RV TRAVEL
I ’ d already spent a solid three weeks travelling through the southern parts of the Pilbara and thought I ’ d seen it all until a lastminute detour through the northern parts .
I was camping on the fringes of the stunning , world-renowned Karijini NP , headed towards the rich ming area of Newman , in mid- WA . My first stop was 80km before Newman to explore some local rock art . Not signposted , it ’ s an easy 4WD track to the parking area before a 10-minute walk up the small gorge that must hold water in the wet seasons , going by the stunning white gums growing out of the red sand .
Statue depicting Stan and Elda Hilditch .
Wandering through the rocky gorge and getting my eye in , I was stunned to see that these were petroglyphs ( art forms scratched into the rock as opposed to paintings ) by the Martu people . There are hundreds of them representing all types of native animals , weapons , different kinds of people , plants and some sort of enigmatic beings . It ’ s a quiet place where the more I looked the more I saw .
HELLO , NEWMAN
Newman is the largest inland town of the Pilbara . It has a normal population of around 5000 but doubles with FIFO workers , and it is regarded as one of the most isolated and inhospitable places to work and live in summer . Hot winds blow off the Great Sandy Desert , making temperatures soar . But in the cooler months , nights often drop to 10 ° C .
/ 83