Gnylmarung

By the time we had finished in Derby the next day, it was early afternoon. We didn't want to risk going to Gnylmarung in the dark, because the last time we had had to plow through the sand on the last track in, where signage is not so very obvious.

This meant that we took a free camp spot near Willie Creek Pearl Farm. Here we found Neil, someone we had met three years earlier and who has now been on the road for 17 years!

The campsites were filthy and whilst we collected as much rubbish as possible from our own site, still left toilet paper and other unmentionables behind. It still didn't look or smell much better after our cleanup!

This stop enabled us to get to Gnylmarung later that morning.

We needed time to stop for a while, so at Gnylmarung we were directed to the most beautiful campsite overlooking the small bay, right above the beach. We put up the awning and lazed about, enjoying the serenity, sights and sounds withlots of swims in between, for four wonderful nights.

 

Sunset on Gnylmarung beach at low tide.

Unfortunately Delma and Alfonse (the owners) were not here this time, having gone to Broome to celbrate their 39th Wedding Anniversary. We were looked after very well by Grant, who was pleased to welcome back past visitors.

One of the innovations to Gynlmarung included a Satellite phone station. This phone was for everyone to use and allowed you to make fee phone calls to any landline in Australia. This proved to be a godsend as we could ring Mum and Dad in the hospital, right to the patient's phone in Boxhill Hospital.

From this phone we were able to call all members of the family and to find out the results of CT scans and other tests. Dad has advanced stages of Lymphoma, and was much relieved of nearly three litres of fluid from his lungs. He was very resentful of being in hospital, believing that he had been locked up without consent.

We will now try to phone Mum daily to ensure that we are able to get back in a hurry should we need to.

Nigel and Zalea have been amazing, visiting Dad every day and preparing food for Mum. Nigel took Mum back to Healesville one afternoon so that she could get some extra clothes, pay bills and catch up on much needed phone calls! Pricilla and Laurence, particularly 'Cil have assisted in so many ways and been there for Mum all the time. Mum stayed with Cil and Laurence whilst Dad was in hospital. Cil wrote emails detailing the treatment, which was really kind and made sure Mum got enough sleep etc.

On our last afternoon, Grant offered to take us in his boat to catch some fish. He took out into the very deep channel that runs from Middle Lagoon to Beagle Bay. On the way we watched a mother Humpback Whale with her newborn calf and adolescent calf searching the water for small baitfish. We managed to get very close and waited for her to come over to the boat. Unfortunately the shutter on my camera and the lack of telephoto lens meant the photos are very poor, so they're not worth keeping.

Then off we went the what Grant refers to as the killing fields. This where the Spanish Mackerel live, and also Bull Sharks! When you get a fish caught on your lure, you literally have one minute to reel it in! Otherwise the fish is bitten off by the sharks! This sort of fishing was more like the Quick and the dead! Peter caught a huge mackerel, didn't pull it in fast enough, so the mackerel was torn apart by this massive three metre Bull Shark, who then decided to eat the lure himself. Grant grabbed the rod, only to find that the shark had snapped the line, so losing wire trace and lure.

Grant said he would show us what to do. Well he caught three mackerel, but all escaped or were seized by the sharks before we could get them on board. These mackerel are at least one metre long, can swim at 60 klm per hour and weigh a lot, so to catch them is quite a feat!

We returned back to Ngylmarung empty handed but having had a very exciting afternoon.

Catholic Church in Beagle Bay decorated with pearl shells.

 

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Birdswood Downs Station

After Mt Hart there is not much dirt road left so we soon found ourselves in Derby purchasing much needed supplies (nothing left in the way of food at all!)

We chose to spend the night 16 klms out from Derby, WA, at Birdswood Downs Station.

This was where we had word from Cil, Alex and Nigel that Dad was unwell and had been admitted to Boxhill Hospital. The communication from here was difficult with intermittent reception. My phone is behaving really badly again!

Some very kind Germans lent me their phone so I could make contact with 'Cil, to find out what was going on.

Later the ipad worked so we were able to make other necessary calls.

 

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Mt Hart Wilderness Camp

King Leopold Ranges Conservation Park (Woonamur) is situated on the south western edge of the Kimberley Plateau and you have the opportunity to explore and camp in a wilderness environment with stunning waterholes, dramatic escarpments and spectacular waterfalls incluing Bell and Lennard gorges.

The King Leopold Ranges are 560 million years old. It consists of craggy ridges and escarpments that include sedimentary formations of sandstone and granite rock strata, with unusual black riges of loose boulders.

We took the road into Lennard Gorge, with the view to walkng to it. The walk to Lennard gorge was ardous and very hot, I went by myself. It meant a rough walk along a boulder strew creek bed and then a very long and steep climb over a ridge, along the ridge and down the other side.

The host at Mt Hart were wonderful, Julie and Bob. They made us feel like treasured friends. Such a lovely experience. We were treated to a viewing of the old homestead, which reminded us ver mch of the homes in outback Kenya, where whatever was available loacally, was used to build your home. In this case lcal rock created the sitting area overlooking that the Barker River.

At the campsite we were greated by Graham and Kay and again made to feel very welcome. We had the best campsite in the shade roght beside the river, where we could plunge from time to time.

A highlight was to view a Red Backed Fairy Wren on the track back from Annie Pool.

Barker River Pools

Annie Pool

Giant Boab/Fig

 

 

 

 

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Mornington

We love Mornington and chose to spend four nights here, so that we could take the exclusive canoe trip up the Sir John Gorge. Only one canoe is allowed on the gorge per day, so you have the whole place to yourselves.

The first day we spent at Dimond Gorge and then Cadjeput Waterhole, where we swam. Not a soul about so we took the opportunity to skinny dip, as we have in many places. It is nearly the end of the tourist season, so places are emptying fast! There are very few visitors left.

The next day was very slow, we swapped camp sites, closer to water and bbq facility and did a much needed laundry session - all by hand.

We then ventured out to Bluebush Waterhole, to find that the only place easily accessible to swimming had been taken over by a group of young people. So we went back to Cadjeput Waterhole, where a busload of tourists and a group of seven tag-along drivers were enjoying the water. We found another spot some distance away and again enjoyed our swim (this time with bathers!)

The third day was our adventure into Sir John Gorge. We set off with a hamper, prepared by the wilderness camp's restaurant. This day proved to be exhausting!

We had been assured that the walks between each water hole to retrieve the next canoe were on flat rock ridges. This proved to be far from the truth. The signage was almost non existent and the walks were over boulders often taller than me!

Photos can do more justice than my words........

 

We felt quite exhilarated with our accomplishment at the end of the day.

 

 

 

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Mt Elizabeth Station

From Home Valley Station we travelled to Mt Elizabeth Station, dropping in at most of the gorges on the way.

30klms off the Gibb River Road, Mt Elizabeth is not normally frequented by international tourists, so if you chose to camp away from the ablution block, was very quiet and tranquil. The Pretty Wallabies are unafraid and one came to investigate our camp set up.

Mt Elizabeth is a working cattle station, on which they were completing their annual muster by helicopter. Owned by the pioneering Lacy Family, it is welcoming and an enjoyable place to visit.

We discovered that there were a number of tracks on the property that you can take, right into the wilds of the Kimberley and to the Walcot Inlet, on the north west coast. Included in this was a little known gorge called Wunnumurra Gorge. We drove to the gorge, a mere 9klms, which took 1 1/4 hours. The road in was very challenging over rock ledges, ridges and sand. The effort was well worthwhile as we had the most spectacular gorge to ourselves for the whole day! Deep pool below a cascade of water with white beach at the other end of a very long expanse of water.

 

It was quite hairy walking to the gorge as we were reluctant to drive the last kilometer or two to the walking path (another kilometer), due to the extremely steep boulder strewn track, where we feared hitting the differential on loose rock. The walk included scrambling over and down rock faces, with two ladder climbs on unsecured ladders. We thoroughly our well earned swims!

Unfortunately my camera ran out of power so no other photos, had to get the station to recharge battery!

When we returned from our drive out to the gorge, we noticed a Double cab Triton with Travelander camper on the tray. The only trouble was that the tray was at a 20degree angle off horizontal to the cab. It transpired that the chassis had buckled on their drive out on one of the station tracks some 42 klms from the homstead. This required, the station to send a rescue party and their friedns returning with their now empty ute teay to collect the abandoned camper. Then a tow truck was ordered from Kununurra and took eight hours to reach the homestead. Who knows what the insurance will make of this??? The owners of this infortunate Triton were Rob and Joyce Stocker from Albury, who knew Don and Janice very well.

We met some interesting people at dinner that night, when we dined at the homestead. Brian and Jane were two medicos who had worked in and established a hospital in Zambia. They had owned a private practice in Humptydoo in Darwin and wereavid bird watchers. Their friends were called Allen and Pam. All had just returned from Mornington after a bird count.

 

 

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El Questro

On our last trip to the Kimberley, we did not call into El Questro. It was on fire and that was when the cross country marathon runners got very badly burned.

Because of the smoke at that time we were not even aware of the magnificence of the Cockburn Ranges. Having just toured right around this range on the Karanji track, we now knew what an awe inspiring place this is. It meant going back east along the Gibb River Road to be able to visit some of the places of interest.

At El Questro Station, we purchased a Wilderness Park Permit, which all visitors must do, if the want to see any of the gorges or do any of the walks. As Zebedee Thermal Springs closes at noon to allow their "exclusive" guests to lounge in the water, we decided to go there first.

The walk into Zebedee Springs takes you through a Livingstonia Palm forest as well as dry scleraphyl savannah. You wander alongside the creek with its almost blue water, its so pure, until you reach the springs.

 

 

 

To begin with it was very crowded with a Wilderness Tour group ensconsed in the spring. Soon they left and then the springs had very few people. It was heavenly to soak in the 32C water, especially where there was a small waterfall to give you a natural massage.

We had asked at the reception at the station which walks would be the most siitable for Peter, whose knees are really painful and not working properly. She recommended Zebedee Springs and Emma Gorge. So off we headed to the Emma Gorge Resort and nearby gorge.

A couple in a deluxe motorhome asked us if we had done the walk before and warned us of how difficult it was. We headed off, thinking that they had exaggerated somewhat. We had walked about a third of the way, when the track started to become very stony and rocky, with unstable boulders and loose, slippery stones. Peter reluctantly decided to head back.

This proved to be very wise because not much further along, meant scrambling over huge boulders, slippery rock ledges and deep water crossings. The further I progressed, the more difficult became the track. The final leg was very steep up the rocky sides of the ravine. All along the last sections of the track, you got tantilising glimpses of what might be to come. Ferns and mosses grew beside the clear stream.

The last scramble over a massive boulder revealed Emma Gorge in all her glory! A magnificent cathedral like dome with deep clear water pool below, eighty foot waterfall dropping from red cliffs, showers dripping from the carvern roof above, lone cormorant sunning on the rocks and ferns and mosses with small ficus clinging to the walls of the gorge. The water was very cold, but just behind a massive boulder on the eastern edge of the pool and underneath the overhang was a thermal spring. Unfortunately I had left my bathers at the car.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We stayed the night again at Home Valley. There was a group of people on an escorted fishing safari, on the banks of the Pentecost River, when we arrived at the campsite. Whilst we watched, one of the rods bent in half and started to be dragged into the river. The chap, whose rod it was, had gone back to his campsite to get his esky. So the fishing guide grabbed the rod, called for "Bazza to come quick" and manouvered the fish away from any potential snags. We saw this enormous fish jump twice, right out of the water. By the time Bazza arrived it was in the shallows by the shore, so that he could take the credit of catching it, even though a net was held there by the fishing escorts. It turned out to be an 80cm barramundi. It was right on the maximum size that you are allowed to take.

 

 

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Flight to Kalumburu, Mitchell Falls

Shoal air offered a scenic flight called Wandjina Explorer. It departed from Kununurra and tracked along the Ord River with its irrigation farmlands towards the unigue House Roof Hill, where much of the movie 'Australia' was filmed. We continued along the Ord River wetlands and estuary, passing the historic port of Wyndham and the Cambridge Gulf where the five major rivers of the East Kimberley converge. We then followed the Timor Sea coastline, north-west, flying over the Berkeley River and its new award winning resort. Next we detoured to the magestic King George Falls (not running!), orbiting the twin falls. Faraway Bay, another famous resort was next in sight, followed by the Drysdale River and Broome-Dampier Bay. We landed in Kalumburu, WA's most remote indigenous community for a picnic lunch and a tour of the museum at the Catholic Mission, followed by a tour of the WWII aircraft graveyard near the airfield. The flght then continued to the historic Truscott Airfield, our first line of defence in WWII. We then viewed the pearl farms of Vanssittart Bay, before flying over the famous Mitchell River Falls. En route back to Kununurra, we enjoyed the panoramic splendour of the Cockburn Ranges, Home Valley and El Questro Stations.

The flight to Kalumbaru and Mitchell Falls was a sensational way to see the north east coast of the Kimberley (the section we didn't get to see on our One Tide boat/camp cruise in 2011!)

Needless to say it surpassed all expectation with the magnificence of the scenery. And as we flew for much of the way between 1500 and 2000 feet, we saw the area from a bird's perspective, in all its glory.

The photos will perhaps, show more that I can describe!

New Ord River irrigation area, bought by the Chinese for sugar cane!

Ord River - old crossing.

Mud flats leading to the Cambridge Gulf.

East Kimberley coast

Mitchell River and Plateau

Mitchell Falls

Beach near Paspally pearls

Honeymoon Bay

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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