- 2 days ago
The Frankland River flows into the ancient Walpole Forest, which spans two hundred square kilometres of protected old-growth trees as part of the broader Walpole Wilderness Area on the south coast of Western Australia.
这一保护区的核心组成部分即为古老的 Tingle 森林，森林并未在“荒野”处终止，而是构成了荒野的主体, 红树（Red Tingle）等物种仅存于 Walpole 周边有限区域，是 Gondwana 古陆遗留植物，属于该荒野不可分割的生态特征...
这一保护区的核心组成部分即为古老的 Tingle 森林，森林并未在“荒野”处终止，而是构成了荒野的主体, 红树（Red Tingle）等物种仅存于 Walpole 周边有限区域，是 Gondwana 古陆遗留植物，属于该荒野不可分割的生态特征...
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TravelTranscript
00:00If you love wilderness, you have to love Australia. I mean, take a look at it. It's vast. It's a
00:07beautiful continent
00:10I'm going to venture into the heart of some of the wildest places on earth
00:16Across the remote outback. Oh, what was that? Oh bigger into the big blue ocean
00:27And high over the mountains well, it should be a great place to look for eagles
00:33With my team I'm going to discover the incredible life that thrives here in all its beauty and
00:41Variety I just saw
00:44This is one of the most edible sites in nature. This is the Australian wilderness
00:56I'm heading to an ancient forest one of the last remaining wilderness areas on the planet
01:04The Walpole wilderness covers over three and a half thousand square kilometers in Western Australia
01:17What a beautiful dawn
01:20This is the southwest corner of Australia. I've never been here before and I'm really excited
01:28That's the Frankland River making its way inland and you can see all around it this dense canopy of trees
01:36the Walpole forest
01:42This ancient forest is home to some of Australia's most majestic trees and oldest animals
01:49I'm really excited to explore it
01:52I'm certain that when I step into that forest I'm going to be traveling back in time
01:59My plan is to follow the Frankland River into the heart of the forest and then to continue on foot
02:04to get close to some of its biggest trees
02:09By tomorrow I want to have reached Mount Franklin a granite peak about 20 kilometers inland
02:16There's a lot of land that rises above the treetop canopy
02:23I'm starting out by my favorite means of travel canoe
02:28A nice piece of workmanship
02:39Always a good moment when you sit in a an unfamiliar canoe and test it for the first few moments
02:48I like that very much
02:50You get the feel the personality of the boat
03:12You can trace this forest's ancestry back almost 65 million years to a time when Australia was part of a
03:20vast landmass
03:30called Gondwana
03:31When Gondwana drifted apart her forests split across several different continents including this corner of Australia
03:41This is stunning
03:43It's a real primeval quality here. I quite expect to see a dinosaur coming through this forest
03:50It's got that real quality and I can see that these trees are huge. These are real giants
04:00Since the dawn of time this forest has provided shelter food and sustenance for the people who lived here
04:08As I paddle further upstream
04:10I can see trees ahead of me with all kinds of uses
04:14This is called the peppermint tree
04:17It's got that willow-like leaf
04:19And if you take some of these leaves
04:22And you crush them up
04:28You get this incredibly powerful scent
04:33Volatile scent
04:34Volatile scent
04:34It's a cross between eucalyptus and peppermint
04:37And this was used, the oils in this were used by native people as an antiseptic
04:43Fascinating
04:49And this is one of those ancient river valleys
04:49Ten kilometres up the river
04:50I meet up with local guide and conservationist Gary Muir
04:54He's going to join me on the next part of my journey
04:58How does it feel, Ray?
05:00It's beautiful
05:01It's a lovely boat
05:03Gary, tell me a little bit about the history of the river
05:06This river here, it's a very ancient river
05:09And this is one of those ancient river valleys
05:11You're going into a valley that's been made
05:16Millions and millions
05:17And tens of millions of years old
05:20The frankland river is deep for much of its course
05:23For the early logging industry
05:25This river was a perfect way
05:27To transport the huge trees from its banks
05:30All the way to the coast
05:32When you look here
05:33There's timber right on the water's edge
05:35With very very deep waters
05:36So they thought maybe we can utilise all this timber
05:40What did they use them for?
05:42Much of the Jarrah from this area
05:44Actually helped build the London Underground
05:46And quite a few of the streets
05:49For example Regent Street is Jarrah from this area
05:52Really? That's amazing
06:00Jarrah is a very hard wood
06:02And in Victorian times
06:03It literally paved London's streets
06:06This was because wooden cobbles
06:08Were much quieter than those made from granite
06:12Wow
06:14A bit of a jetty there
06:16Yeah, this is the monastery
06:18This is such a special place
06:21In 1910 a government party visited this area
06:26To assess it
06:27They were so impressed by the beauty of the setting
06:29That they decided to preserve it from the logging industry
06:33And instead they declared it a national park
06:37It got first called the monastery
06:40Because a mist rose
06:41And it formed a ceiling
06:43And the waters went still like a highly polished floor
06:46And the Kerry trees appeared like pillars
06:48And it was like this magic of a monastery
06:51And it was so special and quiet and peaceful
06:54That they decided that they would reserve this area
06:58Well I think this is where I'm going to leave you
07:00I'm going to jump out here
07:01But it's been a real pleasure
07:03All the best Gary
07:04Enjoy the wilderness
07:05Take care
07:20Wow
07:22That's a great way to arrive in the forest
07:24Need to get the circulation back in my legs though
07:27A little bit now
07:29Before I take to the trail
07:39I'm going to head away from the river
07:42Climbing towards some of the forest's oldest
07:44And most majestic trees
07:46But there are some delightful tiny forest dwellers
07:50Which catch my attention first
07:54If you're not looking
07:56It's easy to miss little fellows like this tree gecko
07:59Perfectly camouflaged
08:01Against the bark of the tree
08:02They're highly specialised climbers
08:05And foraging trees and shrubs
08:07For small insects and spiders
08:11My route is taking me higher
08:13To a ridge line well above the river valley
08:18Well it's quite a hike up from the river
08:20In fact you can see the river
08:24When you look back here
08:25That's it snaking through over there
08:32I'm searching for some of this forest's biggest trees
08:36Wow
08:37And I'm not disappointed
08:40Fantastic
08:42This is a red tingle tree
08:44It gets its name from an aboriginal name for the tree
08:48The dingle dingle tree
08:49And believe it or not
08:51This is just an average sized tree
08:54Some of them can have a girth of 24 meters
09:03This is a carry tree
09:05That's one of the world's tallest tree species
09:08In fact if I look right up in here
09:10You can see there's a dead branch up there
09:12We call that a widow maker with good reason
09:14In fact that dead branch is the size of many mature trees
09:18In other parts of Australia
09:24These trees are a species of eucalyptus
09:26They've evolved to survive forest fires
09:29And can live to be hundreds of years old
09:32They're evergreen and flower throughout the year
09:35Providing a constant supply of nectar
09:37To the forest's many and varied birds
09:41This is a laughing kookaburra
09:44Although named after its distinctive call
09:46It's actually a kind of large kingfisher
09:51I'm really starting to like this forest
09:53It's full of surprises
09:55Like this cave
09:57This isn't actually a cave at all
09:58This, believe it or not
10:00Is the roots structure
10:02Of a fallen tree
10:04Amazing, isn't it?
10:06But the most amazing thing
10:07Is that these trees
10:09Are incredibly fast growing
10:10So even this vast tree
10:12May only have been
10:14Four or five hundred years old
10:22Right, it's time to find some more
10:25Of walpole's elusive wildlife
10:30The dense undergrowth of this forest
10:32Is perfect habitat
10:34For a very special creature
10:36I'm hoping to see
10:37The quokka
10:38It likes to feed at night
10:40So as the day closes
10:41I stake out a likely spot
10:46I've put this screen up
10:48So I'm just going to use
10:48A little bit of cunning
10:50I'm going to put some gloves on
10:51Because the mosquitoes will be out
10:52In a few minutes
10:54And just sit tight
10:55Sit quiet
10:57And hope for the best
11:11And patience
11:13Has its rewards
11:25This is a quokka
11:27You can see
11:29From its coat
11:30Now it's dark
11:31And a little bit mottled
11:33And that means
11:34It can disappear
11:35Into the shadows
11:36Of the soiled grass
11:37Under branches
11:38And be almost invisible
11:40Coupled with that
11:41It's virtually totally nocturnal
11:44So this is a really lucky sighting
11:46But this forest
11:48This ancient forest
11:49Is one of their strongholds
11:51And it's very fitting
11:52To see it here
11:53Because it's a very ancient marsupial
11:56Stretching right back
11:57To the days
11:58When all mammals were small
12:01They've got a beautiful face
12:03They've got these chubby little cheeks
12:05That make them very, very cute
12:07In fact, Disney
12:08Could not have invented
12:10A cuter character
12:32In those I'm here
12:33I think it's listening to me
12:34Talking about it
12:50I'm exploring the giant forests
12:52Of Australia's Walpole Wilderness
12:56Yesterday I followed the
12:58Franklin River inland
12:59And today I'm going to
13:01Continue on foot
13:02Into the heart of the forest
13:03To a granite peak
13:05Called Mount Franklin
13:08It's quite fun sleeping here
13:10All through the night
13:11You can hear animals
13:12Scurrying around outside
13:13Because of course
13:15Most of the mammals here
13:16Are nocturnal
13:17So this morning
13:18I'm going to go
13:19And meet somebody
13:19Who can show me
13:20What takes place
13:22After dark
13:25Environmentalist
13:25Prue Anderson
13:26Has been studying
13:27The diversity
13:28Of the local wildlife
13:30It's a lovely morning
13:31Isn't it?
13:32It's gorgeous
13:33Last night
13:33She set up some trail cameras
13:35To record some of the forest's
13:37Most secretive creatures
13:39What have we got here then Prue?
13:41So
13:42We've got a motion camera
13:44Looking at this beautiful
13:45Tingle habitat tree
13:47And
13:48We'll just see
13:49What we've got
13:51We've got a possum
13:53Brush tail possum
13:54Last night
13:54That's good
13:55Very nice
13:57Brush tail possums
13:58Are tree dwellers
14:00And they're agile climbers
14:01They come out at night
14:03To feed on eucalyptus leaves
14:04And forest plants
14:06This one
14:07This one
14:08Is probably heading home
14:08After dinner
14:10Let's see it
14:11Running up the tree
14:12Yep
14:16Alright, so
14:17Now what's that?
14:18That's a bandicoot
14:19A southern brown bandicoot
14:21Amazing
14:24Unlike his tree dwelling neighbour
14:26This little marsupial
14:27Lives on the ground
14:28In shallow burrows
14:29He uses his sensitive snout
14:32To forage for food
14:33On and beneath the forest floor
14:37Scratching away
14:38So that was digging up fungi
14:40Yes
14:40Have you seen any
14:42Non-native predators
14:44On your trail cameras?
14:45I have
14:46I've captured
14:47Feral cats
14:48And feral foxes
14:50Which we've got
14:50A big problem with
14:52It's important to know
14:53That they are here
14:53And they're doing
14:54Having a massive impact
14:55On the marsupials
14:56We
14:57Have a big problem
14:58With cats
14:59And they eat so many
15:01Marsupials
15:01Just in one meal
15:02And birds
15:03Reptiles
15:04They eat everything
15:06Prue and I move on
15:07To check a second camera trap
15:09By a fallen tree
15:10And we're in for a surprise
15:13This log up ahead
15:14Fell down about
15:16A fortnight ago
15:17Can you put a camera on there?
15:18Yep
15:25So this tree's been dead
15:27For a long time
15:27Yeah, hasn't it just?
15:30So
15:31Last night
15:323.30am
15:35There's a feral cat
15:37Look at that
15:37It's a big one
15:38Yep
15:38So this is not a pussycat
15:40That's a wild cat
15:41That's a wild cat
15:42We don't want that here
15:43Nope
15:44A feral cat
15:45A feral cat
15:46Is a domestic cat
15:47Which has gone wild
15:48Introduced to Australia
15:50By the first settlers
15:51It's a super predator
15:52That has become
15:53A major threat
15:54To native wildlife
15:57Alright, let's see
15:58What else we've got
16:00Amado
16:01And it's
16:02Dashing around
16:03Like a mad thing
16:06Amado
16:07Amado
16:07Amado is a small
16:07Mouse-like marsupial
16:09And along with other
16:10Small mammals
16:11Like bandicoots
16:12And quolls
16:13It's a great risk
16:14From feral cats
16:15But not tonight
16:17It survived the cat
16:18It survived the cat
16:19For tonight
16:20That's amazing
16:21Yeah
16:21That was a good
16:22Trail cameras
16:23Usually don't get something
16:24Quite as good as that
16:25Yeah
16:26It's great to know
16:28That conservationists
16:29Like Poo
16:29Are working to protect
16:31This forest's wildlife
16:34But the morning is moving on
16:35And it's time for me
16:36To head back on the trail
16:38Moving deeper into the forest
16:41I'm following a time-worn track
16:43Probably an old aboriginal path
16:45Without it
16:46This land would be impenetrable
16:49This forest is incredibly dense
16:51It's not just a thick undergrowth
16:52It's the nature of it
16:54Take a look at this
16:55This is sword grass
16:56And in the leaves of the sword grass
16:58There's silica
17:00And it has like a sore edge to it
17:03If I take this bit of bark
17:04You might be able to hear it
17:05I'm using a bit of bark
17:06Because if I ran my finger down there
17:08I'd end up with a cut
17:11But for people living in this forest
17:13All these plants had a use
17:16I'm excited to meet Joey Williams
17:19An aboriginal guide
17:20Who joins me further up the trail
17:22Hey Joey
17:23Nice to meet you
17:25You too, mate
17:30Joey grew up in these forests
17:31And his knowledge
17:32Has been handed down to him
17:34Over the generations
17:38Here, right
17:40This is a soap bush
17:42So we put that with water
17:43And crush it up
17:44Bit of water
17:44Rub the hands together
17:45And leathers
17:49Right, so we got another little one here
17:51Right
17:52This vine
17:53For fish
17:54It's like a net, isn't it?
17:55Fish net
17:56Yeah
17:56And they'd stick those in between the rocks
17:58As the tide went out
18:00Yeah
18:00And they'd get trapped
18:01And it's strong, isn't it, as well?
18:03Strong as
18:04And it's very strong
18:04Yeah
18:08All right
18:09Got this Keech boar in here
18:12Spearwood
18:12Spearwood
18:14That sounds good
18:19Joey's going to show me
18:20How his people made spears
18:21For hunting in the forest
18:28That's a nice spot
18:29Look at that
18:30That's quite a view, isn't it?
18:32Beautiful
18:33So what, fire here?
18:34Fire here
18:35Let's get organised, eh?
18:36Yeah
18:36Let's clear some of this away
18:41All right, we're almost ready to get into these spears, eh?
18:44Yep
18:47The first stage is to strip the wood completely of its bark
18:53It's going to need a little bit of straightening
18:55There
18:56Yeah
18:56Put him in the fire
18:57Stroke him up
18:58Yep
18:59Heating the wood makes its fibres more flexible
19:01So the spear can be straightened
19:05I'm getting the feel of this piece of wood now
19:07All right
19:08So I'll grind up a little bit of this resin here for us, eh?
19:11Yep
19:15Joey's passionate about keeping his traditions alive
19:18So he's collected everything we need to make these spears from the forest
19:22Including the resin to glue it together
19:25Righty-o
19:25Now we get to our next stage
19:28Wrapping in a bit of kangaroo-tail sinew
19:30Once it's dry, will you...
19:32I mean, it's pretty tough, you know
19:34It dries like a plastic
19:36How important is this traditional knowledge to you?
19:39I think a lot of Aboriginal people want people to know that we are a race of people too
19:47You know, we're not just flora and fauna
19:50We are a race of people
19:51We have values, you know, we have strong family ties
19:56We've got the oldest culture in the world
19:57So we want to show people that, eh, this is the way it is for us
20:04This is not, you know, just a show
20:06It's a way of life
20:07Just be careful, we could sound like two sad old men
20:13Yeah, I know I am
20:17Well, that's gone on all right, that?
20:19Yeah, that's good
20:21You've done this before
20:22I have done it before, yeah
20:25Well, why didn't you pick me something hard for you to make?
20:33That's come out great
20:33Well, you know, you can't take that one apart and leave it here, you know
20:38You've got to take that home with you
20:40I can't see that going through the customs, can you?
20:42In this day and age
20:43Well, you'd be disrespecting me if you leave it here
20:46Oh, I've got to leave it here, mate
20:48If I take that, they'll stick me in jail
20:53But I'll take the knowledge with me, if that's all right
20:55That's it, for sure
20:57Let's go
21:24Let's go
21:27I'll take the knowledge of the land
21:27Which towers above the forest
21:28As I ascend
21:30For the first time
21:31I find myself
21:32Above the tree canopy
21:35Well, it's been quite a journey
21:37If you look way back there
21:39I have a very far distance is the sea
21:41That's where the Franklin River is
21:44And this is Mount Franklin
21:46I've come all the way up through the forest
21:48But that's nothing
21:50Take a look at this
21:57Now that's what I call wilderness
21:59Look, it seems to stretch on forever
22:06Next, we return to Weatherfield
22:08As it seems, Kate and Rana are busted in Coronation Street
22:12Then in half an hour, we're live with Ant and Dec
22:14For I'm a Celebrity, Get Me Out of Here
22:16With the first live boat off
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