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Umbrawarra Gorge, Pine Creek NT
If you are looking for a quick bushwalk that is accessible by
conventional car with shade, water, great scenery &
tranquillity........well
then , don't miss this gem.
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We must of traveled the Stuart Highway
between Katherine & Darwin over a hundred times, and each time we
passed through Pine Creek, we see the road sign saying "Umbrawarra
Gorge 24 km". And each time we thought, I wonder what it is like
in there, maybe next year!"
Well finally we have been to Umbrawarra
Gorge, and being such a short trip off the Highway on a good dirt road ,
I cannot believe why we haven’t been there before.
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Just 3km South
of Pine Creek NT(87 km north of Katherine) on the Stuart Highway
is the turn off to Umbrawarra Gorge. It is a 24 km gravel/dirt
road that during the Dry season (May – November) (and depending
on when the Grader does a run over it) is very usable by
conventional vehicle. There are several Creek crossings, the
deepest one was 1 foot deep ( In July 2002). So a few months
previous is would have been deeper as the wet season rains were
abating. |
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The whole road would no doubt
be closed during the "Wet Season" when these bone dry creek
beds would be a torrent of water. As this road also leads to Jindare
Cattle Station, you can bet your bottom dollar the station staff will
still get through.
I was surprised to see about a half dozen
caravans in the small campground at Umbrawarra, everyone just sitting in
their deckchairs having a read or a snooze amongst the shady gums.
It is pretty much rough camping at the campsite, although there is the
luxury of a toilet there & cheap. Parking in the carpark /creekbed
you can see the "wet season" water levels 4 metres up the
trees, and no doubt higher.
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We donned our
walking shoes and headed off down the concrete path. Yes
Concrete for about 100 metres and then wooden slats over a few
muddy parts of the path where the spring water was seeping.
Following the creek for less
than 3 mins we entered the start of the actual Gorge.
There were stretches of sandy
beach to walk along with a bit of rock hopping in between. |
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Within 5 minutes, you are amongst the
beauty of Umbrawarra Gorge. It was mid July, the height of the Tourist
Season in the Top End when over a 3 months period, a place like the
Nitmiluk Katherine Gorge can have several thousand visitors a day. Well at Umbrawarra Gorge, during the trip in and trip out we managed to see only
7 people. (And again in June2003 we saw about 20 people , with 10 of
those in several individual groups of rock climbers spread throughout
the gorge and out of the casual users way. We were there for about 3
hours) |
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The Gorge twists and
turns over several kilometres and the deeper you go, I assumed the
harder the rock hopping would be, but overall it is a very very easy
walk.
I kept checking high up
the rockfaces for signs of aboriginal art, but saw none. Obviously well
hidden or just around a corner up the escarpment.
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We stopped for a cuppa
and a swim in the rockpools then just had to go and check out around the
corner, and then the next corner and so on.
We came to a narrower
section of the Gorge where you had no choice but to swim about 10 metres
to a lovely sandy area to continue the adventure. (photo above)
It was decided that next
time we visit here we would have a bit more protection for the Camera
gear as we swim the gorge in search of the end and to get a few photos
of Wagaman Aboriginal Rock art.
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