Location: Outback South Australia

Amidst the vibrant colours of the 800 million-year-old quartzite and limestone outcrop that is the Flinders Ranges lies Wilpena Pound, a natural amphitheatre 17km long and 7km wide. Located 429 kilometres north of Adelaide, SA in the heart of the Flinders Ranges National Park, the Pound is the most northern point with access via a sealed road in this part of the Flinders Ranges. The closest town to the north is Blinman and to the south, Hawker.

Wilpena Pound from St Marys peak

Shaped by the weathering and uplifting of land over time, this place has strong significance to the indigenous Adnyamathanha people. The name for the Pound, Wilpena, is reported to be Aboriginal, meaning 'the place of bent fingers'; this might either be a reference to the mountains resembling the shape of a gently cupped hand, or the freezing cold of the ranges in winter. The traditional owners, the Adnyamathanah, however, have no such word in their language. Ikara, as they call it, is a significant place of many sacred Aboriginal rituals, and their Dreamtime stories tell of its creation by huge serpents. From the rich indigenous history to the stories of the first European farmers to the region, this place has a diverse and fascinating history of human interaction with the landscape.
Although from the outside the Pound appears as a single range of mountains, it is actually two: one on the western edge, and one on the eastern, joined by the long Rawnsley's Bluff at the south. A gorge called Wilpena Gap has been cut in the eastern range, and most of the inside of the Pound drains into Wilpena Creek which exits through the Gap. A small part of the high northern slopes of the Pound drains into Edeowie Creek, which drains in time of flood over steep cliffs and waterfalls in Edeowie Gorge to the north.
The highest peak in the Pound, also the highest of the Flinders Ranges, is St Mary Peak (1170m), on the north-eastern side. To the south of the Gap on the eastern side, the highest peak is Point Bonney (1133m). On the north-western side of the Pound, the highest point is Pompey's Pillar (1165m), and Rawnsley's Bluff (950m) at the southern end is the other major summit.

The wall of mountains almost completely encircles the gently-sloping interior of the Pound, with the only breaks being the gorge at Wilpena Gap and a high saddle in the south-western range over which the Heysen Trail passes. This latter saddle is called Bridle Gap, supposedly because it's the only place other than the gorge where a skilled horseman might ride into the Pound. The interior of the Pound does not rise to a height at the northern edge, but instead simply drops off very steeply to the plain below in a series of steep gullies.
Wilpena Pound is one of the most popular sites in the Flinders Ranges for international tourists to visit the outback because of the large development that has occurred at the Wilpena Pound Resort on the eastern side of Wilpena Pound and Rawnsley Park Station on the western side. There are many modern facilities there that makes it appealing for people who are not familiar with the semi-arid conditions. Tourists also go on scenic flights from an unsealed airstrip at Wilpena Pound resort and Rawnsley Park 30 km north east of Hawker.

Old Wilpena Homestead

Nestled between the ABC Range and the northern ramparts of Wilpena Pound is Old Wilpena Station, one of South Australia’s oldest and best preserved pastoral settlements. Walk along Wilpena Creek past magnificent stands of river red gums with stunning views of the Pound wall in the distance. As you pass through the station gate you’ll step back 150 years to the early days of pastoral runs.
Explore a world of improvisation, dogged with self-sufficiency and a powerful instinct for survival. Learn how the land changed with European settlement and how present-day pastoralists and park managers are dealing with those changes. Enjoy a cuppa and cake on the verandah of the old Homestead or “Government House” as the early homesteads were known.

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