Derbe-gerring Banan Lookout
Trail
Kununurra's greatest attraction is
undoubtedly the Mirima Hidden Valley National Park which is located
just 2 km from the town centre.
Mirima is a
real wonderland. A kind of mini-Bungle Bungles with horizontal
bedding forming strange birthday cake-like shapes. Mirima has been
formed by the erosion of the quartz sandstone by the waters of
nearby Lily Creek. The result is dramatic and unusual.
The area
abounds in wildlife with lizards and birds (particularly the
white-quilled rock pigeon) predominating. If you arrive at the
right time you may see some of the rock wallabies which inhabit the
area. Another striking feature of the park is the boab trees which
grow on the rock faces. The seeds of the boab are carried to these
inaccessible places by rock wallabies and left in
their dung - a natural and extremely successful
fertiliser.
There are three walks in the park. The first is the Demboong Banan
Gap Trail, a short, easy 500 metre return walk through a narrow
valley, ending with a view of Kununurra through a gap in the range.
The second walk is the Looking at Plants Nature Trail. This walk
has trailside signs which help you to get to know some of the
plants in Mirima and their use by Aboriginal people. The final walk
is a 800 metre return walk of moderate difficulty. The
Derbe-gerring Banan Lookout Trail climbs up steep slopes to a
lookout providing views back to the sandstone range of Mirima and
over the Ord Valley. From May to August Department of Conservation
and Land Management staff conduct guided walks in Mirima National
Park on Bush Tucker and Boab Trees.
Changing
Landscapes
Dreamtime Landscape
The Landscape
Today
Happy
Hunting.