Bushwalking at Arkaroola

 Grounded without a spare tyre, I am reluctant to take on any of the 4WD trails around here until my new tyres arrive, so today we plan to do a couple of the bushwalks that lead out from Arkaroola. There is one, Acacia Ridge Track, that commences about 5 km down the road and the walk is back to the resort along Acacia Ridge. The tourist information says that there is a bus drop off to the start of the walk twice a day. When we tried to book a ride, we were told that they can’t get bus drivers, so the bus service is not available. However it is feasible to walk out to the summit of the Ridge and back, still getting to enjoy the views along the ridge.

 

There being no other alternative we opt to do the walk to the summit and back. The trail head is just down the entry road to  the resort and we are told it is about a 5km return trip and should take around 3 hours.

 

Once you leave the main road trail goes past the Mt Elva dam, which is bone dry. The dam was built to provide a supplementary supply of water to Arkaroola, but since its construction in 1986 the dam has been filled with water on only a few occasions.

 

Mt Elva Dam

Looking back to Arkaroola Village from the dam

 

It then begins to climb up a steep ridge which runs parallel with the road (which runs through a valley between two steep ridges). Whilst the trail is well marked, like everything in the Flinders the ground surface is loose, sharp rock. 

 

There are great views looking back to Arkaroola Village, into the valley and of the  ridge on the opposite side of the road. After a while, the summit seems to be just around every corner, but it is always a little bit further.

The road into Arkaroola

McKinley Bluff on the other side of the valley

Eventually reaching the summit, there are great views, including distant views of Lake Frome, a large salt lake that can just be seen on the horizon.

The white band along the horizon is Lake Frome

 

Walking back down the trail is requires more care than going up as there are steep sections with loose surfaces.

Fence star posts have rock weights wired to them to keep them in the ground

 

Overall it took us 2 hours and it was well worth the walk. We stopped at the resort centre for a coffee and then back to our cabin for lunch. As well walked past the mechanics shed the was a Ford Ranger getting some tyre treatment.

Having a wander around the common area during our coffee break I am intrigued by a display I find that extols the virtue of the green energy program that has been installed here with government financial support. It consists of solar panels and a large battery.

Details of the installed system

It is midday, so peak performance time for a solar array. The real time data display below shows the system performance.  The yellow slice on the pie chart represents the amount of power being supplied by solar, the red section is the amount being supplied by the diesel generators.

Realtime performance data

 

Well, we have managed to fill in the morning, had lunch and now it is time to take to the hiking trails once again. Our afternoon walk is named the Mawson_- Spriggina Trail. Douglas Mawson was not only a great Antarctica Explorer, but as a trained geologist he also did a lot of exploration work in the Flinders Rangers. Reg Spriggs was a student of Mawson’s and he founded Arkaroola. Both were heavily involved is studying the geology of the area.

This trail is 8 km and it says to allow 4 hours, but the grade is easier than this mornings walk. The focus on this walk is the geology of the area. 

It is certainly a much easier walk , heading off in a different direction from this morning walk and taking us through a valley, creek bed and the ridge line that follows it, the crossing over the ridge and coming back along the other side in a loop back to the village.

The beginning of our afternoon walk

The first geological formation that is highlighted on the trail is this rugged cliff faced outcrop

Looking ahead on the trail the scenery is quite different and seems to change around every corner.

The most prolific tree in this very dry landscape is the Curly Mallee

Back on the creek bed

One of the main features of this walk is a pegamite outcrop which they have named Sitting Bull. 

Sitting Bull

There are a few more similar, but smaller outcrops as the walk progresses and lots of stunning scenery.

The last group of these we see are called the pinnacles and are also one of the features of this walk

On the last few km we get some different valley views, bit the rugged rock strewn pattways remain a constant feature.

Another geologic feature of the walk is a "landscape" model of Spriggina Floundersi one of the fossilised segmented flatworms discovered by Dr Reg Sprigg in the Flinders Ranges

The final part of our walk takes us past one of the 3 observatories that exist at Arkaroola, unfortunatley for us, at the moment the moon phase is not ideal for star gazing, which is another activity offered here when conditions are right.

Eventually we can see signs of Arkaroola Village as the caravan park comes into sight.

The caravan park with Griselda Hill in the background

Finally back at our cabin, we are ready to put our feet up. In total we have walked over 13 km today over uneven and sometimes steep ground. According to our Apple watches we have done around 24,000 steps and climbed the equivalent of 83 floors. Fortunately we are dining in at our cabin tonight so we can relax and have a nice bottle or red with dinner.