Porcupine Gorge

Porcupine Creek has cut a deep gorge through the flat black-soil plains north of Hughenden, exposing layers of sandstone, basalt and older sediments in bands of red, white and grey. The Pyramid, a pointed formation of banded rock standing in the gorge floor, is the landmark, reached by a steep track of about a kilometre and a half that drops to the creek, where permanent waterholes support paperbarks, fish and birds in country that is otherwise parched. The contrast with the surrounding plain, treeless and featureless in every direction, is the point. A campground sits at the rim near the main lookout.

The landscape

• The Pyramid - the banded rock formation standing in the gorge floor.
• The layered walls - sandstone and basalt bands exposed by the creek.
• The waterholes - permanent pools with paperbarks in dry country.
• The plain above - flat treeless grassland pressing up to the rim.

When to go

April to September; summer temperatures pass forty degrees and the descent becomes dangerous. The wet season can cut roads. Winter nights are cold. Early morning is best for the descent and the light on the walls.

Before you go

The track to the floor is steep and the climb out is hard in heat, with no water on the way. Facilities are limited to a campground and pit toilets. Hughenden is an hour away and is the nearest fuel and supplies.

Nearby

Hughenden and its dinosaur museum lie south; Undara is far northeast.

Key facts