Up The Centre and Down The West Coast 2014: August 2014

Friday, August 29, 2014

Wednesday, 20 August – Kununarra Revisited

Ok, because we have had enough of cold nights in the tents we chickened out on going to the Bungles (Purnulul) for the present. So, by mid afternoon we had picked up the vans from storage and set them up again on out lakefront sites at Kununurra. It’s now time again for cleaning, restocking and chilling out.

On Sunday we went out to Wyndham via the back roads stopping at the old wireless telegraph station and a bird hide by a billabong. Wyndham has gone backwards since our last visit 4 years ago so all we managed there was a picnic lunch and an iced coffee at the Rusty Shed café - it seems to be one of the few businesses still operating.

Doing It Hard At Kununurra

House Painting In Kununurra

West side of The Now Closed Ivanhoe Crossing

Fivsies At Kununurra

Old Shop At Wyndham

Tuesday saw us picnicking in the park out at the Argyle Dam below the huge Lake Argyle. Nice views and caravan park so we feel we could stay there next trip.

Late on Wednesday afternoon we walked in the beautiful Mirima (Hidden Valley) NP on the outskirts of Kununurra. The rock formations were aglow in the late afternoon sunshine providing a great setting for walk.

Mirima National Park

Thursday was El Questro day. We spent most of the day at this huge cattle station/tourist resort visiting Zebedee Springs, the 'township' and a couple of lookouts. The track to Brankos lookout included a rocky 200 metre river crossing that took the best part of 10 minutes in low range first – then we had to come back the same way.

Looking Over El Questro Station From Brankos Lookout

Crossing The Rocky Chamberlain River

Here We Are At Brankos Lookout

Zebedee Springs

Looking Over El Questro Station From Pigeonhole Lookout

The Prado had its 100,000Km service at Kununurra and everything was in order - just oil and filters required - not bad when it has been on 1000s of Ks of pretty ordinary roads.

Now we have to say goodbye to Kununurra and its seemingly endless warm cloudless days. We will be back.

Sunset At Lake Kununurra

Mirima National Park

Gorge The Local Celebrity Croc At Kununurra

Thursday, August 21, 2014

Tuesday, 19 August 2014 – Halls Creek

This morning we sadly parted ways with David and Chris who went on to Derby while we planned to circle back to Kununurra via the Bungle Bungles. After leaving the Gibb River Road our first stop was at Tunnel Creek which is a waterway that has managed to burrow its way through a limestone hill. This has created an opportunity for a great walking adventure through limestone caverns while traversing the creek and its sandy beaches.

Inside One Of The Caverns Along Tunnel Creek

A Rock Fall About Halfway Along The Tunnel Creek Cave

Entry Over Boulders Into The Tunnel Creek Caverns

The road back up to the Great Northern highway had quite a few dips and humps giving it a sports bra rating.

After lunch and refuel at Fitzroy Crossing we checked out the stores for some warm clothing and started the 300Km drive to Halls Creek where we arrived just on dusk. That was a long day.

Monday, 18 August 2014 – Silent Grove and Bell Gorge

Due to the early sunrise in the east of WA we once again rose early at 6am. When you're in a tent it's hard to sleep in with sun rising about 5:30am. After a short drive we arrived at Galvins Gorge where one of us had a morning swim in the very picturesque setting.

Swim Time In Another Beautiful Setting

Falls And Pool At Galvins Gorge

Boab Tree At Top Of Falls

Later we stopped off at the Imintji Store for a late morning tea/early lunch. The delicious pies are about $8 each but twice the size of the average pie so we guess they worth the money.

A few more Ks down the Gibb River Road we turned off towards the Silent Grove campground, a setting off point for Bell Gorge. We quickly set up camp and drove on to the Gorge where we completed another challenging walk to have a swim in another wonderful setting.

The Path Into Bell Gorge

Hole Eroded In Riverbed By A Rock Rolling Around Under The Floodwaters

Pond Above Bell Gorge

Falls Into Bell Gorge

Bell Gorge

Falls Taken From Bell Gorge

Sunday, 17 August – Manning Gorge

After leaving Drysdale River Station we had 70Km of badly corrugated road before getting back onto the Gibb River Road. As usual on these roads there is not a lot of traffic so when we came across a ute pulled up at the side of the road we stopped to see if the driver need assistance. It turned out the driver was one of the early settler variety and had fallen asleep at the wheel with a can of VB in his hand and the motor still running. We left him to it.

Our lunch stop today was at Mount Barnett Station roadhouse where we purchased the $10 special – rump steak and chips which was delicious. The next stop was Manning Gorge, just 7km down behind the roadhouse.

We set up camp pretty quickly so we could go on the challenging walk to Manning Gorge. The walk starts off with either a punt or swim (your choice) across the Manning River then a 3.5Km hike over rocks and sandy tracks through steep gullies, etc. Once again it was worth the walk to have a swim in a spectacular setting. On return to camp we took in an urgent dose of fivsies.

Crossing The Manning River

Another Way To Cross The Manning River

Plunge Pool at Manning Gorge

Falls Into Plunge Pool

Plunge Pool In Manning Gorge

Wednesday, August 20, 2014

Friday, 15 August – Drysdale River Station

We packed up camp at Ellenbrae and then made a beeline for the fresh scones with jam and cream at the homestead which we found is owned by Rino Grollo. After the early morning tea we continued along the Gibb River Road noting the numerous tyre remants, discarded tyres and abandoned vehicles.

The road turned out to be in very good condition until we took the turn off onto the Kalumburu Road. This was christened a B of a road due to the almost continuous corrugations. Before long we arrived at Drysdale Station and set up camp.

Unfortunately the evening cooled down a lot and we didn’t have enough warm gear after being used to the warm evenings since reaching the Top End. David and Christine loaned us some warm clothing and bedding because the night was very cold. Also, the air is so dry that our skin is cracking and we continually get electric static shocks when getting out of the vehicles.

Next day we took a short excursion to a pretty spot on the nearby Drysdale River called Miners Pool. The water was fairly cool so we didn’t take a swim but did enjoy a paddle along the sandy riverbed.

Relaxing At Drysdale River Station

Green Shirt Day (For Some)

One size Does Not Fit All

Wading In The Miners Pool

That afternoon some of us took a plane flight up to the coast and around to Mitchell Falls. While not the same as going to the falls it was still spectacular. Despite the turbulence none of our group got sick but a couple of other people didn't fair so well and you can't get out in the middle of a 2 hour flight.

The nights continue to be very cold, especially by 4am. We weren’t prepared for such low temperatures so we have utilised everything we can to stay warm, including towels, car rugs, double socks and even the windscreen shade under the sleeping mat. Still, the days are beautiful.

A Waterfall On The Prince Regent River

NW Coast Near Admiralty Gulf

Mitchell Falls

Drysdale River Station And Campground

The Aviators

Thursday, 14 August 2014 – Ellenbrae

We dropped off a couple of the vans into storage at a mango grove just out of town then proceeded towards Home Valley Station, our first Gibb River Road stop. The GRR is sealed up to the first turn off at El Questro Homestead where we have been previously so we skipped that one. After that the gravel road obviously gets a lot of traffic and is very corrugated. We crossed the fairly shallow, but wide Pentacost River and soon after reached Home Valley Homestead where we had coffee and chips. Home Valley obviously caters to the large tours groups with its large restaurant and clean, modern amenities.

Then after a few more corrugations we had lunch beside the picturesque Bamboo Creek. By mid afternoon we arrived at Ellenbrae Station (a lot more basic than Home Valley) where set up camp and had a look at the nearby billabong. We all had a shower (gotta get that dust off) in the rather cute (read: rustic and basic) amenities block.