The Walls of Jerusalem is dominated by alpine vegetation and endemic conifer forests amid a high plateau of dolerite peaks.
Mountain Rocket at Lake Adelaide
(Photo by Peter Grant)
The dolerite within the park is derived from dramatic tectonic activity during the Jurrassic some 165 million years ago. Much of the beauty of the present day landscape is the result of Pleistocene glaciations. These resulted in many of the landscape features found within the park, such as moraines and numerous tarns and lakes.
The alpine vegetation within the park includes striking bolster heaths (cushion plants) which play a major role in determining local topography. Stands of pure pencil pine forest are found in fire-protected areas; however much of the park's native conifers were destroyed by fire in the early 1960s.
Nomenclature
Many of the place names throughout the Walls of Jerusalem National Park are derived from the recommendations of surveyor James Scott, and early enthusiast for the area, Reg Hall. The name, "Walls of Jerusalem" was given on an early roll plan by James Scott in 1849. Reg Hall, continuing the biblical allusion, named various features such as Ephraims Gate, Zions Gate, Herods Gate, Pool of Bethesda, Pool of Siloam, Wailing Wall and The Temple.