Karijini National Park

Karijini National Park is an Australian national park centred in the Hamersley Ranges of the Pilbara region in the northwestern section of Western Australia. The park is located north of the Tropic of Capricorn, 1,055 kilometres (656 mi) from the state's capital city, Perth. Formerly known as Hamersley Range National Park, the park was officially renamed in 1991.[4]

Karijini National Park
Western Australia
Dales Gorge
Karijini National Park is located in Western Australia
Karijini National Park
Karijini National Park
Nearest town or cityTom Price
Coordinates22°29′46″S 118°23′50″E
Population39 (SAL 2021)[1]
Established1969
Area6,274.22 km2 (2,422.5 sq mi)[2]
Visitation166,000 (in 2009)[3]
Managing authoritiesDepartment of Parks and Wildlife (Western Australia)
WebsiteKarijini National Park
See alsoList of protected areas of
Western Australia

At 627,422 hectares (1,550,390 acres), Karijini is the second largest national park in Western Australia (behind Karlamilyi National Park), with rock formations that are estimated at 2.5 billion years old. The ideal time to visit Karijini National Park is between May and September, during Australia's late autumn, winter and early spring. The days are warm but the nights are cold. Summer temperatures which reach 38°C/101°F make it less practical to visit, with added risk of bushfires.

The park is physically split into a northern and a southern half by a corridor containing the Hamersley & Robe River railway and the Marandoo iron ore mine.[5] Tourist attractions such as gorges and waterfalls are located in the northern half of the park, accessible via sealed and gravel roads. There are no sealed access roads in the southern half.

The park is served by the Paraburdoo Airport (PBO) located 100km (62 miles) from Karijini National Park and Newman Airport (ZNE) is 263km (163 miles) from Karijini National Park. Hire cars are available from both airports. Solomon Airport, located 15 kilometres (9.3 mi) to the west services some of the nearby iron ore mines.

History

The park is the traditional home of the Banyjima, Kurrama and Innawonga Aboriginal people. The Banyjima name for the Hamersley Range is Karijini ("Hilly Place" in English). Evidence of their early occupation dates back more than 20,000 years. During that period, Aboriginal land management practices, such as "fire-stick farming", resulted in a diversity of vegetation types and stages of succession that helped determine the nature of the plants and animals found in the park today.[6]

Traditionally the home of the Banyjima, Kurrama and Innawonga people, the word Karijini is the Banyjima name for Hamersley Range. A party led by explorer F.T. Gregory explored the area in 1861. He named the Hamersley Range, on which the park is centred, after his friend Edward Hamersley.

Climate

The park is located in the Pilbara region, and is mostly tropical semi-arid climate. In summer, thunderstorms and cyclones are common, bringing 250–350 mm of rain annually.[7] Temperatures on summer days frequently exceed 40 degrees Celsius, while winter nights can bring frost.

Geology

Several gorges that flow north out of the park—including Dales, Kalamina, Wittenoom and Yampire Gorges—provide notable displays of the rock layers:[8][9]

Fauna
Rock-wallaby

The park's wildlife includes red kangaroos, euros, rock-wallabies, echidnas, geckos, goannas, bats, legless lizards and a large variety of birds and snakes, including pythons.[16]

Features
Handrail Pool in Weano Gorge

The park is most notable for its many gorges containing slot canyons, waterfalls and water holes with visitors sometimes swimming in the cold pools of water.[17]

Hamersley Gorge[18] is located in the northwestern region of the park, while Range Gorge is in the north, Munjina Gorge is in the east, and Hancock, Joffre, Knox, Red and Weano Gorges converge in the park's center.[19]

While the park is fully open to the public, visitors are warned to exercise due caution when walking in and around the vicinity of Yampire and Wittenoom Gorges near the northern boundary of the park due to the presence of blue asbestos—a known cancer-causing agent when inhaled—which occurs in a number of the rock formations.[2]

See also

References
  1. Australian Bureau of Statistics (28 June 2022). "Karijini (Suburb and Locality)". Australian Census 2021 QuickStats. Retrieved 28 June 2022. 
  2. "Australia's North West › Pilbara › Karijini National Park › Welcome (tab)". Explore Parks WA. Department of Parks and Wildlife. 2013. Archived from the original on 4 November 2016. Retrieved 4 November 2016.
  3. ABC: Karijini National Park visitor numbers drop, 13 October 2010
  4. Department of Conservation and Land Management; National Parks and Nature Conservation Authority (1999). "Karijini National Park Management Plan No. 40" (PDF). Government of Western Australia. p. 1. Archived from the original (PDF) on 12 March 2011. Retrieved 25 June 2014.
  5. Australia Road and 4WD Atlas, publisher: HEMA maps, published: 2007, page: 86-87
  6. "Karijini | Explore Parks WA | Parks and Wildlife Service".
  7. M. Bright, 1001 Natural Wonders You Must See Before You Die, Quintet Publishing, London 2005
  8. Thorne, Alan (2003) Geology of the Gorges DEC
  9. MacLeod, W. N. (1966) The geology and iron deposits of the Hamersley Range area. Bulletin (Geological Survey of Western Australia), No. 117,http://henrietta.liswa.wa.gov.au/record=b2251313~S2 Archived 4 March 2016 at the Wayback Machine -
  10. "Rio Tinto Iron Ore - Geology". Archived from the original on 23 October 2012. Retrieved 7 August 2012.
  11. "Iron 2002 - Key Iron Deposits of the World - Module 1, Australia".
  12. "Australian Stratigraphic Units Database, Geoscience Australia".
  13. "Aquaculture Groundwater Resource Atlas, Department of Fisheries, Western Australia, Fish for the Future". www.fish.wa.gov.au. Archived from the original on 3 September 2006.
  14. "Discovery challenges timeline of oxygen on Earth".
  15. Webb Adam D., Dickens Gerald R., Oliver Nicholas H. S. (2004). "Carbonate alteration of the Upper Mount McRae Shale beneath the martite-microplaty hematite ore deposit at Mount Whaleback, Western Australia". Mineralium Deposita. 39 (5–6): 632–645. Bibcode:2004MinDe..39..632W. doi:10.1007/s00126-004-0434-z. S2CID 128893362.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  16. "Karijini National Park – Beyond The 26th". ABC. Archived from the original on 24 November 2007. Retrieved 19 December 2006.
  17. "Karijini National Park". westernaustralia.com. Archived from the original on 8 September 2006. Retrieved 19 December 2006.
  18. "Hamersley Gorge".
  19. "Karijini National Park Visitor guide" (PDF). Explore Parks WA (note: PDF file link appears in "Downloads & Resources" tab of webpage: parks.dpaw.wa.gov.au/park/karijini). Department of Parks and Wildlife. 2016. Archived (PDF) from the original on 4 November 2016. Retrieved 4 November 2016.

Further reading
  • Padgett, Allan (1991) Karijini National Park – description of some of the more remote gorges. Landscope, Vol. 7, no. 1 (Spring 1991), pp. 16–21

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