Mt Isa

Mount Isa:  12 August [669 km]

We got an early start for what would be one of our longest days (and, of course, we lost another 30 minutes by travelling east).  We knew where we were going today, because we did this leg a couple of years ago:  all the straight roads looked very familiar!!  The straight which goes past the Barkly Homestead, for example, is 74 km long.

As the temperature warmed up, so did the wind across the Barkly Tableland.  Considerable care is needed when travelling east, as the wind can cause a dramatic increase in petrol consumption.  Fortunately, our wind today was a cross wind, so we had no problems getting to Mt Isa on one tank of petrol.

The Barkly Tableland is essentially flat (surprise!) although the vegetation varies from gum trees to scrub to grass as far as the eye can see. 

Crossing the Barkly Tableland is also a bit of an iconic trip, as the early drovers (such as those who moved the Durack’s stock) moved cattle through this area.  In good seasons, the Tablelands are covered with Mitchell and other grasses and this provides cattle with good feed.  There are a number of very large grazing properties on the Barkly – some are the largest grazing properties in the world.

As we neared Mt Isa, the country became quite hilly in the vicinity of the rich mineral province and we also came across more road trains carting ore from mines into Mt Isa.  After booking into our cabin, we did some washing, had a swim, had tea and then had an early night.

Tennant Creek

Tennant Creek: 10-11 August [575 km]

Our first stop this morning was the Mataranka Homestead, where the Mataranka Hot Springs are located.  The area where people get in these springs is fully lined with stone and it is only possible to sit in the warm water.  As far as we were concerned, Bitter Springs was a much better option for enjoying these hot springs.

Then we were back on ‘The Track’ south to Daly Waters.  The country was generally very flat and the vegetation gradually changed from larger gum trees and scrub to just low scrub interspersed with stony patches.  All in all, it was not a particularly interesting vista as we drove along.

The Daly Waters Pub is quite an experience.  For a start, it is in the middle of nowhere. 

Chaunticleer wasn't too sure about this pub, so he parked a little way off!  Of course, the location of the pub largely reflects the fact that this was one of the key locations for Stuart on his various journeys to cross Australia from south to north, as he found fresh water here.  The buildings themselves are a bit ramshackle but they are covered inside with all sorts of memorabilia:  t-shirts, caps, number plates and dollar notes among many other things.

There appear to be lots of people visiting this pub – which is a little way off the highway, as well as people staying at the camping ground.  All in all, it is a quaint settlement.  Just near the pub is a tree in which Stuart carved an ‘S’ on one of his journeys.

The airstrip at Daly Waters is like a number of overgrown airstrips scattered along The Track:  they are reminders of the enormous effort which was made by the Australians and Americans during the Second World War to develop the capacity to respond to the Japanese threat.  After we left Daly Waters, we passed the turn off to the Buchanan Highway.  [Question:  who was Ned Buchanan and what did he do?]

We got to Elliott for lunch and then pressed on to Three Ways (where the Barkly Highway meets the Stuart Highway).  About 30 km before we got to Three Ways, we passed Attack Creek.  There is an historic marker at this creek crossing and a memorial to Stuart.  [Question:  Why is this spot called Attack Creek?]  We arrived in Tennant Creek by mid-afternoon and, after a bit of shopping, we booked in to our motel and relaxed.  We had dinner at the Sporties Club surrounded by TV screens showing a range of sporting activities.

Kapoks and Boabs

It is interesting to reflect that we had been driving through country with deep rich red earth;  it is a very vibrant colour and contrasts with the stony and savannah country.  We also noted that we had ‘lost’ the yellow flowers of the kapok bush from the Kimberleys and we had not seen any boabs as we started coming south.  It is a bit sad to leave behind these two symbols of the Kimberley region.

There is not all that much to do in Tennant Creek on a Sunday!  We did some domestic chores in the morning and then drove to the Battery Mine site – which is also the information centre.  There is a lot of good information at the centre:  we bought a couple of interesting books – one was a transcript of Stuart’s journal of his sixth and successful attempt to reach the sea on the northern Australian coast and the other a great analysis of places of interest along The Track.  We then drove to a lookout nearby to get a bit of a perspective of where Tennant Creek is situated;  it was fascinating to ponder on what Stuart thought of this country as he sought to find water on his journey north in 1861-62, as it didn’t look very hospitable to man or horse.

Our afternoon was spent getting our blog up to date. We were able to use our motel’s wifi, and this meant that we could get all our photos current to the previous day.  What a relief after some of the struggles we’ve had uploading our photos.  We drove the few kilometres out to Lake Mary Anne – a lovely, serene spot with lots of pelicans and other water birds. 

After dinner at the RSL Club, we prepared for another long day tomorrow and had an early night.

 

Mataranka

Mataranka:  9 August [121 km]

We had a very relaxed morning, as we only have a short drive today.  We packed and were out of our cabin in good time.  First, we drove just down the road to visit historic Springvale Homestead.  This is the oldest original homestead in the top end – it was built in 1879.  The buildings are clearly of an earlier era but they are in good condition and the property is beautifully located on the banks of the Katherine River.  The homestead now has many mature trees around it and it is a very restful place as well as being a lovely camping ground.

Then we went into Katherine to top up our supplies and then we were off on the short run through to Mataranka.  There is not very much to Mataranka:  we walked around the park near the township, looking at the model of an enormous termite mound and the models of some of characters from We of the Never Never amongst other things.  [Question:  who wrote this book and what was the story about?]

As we were getting hungry, we reckoned that the barramundi also were getting hungry, so we set off for the Territory Manor caravan park for the 1.00 pm feeding time.  We enjoyed our lunch in the shady grounds of the park and wandered over the large pond.  As we waited, who should come up to us but the Lendrum family!  We had been wondering if our paths would cross and we were going to phone them this evening to find out where they had got to.  What a lovely surprise.  We spent some time with them as we watched the fish being fed (not the barramundi, because they apparently were well fed at breakfast time!).

The Lendrums then left to do some activities and we went to Bitter Springs to ‘ride the hot creek’.  There were quite a few people at Bitter Springs;  we jumped into the warm water of the Creek and, using our noodles, we floated the 200 metres or so to the exit point.  What a wonderful and sublime sensation:  the current moves quite quickly and it is surprising how hard it is to try and swim against the current.  We made a few rounds of the ‘floating down and then walking back to the starting point’ routine:  it was a most enjoyable and relaxing time.

We met up with the Lendrums for afternoon tea at Territory Manor and exchanged stories about our respective trips.  One of the local birds joined in our afternoon tea.

It was good to be able to chat with friends and catch up on news.  The Lendrum girls seem to be having a good time, with a number of memorable adventures already ‘under their belts’.  We won’t see them again until they return to Canberra later in the year.

After a beaut al fresco dinner at the Territory Manor restaurant, we had an early night ready for a long drive to Tennant Creek.

Katherine

Kununurra – Katherine:  6 August [519 Km]

We got an early start for two reasons:  first, it will be another longish day on the road and, second, we ‘lost’ one and a half hours this morning as we crossed the border into Northern Territory.

Our day went very smoothly.  We left WA and travelled through some quite undulating country, with lots of boabs and kapok flowers.  After a while, we encountered flat country with our familiar straight road.  As we neared Victoria River and Timber Creek, however, we started seeing some impressive escarpments on both sides of the road. 

These have been created by the mighty Victoria River as it has cut through the plateau over eons.  Even the bridge over the Victoria River is quite high and very long, in part to withstand the water flows during wet seasons.  We then had undulating country all the way to Katherine, although there was no sign of any mountains or similar features.  We arrived in Katherine by 2.30 (NT time) and checked into our cabin and relaxed.

Katherine:  7-8 August

We set off early to drive to Nitmiluk National Park to board our boat for the tour along Katherine Gorge.  Dave was our driver/captain and he was very laid-back and laconic.  We set off up the first gorge and the enormous cliffs soon came into view.  After travelling up the first gorge, it is necessary to walk to the second gorge.

A notable sheer cliff is called Jedda’s Rock (Question:  Who was Jedda and what happened to her?).  It is quite stunning the way it falls straight into the river.

We also saw our first (and only) freshwater crocodile for this tour.  According to Dave, it was a male because it was simply lying on a rock in the sun – and it hadn’t moved when we returned! 

There are some fascinating geological formations throughout this system of gorges, particularly the way in which the sandstone has been fractured and is now being eroded.  The second gorge is quite spectacular, with the tall cliffs and the narrowing of the gorge itself. 

It also was interesting to see the growth of ferns and small trees on the walls of the cliffs – where water that is held within the sandstone leaks out continuously and drips into the river.  At the end of this gorge, the rocks separating the two gorges were clearly evident and, at this time, it was not possible for boats to travel in any of the higher gorges.

On our return to the first gorge, there were lots of people swimming in various pools along the river.  None of them seemed to be worried about crocodiles as they swam in the very warm air in the gorge.  We had a smooth run back to the landing listening to more of Dave’s laconic humour.

After some shopping at Woolies, we returned to our cabin to catch up on our blog, have a swim and then prepare dinner.  It was lovely eating dinner on our little deck under the stars in the warm evening air. 

The first thing we both did on Thursday was to get a haircut!  It had been 10 weeks or so since the last haircuts and we were starting to look a bit dishevelled.  Then it was back to our cabin and get our gear for our trip to Edith Falls – or Leliyn in the Jawoyn language.  We had an easy run up the Stuart Highway [Question:  Who was this Highway named after and why?] and in to the Falls;  this is a really picturesque place.

We dived into the big pool at the base of the Falls.  What bliss! 

After being refreshed – indeed, Kerryn swam almost to the bottom of the falls – we had lunch and then walked to the upper pools.  On a rather warm day, we welcomed the cooler but still very refreshing water at the top of the Falls. 

It is a really lovely spot amongst all the cascades, boulders and large and small pools.  After enjoying our swimming, we simply relaxed in this beaut environment for a while.  Then we returned to our cabin after a great day in the north of Nitmiluk National Park.  In fact, this was as far north as we will venture on this trip:  Darwin, Kakadu and Litchfield await a later trip.  Then it was dinner and an early night ready to start heading south tomorrow. 

Trip Update

We have finally left Western Australia after spending just over five weeks experiencing some of what this State has to offer visitors.  What a fabulous time we had:  given some of our experiences, it is difficult to find new superlatives to describe our adventure.  Swimming with the whale sharks;  travelling to the Mitchell Falls and the Bungle Bungles;  going through the two horizontal falls;  enjoying two helicopter flights;  viewing the Cockburn Range;  seeing the five rivers from the Wyndham lookout;  drinking mango smoothies at Shady Lane café:  these are just some of the activities we have done during our time in WA.  What fun and what an adventure! 

Now that we are in Northern Territory, our adventure continues as we travel east across Australia.  So, keep reading and enjoying our story…

This leg of our adventure also was significant for another reason:  we have travelled just over 10,000 km since we left Canberra in mid-June.  Wow!  This distance does not include the 3,600 km we travelled through the Kimberleys with our Outback Spirit tour.  So, Chaunticleer is chalking up some impressive performance during our trip together.

 

Kununurra

Broome – Kununurra:  2-3 August [492 km to Fitzroy Crossing;  657 km to Kununurra]

[Note:  Our journey to Fitzroy Crossing included driving 92 km into Derby and return to the Great Northern Highway]

We got away from Broome by 8.00 on a very warm morning.  We reached the mighty Fitzroy River and the Willare roadhouse in good time and, after morning tea, we drove into Derby to have a bit of a look (as we didn’t get the opportunity during our tour two weeks previously).  Derby has some very long streets and its main street has a line of boabs and gums down the middle:  it is a very impressive streetscape.  Chaunticleer wanted to meet some boabs as well so we arranged that at Willare!

 

We enjoyed reliving our Outback Spirit route and, in particular, seeing the boabs gradually appear as we drove north.  They are such fascinating trees – they never fail to intrigue us with their various shapes and the fact that a small number have leaves while most are bereft of leaves.  We also turned the corner onto the Gibb River road so that we could say that we actually ‘drove the Gibb’ and in a car that was not 4WD!  Whoopee!

We arrived in Fitzroy Crossing by early afternoon:  just before reaching town, we passed the road leading off to Tunnel Creek and Windjana Gorge National Parks – bringing back memories of our tour a week previously.  We booked into the Fitzroy River Lodge (which is right alongside the Fitzroy River – and some hundreds of kilometres from where we’d seen the river at Willare that morning), enjoyed a refreshing swim, had an excellent dinner in the restaurant and prepared for our long day through to Kununurra.

After a great sleep, we were on the road just after 7.00 am.  Today would be a long and sometimes tedious journey but that is the nature of this country.  In the event, we had a smooth run and arrived in Halls Creek for morning tea:  much of the country is very flat as, to the south, there is the Great Sandy Desert and the Tanami Desert.  Indeed, just outside Halls Creek, we passed the turn off to the iconic Tanami ‘Road’.

From Halls Creek, we started to drive through increasingly hilly country as we encountered small mountain ranges.  It was interesting with the contrast in driving – with hills and corners coming thick and fast.  Just before we stopped for lunch at Warmun (or Turkey Creek), we passed the track into Purnululu National Park and the Bungle Bungles.  Again, we were reminded of our tour trip along this very rough track a week or so previously.

As an aside:  we recalled that, when Ken and Marlene drove this highway in 2011, they encountered some washed out sections where their car bottomed.  At that time, the road was suffering after the incredible wet season of 2010-11.  The good news now is that the road is fully repaired and, in a number of places, improved.  So, when you drive it again, Ken and Marlene, it will be in much better condition!

We did enjoy seeing lots of boabs as well as many patches of the bright yellow kapok bush in full flower.  Nearer to Kununurra, there was some water in the water courses – such as with the Durham River:  what a lovely sight.  Then Lake Kununurra came into view and we relaxed in our cabin with the lake right at our door.

Tonight, the caravan park put on a sausage sizzle on the banks of the lake, where a number of caravan dwellers and cabin dwellers came together to eat and talk with each other and share where they had been or where they were about to go.  This was a great idea – and it was enjoyed by many.

Kununurra:  4-5 August

We had a great cabin - right on Lake Kununurra.  The reflections on the Lake in the early morning, before the wind blew up, were tremendous. The sunset across the Lake had some superb colours of blues and pinks.

 

 

 

Our couple of days in Kununurra were spent relaxing, catching up with domestic activities and wandering around the local region.  First up, however, was to go to church at St James on Sunday morning.  We had been looking forward to worshipping with Gary and Nikki Alexander, especially after their recent visit to Canberra to talk about their ministry in Kununurra.  It was great to be with them and their very vibrant congregation (a mix of locals, with lots of children) and visitors.

Later in the afternoon, we spent a lovely couple of hours with Gary, Nikki and Thomas at the Pumphouse restaurant – enjoying the warm afternoon sun and feeding the fish in Lake Kununurra.  We also had a number of visitors in the evenings who were most interested in the insects flying near our lights.

 

Shopping also took up a bit of time:  after all, this is one of the major diamond producing areas in the world.  Sometime later, we had a number of diamonds in our possession, along with various other ‘goodies’.  There are those who would say we had a very productive time;  the good news (at least for Tim) is that we avoided the diamonds with lots of noughts after the first number!

We relaxed during the afternoon, before we enjoyed a barramundi burger dinner – with beaut wild barramundi – put on by the caravan park.  There were lots of people sitting along the edge of the water and we spent a great couple of hours chatting and eating as the sun set over Lake Kununurra.

 

Broome and Horizontal Falls

Broome:  29 July

On Monday morning, we enjoyed breakfast with the people we had met on our Kimberley tour.  Soon, it was time for each of us to go our own way, and we said our farewells.  We were driven to our caravan park, where we retrieved Chaunticleer from his parking spot:  he was covered in a thick layer of red dust after two weeks of sitting quietly but, otherwise, he was in good knick! 

After getting unpacked from our tour, we drove into Chinatown to have a most enjoyable lunch at Shady Lane café.  Then, we were off to check out some pearl shops.  We found some very nice mother of pearl pieces to buy:  the range of pearls and mother of pearl goods is amazing (with prices for pearls going up into the hundreds of thousands of dollars!).

On our way back to our caravan park, we stocked up on food supplies as we prepared for our friends, Norm and Roz, to arrive after their long drive from Karratha.  They had a good run through to Broome and arrived in the late afternoon. 

We drove to where they were staying and then set off for Matso’s Broome Brewery for a lovely al fresco dinner.  We had a beaut time catching up on news from Canberra and on the experiences we had each had on our trips to Broome.

Horizontal Falls:  30 July

As Tuesday dawned to another superb day, our amazing adventure was to continue with our trip to the Horizontal Falls.  We spent the morning sorting things out and getting our blog a bit more up to date:  we are slowly catching up on telling everything about our wonderful trip through the Kimberleys.

In the late morning, we were picked up by the Seaplane Adventures bus and taken to Broome airport.  There was our sea plane waiting to take us north to Talbot Bay.  We had our safety talk, clambered aboard and we were off.  The pilot, Mal, flew low over Willie Creek Pearl Farm and then we climbed as we headed north following the coast to Cape Leveque.  We had glorious views of James Price Point and there were views of the sea making extra-ordinary patterns in the tidal flats.  We were able to see a number of small communities, including Beagle Bay. 

Cape Leveque came into view – with the settlement comprising a number of buildings, the airstrip, the lighthouse and the cliff around the shore.  This is quite a remote place so it is an adventure for people to travel there. 

We then headed east across the mouth of King Sound.  There were large and small islands stretching as far as we could see through the Buccaneer Archipelago, interspersed with small sand atolls and rocky outcrops.  It was a marvellous vista of ocean, islands and incredible colours.

As we neared Talbot Bay, Mal flew us low over a number of islands and steep gorges in this incredible wilderness.  We were fascinated by the maze of waterways, inlets and steep-sloping banks falling away to the blue sea.  Surprisingly, there are so many waterways twisting in every direction that there were reflections in some areas because the sea was so sheltered!  The entire scene was enough to take your breath away.

Then:  there they were – the two slices through the towering cliffs which create the horizontal falls!  As Mal flew low over the cliffs, we could see that the tide was coming in and the water was rushing through the two gaps.  The two falls were an absolutely amazing sight from the air. 

After Mal had given us an incredible view of the horizontal falls, he flew us through the ranges at the head of Talbot Bay and we landed in the sea beside the permanent pontoon.

Our trip so far had exceeded what we had been anticipating – and there was more to come!  The crew on the pontoon gave us a safety talk;  then, while lunch was being prepared, we went to see the feeding of the resident Tawny Nurse sharks plus Bull sharks. 

These sharks cruise around the pontoon continually and the crew have even given them names (there is even one called Tim)!  While they are being fed, we were able to put on snorkels and jump into a shark cage and watch under water as the sharks were being fed.  Of course, not everyone was brave enough to do this – but Tim did our group proud by spending quite some time in the shark cage.

We also caught up with Michael and Barbara from our Kimberley Tour, as they had come to the falls via a bus ride to Cape Leveque and then flying to Talbot Bay.

Lunch was ready:  fresh, wild barramundi lightly grilled on the BBQ with salad!  Barramundi never tasted this good;  it was so delicious that we all had seconds.  Well, absolutely fresh barramundi must be good for you!  No sooner had we finished lunch than we got onto the jet boat to ride through each of the horizontal falls.  The jet boat has very powerful engines and so we were off in a shower of spray. 

Our first sight of the wider fall (the gap in the cliffs is about 20 metres) showed us the difference in height between the water we were on and the water on the other side of the gap:  as the tide was coming in, we were nearly a metre higher. 

The boat in the photo is not ours but it shows how wide the wider gap is.  Engines revved and we were into the gap and through:  the water was a maelstrom of swirling currents and waves as the incoming tide pushed the water through the gap.  How exhilarating! 

Then it was on to the narrower gap (this gap is only about 7.5 metres):  it looked even narrower from our small boat.  As we looked through this seemly ridiculously small gap, we could see that the difference in water heights had increased.  The water was boiling as it was forced through this gap – and we were into the gap with engines revving and our boat bucking seemingly every way at once and then we were through. 

What an incredible experience!  What an adrenalin rush!  One runs out of superlatives in attempting to describe what we were experiencing.  We returned through the small gap against the water flow and, again, there was much bucking as our boat was thrown about.  As if that wasn’t enough, we then went back through the narrow gap two more times!!  We were covered in spray but who cared? 

We had come to one of the geographic marvels of what Australia has to offer and we had had such exhilarating fun!  When we returned to the wider gap, it seemed a bit of a let-down as the effort to get through was seemingly much less.  Of course it wasn’t, as there is still just as much danger with the swirling water and the bucking boat even with the wider gap.

A couple more times through this gap and we were off to Cyclone Creek.  The calmer waters of this water course, with its towering cliffs and dramatic landforms, was quite a contrast to what we had just left.

Back at the pontoon, we boarded our sea plane for our return to Broome.  As we neared Broome, the sun was setting and we had a glorious view of Roebuck Bay and Broome in the golden rays.

We caught up with Peter and Betty from our Kimberley Tour for dinner at the Roey and then it was back to our cabin to relax after a magnificent day in our Kimberley adventure.

Broome:  31 July – 1 August

Our remaining two days in Broome were spent relaxing, shopping and becoming familiar with the town.  We looked at beautiful pearls and mother of pearl shell in numerous shops.  When we needed to have a rest, we went to the Shady Lane café and enjoyed mango smoothies or similar drinks (they are ideal in the warm Broome air!).  The Shady Lane café is in Jimmy Chi Lane and great music from the 1960s is played continually:  it is a beaut place to simply veg out.

One evening, after a great meal of oysters, prawns and lightly grilled fish prepared and cooked by Roz, we went to Sun Pictures again and watched Satellite Boy in the balmy evening warmth.  This time, we took pillows and so we were very comfortable in the sling back canvas deck chairs!  There also was a group of school children from Fitzroy Crossing at this screening of the film, as Cameron Wallaby, who stars in the film with David Gulpilpil, attends their school.  They were thrilled to see their friend in the film.

Our last afternoon was spent on Cable Beach swimming in the warm sea (although there were no waves to be caught).  As we had driven onto the beach along with hundreds of other vehicles, after our swimming, we were able to sit in the sun reading, chatting and watching people fishing. 

As the sun started setting, we set off for the Cable Beach resort, where we sat at the al fresco café to watch the sun sink into the Indian Ocean. Kerryn and Roz enjoyed a cocktail each.  

Then it was off to the Roey for our final dinner with Norm and Roz in Broome before we packed Chaunticleer ready for an early departure next morning. 

Kimberley Tour - 28 July

Broome:  28 July

The final day of our tremendous tour of the Kimberleys was a sightseeing trip around Broome, including Gantheaume Point with Anastasia’s Pool and the mock-up of the dinosaur footprints, Chinatown, the Japanese cemetery and the Pearl Luggers Museum.  Guess who got to hold one of the biggest pearls ever?

Our driver for this trip was Andrew and he was extremely knowledgeable about the history and current situation of Broome.  We saw the models of the dinasour footprints (the real ones were under 8 metres of sea water) and Anastasia's pool.

After lunch we all relaxed.  Some of us caught a wave or two at Cable Beach while others enjoyed the pools at the resort.  Later in the day, we watched the sun set along with a large number of other people.  It is evident that Cable Beach sunsets are quite an institution!

The final activity of our tour was our farewell dinner – where we thanked Paul for his magnificent efforts in taking us for 3,600 km through the Kimberleys on such an unforgettable journey. 

As we reflect on our tour, we realise that we have been on quite an adventure through some of the most remote and difficult to access country in Australia - the Kimberleys in north-west Western Australia.

Kimberley Reflection

As travelling to the Kimberleys was such a long standing ambition and spending time in the Kimberleys was such an integral part of our trip, it is worthwhile making some brief reflections on what our trip through the Kimberleys has involved and what it has meant to us.

 The first aspect that became apparent is that there is not one Kimberley but various ‘Kimberleys’ – there is east Kimberley, there is west Kimberley and there is central Kimberley.  Each of these regions has its own identity and its own character, although there are clearly overlaps in a number of respects.  There is the Shire of Derby West Kimberley, the Shire of Wyndham East Kimberley and, in the more central area, the Shire of Halls Creek.  Of course, one of the main factors is the sheer size of this region and the need to break it up into more manageable administrative areas.

 The vastness of the Kimberleys can only be properly realised by moving around the region.  The road distance from Broome to Kununurra, for example, is 1,067 km.  While this is a good quality sealed road, the locals still don’t refer to travel in terms of distance but in terms of time:  for example, it takes 11 hours to drive this journey.  This approach is appropriate when considering the many unsealed roads:  the 60 km along the extremely rough Port Warrender track take 2 hours and the 50 km into the Bungle Bungles take nearly 2 hours.  When we flew from Broome to the Horizontal Falls in Talbot Bay, it took over an hour – and that only covered a small part of the west Kimberley! 

 It was not until we set off along the Gibb River Road that the extent of the flat savannah and grazing country became apparent.  Rather than the rugged country with mountains and gorges we might have been expecting, much of the Kimberleys is flat or undulating.  Moreover, there are various plateaus – such as the Mitchell Plateau and the Gardner Plateau and travel across the country can involve negotiating ‘jump ups’:  that is, jumping up from one level to the next, often involving quite steep climbs.  Of course, if you ‘jump up’, you inevitably have to ‘jump down’ as well.

 The geology and geography of the Kimberleys are quite fascinating.  The rocks of the region are some of the oldest on earth and the various landforms are amazing as is the way in which erosion and other forces have shaped the landscape.  The consequences of these actions now see many fabulous rivers, gorges, waterfalls and permanent waterholes scattered across the Kimberleys.  The flora is equally interesting, with the extra-ordinary boabs, the kapok bush with its bright yellow flowers, the unique livistonia palms on Mitchell Plateau and the elusive Kimberley rose being a small selection of many plants that are seen across the Kimberleys.

Given all the characteristics of the Kimberleys, it is not surprising that many parts are quite remote.  Some, such as Cape Leveque, the Mitchell Plateau and Kalumburu can be accessed by road – albeit by using at times unformed and irregularly-maintained roads which are very slow and require extremely careful negotiation according to the conditions.  Some parts are only accessible by air or by ship – and, in the wet season, access may be even more restricted with road closures and inclement weather.

 Associated with the issue of remoteness is the question of the quality of some of the roads.  One of the beautiful features of the Kimberleys is the fact that to use road transport requires 4WD in many instances.  In some parts, however, such as at the north-eastern end of the Gibb River Road, work is in progress to upgrade this section of road to enhance access to such areas as El Questro and Emma Gorge. 

This creates a dilemma:  should the roads remain as gravel roads or should they be upgraded?  There are various issues with retaining roads essentially as they are at present, with the many low level crossings of water courses, the road closures in the wet season, some very rough sections and the cost of maintenance – all of which mean that only people who have made the proper preparations can travel through the Kimberleys by road.  Alternatively, should at least some roads be upgraded and even sealed to increase access for more people? 

 In our view, part of the inherent beauty of the Kimberleys is the natural ruggedness of the region.  It is this ruggedness, combined with being so remote, that makes the Kimberleys such a desirable region to visit – and it is these characteristics which should guide how this region is to be managed.  In our view, the principle should not be one of there being ease of access.  Rather, the guiding principle should be that, if people want to visit the Kimberleys, they must make appropriate preparations to do so.  Upgrading and sealing roads will diminish the essential character of the Kimberleys.  Nevertheless, we can see increasing pressure being applied to upgrade roads.  The key question is to achieve the appropriate balance in responding to these pressures.  Of course, there will be times when, despite the best efforts of humans, a good wet season may create havoc on infrastructure throughout the Kimberleys – and there will be little we can do about that!

 If possible, everyone should attempt to visit the Kimberleys.  The variety of the region is astounding, the beauty of the region is magnificent and the influence of indigenous peoples throughout the region is fascinating – reaching back over thousands of years.  It is well worth seeking an understanding of all that the Kimberleys have to offer.  It also will be interesting to see how the Kimberley region continues to develop – with the expansion, for example, of the irrigated area around Kununurra and the development of new mining projects.