Alternatively, visitors may join a four-day trek focusing on ecology, history and cultural heritage with Outback historian and local character Phil Gee of EXPLORE THE OUTBACK CAMEL SAFARIS. Tours depart William Creek on Thursdays between April and November. www.austcamel.com.au/explore.htm
Starting in Coober Pedy, the OUTBACK MAIL RUN delivers post to Oodnadatta, William Creek and remote cattle stations. Visitors can accompany the ‘postman’ across diverse country including gibber plains, red sand hills and inland sea beds on a 12-hour tour that departs the Underground Bookshop at 9am Mondays and Thursdays. www.mailruntour.com
Alternatively, DESERT DIVERSITY’s one-day Painted Desert 4WD tour takes participants to the famous Dog Fence, designed to prevent dingoes from travelling between cattle country in the north to sheep country in the south. It ventures across the treeless moon plains and through large cattle stations into a spectacular landscape featuring exposed layers of sedimentary sandstone. www.desertdiversity.com
SCENIC FLIGHTS
WRIGHT’S AIR offers a range of scenic flights including one hour and full day options. Suggestions include a short trip between William Creek and Lake Eyre North taking in Halligan Point, Belt Bay and Anna Creek Station, or a grand tour that includes Siltcrete Island, Warburton Groove, Neales River Delta, Dalhousie Hot Springs, Anna Creek Painted Hills and Oodnadatta. www.wrightsair.com.au
DOWN ‘N DIRTY is a four-hour tour allowing visitors to enter a working opal mine where they can don a hard hat, grab a torch and hand pick with the challenge to ‘find their fortune’. The tour operates on request with 12 to 24 hours notice. www.desertcave.com.au
GETTING AROUND
The Flinders Ranges can easily be accessed by road from Adelaide. Alternatively daily coach services depart the State capital to selected towns throughout the region. Regional Express operates scheduled flights to Coober Pedy, whilst Sharp Airlines offers scheduled flights to Port Augusta. The legendary Ghan train service also runs through Port Augusta and the Outback on its journeys between Adelaide and Darwin.
DID YOU KNOW?
- The graves of Burke and Wills, Australia’s most famous explorers, can be found at Innamincka
- William Creek is one of the smallest towns in Australia, population 12. It is located on Anna Creek Station, the world’s largest cattle station - 24,000 sq kms or six million acres
- The Flinders Ranges is the world’s oldest mountain range
- Coober Pedy Golf Course has reciprocal rights with Scotland’s St. Andrews Golf Course. Becoming a member at Coober Pedy entitles you to play at St. Andrews course and vice versa
- Outback legend RM Williams was born in Jamestown in 1908
- Golden North Ice Cream Factory is one of South Australia’s oldest ice cream factories. In business since the 1920’s, it supplies Australia’s supermarkets and exports to China
- At 9,500 square kms Lake Eyre is Australia’s largest lake. It is 15 meters below sea level, the lowest elevation in Australia and is also Australia’s most recognisable landmark from space. This is a salt lake and on average fills with water every one hundred years
- The driest recorded place in Australia is Mulka Station on the Birdsville Track, where rainfall is generally below 120mm per annum
- At 50.7C Oodnadatta holds Australia’s hottest official recorded temperature
- At 2.8kms. in length, the coal train that travels through Parachilna is the longest front pull train in the southern hemisphere
For further information www.flindersoutback.com
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