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Bungle Bungle
The Bungle Bugle massif is located in the Purnululu National Park and was created at the same time as most of the Kimberley scenery, around 350 million years ago. A scenic flight is the best way to gain a perspective of its massive size. In fact twice as many people see the massif by air than those who visit by road. However, the venture in by 4WD is well worth the effort.
The Bungle Bungle Range rises up to 578 metres above sea level. The range stands 200 to 300 metres above a woodland and grass-covered plain, with steep cliffs on the western face. Elsewhere, particularly where Piccaninny Creek has formed Piccaninny Gorge, the range is cut by deep gullies and breaks up into complex areas of ridges and domes, with prominent orange and black or grey bands. |
Purnululu National Park is 110 km north of the town of Halls Creek and 250 km south of Kununurra in the north east of Western Australia. It is an incredible sight, a landscape of beehive-shaped sandstone formations, deep chasms with palm trees and long, deep Piccaninny Gorge with its fan palms adorning the rocks. To appreciate the overall aspect of this weird landscape, one has to take to the air and there are plane and helicopter rides available. |
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| Bungle Bungle History |
Virtually every visitor to Purnululu asks the same question - how did this remarkable landscape come about? The distinctive beehive-shaped towers of the Bungle Bungle are made up of sandstones (rocks formed by the consolidation of sand grains) and conglomerates (rocks composed mainly of pebbles and boulders and cemented together by finer material). These sedimentary formations were deposited into the Ord Basin 375 to 350 million years ago, when active faults were altering the landscape.
To the north of what is now the Bungle Bungle Range, uplift occurred along the Osmond Fault to create the Osmond Range, and to the west took place along the Halls Creek Fault. Streams and rivers eroded these ancient highlands and at their edges slopes were steep and the energy in the streams and rivers was high, allowing them to carry large boulders and dump them at the foot of the scarp. Such boulder conglomerates can today be seen in the walls of Echidna Chasm.
Most of the rocks in the Bungle Bungle Range, however, were formed from sand deposited further from the highlands by lower-energy braided rivers flowing across broad plains in open valleys. As more sand accumulated, the older channels consolidated to form sandstone.
The distinctive beehive-shaped landforms seen today have been produced by uplift and erosion during the last 20 million years. Contrary to its solid appearance, the sandstone is extremely fragile. The weight of overlying rock holds the sand grains in place, but when this is removed, the sandstones are easily eroded and the rounded tops reflect this lack of internal strength. Water flowing over the surface will exploit any weaknesses or irregularities in the rock, such as cracks or joints, and rapidly erodes the narrow channels that separate the towers.
Geological features
One of the most obvious features of the sandstones is the alternating orange and black or grey banding. The darker bands are on the more permeable layers of rock (which means water is able to move through them with relative ease). They allow moisture to seep through to the rock surface, promoting a dark algal growth.
The less permeable layers in between are covered with a patina of iron and manganese staining, creating the orange bands. These outer coatings (the rock beneath is a whitish colour) help to protect the lower parts of the towers from erosion.
About 250 million years ago, after the area was uplifted, a meteorite hit just north-east of Piccaninny Creek. All that remains today is a 10 kilometre circular structure on top of the Range. The same erosional forces that produced the Bungle Bungle and its sandstone towers have removed the crater.
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Bungle Bungle
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Over the span of 350 million years, rivers washed sand and pebbles into the area, layer-upon-layer, and the sand was ground finer and harder together until it formed sandstone rock. Strong winds and heavy rains have eroded the sandstone away to form the dome shapes we see today. The Bungle Bungles gain their ‘tiger-stripes’ from black algae growth that permeates the more porous layers of the rock, and a glossy orange build up of manganese and iron staining. Standing within these domes, you can’t even begin to fathom the time it has taken for this process to occur.
- Here, gorges, gullies and caves are the products of this evolution; tourists visit the Bungle Bungles in particular for some places of spectacular interest; Piccaninny Creek on the southern edge, a winding 12km gorge within the high walls of the domes
- Cathedral Gorge is a spacious cavern rising high into the sky that will make anything insignificant for that moment in time. The walking tracks at Echidna Chasm run for 1.5 to 3km long and make for an interesting hike along a narrow gorge quite different to the other side.
- Permanent waterholes and remnants of tropical rainforest are found at Frog Hole and Mini Palms gorge.
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| Getting There |
The access road to the Bungles is unsealed and is only suitable for large 4WD vehicles. The access road is only 55 km long but takes some 3 hours to travel in reasonable conditions.
The Bungle Bungles can be reached by plane or helicopter. Alternatively, a specialist Landcruiser 4WD Self Drive Holiday package from Kununurra or Broome is the perfect way to properly feel the Kimberley: with a couple of nights stopover in the National park; accommodation and meals and an optional helicopter flight available from the remote camp inside the National Park.
The joy of a flight by helicopter or light aircraft will remain with you forever and be a constant reminder of the awesome beauty of the Purnululu National Park in the East Kimberley.
'Purnululu' means 'sandstone' in the tribal language of local Kija Aborigines. The Bungle Bungle Ranges are usually closed to traffic from January to March to protect the fragile sandstone during the Kimberley 'wet season'. Extreme care must be taken to keep to the marked trails when walking through the National Park in order to preserve the fragile, ancient range.
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| Hotels |
| Faraway Bay The Bush Camp |
| Hotel Kununurra 37 Messmate Way, Kununurra, 6743 +61 8 9168 0400 |
| Kununurra Country Club Resort 47 Coolibah Drive, Kununurra, 6743 +61 8 9168 1024 |
| The Kimberley Grande 20 Victoria Highway, Kununurra, 6743 +61 8 9166 5600 |
| Home Valley Station |
| Restaurents |
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Kununurra Country Club Resort 47 Coolibah Drive, Kununurra, 6743, +61 8 9168 1024 |
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All Seasons Kununurra Corner Victoria Highway and Messmate Way, Kununurra, 6743 +61 8 9168 1455 |
| The Boab Bookshop & Cafe |
| Rumours Cafe |
| Attractions |
| Argyle Downs Homestead Museum |
| Boab Prison Tree |
| Celebrity Tree Park |
| Silent Grove |
| Crocodile Statue |
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