Rodney Campbell's Blog

This little circular pool is the precursor to the main attraction on this walk into Weano gorge. The Handrail Pool is just another ten metres through a narrow gap between the gorge walls on the other side of this pool

I’d taken a punt and not packed a waterproof wet bag this time around. Instead I carried my normal camera backpack. I was hoping I’d be able to be careful through the wading points and make it to the end of Weano gorge without it

I wasn’t planning to swim past the end of the trail at Handrail Pool into the Class 6 region this time around anyway

In the end it was all too easy. The water in the gorge was much lower this time around and I reached the Handrail Pool without even getting my feet wet at all

Precursor

NIKON Z 7 + NIKKOR Z 14-30mm f/4 S @ 14 mm, 15 sec at f/11, ISO 64

Most of the rest of my aerial shots this morning weren’t much chop. The sun was now rising… I was still the only one here at Weano gorge… It was 7AM so that’s no great surprise I guess…

Karijini Sunrise

DJI Mavic 2 Pro L1D-20c + 28.0 mm f/2.8 @ 10.26 mm, 1/500 sec at f/4, ISO 100

Time to go and do my more traditional landscape photography and walk down one of the gorges with a “real” camera and tripod 🙂

If it was anything like last time I was visiting Karijini… I’d still be the only one here hours later when I’m walking out of the gorge… Only us mad keen photographers get up way early and come here when the light is good 🙂

Note: These photographs (especially the wider shots) look much better when larger. To see larger versions in an inline overlay slideshow gallery viewer click any of the images.

Lined

DJI Mavic 2 Pro L1D-20c + 28.0 mm f/2.8 @ 10.26 mm, 1/120 sec at f/4, ISO 100

My landing pad… see those solar panels on the roof of the car… turns out they make for a very good takeoff and landing pad 🙂

The earth is massively cracked around these parts. Which is what gives rise to these fantastic deep red gorges made famous in Karijini

Millions of years of water and wind erosion doing their work in iron ore rich lands

Cracks

DJI Mavic 2 Pro L1D-20c + 28.0 mm f/2.8 @ 10.26 mm, 1/30 sec at f/2.8, ISO 100 x 21 Frames

It’s only when you can view it from up here that you can see the extent

In this 21 frame 180˚ panorama the aptly named Red gorge is that large craterous crack across the foreground. Knox gorge comes inwards off that on the far left of frame. Near the middle and right is the junction of Hancock and Weano gorges. Oxer lookout is towards the end of that pointy bit of land inbetween those two gorges. Joffre gorge also joins there and leads off away towards the distant middle of the frame. That puts the ECO Retreat way way (15kms) in the distance in the middle of frame at the other end of that gorge

Note: These photographs (especially the wider shots) look much better when larger. To see larger versions in an inline overlay slideshow gallery viewer click any of the images.

DJI Mavic 2 Pro L1D-20c + 28.0 mm f/2.8 @ 10.26 mm, 1/30 sec at f/2.8, ISO 120

I got up early for what was probably only my second early morning sunrise session of the trip so far

Hancock Dawn

DJI Mavic 2 Pro L1D-20c + 28.0 mm f/2.8 @ 10.26 mm, 1/20 sec at f/2.8, ISO 400

Today I was heading back to one of my favourite locations in Karijini National Park – Weano Recreation Area. Home to Hancock and Weano gorges

Note: These photographs (especially the wider shots) look much better when larger. To see larger versions in an inline overlay slideshow gallery viewer click any of the images.

It’s about a 10km drive on dirt from the ECO Retreat to the gorges. I was yet again here at stupid o’clock (before sunrise). I stopped on the side of the road about one kilometre from the car park and put up the drone for some aerial views of the gorges

The road in follows along the upper reaches of Hancock gorge so thats what you can see here in these images

Hancock

DJI Mavic 2 Pro L1D-20c + 28.0 mm f/2.8 @ 10.26 mm, 1/30 sec at f/2.8, ISO 200 x 21 Frames

This was another of those shots I’d been meaning to take when I was last staying at the ECO Retreat four years ago

Retreating Stars

NIKON Z 7 + 14.0 mm f/2.4 @ 14 mm, 15 sec at f/2.4, ISO 6400 x 6 Frames

A vertical panorama from six (6) horizontal frames. One of the deluxe eco tents at the base with the milky way streaming off into space above

Just lucky there was one of these empty on hand as I was leaving Joffre gorge