11 May 2013 - Kalbarri Tudor Caravan Park, Kalbarri, Western Australia

There was no need for any alarm this morning; infants woke us with their crying which went on and on, their parents oblivious to the noise or the distress it was creating for fellow campers. Lucky for them, it suited us to be away early or I might have passed some sarcastic remark to the offending party, that is, the parents, later in the day. (I am capable of such evil.)

There was quite a crowd gathered down on the foreshore by 8.45 am to see the pelican feeding, along with one lone pelican. These wild birds do not necessarily run to the same schedule as do the volunteers who feed them, however thirty five years of regular pantomime has instilled some sort of routine. Interestingly while these birds can live to forty years, it is not necessarily the same ones who always come for the show, so somewhere along the way there is a newsletter that goes out to all pelicans broadcasting this daily event. Way back in 1970 there was a chap by the name of Cliff Ross, who ran a small museum and shop called Fantasyland across the road, who used to regularly feed small fish he himself caught or was given, to the pelicans; he would talk to those that came to watch about his own observations of pelicans and promote his little business, hence there was a selfish motive to his otherwise generous entertainment.

Today, one of the five volunteers who now carry on the tradition came with a small bucket of sardines which she offered to the many children gathered, to toss to this one beautiful bird. The seagulls were faster and caught the wild shots of the wee ones, however a couple of future cricket players managed some excellent throws and the pelican was satisfied. Some days there are half a dozen birds, some days just one, however the traditional carries on. A small seating arena has been built on the reserve to accommodate the feeding circus and donations help keep the freezer full of pelican fish.

Spectacular gorges of the Kalbarri NP

Once the crowd dispersed, we headed back along the road we had travelled yesterday to the entrance of the Kalbarri National Park. The entry was manned by an attendant who waved us through when he saw our Park's Pass on the windscreen. We headed north on the “gravel” road, actually sand, soft and corrugated. Eventually we came upon a grader making an effort to improve the road and a ranger in a 4WD pulling an interesting set of “harrows”; a triangle of perhaps six large tyres scrapping along the road ironing out the bumps.  As we sped along, swinging and swaying through the sand, we noted the lovely banksia flowers and black boys or grass trees growing on the heath. We nearly hit a Mallee Fowl, the first we had seen in the flesh.

There are two gorge attractions off this road, the Z Bend which we visited first, walking only as far as the lookout, a short half kilometre. What a beautiful place this is! The gorge plunges 150 metres to the Murchison River below where river red gums create a striking contrast to the earthy Tumblagooda sandstone. It was hard to believe that this same river, the one we camped beside three nights ago, the one flowing into the Indian Ocean at Kalbarri over a very difficult and confused bar and the one below, just a chain of ponds waiting for more rain, had managed over time to carve its way through the landscape in such a spectacular fashion.

The author sitting in the Window

The second gorge is The Loop, where a nine kilometre walk of the same name starts. A 400 metres walk from the car park takes you to one of Western Australia’s most iconic natural attractions, Natures Window. This natural rock arch frames the river and anyone who cares to pose for a photo.

We set off at 11 am for the walk described as taking anywhere from three to five hours. The challenging Loop Walk, rated as “hard”, follows the edge of the cliff, with views of the river for about two and a half kilometres, then descends to the river. From there, one makes their way along the river bank, skirting ledges, past beautiful red and white banded rocks, scaling rocky banks and in easier patches, walking along sandy beaches. There are many verbs that come to mind as I think of the activities of the day; sliding, crawling, climbing, bending and of course walking. I took masses of photos as I always do however none of the more challenging stages of the walk. I had handed Chris my camera for safe keeping; I feared I might end up in the river, today rather smelly and sludgy.

We paused for lunch, finding an ant free rock and watched an egret and a heron fishing. The egret was more adept at this task; we marvelled as he juggled a fish in his beak before swallowing it, the fish visible as it descended his gorge.

There was not an abundance of wildlife; we saw a small flock of beautiful green parrots and I think I saw a scorpion, but the euros and thorny devils were hiding out of the sunshine and away from the interlopers. 

The final 500 metres or so was a steep ascent, up a loose rocky slope. We emerged below the Window and were duly quizzed as to where we had been. It had taken us just short of three hours. We are apparently not as unfit as we thought.

It should be emphasised that this walk is not for those who suffer problems with their knees or hips, or for unruly disobedient children.

Chris & I high on the rocks

We drove out to the lookout just a kilometre or so down the road, however after the sights we had seen today, we were not hugely impressed. It was time to head home, and so we did, the road already different from the morning; the grader, the tyre machine and the very many tourists having reformed the surface.

There are two other gorges for the keen tourist, these a further twenty five kilometres back on the road toward Carnarvon, Hawks Head and Ross Graham. However we are most satisfied with our day’s excursion and will leave Kalbarri tomorrow, singing its praises and with more to see should we ever return.

The babies are crying again! Take them home! This might be a Family Park but that does not mean we have to be subjected to this!