West Kimberley
Water and Dust - Guess What That Makes?

No, Not Mistake After Mistake, It's The Bungle Bungle ...... After stocking up with a few supplies we left Kununurra for our trek into the Bungle Bungle (Purnululu National Park) which is 250 km south of Kununurra or 109 km north of Halls Creek. A very straight highway took us to Turkey Creek where we left the caravan and went into the Bungle Bungle. It is definitely a 4 WD track of 53 kms to the Ranger Station which took us 2 1/2 hours to complete. The track is full of corrugations and a large number of river and creek crossings. The majority of the crossings were relatively easy except for two or three where the water level was deeper, but did not cause us any problems. From the Great Northern Highway turnoff into Bungle Bungle and back to the highway we had to go through 82 water crossings. Takes us back to Cape York.

We arrived at Kurrajong campsite which is one of two camp sites available for camping just before dusk. With a beautiful clear day we set off to walk the chasms and gorges. The Bungle Bungle Range is known for its striking sandstone domes striped with orange and grey bands, which have been carved out over the last 20 million years leaving spectacular gorges and landscapes. The National Park is 209,000 hectares with an adjoining 110,000 hectares as conservation reserve.

Echidna Chasm was a 2 km return walk over pebbles, rocks and a number of larger boulders and as you walked in, it became narrower and narrower, until you could touch each wall. As you looked up you were confronted with 200 metres of sheer cliff face and at the top there was blue sky. The photo to the left is the entrance to Echidna Chasm before it starts to get narrow.

Another interesting walk was Frog Hole. This was a moderate walk of 1.4 km to a small seasonal pool filled with little brown friendly frogs. As we walked into the Froghole, there were a couple lying down gazing up to the sky. It turned out they were from Ballarat and Liz knew Marg from the Ballarat Indoor Tennis competition. It really is a small world.

Cathedral Gorge would have to be the highlight of the Bungle Bungle. It is a fairly easy 3 km return walk which takes you passed some spectacular scenery of the Bungle Bungle. This is where the beehive domes are located. To be amongst these domes was truly amazing and then to walk into this big amphitheater with soaring cliff faces reaching up to the sky made the walk so memorable. This National Park should be classified as one of the Seven Natural Wonders of the World.

Our trek back to the highway was eventful. You must allow enough time to return to the highway before sunset which is just after 5.00 pm, so we set off around 2.30 pm. At the deepest river crossing, we came across a young guy who had had to be towed out of the river and was left high and dry ( we mean wet, very wet). His Suzuki was dead, all his clothes and bedding were wet and the inside of the car still full of water. Fortunately Rob and two other guys travelling behind us managed to get the engine started and on his way. After spending 45 minutes assisting him, we were able to just reach the highway just as it was getting dark.

After one overnight stop at Turkey Creek, we headed towards Halls Creek, an interesting town, with the main street being quite clean and tidy. We stopped here for morning tea before moving onto our next off road stop at Mary River where we camped on the banks of the river. We then moved onto Fitzroy Crossing, and stayed overnight at Fitzroy Crossing River Lodge. We went into the Geike Gorge and walked the gorge. The most interesting spot was the Crossing Hotel, the oldest pub in the Kimberley. We drove into the area and were confronted with up to at least 30 locals outside the pub. We decided to just say hello and wave and continue on our way, returning to watch the local footy match at the town oval. Many of the aboriginals playing in this match wore no shoes but could kick the ball and mark better than most St. Kilda players.

Wow, The Tides Are Big ..... The next drive of 260 kms brought us to Derby situated on King Sound and the northern most town in Western Australia. It is also the western gateway to the Gibb River Road and Buccaneer Archipelago. The main attraction here are the huge tides. There is a difference of 11 metres between low tide and high tide while we were there. We saw the beautiful sunset and on this particular night met two very interesting aboriginals who were fishing for mudcrabs off the pier. By coincidence, the man grew up in Ballarat and attended our children's primary and secondary schools. He had returned to Arnhem Land to be with his people and we were invited to visit them at any time and meet their people, so names and addresses were exchanged.

The Infamous Gibb River Road.... After stocking up with food and storing the caravan we hit the Gibb River Road and headed for Windjana Gorge. The camping ground here was quite good with flushing toilets and cold showers. Liz tackled the cold showers but definitely before sunset as it cooled down considerably once the sun disappeared for the day. Rob used the "wimpy" shower (named by the ranger). This was the solar shower hung from the nearest tree. This gorge is 3.5 km long and opens up onto a wide sandy beach with towering coloured ancient cliffs. Here we were able to see a number of fresh water crocodiles just lazing themselves on the sand and on the rocks in the pools. There are supposed to be over 70 of them in the gorge and it is amazing how close to them you can actually get before they scuttle of into the water. The photo is taken from the camp ground with the Devonian Reef of the Napier Range in the background.

From Windjana we took a day trip to Tunnel Creek approximately 40 kms down the road. This was a fascinating place. First of all you had to clamber over some quite large boulders to reach the entrance to the tunnel which runs for 750 metres before reaching daylight at the end. You need a very good torch and sandshoes or sandals, and bathers as the water in parts of the tunnel reaches your hips depending on your height. We commenced the walk and waded through the darkness treading carefully as we went and found that there was no one else in the tunnel. This gave Liz the feeling of being in an Indiana Jones movie minus the snakes. Half way along it opens up and the light shines down, then again you are plunged into darkness until you reach the end. The way back seemed much easier as there were more people with torches lighting the way.

This Region is Just Gorge-Us...... After two nights at Windjana Gorge we moved onto Dog Chain Creek, a very small off road camp site which we shared with Shane and Julie from Port Lincoln and Graham and his beautiful german shepherd dog called Delta, who we got to know very well over the next few days. Before the day was through we drove the 7 km into Lennard River Gorge. The road in is definitely a 4 WD track with the last 1 1/2 kms very rough indeed, but it was well worth it. This gorge is absolutely spectacular. From the top you look down into the gorge with a 100 metre drop to the waterfalls pool and the river that flows through the narrow gorge. We managed to climb down to a sandy beach and we could then rock hop across to be at the top of the waterfalls. There was so much water flowing that it made a great sight. We had a beautiful swim in the very bracing but refreshing water and watched the water monitors basking on the rocks in the sun.

It was then onto Adcock Gorge, a smaller gorge with a waterfall and very popular with the tourists. This was mainly due to the track in being so much easier. Galvans Gorge was another smaller gorge - less tourists and therefore a beautiful place to have a peaceful swim up to the waterfall where you could sit under the actual waterfall and let the water, which had been warmed by the rocks, splash over you.

Unfortunately Bell Gorge was not open. The big wet season has caused a delay in the opening of roads in the Kimberley and at the moment there is talk of Bell Gorge not being opened for the season. This was a pity as we were looking forward to spending a few days there. It was then onto Mount Barnett Roadhouse and into Manning Gorge.

Here we set up camp for a few days in the camp ground. There are only pit toilets and no showers so it was either swim in the gorge or indulge yourself in a solar shower strung up in a tree. Manning Gorge is another fantastic gorge approximately a 1 1/2 hour walk from the camp ground. To reach it means either swimming across the Lower Manning Gorge which is about 50 metres (nothing compared to the 500 metre swim at Twin Falls in Kakadu) or wading through water and rock hopping further downstream. Our party (with Delta in tow) opted to wade through as the guys had camera equipment. The walk was defined by empty cans hanging off trees and rock cairns and a few arrows. We eventually reach the Upper Manning Gorge and were confronted by this very wide waterfall that fell into a huge swimming pool and then flowed down into the river. Again, we swam to the rocky edge of the waterfall and soaked up the atmosphere. We stayed here for lunch and returned later in the afternoon. Delta led the way home and she was amazing. She knew her way back without one mistake being made. This made the trip home much faster.

The next day saw our new found friends go their different ways. We headed for Mt. Elizabeth Station where we hoped to do some horse riding and cattle mustering, but again, due to the wet season, everything has been set back and these options were not available. Instead, we took a 130 minute scenic flight over the Mitchell Falls, Mitchell Plateau, Kings Cascade, the Prince Regent River area, and the Prince Frederick Harbour. It was good to see some of this area, especially the Mitchell Falls (photo to left) as we had intended to travel the Kalumburu Road, but again, the road is closed and it will be quite some time before it is opened again. There is a large volume of water flowing in the river system throughout this area.

Our last stop before heading back to Derby had to be Lennard River Gorge, just to see it one more time. So we again tackled the road in and spent the morning there. It was then one more camp stop and then back to Derby. We managed to catch up with our Ballarat friends, Judy and Gary and as they had travelled to Broome and Cape Leveque, we were able to exchange stories and information. Judy and Gary were heading off on the Gibb River Road back to Kununurra.

The highlight of this section:

This is a tough decision as the last three weeks have all been a highlight of our trip so far but if we have to make a decision then it is the Bungle Bungle. A real 4 WD adventure to get into the National Park and fantastic natural wonders that have to be seen to be believed.

Until our next update.

Regards, Rob & Liz

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