West Australia

Gibb River Road – Part 6 (South again to Drysdale and back to the Gibb)

Posted on July 15, 2015 by John Sear

The road back south was uneventful but painful as we had to relive the corrugations between King Edward River and Drysdale station. The Mitsubishi Pajero was feeling it too, as the windscreen cracks spread towards my view, and then the dashboard started playing up. First the speedometer stopped working, then the fuel economy gauge started climbing every minute until it hit 99.9l per 100km. Amanda was stressing that we wouldn’t have enough fuel to make Drysdale but unless we were leaking (a quick check discounted that) the other readings of range and the fact the fuel tank gauge was ok, led me to think it was an electronic problem (loose wire with the corrugations?). When the engine warning light came on I had to pull over and look it up in the manual. “Blah blah …. you should still be able to drive for a while. Get it checked up as soon as you can” sounded good to me as the Pajero was still running fine. Then the odometer stopped working!
I wasn’t prepared to drive beyond Drysdale after a long day’s drive and the bar was beckoning (yes there was a bar there with Sydney prices).

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The next morning a cattle egret came looking for frogs in our washing tub at breakfast. No matter how patiently it stood on the rim peering through the soapy bubbles the frogs didn’t show and it moved on after fifteen or more minutes. I was hoping it might have helped the washing up but without opposable fingers it would have been hard. A quick look at the other campsite, called Miners Pool was much more tranquil and less crowded by the river, but without the facilities 2km back at the station.
Back on the GRR we had a look at some rock art with crocodiles then headed north and east again. Lots of finches, rainbow bee-eater, and other birds were here in and amongst the pandanus and other trees that line the riverbanks.
We drove on past more carnage on the road starting with a boat trailer that had collapsed. Its owner patiently sat in his car awaiting the recovery truck. On the unsealed roads they charge by the hour and a car that had broken in half near Kalumburu had cost over $5,000 to tow to Kununurra for repairs. Then we saw Marty with a flat tyre. We pulled over to assist, though he had it all under control and he was soon off again. As we helped the recovered boat and trailer passed us on the back of the recovery truck. Five minutes further down the road he had stopped to pick up two people who had taken a corner too fast and ended up hitting a tree. They took their belongings and rather glumly climbed into the cabin of the truck.
The Gibb River Road, like any other unsealed road needs to be driven carefully, with tyres sufficiently deflated for better grip on the rough surface, and watching your speed as loose gravel on some of the corners are like marbles allowing little traction in places. “Drive to the conditions” is the best advice we continually heard to avoid mishaps.
Late in the afternoon we drove into Home Valley Station on the Pentecost River. The drive down the hill to the station turn-off commands spectacular views of the Cockburn Ranges and at sunset the colours on the cliffs turn many shades of red.

Categories: 4WD, Adventure, australia, Australian Outback, Big Lap, Discover Australia, Explore Australia, Journey Narrative, Kids Travel, Mitsubishi, Photography, Photos, Travel, Travel Adventure, West Australia | Tags: , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Gibb River Road – Part 5 (Mitchell Plateau to Kalumburu)

Posted on July 12, 2015 by John Sear

On our return from the Mitchell Plateau we took a 20km detour to see Surveyors Pool. Again the road was slow and rocky but we were the only ones there and a short flat walk took us along a creek to the falls to Surveyors Pool below. Whilst looking very inviting we had been warned about saltwater crocodiles being present so just enjoyed the views. Pools above the falls were supposed to be safe but there wasn’t much water anywhere except in the creek down and I had already seen a crocodile in there. The return trip suggested they were freshwater ones but we weren’t that desperate for a swim.

Fish at last
Boab and eagle nest, Honeymoon Bay
Marty’s boat
Brolga dance
Surveyors pool
Brolga dance
Crossing King Edward River
The rescue team
Tasselled figures
Our first flat

Another crossing of the King Edward river, then a left turn onto Kalumburu road headed us north to Kalumburu itself. The road was quite acceptable for the next 80-100km, notwithstanding the occasional dip or floodway that causes you to brake sharply to avoid testing the suspension to its limits. On one stretch we were entertained by a pair of Brolgas performing a dance for us only ten metres from the roadside. So mesmerised by one another they didn’t seem to notice the car and trailer screech to a halt, the massive cloud of dust that followed, nor me jumping out of the car clutching a camera and proceeding to enter the grass near the performance. Finally they did notice and very calmly beat a slow retreat into the grassland where we left them in peace.
Then we had our first major casualty as the trailer drifted on a corner hitting a rock and giving us our first flat. As I was remembering how to change the trailer spare (squirrelled cleverly under the trailer) a posse of young guys on a fishing trip, in 5 cars, pulled over and proceeded to take over. What probably would have taken me an hour was completed in fifteen minutes and we were all on our way again. Thanks guys, we hope you caught lots of fish up there for the good karma.

Most of Kalumburu was closed as we arrived late on a Sunday afternoon so we didn’t have a chance to stop and explore but a couple of lads showed us the way to Honeymoon Bay. We got there to find Crystal and Marty had arrived shortly prior and Hannah quickly resumed her dog-minding duties with their dog Zoe.
And with the next rising of the sun the mighty Marty punt was launched skippered by Captain Marty and his crew were Oscar and I clutching our tackle box, rods and bait bucket. Early signs were not favourable with no action but as our intrepid skipper “sailed” further towards the point things heated up. Oscar was catching batfish the size of dinner plates and Marty was straight into a sweetlips. We could see fish all around following our lures and bait in, so it was time to bring out the “desert island jig”, so named because if you were only allowed one lure to take to a desert island this white feathery one would be the one. I had bought this after seeing what people caught with it in Broome.
Bingo! Almost first cast I caught my first Queenfish and quite a respectable eating size too. Crumbed fish pieces that night were divine.
Day 2 on the mighty Marty punt yielded similar results though we did have a couple of break-offs and we saw a couple of large spanish mackerel cruising around too, though couldn’t hook them. Happy fishermen all round as we had at last started to catch some decent sized fish.
We could have stayed longer and missed a few things but finally we had to leave Honeymoon Bay and head south again, leaving the big boab tree, with eagle nest in its branches, overlooking the bay.

Categories: australia, Australian Outback, Camper Trailer, Discover Australia, Explore Australia, Fishing, Journey Narrative, Kids Travel, Offroad, West Australia | Tags: , , , , | Leave a comment

Gibb River Road – Part 4 (King Edward River and Mitchell Falls)

Posted on July 8, 2015 by John Sear

Beyond Mt Barnet we turned off the Gibb River Road, heading up the Kalumburu Road, stopping briefly at Drysdale Station for fuel. We bumped into Simon and Hilary (110 Around Oz) there for a quick catch-up as they were heading back down and soon enough we were into the worst corrugation we have encountered yet. It took over two hours of bone-juddering driving to the turn off to the Mitchell Plateau, and this section of road overtook the Steep Point road as worst road ever. One forlorn figure, about an hour north from Drysdale sat next to a trailer with a broken chassis waiting for a recovery truck. We couldn’t help and pressed on with the dashboard shaking so much the windscreen wipers and indicator lights were randomly coming on.

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The campsite on the King Edward river was just beyond a shallow rocky water crossing an it was an oasis at the end of an arduous day’s driving. The kids were straight in the river, a stone’s throw from a very spacious lightly wooded campsite.
We spent the next day exploring two fabulous cultural sites with some spectacular artwork at Munurru. The two sites are approx. 5km apart and known as the Warnmarri and Wandjina complexes. Both have extensive examples of rock art, easily accessible on rock faces on overhangs, under ledges or in caves. Both sites are rocky outcrops sitting in lightly wooded but very grassy landscape and following the paths around the rock makes it all easy to find. There are eight different styles of rock art in the Kimberley region but I was particularly looking forward to seeing the Tasselled figures, which as well as being one of the oldest styles also is very rich in detail.
At the Wandjina complex we found echidnas, possums, turtles, and even thylacine peering out from their hiding places on the walls. There were human figures too and an interesting hand stencil with only four fingers. The highlights of the Wandjina site though were a relief of the owl-Wandjina, figures wearing headdresses, and the water-bringing deities peering out from a whitewashed wall, mouthless heads clustered together with large dark eyes.
The Warnmarri complex had a huge relief in one cave of two colourful brolgas, positioned head to head. Many tasselled figures danced around on a number of the rocks and a secondary burial site here added further interest. The caves that the people used to inhabit were low but would have been cool and dry, and nowadays are only occupied by kangaroos and wallabies hiding from the midday heat.
The trip to Mitchell Falls was slow due to the road conditions, which incidentally were much better than expected due to the fact the grader had been through a week prior. It still meant a 2 hour drive to cover the 80km safely up the Mitchell Plateau through the recently burnt palm forests.
We all walked out to the Mitchell Falls, declining the opportunity to return by helicopter. Little Merten and Big Merten Falls provide convenient stopping points to jump into the water and cool off on what was a 32 degree day. Both also offer further opportunities to see more rock art. At Little Merten there were a couple of sites, including a wall frieze of ancient animals and objects, sitting behind the waterfall in the shade. Just before Big Merten Falls another wall above the river appears to depict a battle, amongst other things, in incredible detail, again thousands of years old. It is quite astounding to think how the artwork has been produced that can endure such long periods of time when exposed to the ravages of nature that are particularly harsh in this area between torrential downfall in the wet season, to draining relentless heat of the dry season.
Big Merten Falls are a precipitous drop next to the footpath, plunging almost 100m into the gorge below and getting close to peer over the edge demands control of any wobbly knees.
Due to the fact the “Wet” was not so wet, we found we could cross the Mitchell Falls at the top, wading through the feeder pools, reducing the overall distance we needed to walk. The best views were offered from a vantage point on the cliffs on the other side, where the falls into each pool could be marvelled at.
The second pool is a sacred site where no-one is allowed to swim, but without ropes it would be a challenge to get there anyway and below that the waters are infested with saltwater crocodiles, so we were content to stick to the easily accessible water holes without crocs.

Categories: Adventure, australia, Australian Outback, Big Lap, Discover Australia, Explore Australia, Journey Narrative, Kids Travel, National Park, Natural World, Offroad, Photography, Photos, Travel, Travel Adventure, West Australia | Tags: , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Gibb River Road – Part 3 (Galvans Gorge, Mt Barnet, and Manning Gorge)

Posted on July 7, 2015 by John Sear

Our first fuel stop was Mount Barnet and we chose to stay a few nights here. Shortly before we arrived there though there was a small detour to take to visit Galvans Gorge. More like an oasis, water was pouring, rather than cascading, down a boab-crested cliff face into a grass-lined swimming hole. To one side a tree trunk leaned out invitingly for the kids and a couple of ropes dangling from the branches lured anyone with any sense of adventure. The pool was over 4m deep, possibly more, and though it was early, it was irresistible. In we plunged. First we jumped off the rocks then we graduated to the rope swings but we all had a blast. To one side of the cliff we found an interesting piece of Gwion art, an owl-like figure looking very feathery, with a couple of serpents to the right of its shoulder. Already we were recognising a few people travelling the same way and we shared a campfire with Marty and Crystal (travelling in an unmistakeable red and white Landcruiser troop carrier). Marty had been on the same boat watching whalesharks in Exmouth!

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Camping next to the river, the gorge was accessible by a punt attached by rope to a pulley. With a sandy beach and clear water, and pandanus tree-lined riverbanks this was very attractive to the kids who spent hours swimming and ferrying walkers to and fro across the river. Once across the river the walk was approximately 2km of undulating terrain, with some rock hopping toward the gorge end. Some rock art greeted you as you entered the base of the gorge, though many walk past without noticing the faded shapes on the cliff walls. The falls were big here too, falling directly into a very deep pool that offers multiple rock entry points catering to all, from water level up to maybe10m or more in height. Under the waterfall, a couple of metres up the rock we found a brown tree snake curled up in a crevice that looked to have no exit other than down to the water. The second time we visited the gorge Oscar and I took inner tubes a pump, basic fishing gear and our lunch, with the intention of travelling the hard way down the gorge i.e via the water. We ate our lunch at the falls, inflated the tubes and once I convinced him there were no saltwater crocodiles we set off. With a considerable distance to go and not as much current as I had hoped we had to stop periodically to warm up in the sun, and we used this opportunity to fish in some of the deeper pools. Oscar was landing a few good sized black bream before I could even explore the cliffs behind. It took us half a day to get out but it was an excellent adventure for the both of us. On the second day the station were restricting fuel to 50 litres per customer due to a delayed fuel tanker, and this dropped to 25 litres by the time I arrived to get some. Despite assurance the tanker would arrive the next day we opted to stay another night and enjoyed the riverbank one more time.
As we left the next day we took the opportunity to visit Mt Barnet Gorge nearby, a much quieter spot to camp and another gorge to swim in.

Categories: Adventure, australia, Australian Outback, Big Lap, Discover Australia, Explore Australia, Journey Narrative, Kids Travel, Natural World, Photography, Photos, Travel, Travel Adventure, West Australia | Tags: , , , , | 1 Comment

Gibb River Road – Part 1 (Windjana Gorge and Tunnel Creek)

Posted on July 7, 2015 by John Sear

Finally, with supplies stocked to the gunnels, Gerry cans all full, we set forth from Broome to conquer the Gibb River Road. At least that’s what it felt like given we had prepared for 3-4 weeks away from shops and very few fuel and water stops.
The Gibb River road, heading north from Broome, commences just before you enter the town of Derby, and barely two hundred metres before the turnoff was our first scheduled stop to see the Boab Prison Tree.
At the same location is a historic cattle trough fed from artesian water sources, long enough to water several hundred cattle at once.

Tunnel Creek Rock Art
Windjana Crocodiles
Tunnel Creek Rock Art
Windjana Gorge
Lillimooloora police station ruins
Freshwater crocodile at Winjana Gorge
Rock Art at Tunnel Creek
Crocs at night in Windjana Gorge
Tunnel Creek
Tunnel Creek

Turning into the Gibb River Road (GRR) the excitement levels increased, particularly as the road was primarily bitumen to our first camp at Windjana Gorge. My illusion of the GRR being a remote and isolated experience was shattered immediately as we drove around the camp looking for a site. It was busy and this was early in the season, and with a few exceptions the next few weeks didn’t change. From the Britz and Apollo hire cars and vans, through to the mainstream 4WD vehicles, everyone seemed to be coming through. There was even a Barina!

Windjana gorge is home to a population of approximately 150 freshwater crocodiles, so we were all keen to get our first croc sighting. A very easy walk takes you past cliffs of Devonian limestone encrusted with the fossilised remains of ancient animals, then through shaded forest for a couple of kilometres up the gorge. The crocs were there sitting on the beaches, not overly perturbed by our presence, and the sheer narrow gorge was breathtaking. Hannah even found what the ranger believed was a croc tooth on one of the pebbly river beaches there. A night excursion to the riverbank with a powerful torch revealed up to 100 pairs of eyes in one count on a short stretch of the Lennard River.

Tunnel Creek is a short drive from Windjana, a few hundred metres long, that can be traversed with the aid of a good torch, involves a little rock scrambling and a few shallow wades. It too has a population of about 6 freshwater crocodiles and we caught a couple of glimpses in the deep pools, but they sink into the murky depths as you approach. There is rock art at both ends if you know where to look and this was our first chance to see close up artwork, some of which has been there for thousands of years.

The story of Jandamarra is one that closely links the two sites together. As a youngster he was nicknamed “Pigeon” by his boss, and became a top horseman, shearer and a crack shot with a rifle. Working at Lillimooloora station he became good friends with a white man called Richardson. When the station later went bankrupt, Richardson joined the police force and took Jandamarra with him as a tracker. The two of them ended up tracking down Jandamarra’s own Bunuba tribesmen after they had resisted incursions by new settlers. Having captured most of the elders who had initiated him as a youngster Richardson chained them together for seven days, ready to collect a reward. After much pressure from the elders Jandamarra killed his partner, released the Bunuba elders and fled. Seriously injured in a battle in Windjana Gorge a week later he fled, taking refuge in Tunnel Creek for some years. On 1st April 1897 he was shot dead by another aboriginal tracker near the entrance to Tunnel Creek, by which time most of the Bunuba had been eradicated in the area by settlers. In Tunnel Creek there is an image of a pigeon etched into one of the cliff walls, for those who look close enough, a little reminder of the struggles that the indigenous people have suffered over the years.
What an interesting and fascinating start to our Gibb River Road adventure.

Categories: Adventure, Animal Action, australia, Australian Outback, Big Lap, Discover Australia, Explore Australia, Journey Narrative, Kids Travel, National Park, Photography, Photos, Travel, Travel Adventure, West Australia | Tags: , , , , , | 1 Comment

Gibb River Road – Part 2 (Bells Gorge)

Posted on July 6, 2015 by John Sear

Our second stop on the itinerary was Silent Grove. The spring that flows along the back of the camp proved to be a great birdwatching spot with many avian visitors coming to drink from the spring, or feed from the surrounding trees many of whom were in flower. Friarbirds and honeyeaters were in abundance, as were double-barred, long-tailed and crimson finches. We found a Stimpson’s Python one evening and others saw a resident Olive python on the other side of the campground.

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Ten kilometres further down a very corrugated road from the campsite lies Bells Gorge. This is a very popular stopping point for many on the GRR due to the picturesque falls to a pool that is large, deep and a great swimming hole. For those not inclined to climb down the rocky path a shallow pool at the top of the falls offers an infinity pool alternative.
On our first trip the one of the small cracks in the windscreen spread rapidly to the base of the windscreen whilst another edged a couple of centimetres towards the driver’s side. We made a couple of trips to the gorge over two days and spent a substantial time in the water and exploring further down to gorge to the bigger waterfall downstream.
Even though the wet season only yielded approx. 60cm this year instead of an average 200cm, the falls were still an impressive sight making this one of the favourites on the GRR.

Categories: 4WD, Adventure, australia, Australian Outback, Big Lap, Discover Australia, Explore Australia, Journey Narrative, Kids Travel, Natural World, Offroad, Photography, Travel, Travel Adventure, West Australia | 2 Comments

Back in Broome

Posted on June 30, 2015 by John Sear

With a full moon imminent, on our return to Broome, we decided to stay a few days to witness the “Staircase to the moon”. Only a handful of times each year, the moon rising at dusk over a low tide in Roebuck Bay, and the light reflected across the sand flats creates the effect that gives rise to the name. Amanda was equally excited to see that there were markets at the same event. Once again expectations had been set high and fortunately this evening they were exceeded. As the moon rose hordes of photographers were in their element for 20-30 minutes, then an explosion of music erupted from the market area.

Cable Beach Polo
Wasamba drummers
Frill Necked Lizard
Dinosaur print
Wasamba
Gantheaume Point
Staircase to the moon
Actually it was a crocodile!
Staircase to the moon

A carnival style band called Wasamba then entertained the audience to a high octane energetic performance of dance and drumming, with colourful costumes lit up with lights. The kids went wild, loving the rhythm, and the crowd loved every minute, so much that everyone left the evening with a feeling of elation, still tapping their imaginary drumsticks.

Also whilst in Broome for a couple of days the tides were just low enough to visit Gantheaume Point to look for dinosaur footprints. When the tide drops below 2.1m for a very short timeframe, history some hundreds of million years old is revealed. Well actually we had to look quite hard as no-one there knew where to look or what to look for. Finally with 15 minutes before the tide was due to turn the footsteps of ancient dinosaurs were exposed on the rock platform, with some still submerged. The kids were more interested in looking for fishing tackle amongst the rocks, and were quite successful at it too.

Another event in full flight during our stay was the Cable Beach Polo event. As I walked onto the beach I noticed a “Beach closed” sign due to sharks. Ironically, a saltwater crocodile had been spotted swimming off the beach but to avoid unwanted negative press while the even was on Sharks seemed to provide an acceptable deterrent to stop people swimming. On such a hot day on the beach the horses were doing it tough but the crowds seemed to enjoy the spectacle and the loud commentary by someone who didn’t appear to know much about the sport.

Meanwhile the famous trains of camels rode to and fro up the beach in the background.

Then we met our first Frill-necked lizard, strutting around the park like he owned it.

It was a very relaxing few days and we didn’t see a lot of what there was to offer in Broome but re-fueled and re-stocked, with the kids having almost completed their schoolwork, it was time to hit the road again, the Gibb River Road.

Categories: Adventure, australia, Australian Outback, Big Lap, Discover Australia, Explore Australia, Journey Narrative, Kids Travel, Natural World, Photography, Photos, Travel, Travel Adventure, West Australia | Tags: , , , , | 4 Comments

Essence of Ardi festival, Lombadina

Posted on June 27, 2015 by John Sear

Coinciding with our visit to the Dampier Peninsula was the inaugural Essence of Ardi festival. We moved up to the resort at Kooljaman in Cape Leveque to be close enough to attend. Local musicians, artists and dancers, some from all over the country, were scheduled for 5 hours of celebration.

Baamba
Spear making
Albert Wiggins
Goombaragin Stand
Oyster pearl sushi
Lombadina band
Spirit Child Rai by Roy Wiggan
Kerrianne Cox
Harpist for Kerrianne Cox
The second act
Nautilus by Gary Sibosado

Cygnet Bay pearl farm were present selling delicious pearl oyster sushi, our friends from Goombaragin had a stall promoting not only their accommodation options but also demonstrating how to make clapping sticks. Amanda had a go but found that it wasn’t as easy as it looks, especially with a blunt hatchet. There were community stalls, some for alcohol and drug abuse, others with more positive stories highlighting how communities are getting better representation with social and corporate matters. One of the favourites with the kids was the Bardi Jawi Rangers stall that had videos of their involvement with catching and tagging dugongs in the Middle East. They gave the kids Ranger patches and were very keen to talk about their work with the local environment, and posters on their display highlighted some ambitious but important objectives over the next few years. Displays of local artwork were particularly eye-catching, especially a nautilus made from mother of pearl and ebony. Another local man displayed his ability in spear making, turning the shafts in the fire, and catering to two types, a fishing spear and a crocodile repellent / dugong hunting variety. A few food stalls were busy selling everything from bread loaves, cooked at the local bakery, to chilli mud crab, frozen ice blocks and lolly bags! Local celebrity, Stephen “Baamba” Albert acted as master of ceremonies, reeling off jokes and stories between acts. He played a part in the 2009 movie Bran Nue Dae. A local dance group kicked the entertainment off, the small group of schoolgirls performing a number of combined traditional and contemporary dances. Then the local bands were introduced, representing young and older generations. Albert Wiggins, who grew up at One Arm Point sang about his father and growing up in the area, and as with most of the acts had political songs for, or about, the prime minister, clearly showing their discontent with the way they have been treated. The Bardi Traditional Dance Troup came on later with three men tapping boomerangs and chanting songs (no didgeridoos in this region – just clapping sticks and boomerangs for music) as the dancers with painted bodies performed. Each dance to the uninitiated seemed similar in terms of steps, but the dancers held different patterned shields, obviously symbolic for each song. The last dance involved a hilarious character dancing at thrice the speed scaring children who had strayed onto the dance floor. The last act was Kerrianne Cox, from nearby Beagle Bay, a passionate and talented indigenous singer who worked hard on the youngsters in the crowd instilling pride in their heritage. As an inaugural event it seemed to be a great success, and the number attending would have pleased the organisers. Fifty Toes loved it and gave it full marks!

Categories: 4WD, Adventure, australia, Australian Outback, Big Lap, Discover Australia, Explore Australia, Journey Narrative, Photography, Photos, Travel, Travel Adventure, West Australia | Tags: , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Cygnet Bay Pearl Farm

Posted on June 19, 2015 by John Sear

Very close to the northern tip of the Dampier peninsula are two interesting places to visit. The first is the Trochus hatchery, at Long Arm point, where the Trochus shells are bred. Unfortunately for us the hatchery was closed but Jack, from Goombaragin Eco resort, who works there gave us an insight to the place, and if we get to return we’ll definitely check it out.

 

Finished oyster shells
Oyster ready to open
Assessing pearl quality
Opening the pearl oyster
Our $600 pearl
Cultured pearls
Cut open

The Trochus shell is a conical shell that has many uses, from ornamental (when polished) to make-up and even providing the metallic allure in certain paints. The hatchery also has a number of fish tanks where you can see barramundi, monkey fish (jawfish) and archer fish.

We headed back down the coast a few kilometres to Cygnet Bay to the oldest cultured pearl farm in Australia. It commenced in the mid 1940’s and remains one of only three Australian pearl farms still in operation, thanks to their continued passion, research and development in the industry. Their showpiece is the largest cultured pearl in the world with a diameter of 22.24mm for which they have refused a couple of offers in the millions.

Before our tour we took in the views over the bay from the lookout (still no crocodiles spotted), then the kids jumped in the pool for a quick dip to cool down.

The tour included an overview of the industry from origins to the modern day, a video from old footage in the 50’s, an overview of the operations and pearl lifecycle, then included opening a pearl oyster, extracting it, getting it assessed for quality and priced. Finding out about shape quality, lustre and skin feel was fascinating and our pearl turned out to be valued at $600. Hannah couldn’t be persuaded to swallow it discretely! A very interesting and educational afternoon indeed.

Categories: Big Lap, Discover Australia, Explore Australia, Travel, Travel Adventure, West Australia | Tags: , , , | 5 Comments

To Broome and the Dampier peninsula

Posted on June 2, 2015 by John Sear

The next stop was Eighty Mile Beach, a short diversion off the main  road. Everyone hit the beach looking for the perfect sand dollar shell. With no shortage of sand dollars and other shells, everyone started wandering up the beach, then Roving Reeves appeared on a fishing mission. We had a quick catch up, watched the line of fishermen along the beach catching nothing, then mid afternoon bade farewells and headed off again.

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The overnight stop was at Stanley rest area where Hannah did her Naplan tests and we met up with 110AroundOz, another couple from Sydney with three girls almost matching our kids ages and all with Sydney Distance Education too.

The following day was a relatively quick trip into Broome for fuel and supplies, but we decided to press on to the Dampier peninsula, Middle Lagoon and Goombaragin Eco-Resort.

Four nights at Middle Lagoon was a pleasant relaxation after the dirt road in. The camp site above the beach commanded gorgeous views of the bay, which was crocodile free according to the locals. 5km to the north and south were plenty of warning signs and how the crocs knew not to go in the middle I have no idea. We spent much time in the water, snorkelling, and fishing was rewarded with a 56cm Golden Trevally.

We then moved to Goombaragin run by Kathleen and John, a very friendly couple and a small private property with glamping style tents and a couple of camping spots. They both spend time with visitors, and despite other commitments Kathleen found time to show the kids various bush tucker plants, bush passion fruit, bush chewing gum(sugar-free), and how to make clapping sticks. There were lots of new birds to spot, including great bower birds, double barred and long tail finches, mistletoe birds and plenty of others.

 

Categories: Adventure, australia, Australian Outback, Big Lap, Discover Australia, Explore Australia, Journey Narrative, Kids Travel, Natural World, Photography, Photos, Travel, Travel Adventure, West Australia | Tags: , , , , , , | 5 Comments

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