BLACK MAN'S CAVE
White Rock is shown beside the Shoobridge Track, but is not easy to find. The consensus is that White Rock is in fact Sphinx Rock.
More significantly, what was in 1935 known as White Rock has an earlier name. A long time ago it was called Black Man’s Cave. A striking change in nomenclature.
Archeological exploration is not yet even in its infancy on the mountain, but Palawa slept in stone homes—caves, also under overhang cliffs and rock arches. Caverns make very comfortable lodgings: dry on a rainy day, cool on a hot day, warm on a cold night, often softly floored with sand, they are temperate and safe havens. Some being so well hidden not even a tell-tale signal from a campfire’s smoke column betrayed their presence. Some caves were occupied permanently, but most, likely like Black man’s cave were less frequented, while poorer, smaller roughies for emergency shelter only. The use of caves on Tasmanian mountains for ceremonial purposes is also attested, but this cave was more likely infrequently visited.