Summary: A shelter with spectacular Aboriginal drawings in the McPherson State Forest. Figures include snakes, macropods and an echidna in charcoal, red ochre and white ochre.

Near the Crane Ridge Trail in the McPherson State Forest is a low and unassuming shelter, which contains a number of Aboriginal cave drawings.

AWAT6862 LR Snakes Cave

The largest panel is stunning, containing at least 30 figures, many of them overlapping.

mainpanel stitch2 LR Snakes Cave

Two snakes, a macropod (probably a wallaby or kangaroo) and human figures with upraised arms are the most obvious figures. Many other figures in black charcoal are less obvious.

AWAT6782 LR Snakes Cave
AWAT6783 LR Snakes Cave

Behind the charcoal art are drawings in red ochre, which may be older.

On the ceiling of the cave in red ochre are two figures which may represent coolamons (a traditional Aboriginal carrying vessel with curved sides).

AWAT6834 LR Snakes Cave

There is another of these motifs on the wall of the shelter.

AWAT6825 LR Snakes Cave

A figure drawn in white ochre may be an echidna.

AWAT6828 LR Snakes Cave
Subscribe via Email

Enter your email address to subscribe to Hiking the World, and receive notifications of new posts by email. (A hike is added every 1-2 weeks, on average.)

Join 1,205 other subscribers

0 Comments

Leave a Reply

Aboriginal Sites by National Park

Yengo National Park was an important spiritual and cultural place for the Darkinjung and Wonnarua People for thousands of years, and 640 Aboriginal cultural sites are recorded in the park and nearby areas.
The Greater Blue Mountains World Heritage Area protects over 3,000 known Aboriginal heritage sites, and many more which are yet to be recorded. This area includes the Blue Mountains National Park, Gardens of Stone, Wollemi National Park and Yengo National Park.
Red Hands Cave, Glenbrook (Blue Mountains)
The Blue Mountains National Park (and surrounding areas along the Great Western Highway) is thought to have over a thousand indigenous heritage sites, although much of the park has not been comprehensively surveyed. The Aboriginal rock sites in the Blue Mountains include grinding grooves, stensils, drawing and rock carvings.
Over 40 sites have been recorded within the park; many were located along the river bank and were flooded by the building of the weir in 1938.