We started the day by driving back through the Moralana scenic drive,this time not whilst it rained thankfully. We took a track towards Black Gap,a gap between the hills along a creek and only accessible by foot. One exciting moment was when we saw two eagles close up as they were picking at a carcass on the side of the road. Carrying along the main highway we took a turn to the Brachina gorge which we had been told by our motel was closed due to the adverse weather a couple of days ago. The road is only accessible by 4WD normally but can deteriorate if driven on wet. The road leading up to the gorge was very muddy but we arrived at the entrance easily enough. The gorge road was often actually in the water or comprised of stones and we were the first vehicle to travel in that direction for a couple of days. So much so that we managed to see a yellow foot wallaby by the road just as Sacha said we'd be really lucky to see one as they are so rare. We also got held up as a family of emus refused to move off the road where they were pecking away.This geology of the gorge extends over several millennia and the rock formations change as you progress back in time. It is known as the journey through time. We took another side trip up the Aramoo road leading to the ruins of a homestead. From 1850 to 1865 the grazing of sheep had made the pioneering farmer a fortune and he retired back to England a wealthy man. A couple of years later with drought the farm collapsed and was abandoned in the 1880's. However in the 1930's the area featured in the works of Sir Hans Heysen,a prominent artist and the remains of the hut in which he lived still stands. We drove back towards Wilpena pound as it is the only place to buy lunch but we stopped at Stokes view point for a 360* view of the Flinders Ranges.
Fortified we drove up the Bunyeroo gorge . Another breathtaking 4WD only along dirt tracks and through river beds until we rejoined the Brachina gorge road having done a big loop. This time we went North towards Bliman,an old mining village at the end of the sealed road network. It only has a general store now since the pub closed a few months back under strange circumstances. On the way there we stopped to view the great wall of china,a limestone stone wall occurring naturally atop a hill. From Bliman we drove along the very wild Glass gorge road to Parachilna and the Prairie hotel famous for its own lager and the feral mixed grill,kangaroo,emu and camel. It stands in the middle of nowhere with an old station on the Ghan railway that has been rerouted to rejoin the original line a few miles south. We had booked an old railway workers cottage but the hotelier took one look at sacha's height and suggested a room in the main hotel. A wise choice as it meant we didn't have to walk back in the dark to our bedroom,particularly as we had eaten the feral mixed grill of Emu,kangaroo and camel washed down with their own label lager,Farghers. The maitre'D was the fifth generation of that ilk from the isle of Man.