Surrounded by a somewhat desolate area and mines of all sorts, Karijini National Park is a natural retreat. Filled with diverse swimming holes, landscapes and gorges, this is one national park you’ll never get tired of visiting. It’s also a prime example of how Western Australia never ceases to amaze.
This guide contains all there is to know about visiting the gorges in Karijini National Park, Western Australia. Included is every gorge, the best time of year to visit and 2WD accessibility.
What you can expect upon visiting Karijini National Park are dramatic landscapes specifically shades of ochre in the gorges, hills and escarpments. This blended with the minimal green vegetation makes for a rugged and beautiful terrain. The landscape is uniquely shaped by a history of volcanic land mass which is incredibly visible at Hamersley Gorge, among other locales.
Keep reading this full guide and check out the photos to learn and see why Karijini National Park is one of Western Australia’s top places to visit.
Table of Contents
What to Know about Visiting Karijini National Park
Karijini National Park is located in northern Australia and Western Australia’s Pilbara region. What this means for visiting is that there are favourable times to visit depending on the weather. For the most part, the best time of year to visit is end of summer to spring, about April to October. This is also depending on the year and the weather it brings.
This is because Northern Australia—above the Tropic of Capricorn—experiences a different summer than the rest of the country. This includes more rain the rest of the year, tropical storms and extreme heat (although entire Australia does suffer with this). For travelling to WA’s Pilbara, this means flooding is a major issue. The entire park will shutdown even with the risk of storms.
Believe me when I say, this is a good thing. It’s not only unsafe to be in Karijini National Park during flooding but also the entire area. Mainly due to roads blocked and not being close to supplies.
I did visit Karijini National Park during the wet season, and had an amazing time. There were hardly any people there and the storms were minor while I was there.
However, the days were above 40 degrees. My partner and I were extremely prepared with extra water, food and other supplies. And, even though we are fit, the heat can be exhausting, which is why it’s important to plan well and take many breaks while hiking throughout the gorges.
This is why many people choose to visit in other seasons than the wet. There’s also no treated water available in the park, so it’s important to bring plenty of drinking water. In the wet season the water tanks aren’t accessible as it’s at the visitor centre which is closed.
Autumn and spring are the most ideal times to visit the park. It’s still warm outside and enjoyable to dip into the swimming holes, but the heat usually doesn’t get too hot. The dry/winter season is also good to visit, but it can get frosty at night in the desert, so be prepared for all weather conditions.
The entire park is 2WD accessible, although there are some areas that are 4WD recommended. Really, most of the best spots in Karijini National Park are accessible by 2WD. It’s still important to have extra gear for flat tyres or other minor mechanical troubles.
No matter what season, always be prepared—bring extra food and water—and use sun protection!
What to Do in Karijini National Park
Considering this national park is in a semi-desert area there’s lots to do all year around. Depending on your fitness level, motivation and interests there’s really something for everyone here. Karijini National Park’s nature is definitely its biggest asset, and there’s so many ways to see and explore this.
The many gorges in Karijini National Park are one of the best ways to explore its nature. Whether it’s viewing them from above, or travelling down to the pools below, checking out the gorges are a must. It’s also a great way to cool down on the warmer days in the pools. Check out the section below for all of Karijini’s top gorges and what makes each one unique.
Bushwalks, or hikes is another great way to explore the park. These can be simple flat walks through and area, or there’s some longer hikes, with more incline. Most of the walks go through the gorges, this means the temperature can be cooler within the gorge, but it’s still important to be sun-safe regardless.
It’s possible to stay at accommodations outside of the park, but camping within way better. The bush camping is the best way to embrace Karijini National Park. This means watching the sunsets and sunrises, and relaxing under the stars. The only bush campground in Karijini is at Dales Recreation Area.
Finally, Karijini National Park is 627,442 hectares so driving through the park, whether 2WD or 4WD is an amazing way to experience the park. It’s pretty regular to drive for at least an hour each day. Enjoy the views while on your journey through the park.
Next, these sections below will dive deeper into what there is to do at each locale, and why they’re so special.
Gorges in Karijini National Park
This is the complete list of gorges accessible in Karijini National Park. Check out the photos with each to see how each gorge is different from the last. Included in each description is how accessible each is, where they’re located within the park and other important information. The following gorges go from west to east.
As a general rule: BYO shade and use lots of sun protection on hot days. But, refrain from wearing sunscreen into the pools as it will pollute the water. This also puts the local critters at risk, which either live in the water or drink out of it.
To get a better look at all the hikes Karijini National Park has to offer (and the surrounding area) check out this online brochure, which includes a map.
Hamersley Gorge
As it comes with discovering most of the gorges in Karijini, Hamersley can be a bit deceptive. One of the pools at Hamersley Gorge is one of the images spread about Karijini National Park’s flyers and website—along with local tour information. This gorge is a tiny pool located in the very back of Hamersley. And, it takes some careful rock scaling and climbing to get all the way up there.
Hamersley Gorge is accessible by a partially sealed road in the westerly section of the park. This is only accessible by an unsealed road, Nanutarra Road. And by unsealed, I mean it’s bright red on a hot summer day—expect your vehicle to get dirty while the road trains pass by and blow up the dust.
There’s toilet facilities at the gorge’s parking lot, and most of the upper areas is bitumen. There’s a few areas to sit down, but not a lot of shade to hide from the sun. This upper area is best to see how the compressed rock has shifted and created layers of generous rock formations. Kind of like layers of cake with icing, but flattened and twisted.
After the parking lot, the walking path goes into the gorge (which is visible from above). The path is steep in spots, and although it’s fun to wear thongs/flip flops, this isn’t the best idea for trail, as it goes above dusty and flat rocks.
You could swim in this first pool, just below the walking path, but most continue to the right where there’s markers indicating the trail. By ‘trail’ it’s really just walking and trying not to slip over the flat rocks on your way to the upper pools. Depending on recent rainfall, the area can be dangerous if it’s wet.
Further down there’s a stairway which goes to the higher pools. This is one of the best places to swim around. Don’t jump in, because there are rocks hiding below the water’s surface.
Finally, the smallest and probably coolest pool is above the tiny waterfall/stream coming from the rocks. Now, because the water is slow moving, there’s also algae growing here making the entire thing slippery. But if you follow the rocks up stream, this is the final pool which is kind of shaped like a fish bowl. It’s adorable, bring your waterproof camera and relax the day away.
Pro tip: this tiny pool has some of the only shade in the area, depending on the time of day you’re there!
Hancock Gorge
Though it may not be easy, deciding to take the walk down to the Kermit Pool is (very) worth it. The entire Weano Recreation area is likely one of the most photographed in Karijini National Park.
Similar to the layers of rock formations as at Hamersley Gorge, here in Weano’s area the walking paths follow the gorges through these stunning rock formations. Although here, the rocks are visibly more red and bright—especially with the right sun.
There’s many warnings at the top of the gorge for both this walk and to Weano Gorge (below) for the rain. It’s seriously dangerous if rain is approaching as flash floods can occur, which has taken lives here. This is another reason the entire park shuts down with lots of rain.
The trail to down Hancock Gorge starts from the west/south end of the parking lot, there’s a trail head with signs. It starts with a walk down metal stairs—which can be incredibly hot from the sun. As I went down, I was burning my hands to grab the rails… it was a tough battle.
There’s signs on the rocks to follow where the trail goes. After following the rocks a bit it does go through the water, it is possible to walk around and not go in the water, but this is dangerous and could result in falling. I went through the water on the way in, and climbed the wall on the way back. It’s good to wear shoes that can go in the water just in case.
After going through the water, the trail leads to this almost amphitheatre-esque location and there’s only one tiny trail leading out. Kermit Pool is really close by and it just takes trekking through the slippery stream and rocks to get there. Be careful, take your time and get ready to be amazed by the tiny and incredibly refreshing pool.
There’s signs and a literal rope designating where the access stops, so it’s not easy to just unknowingly keep going. Enjoy the pool and make sure to head back while there’s plenty of day light!
Weano Gorge
Weano Gorge is the place I was most blown away by in Karijini National Park. It’s amazing to see how the rocks are shaped and how that huge pool seems to have just landed at the end.
There’s actually a few different walks around the area. The quickest walk down to Weano Gorge is from the lookout above. This consists of a steep and rocky path, which ends up cooler than when you started because of the elevation drop. The walk is marked so it’s relatively easy to follow, until you get to the small gorge opening, which also follows the stream.
This part has some of the best views of rock formations, whilst you follow the stream to the to Handrail Pool. Hold onto the handrail and follow the steps down to the bank of the pool. There’s generally shade somewhere so it’s easy to stay cool in the water and out of the sun.
Follow the path back the same way, it gets a bit tricky through the flat and wet rocks on the stream, but evens out after this. Take a deep breath on a hot summer day before attempting the short but steep walk back up to the parking lot.
Joffre Gorge
After the road to Weano Recreation area, south-east the road goes to Joffre Gorge or Joffre Falls Lookout. There’s a small circular parking lot at the top and little shade on a hot day. There’s not much to see from the actual parking lot, aside from the dry landscape and the campground/resort across the way.
Down the north-end of the parking lot though is a walk to the lookout to see down both ends of Joffre Gorge. It shows how different this gorge is from the others in the park, it’s huge and deep. Almost as if someone cut a huge strip out of the earth and just left its bouldery insides. It’s a natural amphitheatre which moves into a somewhat twisted gorge.
The falls that fills the pool in Joffre Gorge is small when there hasn’t been much rain, but still beautiful and colourful. Above this is where the walking path is visible from the parking lot which circles around the dome, then to the west side of Joffre Gorge.
It’s quite a walk down, and during the heat of the day there’s absolutely no coverage. It’s possible to swim at the bottom in the gorge before heading back up. It would be quite the site with rain, watching it cascade down the cliffs.
Knox Gorge
Travelling up Joffre Road heads straight to Knox lookout which look right into Knox Gorge and Wittenoom Gorge. This road is 2WD-accessible, but it can be a bit rough at times, similar to the road driving up to Weano Recreation Area.
And just as with the other gorges in Karijini, it is possible to both walk down Knox Gorge and swim! Although this is one of the longest walks to just get down to the gorge. This is on a 2 km trail which takes about three hours, and keep in mind there’s not a lot of shade before getting in the gorge. However, it does cool significantly below.
Otherwise just enjoy the lookout if you’re not up for the walk.
Kalamina Gorge
After Knox Gorge the distance here and between Dales Recreation Area is quite significant. It’s connected by Banjima Road a 4WD-recommended road that goes through the park. Or, the other option is to drive back down to the highway and enter through the next entrance to the park.
Just a note: it’s a similar driving time taking either the highway to the other end of the park, or the 4WD drive.
Really, without a 4WD, taking Banjima Road across is a bit chaotic, but that means missing Kalamina Gorge. We drove incredibly slow in our 2WD van and made it, but I wouldn’t do it again.
Kalamina Gorge was the first walk we did during the day, it was slightly cool (probably high 20s) as we descended into the gorge area. Compared with other gorges like Knox or Joffre, it wasn’t too much of a descend. The walk stirs through the windy gorge, on a relatively level path that goes around bush and rocks. We saw many reptiles including lace monitors.
The path has tiny metal markers that are drilled into either the rock floor or wall. The trail passes back and forth to both sides of the gorge before ending at the Rock Arch Pool. Swimming is permitted here, along with the many other gorges. The trail back follows the same path in.
Dales Gorge
The last gorge on this list is Dales Gorge in the second recreation area. This is the site where the only bush camp is located, more on that later. There’s multiple parking lots in the area, and one closest to the lookouts towards the east end of the area.
These lookouts point to different locations where Dales Gorge splits three ways. The views include down into circular pool and around the bends of the gorge. There’s a walk into circular pool and a rim walk around the gorge.
Dales Gorge is a great location—not just for the camping—but also the generous amount of swimming holes. Circular Pool is one of these, then there’s Fortescue Falls and hidden in the back, Fern Pool. Fortescue Falls is also Karijini’s only permanent waterfall in the park.
Enjoy a day (or many) relaxing in the pools on a hot day, it’s really the best way to hide from the hot sun!
To see more guides and travel advice check out, travelling northern Australia during the wet season, or this road trip guide from Darwin, NT to Broome, WA.
