Cathedral Gorge and Piccaninny Creek

One of the most visited sites in Purnululu National Park is Cathedral Gorge, which offers moderately easy walks – exploring some of the gorges and chasms on foot is a most rewarding experience as it allows visitors to come “up close and personal” to the tiger-striped, behive-shaped rock domes. Piccaninny Creek and Gorge are not for the faint-hearted as they offer some of the best overnight walking in the park – it is important to be well prepared and walkers should make sure they advise rangers of their intentions, but then also let them know when they return safely from their unforgettable excursion into the stunning wilderness of Purnululu. As with the rest of the park, there are no accommodation facilities in the gorge and visitors must carry in all food and water. Piccaninny is a wonderland of colours, rock formations and small plants and grasses that grow in precariously little places and niches. The rock domes are made up of fine sandstone which crumbles very easily when touched – it is therefore best to take nothing but photographs and leave nothing but footprints.