|
|
|
South Australia (Flinders Ranges) |
| Quorn | |
| Quorn, an old railway town was once an important junction for east- west and north-south rail traffic in the days of narrow gauge rail lines. The construction of a new standard gauge railway line from Port Augusta to Marree in 1956 bypassed Quorn and lessened its importance, but the re- opening of part of the Pichi Richi line has introduced tourism as a new industry. | |
| The
first stop between Port Augusta and the Flinders Ranges
National Park is QUORN, whose stone buildings and village
atmosphere are a last vestige of the south. Best known for the Pichi
Richi railway, the sole operational section of the old Ghan, Quorn was
a major rail centre until the line was rerouted through Port Augusta in
the 1950s. Enthusiasts restored the service twenty years later and started
taking passengers on a two-hour return haul to Woolshed Flats through the Pichi
Richi Pass – whose name has been variously attributed to a medicinal
herb or an Aboriginal word for “gorge”. Punctuated by a break at
Woolshed Flats for a cream tea, it makes a relaxing and mildly scenic
journey. Trains run only on a few weekends and holidays April–October;
call to check and book (tel 08/8658 1109).
There’s a caravan park in Quorn but a night spent at the Transcontinental Hotel is much more congenial, with an easygoing crowd of truckies and drovers from the north for company. The main road through town is Railway Terrace where you’ll find the post office, civic buildings and hotels which all do good-value lunches and dinners but are quite strict about serving times. First Street and the block between it and Railway Terrace contain a few art and craft and secondhand shops to poke about in, with the tourist information centre at 3 Seventh St. If you want to explore some of the country round here, Intrepid Tours, 17 Sixth St, runs a 4WD tour any day they can fill a vehicle. Heading Bush, 12 First St (tel & fax 08/8648 6655), also operates 4WD tours (Adelaide–Alice Springs, ten days; Alice Springs–Adelaide, two days; Flinders Ranges, three days); Andu Lodge, their hostel, is at the same address and rents out mountain bikes, gives information on wildlife, Aboriginal history and local hiking, and offers a 24-hour pick-up from Port Augusta. Quornucopia arts and crafts shop, at 17 Railway Terrace, rents out some holiday cottages in the Flinders. There’s good local bushwalking off the back road to Hawker along a string of ridges and cliffs, outrunners from the main body of the central Flinders 100km north. Closest to Quorn is Dutchmans Stern, a solid day’s hike for the reasonably fit from the car park to various lookouts. Less dedicated walkers will find Warren, Buckaringa and Middle gorges more accessible; Buckaringa’s vertical face is the most reliable place in the ranges to see the rare and ravishingly pretty yellow-footed rock wallaby. Closer to Hawker, it’s also worth taking in the well-preserved remains of Kanyaka Homestead, abandoned after a drought in the 1880s, and Yourambulla Cave, which has some unusual charcoal symbols in a high overhang, reached by a ladder. Both are signposted from the road. |
|
|
|