Ikara - Flinders Ranges - Moving on.

 No internet last night!

Another great day exploring further.  Called into Wilpena Poumd VIC to renew my Parks Pass and on advice from staff headed for Brachina Gorge hoping to see the Yellow-footed Rock Wallaby - one of the conservation success stories of the Park.

However as I headed for the main road I noticed a very small sign to Old Wilpena Station and this turned out to be an historical gem which occupied me for almost two hours.

In 1850 a private expedition, using a  chained Adnyamantanha survey crew found good waters and suitable land within the Flinders Ranges. Within a year 3 large runs including Wilpena were established claiming the valuable water resources for grazing their sheep. With different concepts of ownership and use of the land, conflicts with the local Indigenous people were inevitable. The Adnyamantanha were denied access to water and meat and had no choice but to work with the settlers in order to remain in their country. Eventually both groups learned to work together to thrive in this harsh environment.

 

 The main homestead always known as "Government house" on pastoral properties.

Water was the key to survival for the Indigenous and the Settlers. Bores, dams and water troughs were created. A shepherd's water ration was 400 gallons for 5 weeks in the 1850s - a large family needed to survive on 12 gallons a day!

 The majestic Red River Gums are a feature of the Flinders Ranges located in water courses and they still are evident today however many of these beautiful forest giants were felled to provide timbers for housing or fences.

A pastoral property was quite self sufficient: there is a store, blacksmith, houses for shepherds and staff,  stockyards, stables, as well as accommodation, food, water and supplies for travelers, teamsters, drovers, surveyors and explorers passing through. After the discovery of copper these numbers doubled.

Graziers and miners needed to get their products to the markets faster than drays on the rough bush tracks so the first railway line was built in 1878.

One traveler , Henry Tilbrook described his night in one establishment in 1868. 

"I was no sooner in bed than I was out of it again! B-flats (bedbugs) were swarming in my blankets like currents in a plum pudding".  He spent the night in the coach.

Shepherd's hut.

 

 Stables with cobbled stone floor.

 

 Accommodation for travelers.

 There were few fences on the runs; simple rock cairns and inscribed tree trunks defined boundaries. Sheep were cared for by shepherds by day and held in brush "hurdle" pens at night, cattle ranged freely and were mustered annually whilst horses were allowed to roam to find feed. Fences were expensive to construct and required a great deal of timber.  In the 1870s wire began to replace timber fences enabling pastoralists to enclose their land and better manage water and pasture.

 Wire changed practices on pastoral properties and represented "ownership" in a more substantial way.

Old Wilpena existed as a working station for 135 years and witnessed an extraordinary period of history. It was purchased by the South Australian Government in 1985 and in 1986 was listed on  State Heritage. It became part of Ikara - Flinders Ranges National Park in 1996.

It is a wonderful example of pastoral history, a complete site and with excellent interpretive signage.

The lands here at Wilpena Station have enduring cultural significance to the Adnyamathanha who lived here for thousands of years and this is reflected in a beautiful art space -Ikara - meeting place adjacent to the homestead. It is was so quiet and peaceful when I visited and read the words of many of the local people expressing their feelings of their lands,

 

In 1937 a New Zealand photographer photographed this tree with the background of Wilpena Pound.  He named it "The Spirit of Endurance" and believed it demonstrated how nature adapted and survived through adversity.  His photos won many awards.  Today it still stands strong and enduring.

 

The Spirit of Endurance.

 

 

Now I began my driving adventure into the Brachina Gorge hoping to see the elusive Yellow-footed Wallaby. The road winds through the spectacular gorge country. I had my first "water over the road" crossing and slowed to a crawl as the road became rockier and narrower. But it was worth it!

 

                   Not the best photo but you can see his long stripy tail and his sweet little face. 

This rock wallaby is part of a very successful program called "Bounceback". There are estimated to be around 200 of them in the Park out of a total remaining population of 2000 in South Australian. Much work has been done to eradicate foxes, their main predator, and goats and rabbits who damage their habitat. I was lucky enough to see 4! 

 Last view!

It was raining lightly but steadily when I left Rawnsley Station at 9.00 - how lucky was I to have two perfectly fine, mostly sunny days? Highly recommended for accommodation and the food was fabulous in the Woolshed restaurant.

I paused in Quorn for coffee and cake but it was so cold and wet I didn't stop to explore but moved on to Port Augusta where I visited the Wadlata Outback Centre - a brilliant interpretive rendition of the creation of the the Australian Continent, it's plants, geology, peoples and places - well worth the $22 entry.

And at 2.30 it stopped raining!

So here I am in Port Pirie - a little bit of trouble with my car!  Is the starter motor dying? A lovely local mechanic checked everything and all was good but he thought the starter motor was a bit doughy!  

It's thinking a bit before the motor fires! Hopefully all will be well!

 Isn't he beautiful? Having a snack in the garden at Wilpena Station.