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| Walking among the weathered stacks on the top of Kings Canyon |
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| View into Kings Canyon and the desert plain beyond |
Started up the steep, steep climb to the top of the canyon nice and early. It was cold with a strong wind, in fact it was cold all day, maybe 15 degrees but it was all worth it as the walk was spectacular. The track goes along the top of a wide cliff with a canyon dropping away on either side, then turns and comes up the next cliff so 3 valleys are viewed with Kings Creek being the centre one.
The rock is weathered into stacks and most of it is red. This is not because the sandstone is red, it is in fact white, but because a funghi grows on the rock which traps the windborne red sand and digests the iron oxide. This fixes it into place.
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| 'Garden of Eden' waterhole at Kings Canyon |
The most extraordinary part of the entire 4 hour walk is an area known as the 'garden of eden' This is a deep cleft within the cliff top which has an underlying band of impervious shale at it's base. All rainwater running into the cleft is trapped so the sunken area has a large permanent waterhole and is full of lush plants. Access in and out is via steep ladders. This natural garden is so beautiful, in fact I think this is the highlight of the trip so far.
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