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Located not far from
the coast of southwest Australia are thousands
of limestone pillars that stand in groups in the
silence of Australia's painted desert which
covers an area of four square meters of desert. This
spectacular sight is accompanied by the sighing
and moaning of the wind that breaks the silence
of the Pinnacles Desert which is now part of the Nambung National Park which also features
beautiful beaches, coastal dune systems, low
heathland rich in flowering plants and shady
groves of tuart trees. Nambung is an Aboriginal
name that means crooked or winding and it was
from this river that he park was named.
 What you will see here at
the Pinnacles Desert is a stark forest of
standing stones in an area practically devoid of
vegetation covered with bright yellow,
wind-stirred sand, or as the name suggest,
pinnacles within the desert. Although the pinnacles are
thousands of years old, they must have been
uncovered from the sand in fairly recent times,
maybe within the last one hundred years, because
there was no mention of the pinnacles in the
last century.
The Pinnacles
Desert, one of Australia's unique landmarks and
one of the world's beautiful natural wonders, is
about two hours drive from the nearest town of
Cervantes. Your journey here may not be all that
smooth sailing but the trip will definitely be
worthwhile once you witness the stunning view of
the pinnacles which is an enchanted, moon-like
landscape with sharp shadows accentuating the
weird, jagged shapes. Soft-bodied sea creatures
such as limpets were the original raw materials
from which the Pinnacles pillars were built and
were shaped below ground over the centuries by
rain and plan roots. Here, you will have an
opportunity to admire the somber grey stones
which are about one to five meters tall that
rise sheer from the flat sandy floor, protecting
the buried secrets of tens of thousands of
years. As you travel deeper into the area, the
colors changes from boring grey to striking
gold. The sizes of these stones vary from the
size of a house to as small and slim as pens.
There is no one
pinnacle that looks exactly the same as another.
Some of their surfaces may be smooth while some
may be honeycombed. Different unique shapes can
be seen and the most interesting group come in
shapes that look like huge milk bottles, or some
has names such as Spectres in Silhouette, Camel,
Kangaroo, Molars, Gateway, Garden Wall, Red
Indian Chief and Elephant Foot. Since shells and
Stone Age artifacts of five thousand years old
were found stuck to the base of some pillars, we
can assumed that the pinnacles were probably
uncovered some six thousand years ago but was
submerged by sand again for maybe thousands of
years. The same process is seen here today with
the the predominantly southerly winds uncovering
pinnacles in the northern section of the desert
but covering those in the southern area. Another
attraction drawing tourists here are the
fabulous wildflowers which can be seen here
between the months of August and October
together with wildlife such as emus, grey
kangaroos and white-tailed black cockatoos.
Visitors staying in Perth can visit this place
by following one of the many day tours organized
by the travel agents there whereby you will be
the opportunity to go for a two hours walk to
the colored desert areas marked on the brochure.
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