Bob, Nipper and Doug were keen to visit an Aboriginal art cave on the western side of the Gardens of Stone State Conservation Area that I had visited a a few times. So we headed out past Lithgow and were soon walking along a fire road in the Gardens of Stone.
The country was open woodland.
We first climbed up to the cliffline to visit an overhang with a tunnel and old survey mark.
Outside the overhang was a survey line. These were constructed by early surveyors, and are a line of stones with a wooden peg in the middle. Over the years the pegs often deteriorate and vanish, but the stones remain. The surveyor’s chainman would have used a survey chain to measure the distance from the previous survey line to this one (right to the peg), and the direction of the line indicates the direction to the next survey line. They are more commonly found along ridge lines.
Pagoda Daisy
Nearby was a survey mark. It was very well preserved, considering it was chiseled out in the 1890’s.
And here is the natural tunnel –
We then walked under the cliffs towards the art cave.
What was worrying were these cracks in the cliffs caused by post coal mining subsidence.
And we came across this subsidence measuring equipment.
Andan old aluminium power cable that would have gone to a former coal mine pumping station.
We then climbed up to the art cave.
It featured many hand stencils. Most of them were made using white ochre. White ochre hand scenics were apparently made by women and children. Red ochre hand stencils are made by initiated men. Art caves usually have either one or the other. This cave had both. We counted over 70 hand stencils and only 3 of them were red.
Here is some white scratched art –
Another white motif –
Now using the rock art enhancing software, iDStretch on my phone –
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We then left the cave and looked for a pass to the top of the cliffline. We found one nearby and later crossed a large crack caused by subsidence.
It was slow and scrubby walking to the fire road on the tops. Along the fire road we came across some goats. They were tagged and must have escaped from a nearby farm.
We then had enough time to visit another art site, the well known Maiyingu Marrago (Blackfellows Hand Cave). This is a very impressive site.
Using IDstretch –
And while asking back to the car, we saw some Yellow-tailed Black Cockatoos –
