Traveling through the mostly flat plains of the inner Eyre Peninsula, you’ll be surprised by a sign suggesting there is a massive rock to see. Pildappa Rock pokes out of the landscape like a mini-Uluru, and its well worth the small detour off the highway to check out.
Getting To Pildappa Rock
This one is easy – driving along the Eyre Highway, as you approach Minippa, you’ll see signs about Pildappa Rock. Its a road on the edge of town, and about 15kms of dirt road to get out to the rock. The road was in pretty good condition when we visited.
About Pildappa Rock
Pildappa Rock has impressive wave formations that are reminiscent of the perhaps more famous ‘Wave Rock’ in Western Australia.
The kids loved playing on the rock and climbing up into little nooks carved out by thousands of years of weather. And for the braver two of my three children, they were wrapped that they could climb up and walk around on the top! It’s quite interesting walking across the top. There are a number of little pools that had been filled up by recent rain, and a few big enough that they appear almost permanent by the the amount of green algae that managed to grow in there.
We walked across to the front section of the rock and looked back down on the carpark. I was very mindful of how close the kids would get to the edge, keeping them well back. The sides kind of taper away and you certainly wouldn’t want to lose your footing.
From the top of the rock you also get expansive views of the surrounding area, out to the Gawler Ranges. Its certainly worth the reasonably easy trek up.
Camping
In the years prior, people used to camp at the base of the rock. This would have been a magnificent overnight stop over (flies aside!). Unfortunately, for whatever reason, camping has now been banned next to the rock. There has been a paid camping area set up on the adjacent private land, but I reckon without having the rock at your backdoor, it loses it’s appeal. You’ll just have flies and heat instead.
There is camping available at the nearby Tcharkulda Rock. Whilst not as visually impressive, it has lots of large boulders for kids to explore around in. This would be my pick if needing an overnighter in the area.
Pildappa does have a couple of toilets and picnic areas for those stopping for lunch. The flies can be a menace on calm days though!
