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Bush walking.

Carnarvon Gorge has over twenty kilometres of walking tracks for visitors to explore, and there is plenty more country waiting for those that enjoy remote walking. Within the maintained track system, the majority of walks are relatively flat as the track follows the creek systems on the Gorge floor. Use the menu at left to check out the sites in each of the three zones in the Gorge. Each of the sites in that zone will be listed, with a summary of both the site and the track leading to it. There are also a few suggested itineraries tailored to different length stays in the Gorge. This information has been drawn from Australian Nature Guides' Pocket Ranger for Carnarvon Gorge an indespensible guidebook for visitors to the Gorge (available soon from our shop).

Wildlife Watching.

Part of Carnarvon Gorge's attraction is its concentration of wildlife, particularly during the normally dry winters when the Gorge's permanent water becomes a real attractant for regional animals mobile enough to get to it. Most obvious amongst these are birds. A number of the species found in the Gorge are migratory; some come to overwinter in the productive zones along the creeks, whilst others arrive in summer to breed.

To enhance your chances of wildlife encounters, travel quietly and listen for calls and movement alongside the tracks. Once you think you've located something, stop and wait for it to get comfortable with your presence and show itself. During the warmer parts of the day, the sheltered areas along the track are good places to stop and listen for birds.

Guided Walks.

One of the best ways to accomplish the two activities listed above is to take a guided tour. All three commercial operators in the Gorge offer guided walks, the most experienced being ourselves, Australian Nature Guides. Walking with us means you have a great chance of having your questions answered as you think of them, being able to identify the native plants and understand their role in the ecology, and you are likely to see and identify more wildlife as Simon can often identify an animal before it is sighted just by its call or the sounds it makes as it moves through the bush.

For those with a particular interest in wildlife, a Nightlife Tour with Simon is not to be missed. The tour focuses on Gliders, particularly Greater Gliders and Yellow-bellied Gliders, and a walk with Simon after dark will give a fascinating insight into what goes on in Carnarvon Gorge's forests after dark.

Australian Nature Guides is also developing some products for those who would like to combine all the options listed here, such as a morning stroll looking for wildlife followed by a BBQ breakfast, and an evening's stargazing accompanied by a campfire cooked meal (in the previous phase of his career, Simon owned and operated restaurants). We'll let you know when they commence.

Relaxing.

Some visitors find the Gorge's bushwalking mentally relaxing, but there are few who find it to be relaxing physically. To truly appreciate this place, at some point we advise you to stop and do absolutely nothing but be. And just about anywhere in the Gorge is an appropriate place to have a go at it. Try it next to a larger pool in the creek early or late in the day and you may get lucky enough to sight a Platypus. Try it in the sites and the little creatures that took refuge at your approach will relax and go about the day's business. If you are strongly goal-oriented, take a book to read so you feel you are accomplishing something (or you could try remodelling your list of goals to include mastering the lost art of being goal-less).