Gum Gorge Road

The road

Gum Gorge Road is an 8-kilometre track into the foothills of Mount Remarkable National Park, the southern end of the Flinders Ranges proper. The park is significantly less visited than Wilpena Pound to the north but the gorge and ridge terrain is excellent, and this track gives 4WD access to the Gum Gorge creek country. The surface is rocky quartzite on the ridge approaches and smoother compacted earth in the creek-line sections. High clearance and low-range are both necessary for the quartzite sections, where the loose rocky surface demands careful line selection. The gorge vegetation is the reward - native cypress pine on the dry ridges, massive river red gums on the creek lines, and the distinctive blue gum of the Flinders escarpment higher up. Melrose is the base for this track and one of SA's most charming historic towns. Settled in the 1840s, the stone main street has survived intact and the Mount Remarkable Hotel is a proper country pub. The summit walk from Melrose takes two to three hours return and gives the best 360-degree view of the southern Flinders and the Spencer Gulf plains. The combination of the 4WD track and the summit walk makes a full day out of the southern Flinders.

The region

Mount Remarkable National Park occupies the southern end of the Flinders Ranges proper - less visited than Wilpena Pound to the north but with excellent gorge and ridge terrain. The Gum Gorge is one of several creek gorges draining off the main range. The vegetation is a mix of native cypress pine, the iconic river red gums of the creek lines and the distinctive blue gum of the Flinders escarpment.

Before you go

Fuel in Melrose or Wilmington. Check NPWS conditions. The track requires solid vehicle preparation and tyre clearance. A good 4WD track for the Flinders that sits between the easy and extreme ends of the difficulty spectrum.

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