G’Day Mob,
If you google “Dungeon and Kwiambal” this is what you will find:
This is the view I have seen several times as I’ve walked the marked track in Kwiambal National Park, about 40km from home, and peered into the deep gorge formed by the Severn River.
Several weeks ago I had plans to take the canoes and paddle the Severn upstream from The Dungeon, where the pools are long and deep. Somehow Brian got hold of that plan and gave it a shake. The canoes were left at home and Brian’s BFF, Col, was added instead. And now we were walking from the Parks-approved camping area, down the entire length of The Dungeon – probably not a Parks-approved activity.
The walk started off with grumbles about sore backs and busted knees, broken ribs and strained muscles. Within 500m Brian had twisted an ankle then I was reminded of a delicate hamstring while leaping boulders. Col, meanwhile, was sweating out the previous night’s intake from the Wallaroo. But we soon got into a rhythm.
We started with rock hopping
until we reached the start of The Dungeon
and although we were met with guts and breakaways that threatened to block our way
we eventually scrambled and slid into the steep-sided Dungeon.
The rush of water through this gorge after rain must be an amazing sight (from the lookout, not from The Dungeon floor), and we were constantly in awe of the power generated, whether it be from stone worn smooth from wet season waterfalls
or from the tattered remains of a boat wedged under rocks.
We criss-crossed the river
and fished long pools without any luck.
We only got wet once
though Brian went to extraordinary lengths to avoid a repeat.
With light fading we emerged from The Dungeon amongst a puzzle of fallen boulders, and a couple of hours later we wearily pulled up outside the Wallaroo. We sat in the car and considered phoning the barman for table service, but there were tales to tell so we struggled inside.
For a fleeting moment we were not just cattle farmers but adventurers.
Beautiful gorge and plenty of boulders to make an interesting hike! The power of water on stone over time is amazing. If you ever make it over here you must see the Columbia Gorge area.
Only if you will be my tour guide!
We’ll make it a trip all the way up to the Walla Walla region of Washington. The Gorge area was was carved out by the great Missoula Floods.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Missoula_Floods
That sounds like a great adventure. So are you going to paddle it next time?
Now that would be an adventure! Sorry I haven’t spent much time on your blog lately – been stupidly busy around here, but the photos are always worth a quick squizz.
Looks like you guys had fun and a great adventure!
We most certainly did Alex. You should check out Lyle’s blog – another fantastic wildlife photographer.
A wee bit jealous of the lovely weather you had during your adventure!!
It is quite good weather at the moment, though windy, which is not unusual for spring. I am guessing it is a wee bit chilly in Scotland?
Not too bad actually, although we had the first bit of snow last weekend, which is quite early actually. Otherwise, blue skies and mild weather, not as much rain as other years.