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I’d just spent a solid three weeks touring through the southern parts of the Pilbara and thought I’d seen it all until a last-minute detour took me through the northern parts.
I was camping on the fringes of the stunning and world-renowned Karijini NP and then I headed out towards the rich mining 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 track to the parking area before a 10-minute walk up the small gorge that undoubtedly holds water in the wet season going by the stunning white gums that are growing out of the red sand.
Wandering up through the rocky gorge and getting my eye in, I was stunned to see several petroglyphs (art forms scratched into the rock as opposed to paintings) by the Martu people. There are literally hundreds of them representing all types of native animals, weapons, people, plants and some sort of enigmatic beings. It’s a quiet place where the more I looked the more I saw.
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Down the road, Newman – the largest inland town of the Pilbara with a population of around 5000 that doubles with FIFO workers included – 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, yet in the cooler months nights often drop to 10°C.
The town is based around the BHP mine of Mt Whaleback, which is the largest open-cut mine in the world. There are bus tours into the mine and its processing area in peak season and the stats for the mine are staggering.
It was in 1861 that explorer Francis Gregory led the first expedition through the Pilbara, and he reported that ore in the hills was playing havoc with his compass readings.
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Small-time ore mining took place in the 1880s when a little gold was found around Nullagine and Marble Bar. The Pilbara was slowly developing around the coast area, but it was in 1957 that Stan Hilditch climbed a nearby mountain (now called Mount Whaleback) and realised that it was a massive ore deposit.
Stan, his wife Elda and business partner Charles Warman kept the ore discovery quiet for several years while an embargo was in place. Work started in 1960 to start extracting the estimated three billion tonnes of ore, and massive trains carry the ore 430km to Port Headland for export around the world.
Around Newman, there are also some pretty stunning areas to explore, like Cathedral Gorge on the way into Newman, plus Kalgan Pool and Eagle Rock Falls, which is accessible only by 4x4. Kalgan Pool is known for its long drive up through a narrow track that’s underwater most of the year.
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It’s a daunting drive where long grass brushes against the sides of your vehicle as you tackle the watery track, hoping no one will come the other way as you round the corner. At the other end, you’ll be rewarded with pristine and remote camping beside a deep pool where volcanic rock was pushed out of the ground millions of years ago.
A 30km-long 4x4 track winds its way up and around the pool through spinifex country to the top of the plateau and further on to Eagle Rock Falls. This massive scar in the ground and the deep falls must rage hard during the wet season, dropping down into the gorge that has been cut over millions of years.
The track out of the falls continues through spectacular spinifex country where I saw multiple herds of wild camels roaming.
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My next stop was Nullagine, a short-lived gold mining town that dates back to the 1880s. Gold didn’t last long here but when the rush was on there were a reported three pubs, eight stampers and nearly 4000 people.
Interestingly, in 1902 Nullagine became the first place in Australia where diamonds were found, as well as a host of other precious stones. Today, it’s a quiet and well-kept town with only a handful of locals, but visitors can spend time enjoying the remoteness and Nullagine’s natural attractions, like Conglomerate Gorge and Beatons Creek Gorge, cool off at Daylight Pool or wander around town and admire the relics.
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I was told about a stunning camp location and waterhole called Skull Springs (also known as Running Waters), and that when I headed out of Nullagine for 120km I would know where the turn was. It’s not officially signposted, as such, but an animal skull stuck on a 4x4 spring signals the turnoff which I soon spotted and headed off down the track towards the waterhole.
Only accessible by high clearance 4x4s, warm water seeps out of the ground from underground springs at this beautiful and magical spot, where the water is turquoise blue with paperbarks lining the bank. The long pool is crystal clear for its entire length and with body-temperature water it is a perfect place to spend a few hours, with a beaut camping area high up on the bank surrounded by spinifex hills.
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The next morning I headed up along the Upper Carawine Gorge 4x4 track that eventually crosses one of the local creeks, and as it was the dry season the crossing was relatively easy with a stoney bottom. I had been told that the camping beside the waterway at Carawine Gorge was some of the best in the Pilbara region.
It wasn’t long before I found the turn to the gorge along Woodie Woodie Road with ancient mesa rock formations in the far distance. Arriving at Carawine Gorge blew me away; the campsites faced the massive waterway and a huge rock wall lined the far side.
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I was lucky to snag a grassy site (mind you there’s about 5km of free sites to find beside the water) with an already formed fireplace, and the previous campers had left a sack of seasoned wood there. This is a peaceful and serene place to camp where the fading afternoon light brings out the true Pilbara colours across the spinifex grasslands.
There had been a few light showers in the area over the previous days and with the spinifex grass coming to life it was a magical sight, especially the next morning when the sun lit up the rock walls reflecting across the water.
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The next day I headed a further 170km towards Marble Bar to see if the rumours were true about it being Australia’s hottest town.
The drive into town is true Pilbara style, with stunning scenery across massive plains towards weathered-down mountains that have taken millions of years to form into their present state. It was back in 1924 that Marble Bar got the reputation as the hottest town in the country when, for 161 days, the mercury never dropped below the magic 100°F (37.8°C).
Today, Marble Bar is a quiet place, but according to records it emerged as a town when gold miners were passing through on their way to different fields. Gold was found nearby in 1891 and this created a small rush for the town, swelling the population to more than 5000; government offices were built, pubs popped up (namely the Iron Clad Hotel, which now is heritage listed) and stampers were installed.
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But by 1905 the miners had left for the extremely rich field south at Kalgoorlie. During WWII a massive airstrip was built at Marble Bar for US and Australian bombers, and a machine gun nest was installed.
Today the buildings in Marble Bar are heritage listed and the town is a popular destination for travellers wanting to visit the nearby rock bars. Originally thought to be seams of marble running through the rocks, these bars turned out to be the highly colourful jasper rock across the Coongan River.
It was here in the mining days that the Chinese used the water for market gardens to feed the miners in the goldfields. Huge fines are in place if jasper is removed from the area. A visit to Australia’s hottest town isn’t complete without visiting the nearby Comet Gold Mine which boasts the highest smoke stack in the southern hemisphere.
This whole adventure in the northern part of the Pilbara surprised me with its rich history to its amazing towns, fantastic campsites and refreshing waterholes. Throw in the fun four-wheel driving and exploring, and the stunning ancient artworks, and it seems the Pilbara just keeps giving to those who are willing to explore the area.
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The essentials
Where
Bordering the Great Sandy Desert, this northern part of the Pilbara has a lot to offer in between massive mining operations and remote expanses. Newman to the south caters for the mine workers and tourists, while Marble Bar to the north is known as the hottest town in Australia, but it’s what’s in between that makes it well worth exploring.
What to see and do
Learn about the mining history and rock geology, camp throughout the northern Pilbara in stunning and remote locations, discover ancient Aboriginal petroglyphs, drive some of the best 4x4 tracks in the area… there is plenty to see and do in this northern pocket. And don’t forget the swimming holes including Upper Carawine Gorge, Skull Springs and Running Waters.
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More information
As always a lot of information can be found online, but Newman and Marble Bar have comprehensive tourist information centres. At Nullagine, Marble Bar and Newman there are plenty of tourist signs at local points of interest, as well as along walking trails.
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