53 
The South Australian Naturalist. 
LECTURE 0\ HUP TO WTl.PENA POUND,” 
BY MR. II. M. HAI.E, APR!!. 21, 1925. 
Mr. IL M. Hale e;ave a ieciure on the evening of April 21 
dealing with a recent excursion to Wilpena Pound by four mem- 
bers (Messrs. Beck, Stokes, W'ilkinson and Hale). A series of 
excellent lantern slides, dealing with the trip, added interest to 
the narrative. Reference was made to previous excursions to 
Moolooloo and the Owienagin Pound and the hospitality of Mr. and 
Mrs. Lindo, of Moolooloo. Using a map, the lecturer directed atten- 
tion to the mountain range extending from the neighbourhood of 
Kangaroo Island to Lake Eyre, and variously designated the 
Mount Lofty Ranges, Barossa Range, and Flinders Range. From 
Quorn northwards this range provided some of the most strik- 
ing scenery in the State, including the beautiful Owienagin Pound. 
'Two months of last year were spent in these ranges bv Mr. d’in- 
dale and the lecturer. 'Flie North Flinders Range included what 
Ih'ofessor Howchin had described as “the roughest and most inac- 
cessible portions of the highland of South Australia.” The ranges 
are divided into a series of parallel ridges. West of Hawker veas the 
^ appala Range, and to the north the Fdder Range, which con- 
tained that W'onderful natural amphitheatre known as the Mdlpena 
Pound. 1 he pounds, relatlvel\- ifat areas ringed in by precipitous 
lulls, formed ciuite a feature of the ranges. 
The \A ilpena Penmd possessed severel remarkable features. It 
uas almost inaccessible, entrance being practicable onl\’ on foot 
or, at best, on lK)rseb;ick. St. Mary’s Peak, on the enclosing 
lim, was approximately a, 900 ft. 'in height, the highest point in the 
settled j'tart ol^S.A. I he annual rainlall sometimes amounted to 26 
in.^, while outside the pound it rareb' exceeded 10 in. It was con- 
sidered to be the coldest spot in the State. Snow often remained- 
on St. Alary’s Peak for a week at a time. 
^ aiiival at Hawkei' the paiiy of naturalists met Mr. 
Lai tholomacus, tlic owner of .Arkaba Station, situated in the 
langes 15 miles fiom the town. At Arkaba they enjoyed large- 
leaited hospitality over a week-end. Some yt ara ago it was said 
Aikaba was offered for £250 without eliciting a bid. Now it is 
estimated to be vvorth £32,000. As showing tl e ravages of wild 
aogs. It was mentioned that one dog, .vhich got over the carefully 
constructed fence accom. ^d in a short time for a loss of slieep 
estimated as worth t200, and £40 was offered for his scalp. The 
u^ual beast of burden there was the demkey. Thirty or forty 
aonlceys were harnessed to a wagum load of wood to ccutve^' it to 
iiawker, 5^ mdes distant. 
