Saturday 12th May 2018
Well we had intended on doing the Dales Gorge Loop again before breakfast but we didn’t manage it as I woke up really tired this morning, so we just went to Circular Pool lookout which wasn’t very good at this time of day as there was no light getting in there. Then we went back down all the stairs to Fortescue Falls and Fern Pools where a group of people were having a swim. Amazing the difference a little light does to change the overall look of somewhere.

Then we headed to the visitor centre where we read a lot of information about the area. I struggle with reading about the terrible things we did to the Aboriginals when we settled in Australia. One interesting thing I read that upset me was that one of the elders from this area died at the age of 76, he was the last in his tribe which had been around for 30,000 years. We have only been here just over 200 years and his family is now all gone. Did we cause that? We always like to read about all the plants and animals in the areas we are walking in. The Visitors Centre is always really interesting.

We then headed the short cut to our next sleeping place, the Karijini Eco Retreat, but on the way we will stop for a hike in Kalamina Gorge. This was a lot different to yesterday’s walk, a bit more rugged, with more twists and turns, a few more pools and amazingly high red cliff faces. We walked all the way to the end where there was another Nature’s Window which we climbed up to. A bit tricky on the steep cliff face, but once up there it was a nice view. I had another swim in the gorge pool, then we headed back. It was a pleasant hike.

Then we continued on our way towards Karijini Eco Retreat with a quick stop at Knox Lookout and Joffre Lookout. These were also amazing and we will walk one of their gorges tomorrow.

We arrived at the Eco Retreat at about 4.30pm and decided on a rest for the remainder of the afternoon. We are having dinner under the stars in the Retreat Restaurant tonight. We had an interesting dinner. BBQ Crocodile for entree which tasted like chicken with a slightly different flavour. David had Emu, Kangaroo and Crocodile Sausages and I had Lamb Shanks and a Citrus Tart with Macadamia Ice Cream. It was a very nice treat.