The Wild West

Mt Nameless overlooking Tom Price, provides a scenic backdrop to the neat little town. A very steep track leads you to the top and having held my breath on the way up, was rewarded with a view of mountains and valleys that seemed to go on forever. From here the countryside took on a new ambience with touches of green and a smattering of well fed trees. The ever present iron ore rocks were still abundant, capping the mountain tops and producing a terraced effect down the mountain side.


View from atop Mt Nameless and Bearded Dragon, red from the dirt

Hamersley Gorge lies at the less frequented southern end of Karijini National Park, and made a pleasant stop on our way to our next camp. The gorge ends in a deep pool, or you can swim further up the waterfall in the ‘spa’.

Hamersley Gorge

However, it was the swirls and patterns of the gorge rocks that was the most impressive feature. Looking like ancient aboriginal art, we had to remind ourselves this was a pattern carved by nature over many millions of years.

Millstream-Chichester National Park aquifer

Millstream-Chichester National Park, our camp for the next few nights, is an oasis in the middle of this dry Pilbara country. An aquifer, or underground water reserve, feeds constant water into the Millstream wetland. With over 1,700 million cubic metres of water in reserve, there is certainly plenty of water to splash around in. A pastoral station once occupied the park, and was in operation for more than a 100 years.

The old stone homestead is now the visitors centre, (as shown below).

Fortescue River, which doubled as our bath..... Millstream-Chichester National Park

However, the 200,000 hectare national park is also home to the traditional Pilbara landscape of rolling Spinifex hills and spectacular escarpments. As a consequence you get a real diversity of both arid and wetland plants and animals. We have never seen paperbark trees as big as here, which are known as Cadjabut. They provided welcomed shade from the sun. Is it because there is so much iron ore in the ground, that it seems to heats up like metal making it is so hot out here? The nights were fortunately cooler and allowed us to sleep comfortably listening to the sounds of nature- we are still not sure if it was a quoll or feral cat we could hear.

A blue haze seemed to envelop the landscape, dulling the scenery as if it was a watercolour painting. This is not to say that it made the view bland, but rather the opposite. Walk to any lookout and you marvelled at the subtle shades of the watercolour in front of you. It was really an amazing sight to behold. We were viewing a living, breathing painting, much like an Albert Namitajira. (Infact, this region is more unexplored than Central Australia). With the big, wide Fortescue River such an odd sight after so many dried up river beds and the best value camping to date, Millstream-Chichester National Park is one of our favourite parks.

As we journeyed towards Karratha, we stopped in at the Python Pool, located at the other end of the park. The pool is nothing to write home about, but by jingo the views on the way out are simply awe inspiring (and I hate to use the cliché scenery verbage). Sweeping valleys are framed by plateau topped mountains, such an unusual sight in Australia. The landscape is more

Python Pool and 'Wild West' view

reminiscent of the America in Wild West movies. Stopping to soak up the view, we were half expecting John Wayne to come riding by, followed by half a dozen Sioux Indians. Alas, we were the only ones out here, with only our imaginations for company.

Aboriginal petroglyphs in the 'red rocks' photo below

All good views must come to an end, and so it was on to Karratha. Known primarily for its resource industries- iron ore, natural gas and salt, it is also the only major town for literally thousands of kilometres (it has two supermarkets!). Red rocks dominate the journey into town. I look forward to the day when we escape the ‘red’. It seems to penetrate every fibre of clothing and has turned our white car a lovely shade of pink (hence the saying- Pilbara pink). It even seems to penetrate the skin, giving us a fake tan effect- perhaps there is a market there? A short drive from town is the Burrup Peninsula and a day’s exploring led us to untouched scenery (including red rocks) and aboriginal petroglyphs (rock engravings). There are over 10,000 individual engravings in the area and is one of the most prolific art sites in Australia. With about a trillion rocks in this area, it is no wonder so much art abounds. With the North West Shelf Oil and Gas venture a huge part of WA, we took ourselves off to learn more.

Overlooking the gas plant the visitors centre explains the origins of oil and gas, through to the recovery, processing and transformation of energy. Not to mention the importance to the Australian economy. The North West Shelf is capable of producing 16.3 million tonnes of natural gas a year. The mind boggles at just how much is lying beneath the sea.




North West Shelf Gas Plant, Karratha

Old gaol, Roebourne

Karratha was established in the 1960’s, however is surrounded by historic towns. Roebourne, 30 kilometres east, has many old stone buildings, a reminder of the early days. The town dates back to 1866 and is the oldest Pilbara town still in existence, with the old gaol having been made into a museum. Displays show what life was like for the first European settlers and the harsh treatment of local aborigines. Many were blackbirded- basically rounded up as slave labour under brutal conditions.

Cossack, not far from Roebourne, was the districts main port until the late 19th century. Point Samson took over as the main port once silting tides became a hazard. The town was then abandoned and today relics of a former grandeous time remain. A few buildings on the main street have been restored. Outer streets are now home to ruins, as nature once again reclaims what was hers.

Remaining buildings in the abandonded town of Cossack and the Courthouse in the main street