Adel Aide & South Au
Str Ali A
FLINDERS
RANGES
Adel Aide & South Au
Str Ali A
SLEEPING
&EATING
Adel Aide & South Au
Str Ali A
HAWKER
half-/full-day camel-back tour ($75/125)
through the country around Quorn.Flinders ̈Bikes ̈& ̈Bytes ̈BICYCLEHIRE
(%0428 838 737, 08 8648 6349; www �bikesand
bytes �com �au; 43 First St; per hour $7; h10am-
5�30pm Wed-Sun) Hire a bike and ramble
around town. There’s internet access avail-
able too.4 ̈Sleeping ̈& ̈Eating
Quorn ̈Caravan ̈Park ̈ CARAVANPARK$
(%08-8648 6206; www �quorncaravanpark�com �
au; 8 Silo Rd; dm $20, unpowered/powered sites$23/29,van $65, cabins$90-120;a) (^) S Fully
keyed in to climate change, this passionately
run park on Pinkerton Creek is hell bent
on reducing emissions and restoring native
habitat. Features include spotless cabins, a
backpacker cabin (sleeps eight), camp kitch-
en, shady sites, rainwater tanks everywhere
and a few lazy roos lounging about under
the redgums.
Quandong ̈Apartments ̈ APARTMENTS$$
(%0432 113 473; www �quandongapartments�com;
31 First St; d$160;a) Next door to the Quan-
dong Café (and run by the same folks), these
two self-contained apartments have full
kitchens, big TVs, quality linen and chintz-
meets-Asian touches. Rates come down for
stays of two nights or more.
Austral ̈Inn ̈ HOTEL-MOTEL$
(%08-8648 6017; www �australinn�info; 16 Railway
Tce; d motel/pub from $90/115;a) There’s al-
ways a few locals here giving the jukebox
a workout. The pub rooms are renovated −
simple and clean with new linen (nicer than
the motel rooms out the back). Try a kanga-
roo schnitzel in the bistro (mains $15 to $30,
serving noon to 2pm and 6pm to 8pm). The
pub is purportedly above an old well, so if it’s
been raining watch out for mozzies.
Quandong ̈Café ̈ CAFE$
(www�quandongapartments�com/cafe�html; 31 First
St; meals $4-15;h8�30am-4pm mid-Mar–mid-
Dec) A traditional country cafe with creaky
floorboards and spinning ceiling fans, serv-
ing big breakfasts and light lunches. Try a
generously adorned ‘Railway Sleeper’ (like a
pizza sub), or a massive slab of lemon me-
ringue or quandong pie (a quandong is a
kind of native cherry). Good old-fashioned
country value!
88 Information
Flinders Ranges Visitor Information Centre
(%08-86486419;www �flindersranges�com;
RailwayTce, QuornRailwayStation;h9am-
5pm Mon-Fri,9am-4pmSat &Sun) Maps,
brochures,internetaccessand advice�
Hawker
POP 300
Hawker is the last outpost of civilisation
before Wilpena Pound, 55km to the north.
Much like Quorn, Hawker has seen better
days, most of which were when the old Ghan
train stopped here. These days Hawker is a
pancake-flat, pit-stop town with an ATM
and the world’s most helpful petrol station.
1 ̈Sights ̈& ̈Activities
It’s not so much what’s in Hawker that’s
interesting − it’s more what’s around it −
but if you like your great outdoors inside
(and a little bit eccentric), Wilpena ̈Pano-
rama (www�wilpenapanorama�com; cnr Wilpena
ADNYAMATHANHA ̈DREAMING
Land and nature are integral to the culture of the traditional owners of the Flinders
Ranges. The people collectively called Adnyamathanha (Hill People) are actually a col-
lection of the Wailpi, Kuyani, Jadliaura, Piladappa and Pangkala tribes, who exchanged
and elaborated on stories to explain their spectacular local geography.
The walls of Ikara (Wilpena Pound), for example, are the bodies of two akurra (giant
snakes), who coiled around Ikara during an initiation ceremony, eating most of the partici-
pants. The snakes were so full after their feast they couldn’t move and willed themselves
to die, creating the landmark. Because of its traditional significance, the Adnyamathanha
prefer that visitors don’t climb St Mary Peak, reputed to be the head of the female snake.
In another story another akurra drank Lake Frome dry, then wove his way across the
land creating creeks and gorges. Wherever he stopped, he created a large waterhole,
including Arkaroola Springs. The sun warmed the salty water in his stomach causing it
to rumble, a noise which can be heard today in the form of underground springwater.