Sunday 17th April. Driving quickly past many interesting historic and aboriginal art sites, we stop at Hawker to look at geological maps & enjoy lattes at the bakery with Horace and Doris, two small local dogs. O.F. mutters scientific incantations over her maps & stabs a finger at a tiny narrow formation called the Somethingambrian Layer. "We'll find fossils here." We stock up on diesel ($5.62 a litre or thereabouts) and fridge magnets, then head northwest.
O.F. discovers a motherlode archeocyatha site at a location I have sworn to keep secret. We find some beauties! Archeocyatha were "sessile, reef-building marine organisms that lived during the early lower Cambrian period (approx. 500 million years ago)." In layperson's terms, ancient corals & squiddly diddly things. If you found one in your bathroom you would spray it or smash it with a broom.
We make camp at Parachilna Gorge, which is certainly one of the top ten bush camping places in Australia - a stunning creek bed area lined with huge white-trunked gums and ancient red rock cliffs & hills. O.F. quickly makes a fire and I provide the evening's entertainment with a bottle of red and a good go on the digeridoo. Honey begins to go feral. Sooty comes out and revels in the rustling bush noises of the night.
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| Archeocyatha - get the Mortein! |
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| Now safe to use as paperweights |
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| Parachilna Gorge - our view from Waggin' Trail |
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