Not a good morning...it had been drizzling for most of the night and early morning. Despite the number of roads in red, which means closed due to flooding, we decided to head south away from the rain.

An emu crossing the road...we have seen quite a few...this is not long after we left Wilpena...it was still raining.

The mountains were hidden behind the clouds this morning...looked amazing.

Still stormy as we travelled south....so many wattles....I love these flat plains between the mountains. You get to see so much of the sky (which you can't in the city)...the clouds today were amazing.

When we drove to Wilpena, all the creeks were dry....today there were some that flooded the road.

The sun came out in the late morning and we started to really enjoy the drive.

We decided to stay overnight in the Melrose caravan park. Melrose was one of the first settlements in the Flinders Ranges. We have stayed in Melrose before and knew it was a pretty town and good caravan park. That is Mt Remarkable in the photo, which is behind the town. We hope to climb it tomorrow.

When we stayed here a few years ago this creek bed was dry....now it looks beautiful and sounds delightful...we have camped right next to it.

So happy to see the blue sky and sunshine....and a cold beer!

One of the old pubs in Melrose....

This building was once a brewery and it is again now....it and surrounding buildings have been restored and it is now a popular brewery in the area. We might have time tomorrow to sample some beers.

Pete took this photo to show you our lovely view of the trees and creek.

 

Some good views of the south eastern mountains of Wilpena Pound. On our way to stay in Wilpena Pound camp ground.

We stopped at this lookout to see more of the mountains of the Pound.

More mountains, not part of the Pound. The Cypress pine on the right are very common in the area around the Pound.

Our luck has run out, the weather bureau is predicting high winds, rain and thunderstorms. We thought we might get a short walk in...to Arkaroo Rock.

Rocks again...

...more wildflowers and views of the mountains...

Arkaroo Rock is a significant cultural site for the local indigenous people. The hike goes to a rock shelter with indigenous rock paintings.

Rain! on the walk back to the car park....the trail became a small creek.

Our golf wet weather jackets kept us reasonably dry....we had a cup of coffee and snacks while we watched the rain.

The name of the lookout attracted us...

It was worth taking a small detour to the lookout..a great view of the Wilpena Pound.

The view in the other direction...

We saw emus on our way to the Wilpena Caravan Park.

Our spot for the night....lots of trees and bush in the area.

Some of the surrounding trees of the caravan park. 

 

Starting our walk and climb to Rawnsley Bluff.  The track climbs the Wilpena Pound escarpment, providing views into the Pound from the Wilpena Pound Lookout.

In this area most of the creek beds are dry....just love that tree,

So many wildflowers that I have never seen before...this one was very pretty.

It was an easy start...

....then the path became more difficult...rocks, rocks and more rocks.

But spectacular views as we climbed higher...most of the vegetation was not very tall...

....never boring...

...wattles on the ridge...

Wilpena Pound Lookout...awesome view into the Pound

We can't believe how lucky we are to be here whilst these wildflowers are looking their best.

We made it to the top!

View from the top...

Mountains everywhere...

It wasn't always easy going downhill...

Flinders Range bottlebrush

Big night out! Pete and I went to the Woolshed Restaurant for dinner....absolutely delicious and beautiful view of the Bluff....A big thank you to Jeremy's friend Lauren for recommending both the walk and the restaurant. Another wonderful day.