Three days at Carnarvon Gorge in central Queensland – travel guide

Located 720km north-west of Brisbane in Queensland’s central highlands, Carnarvon Gorge is a spectacular formation sliced out of the semi-arid sandstone belt by water and time.

Imbued with diverse flora and fauna and significant Indigenous heritage, it is much loved by Queenslanders – many of whom first visit on school excursions – but little known outside the state. The gorge forms a 16,000-hectare segment of Carnarvon national park.

Getting there

From Brisbane, the drive to Carnarvon Gorge via Roma takes a full day. With limited time it's best to fly from Brisbane to Emerald, 234km to the north. On my hour-long flight I could see the canyon’s white sandstone cliffs gleaming in the morning sun.

From Emerald, head south along Gregory Highway to Springsure, then take Dawson Highway to Rolleston before continuing 61km to the gorge access road. From the turn-off it is 45km to Carnarvon Gorge, with the last 15km on well-maintained dirt.

Most sights and facilities are along the access road’s final section, which ends at the national park visitor centre, where there is information on all aspects of the gorge. The surrounding visitor area has grassy lawns that draw grazing kangaroos and wallabies and is where gorge walking trails begin.

Main attractions

Sculpted by Carnarvon Creek, the gorge is a warren of high-sided chasms filled with remnant rainforest, pools, caves and ancient Indigneous art galleries. Most features lie beyond the park visitor area, but three – Baloon Cave, Mickey Creek Gorge and Rock Pool – are reached by short trails off the access road’s final section.

On my first afternoon I visit two of these, beginning with a rock-hop across Carnarvon Creek to Rock Pool, where I recover from the journey with a cooling dip. Then, at Mickey Creek Gorge, I scramble and hoist myself up into the midst of the narrowing passage, and am soon squeezing between twisting rock walls covered in green moss.

The main gorge walking track, leaving from the visitor centre, crisscrosses Carnarvon Creek for 9.7km to Big Bend, where a natural pool stands invitingly beneath sandstone cliffs and camping is possible.

En route, sidetracks lead to a succession of rock chambers that secrete everything from ferns that originate from before the dinosaurs to a huge amphitheatre with 60m-high walls.

Trekking in the gorge

Experienced hikers can see the main sights on a one-day, 22km trek, getting as far as Cathedral Cave, where Indigenous Australians have sheltered for thousands of years. For an even bigger challenge, there’s the six-day 87km Carnarvon Great Walk, which begins in and eventually returns to the gorge and involves lugging camping equipment and provisions.

For a shorter day’s hike, aim for the must-see Art Gallery, 5.4km from the visitor centre, and take in other sights along the way. Whatever hike you choose, start early to avoid the day’s heat.

Guided tours

With limited time at Carnarvon Gorge, I take a day tour with local operator Simon Ling of Australian Nature Guides. Ling is an expert in ecology and biodiversity who has been guiding visitors through the gorge since 1999. His tour reveals the gorge’s flourishing plant and animal life and provides invaluable background on the landscape’s geology and Indigenous heritage.

Early on, as the sun rises, we make slow but engrossing progress as Ling explains the life cycle of everything from native hibiscus and Australian bluebells to tree-climbing orchids and mammoth cycads. As the forest warms, the first tiny finches and fairy wrens appear and swamp wallabies begin stirring. Later we encounter white-faced herons at the creekside, mobs of king parrots with bright red torsos and green coats, and an echidna shuffling through the undergrowth.

Reaching the Art Gallery by mid-morning, Ling helps interpret a panorama of 2,000 paintings and handprints that date back more than 3,500 years. There are representations of emus and kangaroos, totem animals of the Karingbal and Bidjara people; intricate net stencils signifying a burial area and sexual imagery that indicate this was an initiation site for both men and women.

Retracing our steps, we turn off to Ward’s Canyon where we have lunch beneath 13 endemic king ferns, five metres tall and found nowhere else in inland Australia. Virtually bereft of sunshine, in the early 1900s the chasm was used as a natural cold store by the Ward brothers, who hunted possums for their lucrative fur.

In the early afternoon we climb a metal staircase and enter a narrow crack in the rock face to the amphitheatre, a massive open bowl hollowed out of the surrounding plateau. We are given a memorable experience of the echo chamber when a visitor launches into a pitch-perfect rendition of Leonard Cohen’s Hallelujah.

Finally, we visit the moss garden, a riot of greenery within the confines of Violet Gorge, fed by permanent springs within the rock which are between five and 10,000 years old.

In all, Ling’s lower gorge tour covers 14km over a leisurely eight hours. The cost is $55 per person – more details here.

A night tour, a sunset tour and a helicopter ride

I join Ling again later for a night safari tour near the visitor centre. Within minutes of crossing the creek we spotlight a small, endearingly big-eared yellow-bellied glider high up a gum tree. We then see it take off through the canopy, legs and arms splayed, wing-like membranes stretched between them, gliding gracefully and seemingly in slow motion before landing softly on a tree trunk, 30m away.

Later we watch a bigger greater glider cover around 100m as it travels across the creek. We see several more gliders on our short, thrilling walk, including a breeding aggregation of greater gliders, which like koalas, are folivores, feeding exclusively on leaves. We also spot kangaroos and wallabies and the ripple of a platypus in the creek.

On my first evening I do a new sunset tour at the nearby 17,000-hectare Bandana cattle station, which costs $30 per person. Gathered around a campfire with drinks and canapés, we watch the sun illuminating the Great Dividing Range as station owner Olivia Evans, a sixth generation descendant of the area’s European settlers, recounts stories of cattle doffing (stealing) and mustering by helicopter. Leaving behind hectic city lives, Evans and her husband are gradually transforming Bandana into an organic cattle farm.

On my final morning, I get an idea of the scale of the Carnarvon ranges, nicknamed the “rooftop of Queensland”, on a 20-minute helicopter flight with local pilot Shane Swanson. Concentrating on Moolayember Gorge, adjacent to Carnarvon, which can only be otherwise accessed on a seven-day trek, we overfly rock formations like the Three Sisters, whose bluffs and spindly gullies look mythic in the morning sun. The flight adds a wider perspective on the explosion of life in the midst of the dry, rocky inland region. See helicentral.net.au; flights cost $390 for two people.

Sleeping and eating

Don’t expect luxury in this remote location. Accommodation here is all about being surrounded by nature. I stay in a basic safari tent with shared amenities at Takarakka Bush Resort, costing $115 for two. Set on a loop in Carnarvon Creek, where there are platypus, Takarakka also has cottages ($230 for two), ensuite cabins ($195) and camping. It’s mostly DIY food at Takarakka but they offer a roast dinner occasionally, have a store with free Wi-Fi, and friendly, knowledgeable staff.

Closer to the visitor centre and a tad more upmarket, with licensed restaurant and ensuite cabins, is Carnarvon Gorge Wilderness Lodge, open from March to November.

Carnarvon National Park has camping at the visitor area and at Big Bend, 9.7km into the gorge. Permits are required.

When to visit and what to bring

The winter season, between May and October, is best for trekking as days are warm and dry but not unpleasantly hot. However, it can get very cold at night so bring warm clothes and sleeping bags. Supplies and cooking equipment are necessary for camping and for stays at Takarakka. Further information is available at capriconholidays.com.au and 1800 676 701.

Guardian Australia travelled with Capricorn region and Queensland Tourism