14/05/07 - Lawn Hill Field Trip

Lawn Hill is out in the middle of rocky gorges, Spinifex-clad ridges and escarpments and is without doubt one of the iconic places to visit in the Australian Bush. From Townsville in North Qld it is around a 14 hour drive - non-stop. Roads change from bitumen to gravel, but most are in very good condition, unless you get half an inch of rain. Then it can become impassable, so I suggest if your planning a trip to this magical part of the world that you do it during the Autumn/Winter months, when it's cool and roads are less likely to be untrafficable. I was most fortunate to accompany my good friend Marty McLaughlin and the ranger in charge, Anthony Contarino, to Boodjamulla to try and find any signs of the Carpentaria Grasswren for a week long stint in early April.

On the way there were many great places to stay, and if you can't get a campsite at the Gorge, then Adel's Grove only a few k's away have great caravan sites, cabins, a licensed bar and serve fantastic meals that are difficult to top anywhere else.

Lawn Hill Gorge is like going back in time. It is now called "Boodjamulla", which is an Aboriginal name for "Rainbow Serpent". For the indigenous people of the area this is a very special place that is carefully managed between traditional owners and QPWS staff.

Boodjamulla consists of around 340,000 hectares of protected areas that contains fantastic scenic gorges with deep ravines, rocky outcrops and Spinifex-covered ridges.

It is home to more than 180 species of native birds. The Purple-crowned Fairy-wren and the Buff-sided Robin live along most of the water courses and rocky gorges through the park that are edged with stands of Pandanus Palms.

During my few days there I did not manage to see any signs of the elusive Carpentarian Grasswren, but managed to photograph most of the local finches of which there are 10 recorded species. At a small water hole I photographed a number of species of finches including Painted Firetails, Long-tailed Finch, Double-barred Finches and a fantastic Pictorella Mannikin, which was in full breeding plumage.

They tell me the birding there is particularly good between late April and early June when there is not too many people there.

If you want to visit one of Australia's most iconic National Parks then you should put this place on your list. For scenery, beauty and a vast array of wildlife, it's very hard to beat.

Don't forget to check out the images of the Lawn Hill field trip in the JYWE Image Gallery.

Best wishes to all – John Young.