15-648: The Bungle Bungle Range is a major landform and the main feature of the Purnululu National Park , situated in the Kimberley region of Western Australia . The distinctive beehive -shaped towers are made up of sandstones and conglomerates (rocks composed mainly of pebbles and boulders and cemented together by finer material). These sedimentary formations were deposited into the Red Basin 375 to 350 million years ago, when active faults altered
30-441: A spectacularly incised landscape of sculptured rocks which contains superlative examples of beehive-shaped karst sandstone rising 250 metres above the surrounding semi-arid savannah grasslands. Unique depositional processes and weathering have given these towers their spectacular black and orange banded appearance, formed by biological processes of cyanobacteria (single cell photosynthetic organisms) which serve to stabilise and protect
45-543: Is a World Heritage Site in the East Kimberley region of Western Australia . The 239,723-hectare (592,370-acre) national park is located approximately 300 kilometres (190 mi) south of Kununurra , with Halls Creek located to the south. Declared a World Heritage Site in 2003, the park was inscribed as follows: ...[is a] remote area managed as wilderness. It includes the Bungle Bungle Range,
60-461: Is a periodical publication that has been authorised to publish public or legal notices. It is usually established by statute or official action, and publication of notices within it, whether by the government or a private party, is usually considered sufficient to comply with legal requirements for public notice. Gazettes are published either in print, electronically or both. In some jurisdictions, privately owned newspapers may also register with
75-509: Is not yet completely understood. Their surface is fragile but stabilized by crusts of iron oxide and bacteria. They provide an outstanding example of land formation by dissolutional weathering of sandstone, with removal of sand grains by wind, rain and sheet wash on slopes. Access to the park by road is via Spring Creek Track, from the Great Northern Highway approximately 250 kilometres (160 mi) south of Kununurra, to
90-565: The Bungle Bungle Range. It is believed that this feature is the eroded remnant of a very ancient meteorite impact crater and is known as the Piccaninny crater . The unusual orange and dark grey banding on the conical rock formations is caused by differences in the layers of sandstone. The darker bands are on the layers of rock which hold more moisture, and are a dark algal or cyanobacteria growth. The orange coloured layers are stained with iron and manganese mineral deposits contained within
105-539: The Bungle Bungle massif is Billingjal which means sand falling away. The traditional owners of the area are the Karjaganujaru peoples. The Bungle Bungle Range , lying fully within the park, has elevations as high as 578 metres (1,896 ft) above sea level . It is famous for the sandstone domes, unusual and visually striking with their striping in alternating orange and grey bands. The banding of
120-821: The World Heritage Area, including the Purnululu Conservation Park and the Ord River Regeneration Reserve. The site was gazetted on the Australian National Heritage List on 21 May 2007 under the Environment and Heritage Legislation Amendment Act (No. 1), 2003 (Cth). Purnululu is a mispronounced Djaru word for the area around Bungle Bungle out camp, which is referred to as Bullmanlulu. The correct Karjaganujaru name for
135-481: The ancient sandstone formations. These outstanding examples of cone karst that have eroded over a period of 20 million years are of great beauty and exceptional geological interest. The World Heritage status of the region was created and negotiated in 2003, and the adopted boundary of the existing national park. Since its listing, the Government of Western Australia has reserved additional areas located adjacent to
150-456: The domes is due to differences in clay content and porosity of the sandstone layers: the orange bands consist of oxidised iron compounds in layers that dry out too quickly for cyanobacteria to multiply; the grey bands are composed of cyanobacteria growing on the surface of layers of sandstone where moisture accumulates. The Bungle Bungle Range is one of the most extensive and impressive occurrences of sandstone tower (or cone) karst terrain in
165-468: The landscape. The combined effects of wind from the Tanami Desert and rainfall over millions of years shaped the domes. The range is found on the plains fringing the eastern Kimberley region. The ranges consist of stacks of ancient seabeds with layers of dolomite contained throughout them. A 7-kilometre (4.3 mi) diameter circular topographic feature is clearly visible on satellite images of
SECTION 10
#1732772243593180-602: The sandstone. The Bungle Bungle Range formation occupies an area of approximately 450 square kilometres (174 sq mi). The traditional owners of the area are the Kija/ Gija people . Aboriginal people have been living in the area for over 20,000 years and continue to maintain a strong connection to this ancient landscape. The national park is managed by the Western Australian Department of Environment and Conservation in conjunction with
195-646: The track's end at the visitor centre. The track is 53 kilometres (33 mi) long and is usable only in the dry season (about 1 April to 31 December) by four-wheel-drive vehicles. Safely navigating it takes approximately three hours. Access by air is less demanding; helicopter flights are available from Bellburn Airstrip in the national park, and from Warmun roadhouse . Scenic light aircraft flights are also available out of Kununurra and Lake Argyle . Government gazette A government gazette (also known as an official gazette , official journal , official newspaper , official monitor or official bulletin )
210-556: The traditional Aboriginal owners. The range remained largely unknown except by local Aboriginal people and stockmen until 1982 when film-makers arrived and produced a documentary about the Kimberley. The area was gazetted as a National Park in 1987 and was also inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2003. 17°25′17″S 128°26′42″E / 17.4214°S 128.4449°E / -17.4214; 128.4449 Purnululu National Park The Purnululu National Park
225-447: The world. The Bungle Bungles were a plateau of Devonian sandstone, carved into a mass of beehive-shaped towers with regularly alternating, dark gray bands of cyanobacterial crust (single cell photosynthetic organisms). The plateau is dissected by 100–200-metre (330–660 ft) deep, sheer-sided gorges and slot canyons . The cone-towers are steep-sided, with an abrupt break of slope at the base and have domed summits. How they were formed
#592407