Pindan is a name given to the red-soil country of the south-western Kimberley region of Western Australia. The term comes from a local language and applies both to the soil and to the vegetation community associated with it.
Pindan country is geographically restricted to Dampierland, including the Dampier Peninsula and its hinterland, the area around Broome and Roebuck Bay, and a coastal strip extending south-westwards from Roebuck Bay adjacent to Eighty Mile Beach. It is semiarid with a tropical monsoonal climate of hot, wet summers and mild, dry winters. The flat, or gently undulating, land lacks prominent landmarks and is easy to get lost in. The soils are usually red and sandy with a high clay content, low in nutrients, and susceptible both to drought and to waterlogging when wet.
The Dampier Peninsula is a peninsula located north of Broome and Roebuck Bay in Western Australia. It is surrounded by the Indian Ocean to the west and north, and King Sound to the east. It is named after the mariner and explorer William Dampier who visited it. The northernmost part of the peninsula is Cape Leveque. It is sparsely inhabited, mostly by Indigenous Australian peoples, some of whom have been granted native title rights to some of their traditional lands. There are many coastal inlets, bays and other features, including Beagle Bay on its western side.
The peninsula is home to a rich heritage of Aboriginal culture, with the communities of Beagle Bay, Bobieding, Djarindjin, Ardyaloon (One Arm Point) and Ngardalargin, along with numerous other smaller communities, pearling camps, tourist resorts and Aboriginal outstations. The traditional owners of the areas around the peninsula are the Bardi, Nyunyul and Jabirr Jabirr (Djaberadjabera) peoples.
The Pindan Cliffs line much of this coastline, many meeting the soft white bays of the Dampier Peninsula, over the years the cliffs have broken and fallen away from the edges. They have layers can can be prominently be seen as you look along the cliffs. These cliffs are created by pindan sands and Fitzroy gravel, often cemented by the oxide of iron from the areas pindan ironstone, a poor hematite, but in large quantity. In Fotzroy gravels, opal, cats-eye, garnet, and amethyst occur, however all in inferior quality.
At GZ you will find a large piece of cliff that has fallen away from the cliffs edge, you can get close up to the layers to eaxmin them. To succesfully log this earth cache you must answer the followong questions.
1. Starting from the bottom to the top of the rock explain the visible layers you see, the colours and what composition you think each layer is made from?
2. At the bottom of the rock you can see fossilised items, what are these and how do you think they got there?
3. If you look to the cliff you can see where this rock has fallen from, there are a couple of features there that explain the reason this rock has broken away from the edge, explain what you see and what has been the form of erosion causing the cliff to break and fall?
4. What is the shape of the fallen cliff face?
5. Finally post a pic of yourself or your team at GZ.
You may log your find and photo at the time of completing this cache however you are required to send your answers through to the CO's within 7 days or your log WILL be deleted.
***Please note you will require a high clearnce 4WD vehicle to get to GZ, check your tide times, low tide is recommended (please click on the link below) and DO NOT attempt this cache in the wet season if you DON'T know the area and understand the landscape well.***
https://tides.willyweather.com.au/wa/kimberley/pender-bay.html
***Permits from the local indigenous communities are required to access the Dampier Peninsula, some communities are closed due to COVID, please DO NOT enter a closed area for the health and safety of the indigenous.***