Karijini: down into the gorges

Karijini kept us busy climbing into gorges and looking for swimming holes. The water was low in some places, which ruled out a few swims but made parts of the gorges easier to explore on foot.

The rock was extraordinary: deep red walls, layers picked out in changing light and narrow passages that made the country above feel a long way away. Getting around involved some scrambling, so there was plenty of reason to stop and look carefully at both the view and the next handhold.

That attention paid off when Andy spotted a large centipede exactly where he had been planning to grip. A useful reminder that the small residents are as much a part of the place as the spectacular geology.

There were other encounters, too, including flowers, a bird on the red ground and an unusually close inspection of the camera. At Tom Price, where we resupplied before heading into the park, a huge mining truck made our own setup look rather modest.