11-12 July Kings Canyon

Packed up and the kids said goodbye to their new friends. We stopped to do the walk up to the lookout that we had missed the previous afternoon which was well worth the early in the day effort. There were views down into the valley and across to the next one. There was also a large towering rock formation at the end of the path that the kids thought looked like a frog winking. Can you see it?
Back in the car and we drove on to the Mereenie Loop, a 190km dirt road to Kings Canyon. Not one of the best dirt roads we have been on but certainly not the worst. Best thing about it was that it was likely to be the last dirt road we go on this trip. Cheers could be heard around the car once we reached the bitument. 20kms further on and we reached the Kings Canyon Resort and set up camp. Thanks goodness we got in around lunchtime because by 4pm the place was packed. In the afternoon we did a short walk to Kathleen Springs. It is a gorge that was once used by stockmen to coral cattle and to provide. Before that it was an important hunting area for the local Aboriginal tribe. Now it is part of the National Park and the sacred Aboriginal areas along the gorge, including the spring, are fenced off but still possible to see. We saw a Kangaroo along the path and enjoyed the tranquillity of the spring. The silence only broken by the non stop chattering of Nick.
During the night we woke to the sound of rain on the tent. Rain in the desert??!! In the morning the skies still looked ominous and the temperature was struggling to get above 10 degrees. For the first time in 4 months we got out the raincoats. This must mean our trip is truly coming to an end.
We decided to do the Kings Canyon Rim walk which is 6.5km. Before going I had been a bit concerned that the kids might not be able to do it. Well actually I was sure they could do it, just not sure whether they could do it without whining of tired legs and hunger. Needn’t have worried. The cool temperature was perfect for walking and there was enough scrambling and variety to keep the kids interested for the whole walk. I find that if a walk is a bit more adventurous the kids can walk for ages. Boring hot walks and they can hardly go 50 metres. The Kings Canyon walk was certainly interesting with Bungle like domes, sheer cliffs and great views. Probably rates in our top ten walks.
Back in camp in the afternoon and we caught up with a family that we had previously met in Palm Valley. They had all the fun toys like Nintendo so kids were well occupied.