Gascoyne Junction

Gascoyne Junction and Kennedy Range

Day 7

We left Wooramel in the morning and made the drive to Carnarvon for food shopping, supplies and clothes washing. Carnarvon is surprisingly a small town but they did have the shops we needed. We grabbed Chicken Treat for lunch and headed off to our next stop, Gascoyne Junction.

The drive east was stress free and we saw far less other cars on the road. It was probably due most people heading north for the solar eclipse but it was half nice and also made me wonder what we were in for.

When we arrived at the town we were met with a large community area with lawn, bbq's and even an outdoor amphitheatre. It was very flash. We then drove around to the caravan park, which also looked new and well maintained. The caravan park was connected to the pub and swimming pool and after setting up we headed over for a swim and we all grabbed a drink.

The pub also had free wifi so it was a good chance to catch up with family and getting our first video up to YouTube.

Day 8

The main reason for coming to Gascoyne Junction was to visit The Kennedy Range and explore the gorges. The visitors centre was super helpful and we headed off on the hour drive. Most of the way was over corrugations and Gus handled the conditions well.

We first went to Honeycomb Gorge which was about a 30min walk from the car park. The gorge had no water which was disappointing but it was spectacular and it was easy to tell how it got its name.

We then drove around to Draper's Gorge which was equally a stunning hike but again had no water for swimming.

The temperature was into the 30's at this point so we headed back to camp.

We spent the afternoon by the pool and relaxing.

Day 9

Heading back to the Kennedy Range we hiked into Temple Gorge which was by far the longest walk and also was the best gorge. Not only did we hike to the end but we also took the walk to the top. This walk walk tough on all of us and Nia did an amazing job.

Again we headed back to the camp for drinks by the pool.

Day 10

This was our leaving day but also the day of the solar eclipse. We had heard from other travellers that the local council was putting on an event in the park we saw as we arrived in town. After packing up we headed down and were met with a group of locals and visitors. They had set a sausage sizzle and deck chairs for the eclipse. They also provided special glasses for the viewing.

We spent the next hour eating, drinking and watching the big event. It would have to be one of the highlights of the trip so far and unexpected.

We finished the day driving back to Carnarvon. This stop was planned as a way to restock and take a pause just in case we had any major issues with our setup.

Gascoyne Junction Review

We very much enjoyed our stay at Gascoyne Junction and hiking the Kennedy Range. The caravan park was super well maintained and kinda showed us what caravan parks could be like with some effort.

We did discover the there was a flood in Gascoyne Junction in 2010 and wiped away much of the town. This is why the facilities were all new and in good condition.

The Kennedy Range is worth the visit being that it is closer to Perth. I would check the conditions in the future to ensure that they are swimmable as that was a negative. 

Issues

Other than the fridge, everything was going well. I did add a block wood under the back end of the fridge to add an angle. This has helped opening the fridge but not as good as I would like.

The site had power and drinking water which makes life much easier.