The Kimberlys

After an epic couple of weeks with the Mays in the NT Top End, the time had come to continue on west, and into the much fabled Kimberly Region of Australia.

Stop 1, and exactly what the doctor ordered having been partying it up with our guests, was the ever so tranquil Lake Argyle, a place where ‘watching the sun set’ lists as one of the main activities for the day.

A picture perfect setting, with the only disturbance to the ambience being my own offspring:

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We did make one small expedition away from to pool. This 4WD track was pretty hectic and offered up an amazing reward to anyone who made it to the end.

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And the gorge by the campsite was an excellent spot for an evening dip.

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But, lest we set down roots and never move again, we needed to be off. Back in Sydney, we had thought we would attempt the infamous Gibb River Road, some 650km of rough corrugated road starting near the WA border and making its way to the West coast. But up close the decision was just to stick our nose in at each end and not attempt the full thing.

El Questro is the gateway point to the Gibb. We absolutely loved it and found so many cool things to do.

Just the drive in was an adventure:

To get us in the mood, first up was the sunset gorge cruises complete with Champagne and fish feeding. Archer fish are so cool. Hold a small pellet of food over the side and the fish take a mouthful of water and with pinpoint accuracy spit at the pellet and knock it from your hand. Forget to hold out any food and the’ll hit you in the face or champagne glass, a not so subtle reminder to get back to the job of fish feeding.

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Each evening there was a different 4WD track to drive up and watch the sun set from some vista or other.

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Next day it was time for ‘the big one’, much fabled and spoken of in hushed tones: the Deep Water Crossing.

Luckily we’d watch all the appropriate YouTube ‘how to’ guides on watercrossings and new that first we had to send someone out to survey the depth. We nominated Daniel for this task.

When this measuring stick proved insufficient, it was time for Dad to go in.

James’ inside thigh measurement being 850mm, and being unaware that the Land Cruisers max wading depth was 700mm, we ploughed in…and popped out the other side.

El Questro Gorge. Grade 5 walk, allow 3hrs. Sounds like the perfect outing for the family.

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Yikes, that was epic. Stunning scenery, beautiful waterfall and swimming hole, and full credit to everyone and in particular Daniel, for whom even the smallest rock obstacles were bigger than he was.

Having conquered El Questro Gorge, we felt the next spot should be a nice swim less than 100m walk from the car park. Worked out pretty well…

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Day 2, we decided to leave the van and do a little sortie further down the Gibb to see what the next place was like. We ended up staying for sunset, dinner and then drove home in the dark.

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That’s as far as we went on the East Gibb. Will have another go at it from the Western end later, but for now it was Emma Gorge on the way out and then back on the tarmac.

We got to the first swimming hole of Emma Gorge, and in the excitement of getting our swimmers out of the bag, and apple popped out and bounced into the water. Immediately, from the far side a crocodile emerged and swam right over to inspect. But we need our swim, and so it was that everyone had to share.

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The top of Emma Gorge might be one of my favourite swimming spots so far. The waterfall, not really flowing, has carved out a massive amphitheater and a beautiful lake with fern covered sheer cliff faces on three sides. And getting a bit cold? There’s a solution for that. Right in the corner there’s a small waterfall from a hot spring, and you can dam off the corner to make a small bath. Genius!

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Right. Only stuck our nose into the East Gibb, and it was brilliant. But for us it’s back out and down to the Bungle Bungles.

Before we stopped off at the main attraction, we had an appointment at 11am at Echnida Gorge where, we’re told, at that time sharp, a few stray sunbeams would find their way into this very narrow and deep gorge which, when combined with the oxidised iron in the gorge walls, created some interesting lighting effects.

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This was cool, but time for the main attraction. The Bungle Bungles them selves.

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These things are beautiful, and seem well deserved of their World Heritage listing. Next we wandered into their interior to find the spectacular Cathedral Gorge, a colossal half cave carved from the stone by a wet season waterfall. Inside it was blessedly cool and peaceful.

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Onwards. Now time to check out the other end of the Gibb River Road. What would you think of a brochure that boasts “underground tunnel”, “pitch dark”, “wading in murky water” and….CROCODILES all mixed into the one attraction. Tunnel Creek purported to be the place that would offer all this.

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Wow – that was cool! Again, 35Deg outside but the perfect temperature inside and a great way to escape the heat of the day.

That night at Windjana was magical, so far from anywhere under those amazing outback skies. Great opportunity to try our luck at some night photography. These specimens are the result of a 60s shutter open time combined with me pointing a flashlight at my subject for 1s at some point during the exposure.

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And with that we were pretty much done for an amazing trip through the Kimberly region. Just one last gorge to swim, in Bells Gorge…

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…And it was time to roll out.

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And that marks a major milestone for us with the East coast and top end of Australia behind us in a journey of 100 action packed days and nights since we rolled out of Sydney.

And as we roll into Broome, it signifies the beginning of the next phase of the adventure: Hello the WA coastline.

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