Arkaroola Photos

A photo tour along the wilderness sanctuary in the northern Flinders Ranges

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With these Arkaroola photos I want to give you an impression how beautiful this ancient land, protected as Arkaroola Wilderness Sanctuary, is.

If you ever get the chance to visit the Flinders Ranges, make sure to have a couple of days to spend here.

Arkaroola photos - the rugged wilderness

Like all other parts of the Flinders Ranges, Arkaroola inspires interest for people from different walks of life: geologists, astronomers, nature-lovers, hikers, photographers, 4WD enthusiasts.

Let me show you around.


Dodwell Observatory was the first of Arkaroola's three observatories. It was built in 1986, named after George Frederick Dodwell, an South Australian Governement astronomer.
Being so remote, Arkaroola has the best astronomical seeing conditions, it is free of light pollution.
The Dodwell Observatory is just above the village. It is worth to climb the small hill and enjoy a great view over the resort.


Erosion has exposed the granite core of needles and pinnacles in the Mawson valley.


The valley is named after Sir Douglas Mawson, Australia's famous Antarctic explorer and geologist. He also spent a lot of time researching the geology of the Flinders Ranges.
Reg Sprigg was a student of Mawson, he discovered fossils about 600 million years old in the Flinders.

Nooldoonooldoona (Nuldanuldanha) waterhole is about 11 km from Arkaroola. According to the dreaming stories, Akurra, the powerful serpent of the dreamtime, created the waterhole. Some Aborigines rolled large stones down the hill to kill him. You'll see the stones in the creekbed. Read more stories from the Aborigines of the Flinders Ranges.

When you walk the few metres to the waterhole, you'll notice that the stony ground is glittering. These stones must contain minerals, quartzite or something. It looks really beautiful.



Hills around the old Wheal Turner Mine are covered with spinifex, or porcupine grass. The latter name describes the good-looking grass hummocks best.

You'll find many stones with the bright green copper outcrops in the Arkaroola area. Yet, most deposits proved to be small. Apart from Blinman and Sliding Rock, mines didn't make much profit in the northern Flinders Ranges.



Stubbs waterhole is in a beautiful setting, surrounded by steep red hills. Unfortunately, there was no water when we visited in November 2008. However, this has certainly changed as Arkaroola received some rain in summer 2008/2009.

A 32 km track leads along the eastern boundary of Arkaroola sanctuary to Paralana Hot Springs. Do a short walk from the car park, and arrive at the most beautiful setting. The springs have created a small wetland area, totally different from the arid environment of the region.

The spring is believed to be the last remnant of volcanic geyser activity in Australia. Be careful. The water comes out nearly boiling hot (~83°C), and it contains radioactive radon.
Even the rocks in this area release bubbles and hot water.



On our last morning at Arkaroola, our mate Colin cooked us a beautiful breakfast. We enjoyed our last meal in this wonderful spot next to the pool.

I hope you enjoyed the Arkaroola photo journey. This is a wonderful area to spend a holiday.

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For more information about the Flinders Ranges please check out my other pages.