Touring the West Kimberleys with Jen ~ 16th September - 2nd October 2010

Jen arrived as the sun was setting over Cable Beach on the 16th September. As we were driving to the airport to meet her, the plane flew over us and the excitement of the girls was intense - squealing, dancing and cheering in the car!! I have never seen such excitement to see someone.... doesn't say much for the company of Pete or I does it!! Zali had even dressed herself in a "beautiful" outfit for the occasion. Ella was not impressed with Zali's embarrassing dress sense.....

Surprise, surprise Jen arrived with presents for us all and of course this felt like Christmas to the girls. They couldn't wait to show her anything and everything in the van and to 'yell' out the itinerary we had planned for the duration of Jen's visit (and the final weeks of Ella's time with us on our trip). Poor Jen must have felt so overwhelmed with all the attention, but she survived before hitting the bed for a late first night (and trying to adjust to the new time zone).

Our first 2 days were spent relaxing by the pool at Cable Beach Caravan Resort and looking around Broome. This before we hit the road to explore some of the wonders of the West Kimberleys. Some of these highlights include:

* driving back to Fitzroy Crossing to take a boat tour of Geike Gorge. A reef system from the Devonian era of 350 million years ago. Not only home to freshwater crocs and an abundance of wild life, but also reef sharks. We were amazed by this in the middle of nowhere....

* touring the first 160km of The Gibb River Road. A bumpy and dusty 4wd track to Tunnel Creek and Windjana Gorge. We were so pleased we made the effort (many hours of driving without being able to go too fast considering we don't have a 4wd).....

.......Tunnel Creek was dark and very scary in parts. Jen chickened out at the entry and decided to wait for us while we did the walk. The girls thought this gave them the option to stay behind, but this was a definite NO from me. This was an experience they both needed - walking through waist deep water in complete darkness with the only light provided by the torches we were carrying. Yes, there was the possibility of crocs in the water and there were hundreds of flying foxes above, but we were all very pleased we had managed the walk when we got back. The creation of the creek in the tunnel really was amazing!!

...... Windjana Gorge was the next stop of the day. This probably should have been our first stop as by the time we arrived the crocs were so hot they were all back in the water - except one, which we rushed to have photos taken with and then it slid away quickly after Jen posed for her photo. This meant Zali and I missed out with the photo opportunity, but we weren't complaining!! We have never seen so many crocodiles 'peacefully' in the water, floating with the tide and oblivious to the humans on the banks of the gorge stunned by their easy going nature.

* On arriving back into Broome, we had booked into Roebuck Bay Caravan Park. Although the amenities weren't great, the view from our ocean front spot was worth the stay. Us, the grass, sand and water of the bay. Huge tides in and out over the mud flats created the most beautiful views and as the moon became a full moon we were able to witness the wonderful natural occasion of the Staircase to the Moon - an illusion which we struggled to capture with our photography....

* Lots of shopping also happened when we were back in Broome - pearls (not for me....), clothes, swimmers, books..... this led to a girls only day - again more shopping - and then a night trip to Sun Cinemas outdoor theatre for our second viewing of Bran Nue Dae. This movie is a favourite of Zali and Ella's and with the sound track having played in the car since we first went to see the movie, the girls happily sang along second time around.

* a trip to Gantheaume Point to see the dinosaur print early one morning. Unfortunately, Zali was asleep for the early morning trip and someone had to stay with her. Ella was not overly impressed with her early morning wake up call, but enjoyed the opportunity when she got there. The dinosaur prints can only be seen at a very low tide and these are either early in the morning or during the night.

* the beauty of sunsets over Cable Beach continued to enthrall us and the girls loved nothing more than driving onto the beach and having the sun set behind them as they played happily on and in the sand. We LOVE the photos we have taken over the past few weeks - every sunset has been different.

* after watching the camels everyday on the beach, we were all more than happy when we finally booked our camel ride for 7.30 this morning. 40 minutes sitting up on the camel was more than enough - my bum is still hurting more than 12 hours later!! - we rode Rasheed, while Jen and Ella rode Lazy Dazy behind us. We strolled along the beach at a leisurely pace and this was painful enough. We would hate to be on it when it reaches maximum speed of 58km/h!! Camel Conner, behind Jen and Ella, took a special liking to Jen and Ella thought it was hilarious that it kept licking Jen on the back. I don't think Jen was so impressed!!!

* 6 nights of luxury...... Jen so kindly booked us in to 2 resorts for the final nights of her stay with us. We started with 4 nights at The Frangipani and we all thought this was pretty special. Adjoining rooms, our own gazebo of day beds, relaxing pool..... This was great until we checked into The Pearle of Cable Beach..... I will let the photos attached do the talking, but we were blown away with such luxury and space!!

Jen and Ella leave us on Saturday and we are sad to see them go. We are especially sad that Ella's 3 months with us is over already. We have LOVED having her with us on our trip and will miss her help, friendship, love, sense of humour and the ease in which she deals with Zali's quirks and frustrations (she has saved Zali on many occasions!!).

Who is going to help us set up the van with bed ends, roof, awning, stabilising legs, water bucket, power? She has been so obliging and more than happy to pull her weight during her time with us. Ella has also had to often make a mad dash from the showers back to the van if I had forgotten something vital for the showers!!

On top of this, I have had her working her butt off on the school front. Miss Ella heads back to school having completed the school work her teachers set, 3 terms of work in her Maths Mentals book and Maths textbook, a years worth of reading comprehension activities, a detailed written and pictorial journal of memories, her blog (which will be finished tomorrow) and a video presentation of the highlights of her trip (set to our road trip music) to share with her class on her return to school.

Yes, there have been some difficult times in getting all this done, but the look of happiness on her face with all she has learnt and experienced over the last 3 months of her life has been worth the effort. Thanks for sharing this experience with us Ella (and thanks to your mum and dad for letting you come with us!!). We will all miss you and love you lots and lots!!

Where to now for us...... on Monday (can't leave until we know the NRL winners, not like this AFL rubbish result) we head to Port Headland, Karijini National Park, Exmouth and Coral Bay. We are aiming to be in Perth by the second week of November, especially as I am due for some tests in Perth. We will then cruise around Perth and possibly Kalgoorlie before I fly home from Perth in early December to join my family for Michael's first anniversary.

Still so much to see and do in this GREAT country of ours. Missing everyone more than you can imagine and I hope you enjoy the link below to a selection of our most recent photos.

Love to everyone,

Ange, Pete and Zali

xxxx

These are the photos already published on Facebook. For those not on Facebook, click on the link to access the photos.......

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=272097&id=530087017&l=589c6c9cb8

Lake Argyle to the West Kimberleys - 20th August on........

We really only left Lake Argyle and made the trip to Kununurra as we had to vote in the federal election - what a farce it has turned out to be!!
We booked in for 3 nights at The Ivanhoe Big 4, which is in town. We had done all we really wanted to do in the East Kimberleys while we were at Lake Argyle, so it was really just a chance to relax, enjoy each others company and see little bits and pieces around the town.

After lining up for 1 1/2 hours to vote, we headed off for an afternoon exploring of Wyndham. We had been warned there were only two views of the area - the view looking out to where the 5 rivers join and the view in the rear view mirror as you drove out of town. This description could not have been more accurate...... The view of the 5 rivers - Ord, Forrest, King, Durack and Pentecost Rivers - may have been better had we been able to see through the smoke haze. The picnic lunch I had packed to have at the lookout was enjoyed on the trip back towards Kununurra in the car. The heat of 39 deg was also a killer!!

On the way back into Kununurra, we stopped for a look at The Grotto - a rock formation with a lovely waterhole at the bottom. In the wet season, the waterfall above cascades into the waterhole below. Lovely in the dry season, so no doubt spectacular in the wet. Zali, Peter and Ella went for a swim (a bit murky for me) and enjoyed the cool down and escape from the heat. Parry's Lagoon was also near by, as we are not really that into bird watching we gave it a miss. A highlight of our stay in Kununurra was the return to Pump House restaurant - this time for dinner. Sitting by the water of Lake Kununurra and enjoying the surrounds was so peaceful....... We also went for a swim at 'swim beach', which Ella couldn't quite understand how they could call it a beach as the only waves it had was when a boat sped past. Again, not quite clear enough water for me to submerge in (toes only), so I enjoyed reading my current mag under a tree on the rug. It was from this point that I could spot the crocodile trap set up for a catch about 6m from where the swimmers were. Hidden at the edge of the trees and just out of the view of anyone who went in for a dip. At this point, I casually suggested we head back for some lunch and perhaps a cool swim at the park. Once we were back in the car I explained my anxiousness to get them all out of the water so quickly!! Other swimmers either didn't see the trap or were prepared to take the risk, but not me!!!

So we packed up from Kununurra and we were making our way to Fitzroy Crossing for a few nights, via a few nights of free camping. A stop for tyre checks on the car and the van and then petrol on our way out of Kununurra saw my real first panic of car or van problems...... Pete filled the car with petrol, went to pay, I tried to start the car and NOTHING!!!! From a fully functioning car to one that now had a very flat battery (within 6 minutes of putting petrol in the car). The people in the next car were ever so helpful and came straight over to see what they could do to help. "Pop the bonnet" was their first request. In my panic that we had missed checking some level of fluid in the motor, I couldn't find the latch to pop the bonnet. To which they replied, "Is this a rental car?"....... my reply, "No, it is ours, we have had it nearly 3 years....." in a very quiet voice and a look of disbelief on the man's face. A further look below the front seat and I located the required button and we were in action - with a very red face from embarrassment!! By this stage, we had even further assistance and before we knew it the car had been jump started and we were on the way to Auto 1 for a new battery before leaving town. First shop - no go...... Second shop - thank goodness they had one and could spare a worker to fit it straight away. Apparently with the heat, car batteries in the north of this great country require replacement every two years. Ours had never been replaced and hence went dead so quickly.

So after what should have been an early departure from Kununurra was now after lunch. Luckily, we were on the road to Leyceter's Rest - 270 km west. This was a lovely little free camp spot on the banks of the empty Ord River. It was actually named after a little boy from Halls Creek who had been killed on the Ord River in a single car accident. Setup, dinner, bed and an early rise (after Zali fell out of bed in the middle of the night - no damage, thank goodness) saw us back on the road and off to Mary's Pool - another free camp on the banks of the Margaret River.

On the way to Mary's Pool, we stopped for a look around Hall's Creek. Upon visiting the Information Centre, we were recommended to take a trip out to Palm Springs. Pete explained we didn't have a 4wd, but the lady said we definitely didn't need one. She also recommended we unhitch at the local police station to keep the van safe and head out for a visit. On arrival at the Police Station, there were people everywhere. Peter went into check if unhitching in their car park was okay and of course, it was. We just couldn't park it right out the front as it was court day and there were many clients around. Hmmmm - was our van safe?? We had images of arriving back with the gas bottle gone, graffiti up the sides, jockey wheel unwound.... we just didn't know. So again, I got busy and made a picnic lunch for the 45km trip to Palm Springs.

We cruised through the first 3kms and then the dirt road started. Straight into corrugations, deep divots and soft red edges,. Not quite what we had in mind for the next 42kms. I had estimated that it would take 30 mins to travel the 45kms. Pete was stressing, the temperature hit 42 deg and we were in deep trouble if we got a flat or something happened to the car. We hadn't even put down our tyre pressure as it was not what we had expected!! Pete was driving and it took 1 3/4 hours to reach our destination. There was much discussion about what the hell we were doing, but on arrival we were so pleased we had persevered with the road conditions. We are not seasoned rough road drivers and we have no desire to ever be 4wd mad people - this is as bad as it could get for us!! A beautiful water hole surrounded by palm trees, the odd car driving past on the road and us with our picnic lunch. Just divine for the short time we could afford to be there (after the much longer than anticipated travel time). I offered to drive back into the town - more prepared for the road after growing up in the country) and managed to get us back to our caravan (which had been left in perfect condition and court was STILL on) in just over an hour. A quick re hitch and we were on the road again for Mary's Pool.

We arrived at Mary's Pool about 5pm and the free camp area - which is huge - was very full. We found ourselves a lovely spot on our own, set up and headed off for a walk across the near empty river. Ella was hot enough to feel the water, so Zali decided she needed too as well. This was all fine until Zali's shoe fell off in the little pond and Ella offered to go in and retrieve it. Of course, the rocks were slippery and next thing, Ella is in the water. She hit her back and elbow on the way down and was very bravely playing down the fact she was in pain as she was desperately trying to keep the tears in. Once we were out of view of anyone else, the flood gates started. She was filthy dirty after the fall, so this meant a 'camp bath' back at the van. The thought of this horrified Ella and I have promised to keep the photographic evidence to myself. All clean, in her pj's and pride back in check, Miss Ella was fine. To our astonishment, people were up at 5am the next morning and off on the next leg of their journey - what is with that??? Not us, Pete, bucket by bucket from the river and with the help of the girls, washed the car and van of all the red dirt we had been collecting, we slowly packed up and were ready to head off before 10am. By this time, the new lot of campers had arrived and set up and we were yet to see the main road.

It was now onto Fitzroy Crossing for a few nights. The Fitzroy River is the second largest outflow of water, to the Amazon River in the world. Although it is the dry season, there is still some fairly deep water in parts of it. Our aim here was to relax by the pool after 'roughing' it on our free camp nights. We stayed at Fitzroy Crossing Lodge and it was beautiful. Besides going to watch the local AFL grand final between 2 remote Aboriginal communities on the Saturday, we did nothing!!!!! We are headed back this way when Jen arrives to check out Geike Gorge so there was no point exerting energy, except to walk to the pool and laze around. Here the girls' befriended a beautiful little girl from Perth, Bianca. She is the same age as Zali, but got on incredibly well with both girls. Along with her parents, Tash and Paul, they have been travelling around Oz for 10 months and are now on the home stretch back to Perth. Our time with them (they were in the van behind us) saw family games of Celebrity Heads (but an educational version for the kids), beer drinking and sitting around the pool having great chats. Bianca was having so much fun with the girls they extended their stay and relaxed with us..... more from Fitzroy Crossing and what it has to offer come the end of September........

After 4 nights at Fitzroy Crossing, we made our way to Derby. This is an entry point to the Gibb River Road, which we will access to visit Windjana Gorge and Tunnel Creek when we have Jen with us. So many reports about how beautiful it is, so we are very excited about heading back this way in mid September. The caravan park at Derby was not the best place we have ever stayed at, but the local pool and water park kept the kids entertained for hours. This is where my improving swimmer, Miss Zali, decided she is now brave enough to jump off the diving blocks into the deep end with me waiting there to collect her. It didn't take long for her to realise that she didn't need me and she could 'swim' to the edge and get herself out and start again. By the next day, the swim vest was gone for swimming in the shallow end and she can 'swim' with her head above water and can safely get herself out at the ladder. We are thrilled with this, as she has always been so timid and lacking in confidence around water. The pool for our own backyard is now even higher on our priority list!! We did a few little odd bits around Derby during our short stay (including me driving the wrong way onto the jetty), but there really wasn't a lot to see. The Gibb River will definitely be worth the effort on our return there in a few weeks.......

From Derby we were off to Broome where we have now been for the past 5 nights and will be for a little longer. We will venture south to Barn Hill and Port Smith before Jen arrives and then the schedule picks back up again to fit in as much as we can before she returns to NSW with Ella (not sure how we are going to cope once Ella has gone, she is a blessing and treasure to have with us xxx). So during this time, we are relaxing by the pool (including laps by Pete and I to try and stave off too much weight gain), trips to the beach (though it was shut for 2 days at the end of last week due to a croc sighting), catching up with Tash, Paul and Bianca and driving around this quaint seaside village. We are loving being at Cable Beach. Ella even spotted Tim, Amber, Will, Angy and Kate (friends from home) at the same caravan park and the girls are enjoying hearing all the stories of the great places they have visited over the past few months.

Til Jen arrives on the 16th - stay safe, enjoy life and Happy Fathers' Day to all the dads reading.
Love
Ange, Pete, Zali and Ella
xxxxx