Broome & sunset on Cable Beach

It's the last evening, and I'm packing sadly. It's been a a amazing holiday, seeing some truly amazing places. The last few days in Broome have been lovely for relaxing, although Andy has been busy getting ready for his next two weeks of desert and south Coast driving. 

Sunset on Cable Beach is amazing, the colours are wonderful. 

Tonight, as a final farewell, we saw a film at the Sunset Cinema, the oldest open air cinema in Australia. Very mellow, although the low flying aircraft from the airport nearby added an interesting sound effect ! Shame pretty much all of Broome as closed by the time we left, so dinner was pizza ( and very good pizza ) back at the hotel. 

Our spot for the sunset, with beer of course

Tourists enjoying the camel ride at sunset

The colours of sunset

Final goodbye to Broome

Purnululu - beehives, Cathedral Gorge & chopper flight

This place is iconic, and World Heritage protected for a reason - it's just stunning.  It's spectacular, and we were lucky enough to have a whole day here, followed by the scenic helicopter flight today which gave us a completely different view of the whole area. 

The start of the beehives. The banded colour is caused by the iron in the sandstone coming to th surface, and in the presence of water bacteria turn the bands black. 

Andy inside Cathedral Gorge, this space is awe-inspiring

The view out of the gorge

Walking along a river bed, surrounded by beehives

The water carved detail in the river bed

View of one part of the beehives

Purnululu - Homestead Valley and Echidna Chasm

Wow what a place, I've been left speechless a few times today. I'll let the photographs do the talking, but both of these fairly easy walks take you to amazing places. 

Yellow flowers, prolific everywhere, adding another burst of colour to the landscape

Andy walking into Homestead Valley. Apparently there used to be a homestead here, but there are no remains. 

Inside Homestead Valley

The view from Osmand Lookout

The entry to Echidna Chasm

We were lucky enough to time our walk just as the sun shine into the chasm, the glow was amazing

A water sculpted ceiling at a junction within the chasm

Andy admiring geological marvels !

Sunset at the camp, loads of people just quietly watching the light change 

Sight of the first stars this evening, back at the tent. We're staying here for three nights, it's bliss not to have to pack up and move each day, and this place easily warrants two full days. 

Lake Argyll

Hmmmm ... beautiful location ... gray nomad central. This place was the first time we'd come into contact with the masses of grey nomads who migrate around Australia, seeking sunshine and warmth, in an amazing range of huge caravans. Arriving at the campsite was like driving into a different world, sheparded to our camp spot, shouted at when we drove In a tiny bit too fast, made to wear wrist bands to mark us as residents, having to queue for the laundry as it's locked overnight - after the freedom of the Gibb it was a bit of a shock !

Saying that, the infinity pool at the resort is beautiful and refreshingly cool after a hot day. 

Just a shame we were packed into the campsite like sardines. However, the rules and regulation of the campsite, and the distressingly bad cover singer, were negated by the fantastic cruise on Lake Argyll, which was uncannily calm for such a huge expanse of water. 

Leaving the jetty, there's a volume of water here equal to 19 Sydney Harbours

The unearthly stillness of the water, perfect for a swim at dusk as they passed us beers and wine in the water

Slowly fading colour

The journey back to the campsite

And night falls quickly up here

So, while I would not come back to the Lake Argyll campsite, there will be other ways to get back to Lake Argyll, and that is something that I will definitely do some day. 

Wyndham

Wyndham was a big surprise. As we drove in, it seemed like a small, dreary Kimberley town. However, after finding a sparklingly clean little unit to stay in, and a decent bottle shop, it all started looking up. Then we went up to the Five Ways Viewpoint, for sunset and that was amazing - the colours of sunset over that vast empty landscape. It's hard to describe, the rivers coming together at vast salty mud flats. 

A few people up at the lookout, with beer or wine, just enjoying the sunset colours

Various ranges in the background

Dusk, then dark, comes quickly here. This series of photographs were taken within about 20 minutes

And the light fades away ....

Dinner at the local Community Club was the next surprise, a really good beef stir fry and a couple of beers for less than the price of a cheap mains in Perth. $12 main course, very reasonable. The community supported the club by 'purchasing' a tile on the wall, and painting it, so there was a range of initials, emblems, footy team mascots, business adverts, all around the dining room, a lovely snapshot of the town. 

The next morning was a decent coffee in a cool little cafe, followed by a walk along the recreational jetty, watching the huge tidal flow dream past. The little museum is a  treasure trove of information a and memorabilia from the very start of Wyndham, and a snapshot of the town's history. Then we dropped briefly into the Pioneer cemetery, a poignant place. 

The new(ish) jetty, the water raced past

The harshness of pioneer life

and the emblem of Wyndham !!

El Questro; more views & Emma Gorge

This place is amazing for views and sunsets, and Emma Gorge is another spectacular swimming hole. I never realised there would be quite do much swimming up here in the Kmberley, in cool clear water. 

The view from Branko's Lookout, an expanse of empty land

When they say 'no swimming' it's for a really good reason !

A truly spectacular boab tree, on the way back from Branko's Lookout

We had a lovely meal at the Steakhouse, easily the match for many meals in Perth and in a lush, river setting. The coffee was good from the bar as well, not to mention cold beer. 

Emma Gorge was another beautiful swimming hole, a bit of a scramble to get up there but a huge swimming hole surrounded on three sides by cliffs, with warm thermal water dropping down in some areas. Lush greenery everywhere, ferns flourishing. 

Quite a few people up there, but plenty of room for everyone. Cool water, perfect after the walk up

I just couldn't get decent photographs, too much contrast. I'll rely on professional photographs to show the true beast of this place

El Questro; views & the gorge

After the disappointment of Home Valley, I was nervous about coming yo El Questro, given how all publicised it is. However, somehow it was far better than anticpated, yes it's commercialised, but there is do much here that it lives up to the marketing. 

The view at sunset, from Saddleback Ridge

Andy enjoying the view

Pyromaniac at work

El Questro Gorge, these photographs just won't do it justice. Spectacular

Clear, cool water in which to swim

The Gorge itself, cool and shady

Andy clambering around the rocks

Ellenbrae & Home Valley

Quick post only, as these two stops just didn't ... work ... mean much ... bit boring really. I guess that we had seen so much amazing country that these stops were just a bit ordinary and boring. Ellenbrae does a fantastic cream tea and well worth stopping for that, but there's no other reason to stop here. 

The shady tearoom veranda at Ellenbrae, shame the campsite is OK, but nothing special 

Home Valley, well this place was a bit of a disappointment, it was very commercialised without much to offer. The scenery is nice, the campsite is OK, but all a bit overblown. 

The Cockburn Range

The rather cool gates to Home Valley, there are boabs everywhere 

Crossing the Pentacost River, widest river crossing of the trip. We met a Japanese couple, who took this photograph, they were overwhelmed by the sheer expanse of land 

Kalumburu and Pago

Kalumburu would be one of the more interesting, and challenging, of our stops. It's a Benedictine mission, and Aboriginal community. It's a mass of contradictions, a beautiful little chapel with a mixture of Aboriginal figures with traditional Catholic symbology - Christ on the across in Bradshaw style, for example. This right next to the store, where everything is kept behind the counter, and you only get your groceries handed to you once they've been paid for. 

Pago, on the coast just north of Kalumburu, was the original mission site and a WW2 base, so there are scattered remnants of oil drums, and the old Mission. No one goes up there, or very few people, it's a real 4WD track for a number of kilometres. There's something sad about a (n admittedly tiny) part of Australia's history being completely neglected. 

The North Coast, and from here, our trip is all South. More significant for Andy than me

A pile of old fuel cans, clearly marked USAAF amongst other marks. 

One of our wider crossings

The beautiful chapel, and a lovely, simple Mass, with a pile of kids, dogs running in, and a young priest who clearly is passionate about his work in a truly remote environment. 

The visit to the Father Gil museum was superb, a truly eclectic mixture or artefacts, from the early days of the mission and prior, to recent items. The guy is an incorrigible collector, and it showed in this museum. Loads of newspaper clippings from early last century, gIving a history of the settlement, through to modern day.