Wilpena Pound – Parachilna – Blinman – Wilpena Pound

Parachilna is an old railway stop on the way to no-
Where. Step out of the car and flies crawl up your nose. It’s one
Hostelry, The Prairie Hotel, serves feral food. The flies
Respectfully decline to enter the old wooden bar.

The tea shop in Blinman, perched at the tip of a
Rocky twenty five mile dead end, serves Devonshire
Teas in a converted school hall, featuring a welsh
Dresser, quondong scones and kangaroo ciabattas.

The road back from Blinman skirts a range of hills which
Are topped with a crust of dental rock. These summits
Look man-made, from a distance, like a string of forts.
The range has been christened The Great Wall of China.

Late afternoon is the high-tea promenade.
Kangaroos stretch to monitor traffic. Emus
Stroll Aristocratically. Parrots dawdle by
The roadside, their pink throats full of gossip.