Elachbutting Rock is a

granite Granite () is a coarse-grained (phaneritic) intrusive igneous rock composed mostly of quartz, alkali feldspar, and plagioclase. It forms from magma with a high content of silica and alkali metal oxides that slowly cools and solidifies undergro ...

rock formation located approximately east of Bonnie Rock and approximately north east of Mukinbudin in the eastern Wheatbelt region of Western Australia. The rock is situated within Elachbutting Rock Nature Reserve and is part of the

Great Western Woodlands The Great Western Woodlands is located in the southwest of Australia. The woodlands cover almost , a region larger in size than England and Wales. The boundary of the Great Western Woodlands runs from the Nullarbor Plain in the east to the West ...

. The large natural rock formation is similar in appearance to

Wave Rock Wave Rock ( nys, Katter Kich) is a natural rock formation that is shaped like a tall breaking Wind wave, ocean wave. The "wave" is about high and around long. It forms the north side of a solitary hill, which is known as "Hyden Rock". This ...

and has a number of large cavern areas with several

gnamma A panhole is a depression or basin eroded into flat or gently sloping cohesive rock.Twidale, C.R., and Bourne, J.A., 2018''Rock basins (gnammas) revisited. ''Géomorphologie: Relief, Processus, Environnement, Articles sous presse, Varia, mis en l ...

holes on top. It is surrounded by natural bushland. Another feature is Monty's Pass, a tunnel that runs along the edge of the rock, caused by a rock slide where a large section of the outer layer slid off, possibly as the result of an earthquake. At the end of the tunnel is Kings Cave, an echoing cave. As with most of the granite outcrops in the Wheatbelt, Elachbutting Rock rises from the ancient

Yilgarn Craton The Yilgarn Craton is a large craton that constitutes the bulk of the Western Australian land mass. It is bounded by a mixture of sedimentary basins and Proterozoic fold and thrust belts. Zircon grains in the Jack Hills, Narryer Terrane have be ...

, the geological plate underlying much of the southern Western Australia, that is between 2.5 – 3.5 billion years in age. The name is thought to mean ''that thing standing'' in the local

Indigenous Australian Indigenous Australians or Australian First Nations are people with familial heritage from, and membership in, the ethnic groups that lived in Australia before British colonisation. They consist of two distinct groups: the Aboriginal peoples ...

dialect, in reference to the rock being a prominent landmark in the landscape.

Harry Anstey Harry Francis Anstey (24 July 1847 – 6 July 1927) was a metallurgist and gold prospector who led the prospecting expedition that discovered gold in the Yilgarn, leading to the gold rush that established Western Australia's Eastern Goldfields. ...

passed through the area in 1887 as he pioneered a route to the Yilgarn goldfields and noted that "at Eliajbudding, there is an enormous mass of rocks covering between at which there are cockholes and two wells, and any amount of water that might be conserved". Elachbutting well can be found to the rear of the rock, although there is quite a distance between the well and the base of the granite rock. This well is a good example of the type that were built around the Wheatbelt and provided a natural water supply to the settlers and prospectors. The circular well is very deep, with three or four rows of dry wall stones surrounding the interior. The water seeps in at the base of the well through the rocks. The site has a campsite, picnic table, a toilet, and parking facilities, and a walk trail around the rock has been constructed by the

Shire of Westonia The Shire of Westonia is a local government area in the eastern Wheatbelt region of Western Australia, about east of Perth, the state capital. Its seat of government is the small town of Westonia. Although the Shire of Westonia is located ...

and the Department of Environment and Conservation. The walk trail is along the base of the rock and is around in length. The track is accessible to two- and four-wheel drive vehicles. The top of the rock is a short walk or can also be reached by 4WD, offering a good view of wheat fields to the west and bushland to the east. Fauna found around the rock include donkey orchids which growing en masse at the base of the rock, and flower in spring and early summer.

References

{{coord, 30, 35, 32, S, 118, 36, 33, E, display=title Wheatbelt (Western Australia) Rock formations of Western Australia Great Western Woodlands

See also

References