Kennedy Range National Park

The Kennedy Range is a plateau more than a hundred and fifty kilometres long that stands about a hundred metres above the surrounding Gascoyne plain, an eroded remnant of an ancient seabed whose sandstone holds marine fossils. Its eastern escarpment is cut by short steep gorges, and walking tracks lead into Temple Gorge, Honeycomb Gorge, with its pitted wall of small hollows, and Drapers Gorge, each a scramble over boulders into narrowing red rock. The Escarpment Trail climbs to the plateau rim for views over the plain. Wildflowers follow winter rain. The park is remote, with a basic campground at the range foot and no water, fuel or phone coverage.

The landscape

• The escarpment - a hundred-metre wall of red sandstone above the plain.
• Honeycomb Gorge - the pitted rock face at the end of a short gorge walk.
• Temple Gorge - a scramble into narrowing red rock.
• The rim trail - the climb to the plateau edge and the view east over the plain.

When to go

April to September; summer temperatures pass forty-five degrees and walking is dangerous. Wildflowers follow good winter rain, usually August. Roads close after rain and can stay shut for days.

Good to know

The road in from Gascoyne Junction is unsealed, corrugated and slow. There is no water, fuel or phone signal, and the campground is basic. Gorge walks involve boulder scrambling rather than formed paths.

Nearby

Gascoyne Junction is the nearest settlement; Mount Augustus lies far east.

Key facts