Largely following the twists and turns of the Gascoyne River, a red-dirt track steers a course from inland Meekatharra to coastal Carnarvon.
Story and photos John Denman
Meekatharra is an outback town at the crossroads, literally. Its location – 765 kilometres north-east of Perth on the Great Northern Highway – sees to that. From the west the Goldfields Highway comes in from Wiluna, while to the east a track runs across to Carnarvon, connecting the outback to the Indian Ocean.
On this route towards Western Australia’s wild and diverse Gascoyne region, one of the first features travellers will see is Peace Gorge, named after the men of Meekatharra who returned from the Great War in 1919. The local shire council honoured the men with a picnic and sports day at this place, which was then known as the Granites. Like most of this country, the predominant colour is red; a deep red that works its way into your heart the same way it works its way into your clothes.
This story excerpt is from Issue #51
Outback Magazine: Feb/Mar 2007
