Inland from Gladstone and Rockhampton on the Capricorn Coast, the rugged Carnarvon is one of the most stunning national parks in Queensland. Carnarvon Creek has carved a deep gorge into the sandstone, leaving 200m-high white sandstone cliffs to surround it. The gorge is an oasis in Queensland’s arid outback - deep in the bottom of it are moss gardens, pools and pockets of lush rainforest, and some of the best sites of Aboriginal rock painting in Australia.
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Courtesy of Tourism Queensland
Ka Ka Mundi and Salvator Rosa There are different sections in the Carnarvon National Park. The westernmost Ka Ka Mundi and Salvator Rosa are the most remote. Ka Ka Mundi protects rainforest patches and the native brigalow scrub with lots of native wildlife. In Salvator Rosa there are some heavily eroded sandstone cliffs like Spyglass Peak and the Eye of the Needle. The early explorer Major Thomas Mitchell (who gave the name for a species of pink cockatoos) camped in Salvator Rosa on his way to the Gulf Savannah. There are no amenities in Salvator Rosa or Ka Ka Mundi and campers have to be self-sufficient.
Courtesy of Tourism Queensland
Mt Moffatt Mt Moffatt is another remote section of Carnarvon National Park, with some of the most spectacular sandstone formations in Australia. It used to be home to the Nuri and Bidjara Aboriginal people. The most significant Aboriginal cave paintings are in the Kenniff cave – now closed to the public because of the risk of the cave roof to collapse under the unstable rocks. The cave is named after Kenniff brothers – two bushrangers who used to hide in the cave and kill policemen who were sent out to arrest them. There are no tracks from Mt Moffatt to the other sections of the park and campers need to be self-sufficient.
Courtesy of Tourism Queensland
Carnarvon Gorge The 16,000ha Carnarvon Gorge is the most accessible and most visited section of the park, with marked walking trails, camping sites and a caravan park which is accessible for 2WD vehicles. There are 21km of walking tracks in Carnarvon Gorge where you can spend days hiking along the main gorge as well as the colourful and lush side-gorges with remnant rainforest plants, cabbage tree palms, ferns, gum trees and ancient cycads. The animals you’ll come across include platypus, echidnas, eastern grey kangaroos, wallabies, rock wallabies, bettongs, possums and over 170 species of birds including lorikeets, honeyeaters and powerful owls.
Short Bushwalks in Carnarvon National Park There are a few short walks in case you don’t want to spend the whole day walking. The shortest is the 2km Nature Trail that gives you a snapshot of the flora and fauna on the gorge floor. The 3km Boolimba Bluff Track passes through a diversity of habitats on top of the cliff and provides some good views over the gorge. This walk is best done in the morning as it gets very hot in the midday sun. The Mickey Creek Gorge Track takes you to one of the side gorges – it is 1.5km long and includes some rock-hopping in the end. Sun can hardly reach the gorge bottom and parts of it get quite cool even in the middle of day. The 500m Baloon Cave Track goes through open palm forest to a site of Aboriginal rock art in Baloon Cave.
Courtesy of Tourism Queensland
The Long Bushwalk in Carnarvon National Park If you are a keen bushwalker, head off to the main gorge. The Main Gorge Walking Track is 9.7km long and crosses the creek 22 times on its way to the Big Bend in the other end. Along the main track which is mostly flat, there are several side-tracks to side gorges which can be a bit steeper in places. The first of them takes you to Boolimba Bluff, and the second to Moss Garden – a moist waterhole where the water that constantly drips from sandstone walls supports numerous mosses and ferns. It is 3.5km from the visitor centre, and 650m off the main walking track (one way).
Courtesy of Tourism Queensland
Amphitheatre and Wards Canyon The next side-walk on your left hand side is the Amphitheatre – a 60m deep chamber, carved in the rock by running water. The Amphitheatre is 4.3km from the visitor area and 630m off the main walking track. Amphitheatre was closed when I last visited in 2006 but it may open again. The next one on your right hand side is the Wards Canyon, a 270m steep walk away from the main track, with rare King Ferns and a pocket of remnant rainforest.
Courtesy of Tourism Queensland
Art Gallery - Aboriginal Rock Painting On the other side of the main creek you can soon turn into the Art Gallery – one of the main attractions in the Carnarvon National Park with over 2000 engravings and Aboriginal rock painting on 62m long sandstone walls. The Art Gallery is 5.4km from the visitor area and 300m off the main track, the last part of it is a gradual uphill walk.
Courtesy of Tourism Queensland
Cathedral Cave - Aboriginal Rock Painting About 3.5km later on the main track you come to Cathedral Cave – an eroded overhang of sandstone cliff with a panorama of some great aboriginal art examples across its walls – the cave sheltered Aboriginal people for thousands of years. One hundred metres away is the spectacular Boowinda Gorge, and a few hundred metres north is the Big Bend – a natural pool beneath looming rock walls, and the end of the main track. You can camp here but you need a permit from EPA. Alternatively, you can camp at Wilderness Lodge Safari Cabins or at Takarakka Bush Resort (Takaru), both near the park entrance.
Here's a map of Carnarvon National Park - you can double-click anywhere on the map to zoom it in and see the places closer. Drag the map to move around, and if you want to see the satellite image with Google Earth, click on "Sat" in the top right hand corner.
NOTE: This website is written in British English, which is the English we use in Australia. You will find words like "traveller", "harbour" and "realise", and they are all correct in the language used in Australia.
