Direct to Derby, WA.

So, we packed up and braved the “Goat Track” out of Port Warrender and headed for another overnight stop at Drysdale River Station. This time we opted to stay at the homestead camping area offering a well deserved and long awaited hot shower and washing machine! It had been near 2 weeks since I had a hot shower and it was well appreciated!

We were undecided about what to do the following day. Many places from the Kalumburu turn off to Derby are National Parks and  made it difficult with the dogs, there were other station stays too but at this point we had seen alot of dirt, many stations and enough gorges to see us through. With this in mind we set our sights on Derby.

It was sad to leave the Gibb River Road, (even though we were looking forward to getting out of the dust.) It was such an anticipated part of our trip, one we knew we would love and that we had dedicated to Ben’s Dad. Tony had talked so often of taking a trip to the Kimberley and I have no doubt that being with us all the way, he loved it as much as we did. It was everything he talked of and more. We will be back to the Gibb River Road and the Kimberley for a longer stay next time!

For now, however, the bitumen ends. A part of us excited to see the west coast and civilisation, the our part telling us to turn around and go back where we’d come from!

Mitchell Falls – Up To Date!!!

Can you believe it, nearly 1 year since departing Mackay I am finally writing a post the day it happened. Right now, I am sitting at Walsh Point in our peaceful campsite, overlooking the spectacular bay of Port Warrender in the northern Kimberley. Much to say I am far more relaxed now than I was a few hours ago!

Today we ventured back up the Port Warrender “Goat Track” to visit the Mitchell Falls. We had to do it this was as we were unable to take the dogs into the park. The walk to the falls is 8.6km return and the walk in was quite enjoyable. Along flat sandy tracks, through creek beds and over many rocks. The destination.... the beautiful Aussie outback at one of its best! We ventured across the top of the falls, passed the heli pad and across a few more rocks to face a spectacular view of the cascading falls. We sat, we watched & we enjoyed yet another great Aussie wonder. There are three main levels with numerous falls. At this time of year there is a bit less water than after the wet season but they are still amazing.

You know us, can’t sit still for too long and we had just walked over 4km in Kimberley heat, we headed for a swim. Unfortunately you cannot go into the pools at the bottom of the falls, the are unbelievably inviting. However, back at the top of the falls we re-energised with a sanga and a swim ready for our walk back.

In hindsight, I probably would have paid the $105 heli taxi that takes you on a 6 minute flight over the falls and back to the carpark. The only downside is that you have to book and pay at the carpark before starting the walk and we decided to tighten our budget and burn a few more calories.

The walk back to the car was a killer for us. The length of the walk is similar to that we did with ease at the Olga’s, as well as the difficulty, the only difference being we walked the Olga’s in winter and the falls in Kimberley heat. It was hot, very hot... so we took it slow and finally saw a shining light over the Nissan waiting for us with air-con!

It truly was a great walk and the Mitchell Plateau and Falls are a must see. We would love to see them soon after the wet season from the air, it would be breathtaking. There is always next time, but for now I am exhausted, Ben is in the boat putting the crab pots in and the hammock is calling me for an afternoon siesta!

Mitchell Falls

Port Warrender - Walsh Point. (Beyond the Mitchell Plateau)

Hold on to your seats, this was a bumpy ride! We should have learned by now not to believe what everyone tells you until you see it for yourself. Ben originally wanted to travel to a very remote place called Walcott Inlet... when advised that it would take us 14 hours to drive 200km and that their is similar fishing everywhere else we quickly renegotiated and decided to travel to Port Warrender, north of the Mitchell Falls. Another traveller had advised us that the road in was “not too bad”.

5 hours later we had travelled 100km. The last 8km we had to drive at a crawling pace, so slow that our speedo wasn’t even registering and we didn’t arrive at camp until dark! We could barely see the water in the dark, I was well and truly over it. Our bodies ached and I had every intention of getting out of their asap.

When morning came and I looked outside the camper I was met with a magnificent view or aqua coloured, calm waters. It was beautiful, but not quite enough to let me forget the rough drive from the night before. I wasn’t sure if I wanted to stay or go! I knew Ben wanted to put the boat in and I was way too grumpy to tackle that road again so we decided to stay put a few days.

A few days become 5. Unfortunately their was very little tidal movement at this time of month so the fishing wasn’t the best. We found a few good Barra holes in the creeks and Ben caught a few salmon.

Here’s a good one for you! Looking forward to some mud crab we took the boat up the creek to put the pots in. Within 5 minutes we turned around to see a croc smashing our pot and taking the bait. He didn’t seem fazed by us. As we continued to flick lures for Barra he continued to stalk us up and down the creek. Yep, you guessed it.... I was slightly freaking out by this point. I was convinced that at any minute this croc would leap into our tiny tinny and drag me into the water. Next thing I lost sight of the croc, I was realing in my lure and just as I got it beside the boat, BANG! A massive splash right beside me, I let out a shriek and thought a croc was going to take my right arm off! My heart racing like never before I finally realised that a Barra had smashed my lure on the surface right beside the boat! I was still panicked, now I was worried about the croc coming and taking my fish! “Get it in the boat, get it in the boat” I was still carrying on to Ben. I think he thought it was quite humorous. Looking back on it we can have a laugh, but I absolutely shit myself that day. Eventually we got the nice 75cn barra in the boat, the croc seemed even more cranky with us than before so we headed for home! Neadless to say, we didn’t catch any mud crab here.

We took a day trip from here to Mitchell Falls, read about it in the next post. It was the first time we travelled the rough track in daylight since we arrived, we were nervous but found it better than expected. With the wind blowing up after 5 days we decided to pack up and head for a hot shower at Drysdale River Station.

Walsh Point Campsite - Beautiful view to wake up to!

Finally my fishing ability is back! 72 cm Barra - the one that I thought was a croc!

Joan's Pickled Fish & Heidi's Cerviche - Addicted.

Don't be alarmed by the "No Cook" component of these dishes. The fish cooks itself in the lemon juice & vinegar!

Joans Pickled Fish

Finely sliced firm fish strips - We found Queenfish beautiful.
Finely sliced chilli
Fresh sliced garlic
Soy Sauce
White Vinegar

Method - You can adapt the flavours of this dish to anything you like. The method is basic, cover fish in vinegar, add sliced garlic, chilli and a splash of soy. Ready to eat in a few hours. Keep in the fridge in a snap lock bag or jar. We ate this nearly everyday, either by itself on a toothpick with a beer or on top of jatz crackers. We are still chasing some more queenfish to make some more.

HEIDI'S CERVICHE RECIPE

Mix the following ingredients together and let marinade for at least 2 hours!

Finally sliced fish – 500g

Juice of 2 limes (preferably), can use lemons if limes not available, but not as nice.  You may need more limes depending on their juiciness, should nicely coat the fish so that it “cooks it”

Finely diced red onion

Then, prior to serving, into the above mixture, add:

Bunch of fresh coriander, finely chopped

Salt/pepper to taste

1 red long chilli – more if you like it spicier,

2 tablespoons fresh mayonnaise – I use Thomy whole egg mayo  ( because I am lazy ), - check the texture, you may like to add more mayo – but this is not a traditional ingredient, so less is better.

Serve with crisp toast wedges, fresh bread stick or similar! Yummo.

#NOTE: When we were in the middle of nowhere obviously we didn't have fresh coriander etc. I improvised and cooked the fish with lemon juice, added some mayo and sweet chilli sauce. Ben LOVED this on crackers! In saying that, when I have the ingredients, the original recipe is DELICIOUS!

Onward and Upward – Kalumburu Road, Drysdale Station, Honeymoon Bay & Macgowans Island.

We really were both itching to get to Kalumburu and set up camp for a decent amount of time and get the boat in the water. We hit the dirt once again and travelled to Drysdale River Station for an overnight stay before travelling to Kalumburu and the north WA coast. Instead of staying at the station campground we decided to head up the road another few km’s and stay at their Miner’s Pool campground. It is a beautiful area to camp, no facilities except the much loved pit toilet and a clear, freezing creek to take a dip in. So tonight was the first of many cold showers I was about to have in the next few weeks. In fact it wasn’t even a shower, but a very quick and freezing cold wash in the creek!

We packed up early and continued to head north on the Kalumburu road. It’s approx 200km to Kalumburu community from the Gibb River Road turn off. We were lucky to be travelling it really. While in Kununurra there was so much talk about the road being so damaged in the wet season that they wouldn’t re-open it at all this year! Given this we were expecting a shocking road but to our surprise it was very reasonable. The last 100km was a bit slower but we took our time and made it through the small community of Kalumburu, without stopping, and out the other side to travel another 25km to Honeymoon Bay.

Having travelled to Kalumburu with work while in Kununurra, Ben had visited Macgowans Island campground but not Honeymoon Bay. We decided to drive to Honeymoon Bay first to decide if we would camp their or Macgowans. Unfortunately for Honeymoon Bay, Macgowans was a much nicer place to camp and easier access for us to boat to the river inlet and close reef bommies. Honeymoon Bay campground was not very well kept, not shady and more exposed to the ocean.

Having settled where to stay we headed back to Macgowans and set up camp. You really have to be self sufficient here. There is water, probably not suitable for drinking, cold showers and flushing toilets, but no power. Lucky Ben put his foot down and bought those solar panels... they have been working a treat! Macgowans was reasonably busy when we arrived, it wasn’t the private or secluded area we were expecting, but it’s nice to have company sometimes. The beach itself is quite beautiful, a small bay with oyster covered rocks at either end. No good for swimming though as we are still very much in croc territory. Fish and Oysters were on the menu pretty well every day for 1 week.

Of course it wasn’t long and Ben had the boat in the water. First day fishing to the river and Ben landed a 1.05m Spanish mackerel. We couldn’t fish for long after that as we didn’t have an esky big enough for the fish! On other days Ben caught some great queenfish and we got onto a few Nanagai, cod and of course sharks at the small bommies offshore. For a while their I thought I had lost my fishing ability but after a few days it came back to me!

We met some great people here, shared a few campfires, swapped fishing stories at the end of the days, and I landed a great new fish recipe that I will be adding to my book. Joan and David are from Cooktown and were very kind to let us try their pickled fish. Ben and I are both hooked on it, as well as my version of my friend Heidi’s ceviche recipe. Both will follow this post. A must try.

We stayed at Macgowans for 1 week. I was ready to leave after 7 days in the boat but a week later all i want to do is go back. Definately one of my favourite places and one I am sure Ben will drag the boys on a fishing trip to! We said goodbye to new friends David and Joan and hit the road once again. This time about 200km, across the Mitchell Plateau and on to Port Warrender, Walsh Point.

Let the Gibb Begin ... Off to El Questro We Go

I am already freaking out about the amount of money we are about to spend on fuel....today we start our journey across the Gibb River Road. We had been waiting for this, and as exciting as it was I knew the price of fuel along the way was going to hurt. We decided to back track to Kununurra to refuel before hitting the Gibb River Road, it would be alot cheaper than anywhere else and was only an extra 90km. So, all fuelled up we pulled up at the Gibb River Road sign for a quick pic and headed for first stop, El Questro.

Everyone has always talked about El Questro, it’s been on TV and we were a little unsure if it might have lost some of its beauty to being over commercialised. Not the case at all. We are very lucky the owners of this station allow people like us to visit and they seem to be doing a good job at balancing tourism with the outback. We have heard so many fellow travellers complain about El Questro being “too expensive” and having not visited for this reason but they have missed out. For what it is, we didn’t find it expensive at all. It was $36 night to camp there, the same as any other caravan park (we’ve actually paid $40 night for no power or hot water). In addition to this they ask you pay a $36 park permit, valid for 7 days, allowing you to visit many beautiful gorges, swimming holes & lookouts. Well worth it!

On arrival we were offered to camp at the grounds with facilities near the office & restaurant or at a private riverside camp for the same price. It was a no brainer really, we were given a choice of campsites and picked a real beauty with our own swimming hole, views of the ranges and plenty of room for the dogs to run free.

Even Ben was impressed by El Questro’s scenery, it’s magnificent. You could drive around for a week, do bushwalks everyday and still see something different and spectacular. We were only staying 2 days on this visit, in hindsight we should have stayed longer.

We drove the steep incline to Saddleback Ridge and Lookout for sunset and the next morning headed to the much anticipated “Zebedee Springs”. The thermal pools are the best we’ve been to and surprisingly there are a few of them around the country. To help monitor the flow of people into the springs and to stop overcrowding they are open to guests from 7am-12midday only... i think the tours visit in the afternoon. I thought this was a great idea, the springs were still busy when we arrived at 9am in the morning but it would have ruined a very relaxing swim if we had to share with a bus load of people. Zebedee Springs is such a tropical oasis, surrounded by palms and high red cliff faces. I could have floated around and admired the view for hours.

The wrinkly skin set in however and we decided to continue our days exploring. We set off to Emma Gorge, as short drive back out to the main road. We were ill prepared for this one. The park info states:

“Enjoy an invigorating but partly shaded 1 hour walk with some pools along the way. At the top, plunge into a huge waterhole with a droplet waterfall enclosed on 3 sides by 65m sheer cliffs.”

So, having tackled alot bigger walks we set off with our 700ml bottle of water and our thongs. We were soon to find out the walk was more challenging than we expected, over many rocks, crossing the creek etc. We weren’t turning back now... the walk seemed to go forever but it was beautiful and the waterfall at the end was extremely magical... it felt like I was on a movie set. Instead of the usual gushing waterfall, the drops fall around you like gentle rain.

The other thing they failed to mention that the swim that you are really looking forward to when you get there is about -100 degrees. (Ok, that might be a slight exaggeration.) We used to think Mossman Gorge in Qld was the coldest water around but it had nothing on this. There was no way I could brace myself to jump into that. I dipped my legs in to cool down but Ben braved the swim... a very very quick breathtaking swim!

The walk back always seems much quicker than the one there... why is that? We made it in one piece, pluggers in tact, slightly exhausted and very hungry. We considered joining on to the end of one of the tour groups stopped for lunch but headed back to camp instead.

We also took a drive to Explosion Gorge. The track is beautiful with a spectacular lookout, looking across the ranges, over waterholes and across the gorge to the famous homestead. The homestead sits on the edge of the gorge but unfortunately you are only able to visit there is you pay hundreds of $$ as a guests. This time around we decided to enjoy it from afar.

Tomorrow we are off to Kalumburu, tonight treating ourselves to a bbq at the campground with some live music and a fire. We really enjoyed our stay here and would love to come back and take some more time to look around. I think Bear & Xena really appreciated having their own campsite and creek to roam and swim in too! Magic!

Start of the Gibb River Road

El Questro Lookout

Looking across the Pentacost River towards the Cockburn Ranges - Spectacular

A short walk to Zebedee Springs

Zebedee Springs.

The Bungle Bungles

So this is it, finally after near 3 months we are moving further west into untravelled territory, untravelled by us that is! Today it was time to visit the Bungle Bungles. We ventured to the Bungle Bungle Caravan Park, about 3 hours from Kununurra and 50km from the Bungle Bungles. Again, it was our best option as we couldn’t stay in the NP with Bear & Xena. It wasn’t a problem though. The campground is relatively new and still working on improvements but they’ll get there. I loved the way it was set up with little impact on the land and it really fit into its surroundings, definitely no Big 4. The office was a large safari style tent and to it left was a large marquee with communal fireplace and bush kitchen style restaurant. We were only staying the night, leaving Kununurra early in the morning we quickly set up camp and the dogs then made our way straight into the NP. The road was rough but easy in a 4wd if you take it slow. I think it took us around 1.5 hours to do the 50km.

Before continuing on to the Bungle Bungle walk we did the right thing and stopped in at the rangers station to pay for our day pass, $11 per vehicle and might I say this was the friendliest ranger and NP officer I have ever met. They advised that given we only had ½ a day to head straight out to the Bungle Bungle’s and do the Cathedral Gorge walk... so we did!

After seeing Ayers Rock, The Olga’s and Kings Canyon we had seen alot of rocks and gorges and while I didn’t think the Bungle Bungles were quite as spectacular they certainly were unique and worth the visit. They are stripped in colour and similar to a beehive. The walk into Cathedral Gorge was easy with a tranquil ending. A tall gorge with a large clear pool at the bottom and bordered by a curved cave. We were lucky to be alone here and to be able to enjoy the peace and tranquillity, so many of our natural attractions are ruined by being over crowded.

With that done it was time to drive back to camp and show the dogs some love. Tomorrow we are off the the much anticipated El Questro.

Ben climbing a Boab tree on our way back to Kununurra.

The Kimberley - Via Dawin & Bali.

Ok, so we didn’t head for the bumpy Gibb River Road just yet. While in Kununurra we couldn’t  resist dirt cheap flights to Bali and booked a 9 day holiday departing from Darwin. It was a 10 hour drive, 800km back to Darwin but well worth catching up with friends when we arrived. Ed & Jodie that we had met at the Roper River were now living in Darwin and we were very lucky to stay with them before flying out. It was also great to catch up with Leigh and Katrina and the kids!

Ed & Jodie kindly offered to babysit the dogs and the camper trailer, although it was extremely hard to leave them. It would be the longest time we have left the dogs but they were in very good hands... too good in fact. When we returned home they had been spoilt rotten, put on heaps of weight and eating 4 times as much. Good on ya Ed!

Bali is another story... it was the first time both of us had been overseas, we were excited and looking forward to some luxury. An eye opener to say the least... the details will have to wait for another blog, we’ll be here all week! An enjoyable break, interesting but one we’re not in a hurry to do again and vomiting publicly through their airport we made a quick escape home!

We ended up spending another week in Darwin. I was still ill and had passed the bug onto Ben and it sure wouldn’t have been fun getting sick in the camper. We got a new exhaust, new tires and stuck around to help Ed & Jodie move into their new house. We were very lucky to have their hospitality and look forward to them visiting us one day. Thanks for putting up with us guys!!

For now though, there’s nothing like back-tracking. It was on the road again, an overnight stop near Timber Creek, back across the border for inspection and on to Kununurra where it was great to catch up with Tony and Shannon for an overnighter. Ben worked for Tony & Shannon while we were in Kununurra and we had to get out of there before we were convinced to stay!

Welcome To WA, East Kimberley, Kununurra!

Wow, what a spectacular drive it is across the WA border and into the East Kimberley region. A brief stop at the gorgeous Victoria River and then on to quarantine. Boy did these guys take their job seriously... and rightly so. The NT/WA border has 24 hour patrolled quarantine, no fruit and veg, pests, cane toads etc are to be carried further, although I can’t imagine anyone would purposely smuggle a toad?? Luckilly for us we were prepared for this and used up all of our fresh produce but our word wasn’t enough. We had to lift our boat and open all the boxes on the trailer to be inspected, and honest Ben had to dig out his cast net from the deep for them to check. With everything approved we were in....the much awaited WA and only 50km to Kununurra.

As many of you would know by now, there was an abundance of work in the Kununurra region and due to the Gibb River Road not yet being open we decided to stash some cash for 2 months. After trying 2 other caravan parks we ended up setting up house at the showground... a fantastic place, loads of space and great for the dogs.

Ben and I both started work the first week we arrived, Ben as an electrician and myself back in recruitment. It truly was nice to be back in a reutine, making money instead of just spending it, and using my brain again! It wasn’t all work of course, we wanted to use Kununurra as a base to see many of the surrounding attractions.

Many a weekend was had at the Keep River, about 80km from town and great  Barra fishing. We both caught some decent fish here and the drive is extremely picturesque with burning red ranges, rice fields and irrigation channels on the way. We were lucky enough to meet up with Ruth and Stewart again when they spent a few days in Kununurra. As the Keep River was one of our favourite spots we took them for a drive. The boys put the boat in and we all got onto a few  Barra. By this stage I  was giving them away!! We spent a bit more time and had a lovely dinner with Ruth and Stewart before they continued on their journey west.

We couldn’t leave town without a visit to the Hoochery Rum Distillery (just a taste of 75% rum nearly dropped me), and Lake Argyle. I don’t think you could prepare yourself for the size of the lake nor the amazing colours. We decided not to spend money on a cruise or flight this time around, we could already see so much from the drive.... it was something! There were also a few trips to the renowned “Ivanhoe Crossin” although it was still closed to traffic due to high water flow. Ben caught just a few small Barra here.

I am not sure if “Lucky” is the right word but Ben was “Lucky” enough to visit a number of local communities in the region. Most involved driving to remote indigenous communities, on one occasion a flight to Kalumburu and a few to the coastal town of Wyndham. I still hadn’t visited Wyndham as yet, so Ben decided to take me for a weekend drive. Quite disappointing really, there isn’t much to the town itself, but the 5 rivers lookout if definitely impressive. It is no wonder this region see’s so much flooding in the wet season. On the way back from Wyndham we took a drive towards the Cockburn Ranges to the “Prison Tree”. I great drive and super tree, of course I convinced Ben to jump inside for a photo!

I can’t forget to mention how nomadic our life was in Kununurra. I know you are thinking “well you are travelling” but in this one small town in 8 weeks we managed to stay in 5 different places. As mentioned our first month was spent at the showground where caretaker Troy looked after us and the dogs very well. Unfortunately we had to move out of the showground the week of the show and we moved to camp behind the office store where one of Ben’s mates Mum worked. From here we went back to the showground for a few days before caretaking a spectacular home on acreage just out of town, the dogs had friends to play with, I had a bath to relax in, Ben had fresh eggs every day and we were all very happy. Then, as lucky as we are, we were able to stay in Ben’s   boss’s unit for cheap rent the last 2 weeks.. awesome!

For the foodies out there, surprisingly there a a few nice cafes in Kununurra these days. The Mango Cafe in the middle of town is great, good food and good coffee. One place i really enjoyed however was “The Pumphouse Restaurant”. It quite literally is the old pumphouse on the edge of the water and the tables are seated around the old pumps inside as well as out on the verandah overlooking the water. It’s a beautiful place, very interesting and alot of history. I would recommend for breakfast over dinner.

It’s hard o fit everything from the last 2 months into one post... but alot of it was work. I can’t help but think there is alot I have missed. As our time in Kununurra draws to a close, it’s both tempting not to stay longer and exciting to see more of the Kimberley. Fortunately for us, the Gibb River Road was now open, as well as the road north the Honeymoon Bay and Kalumburu, get ready for dirt dirt and a bit more dirt!



Keep River Barra!




WA Quarantine Border Inspection




Ben fishing at the Ivanhoe Crossing. Still far too high to cross.




Rice & Ranges, Kununurra




Bear & Xena's new home for a while.




Ben in the boab prison tree near Wyndham.




More rice & ranges.



The Adelaide River War Cemetery & Katherine

On the road towards Katherine we stopped in at the Adelaide River War Cemetery. A truly moving experience with an ghostly beauty. We quietly wandered the site, reading the names of many soldiers that had lost their lives during the war, as well as civilians that died during the Darwin bombing, many as young as 16. Reading through a long list of names we found both POWELL & THOMPSON’S, we felt extremely humbled and forever grateful for their sacrifices. There is no way you could leave this site and not feel extremely lucky and proud to be Australian, as we did.

For a short time it was a quiet drive on to Katherine as we both reflected on our visit to the cemetery, but as you know, I never stay quiet long. We arrived at Springvale Homestead where we were to camp for the next few nights. A beautiful place to stay with alot of history. We enjoyed a cup of tea and scones and walked through the old stone homestead (in true grey nomad style). Mostly we used our stay here as a base to explore the Katherine area.

We decided to head out for the day, first stop Cutta Cutta Caves. It compulsory to take a guided tour of the spectacular caves and well worth the extra information along the walk. We slowly crept further and further into the caves admiring the beautiful stalagmites/stalactites that shined a crystal white as if covered in diamonds. We even learned of history of the soldiers coming into the caves during the war and blowing the beautiful formations off for fun, you can still see the results of it today.

I was excited about heading the to the Katherine Gorge but that soon deflated when we arrived. There isn’t much you can do that isn’t expensive there. All activities at the gorge, including flights and boat tours must be booked through one agent when you arrive. Unfortunately we had just missed the last boat tour which was $75 each for 2 hours. Our only other option was to do a flight and we decided to give it a miss. We walked to the boat ramp and I have no doubt the rest of the gorge would be spectacular, however I still can’t get my head around how inaccessible some of these place are, hence no photo's of this one sorry. They are NATIONAL PARKS and we should be free to visit them, so frustrated and with no bushwalks to take us exploring further we returned to camp to prepare for our trip across the border in WA tomorrow!! We knew there would be many more spectacular gorges where we were heading.

Entrance to the Adelaide River War Cemetery

The Historic Springvale Homestead

Litchfield National Park

Deciding for various reasons to give Kakadu a miss this time around... we were bound for Litchfield NP. A short drive south of Darwin we passed through the small town of “Rum Jungle” before arriving at our camp ground. Really... who comes up with these names... imagine living in the “Rum Jungle”. We stayed at the Litchfield Caravan Park just outside the NP due to travelling with the dogs. It was a huge improvement on Darwin hospitality. The manager was very friendly, the grounds were excellent and we had the unpowered area completely to ourselves. They also told us to let them know when we go to the NP for the day and they will keep an eye on the dogs and make sure they have plenty of water. Highly recommend and we really enjoyed our stay. The NP itself is beautiful but like most things the secret is out! We always heard people saying “go to Litchfield, its equally or more beautiful than Kakadu and less crowded.” Not these days.... there is no entry fee into Litchfield, unlike Kakadu, and nor should there be. It was beautiful but busy. The main Wangi Falls area is a excellent place for a picnic, view of the falls and a cold swim in the waterhole, however being so close after the wet season and for risk of crocodiles it was closed for swimming when we visited. Florence Falls was gorgeous and a bit of a hike up and down hundreds of stairs... a bit disappointing when it was so crowded when we got there, presumably because the other swimming hole was closed. Not willing to fight the crowd to get into the water we opted to head for a swim at the cascades. Again beautiful but it seems such a shame to visit these places and have them be over crowded. I can’t forget to mention the very interesting old tin mine ruins and ant beds. We had a great time exploring but Ben was starting to get the Kimberley itch.


Huge Termite Mound



Old Tin Mine



Florence Falls



Wangi Falls

Disappointing Darwin, NT.

After 2 nights in Mataranka we were packed and on the road to Darwin. We decided to continue through Katherine and stop there on our way back to WA.

It wasn’t a good start to our stay in Darwin. We arrived at Coolalinga Caravan Park, the only place in all of Darwin we could stay with the dogs. There were 2 other places that only allowed small dogs! You can imagine the earful the poor lady got that tried to tell me “big dogs are more trouble!” Coolalinga was very uninviting and I tried everything to try and find somewhere else to stay... no luck. We set up camp in an overgrown desert like park, 20km from Darwin City, paid an additional $2 night per dog, had rusty water and no power some nights... quite amusing looking back on it.

The hospitality in Darwin was disappointing. While we originally considered staying in Darwin and gaining employment, we soon decided to stay for 1 week and continue to WA. However we still did lots of fun things in that week.

We were able to catch up with friends Leigh and Katrina that now live in Darwin. They took us to the local Ski Club for a Sunday session. What a beautiful place..... relaxed, waterfront, amazing sunset and a place locals frequent. A great night.

We visited the exquisite parliament house with it’s tremendous white structure and grass so green it looks artificial. The Mindil Markets couldn’t be missed, all the food stalls you can think of... but that’s about all it was good for. SkyCity Casino was a winner with a sumptuous and affordable seafood buffet but no luck in the roulette!

Ed & Jodie (Friends from Roper River) had arrived in Darwin before we left, it was great catching up with them over a drink at the Humpty Doo pub. The pub itself wasn’t what  I expected, from all reports I thought it would be more like the Daly Water Pub with memorabilia and a real country feel. However, it fell short and had the ambiance of any other pub.

The water precinct and man made lagoon is beautiful and much like Brisbane’s South Bank but as soon as you head away from the water, boats and sunset there isn’t really much else to see. Although we weren’t wrapped with Darwin itself, it was great catching up with old friends! Leigh and Katrina’s recent visit to Bali inspired us to book a trip of our own and we processed our passport applications before hitting the road again. A trip to Bali was now on the horizon and we had both been offered employment in Kununurra, East Kimberley, Western Australia. So, on the road again!

Darwin Ski Club... Perfect spot for sunday session.

Sunset at Darwin Ski Club

Darwin Waterfront



Darwin Government House. Waterfront.



Mataranka Thermal Pools

It was slow packing up and leaving the Roper River today. The company was good and we were having a great time, but there were other great places on the horizon. We didn’t leave the Roper River until late and were only heading to Mataranka today. A small town between Tennant Creek and Katherine, smack bang on the highway. It was surprising driving into town, it was quiet, clean and tidy, a huge contrast to the road we had just driven. Littered with broken down cars and green cans. Ben is already planning a trip back to claim some car parts... most cars are left roadside because they have a flat tyre or run out of fuel, many brand new... no-one returns for them, within 48 hours they have been stripped of parts and turned onto their roof! It makes my bloody boil.. but don’t get me started again!

Mataranka is famous for the thermal pools and we were looking forward to a relaxing swim. The crocs weren’t too friendly on the river! We stayed at Mataranka Cabins and Camping, a comfortable and dog friendly park. Just 500m away was the Bitter Springs Thermal Pools, a more natural creek with stairs built into it. You are able to drift with the current and get out at different spots, however there was still alot of water when we visited making it a little dirty. We had a quick dip and gave the drifting a miss.

Not far away is the more famous thermal pools accessed through the Homestead Caravan Park. Entry is free and it is on the edge of Elsey National Park. We enjoyed a lovely swim here but it is quite busy. They have built a beautiful pool like area, lined with pebbles and steps for easy access. The water is warm, continually flowing and extremely inviting!

The pools at Mataranka were special but the best part about Mataranka was bumping into Stuart and Ruth again. We had originally met at Ayres Rock Resort and it was great to catch up for a drink further up the road. We swapped stories over dinner and looked forward to catching up again soon! My faith in good Aussie hospitality and friendship has certainly been restored in the last few weeks.

The Roper Bar & Tomato Island

As hard as it was to leave our overnight stop at The Daly Waters Pub, Ben was keen to get onto a Barra! Most people would travel to the famous Roper Bar via the turn off from Mataranka but not Ben. Don’t be surprised....  but of course we took the back road. An unsealed, rough road through stations that took us about 7 hours to travel 350km. That is not a typo!

Luckily, we left Daly Waters Pub early enough to get to the Roper Bar in the afternoon. We had decided not to camp at the crossing itself, but continue along the road towards Borroloola and camp further out on the river. With sun getting low we didn’t travel as far as first planned, about 50km from the Roper Bar we pulled into the “Tomato Island” campsite.

We were expecting a remote and isolated camping experience out here. No people to be seen, privacy, silence.... little did we know. Tomato Island must have had at least 30 other campers, most of them set up for a long stay. There are no facilities and no water but a boat ramp and plenty of room to camp.

As we arrived people welcomed us. We soon found that most people camped here were war veterans and they generally stayed and fished with their wives for the entire dry season. They soon invited us to attend “Happy Hour” where at 5pm every afternoon they all bring their chairs and gather around “The Circle”, sometimes a fire and share their stories about the fish that got away. Monday nights was “Spud Night” and everyone bought their own spuds in foil, tossed them in the fire and cooked their meat on the bbq. It wasn’t long before we realised that “Tomato Island” was more of a community than a campground!

The river here is beautiful and the wildlife abundant. Everyone was catching loads of Cherabin (fresh water prawns) mostly using them as barra bait and keeping the large ones for eating. We didn’t eat any of ours unfortunately and there is a good story behind that! After losing our stash of cherabin to something breaking our pot one of the locals very kindly gave us a 20L bucket full. We hadn’t been catching many fish and people were starting to feel sorry for us! He told us to eat whatever we didn’t use for bait. Ben was out fishing with the 20L bucket over the edge of the boat to keep the bait alive, in a huff and angry that he hadn’t caught his long awaited barra he pulled up anchor and took off forgetting to pull it in. Quickly the rope was snapped off and the bucket of cherabin disappeared! Later that afternoon the locals asked us how we went and said “at least you can eat the left over cherabin”. We didn’t have the heart to tell them we’d lost them all!

We caught a few barra in the roper but unfortunately they had gone off the bite a bit while we were there, but the people sure made up for it. We made some great friends here. We didn’t go without a feed of barra either; the locals looked after us with some beautiful big fillets. It really is such a family here and the welcoming hospitality of the locals is warm and rare.

Although we came for fishing, one afternoon a big boar walked right passed our campsite, can you believe it! I called Ben and we collared the dogs, letting Bear go first. We couldn’t hear a sound and I got quite worried, Bear was on her own as Xena was yet to get her collar on. Finally Xena and Ben were on their way and Bear was holding the boar on her own. A few cuts and bruises but both Ben and the dogs were very proud of themselves. There was a real buzz around the campfire that evening.. finally we had a story to tell.

I know I’ve said it before, but all good things must come to an end. We were leaving “Tomato Island” after 5 nights and heading just up the road to the old crossing. A beautiful area where the water forms 4 tiers of cascades, eventually running off into the river. We decided to camp out here for the night with Ed & Jodie, another couple we had met at “Tomato Island”.  They had told us about the Barra they had caught from the waterholes and Ben was keen to give it another try. Ben finally caught a beauty that we cooked up for dinner that night and we all caught a few more in the morning. More importantly, we formed a great friendship with Ed & Jodie and enjoyed a few drinks around a campfire. Magic!

Back on the road, it was time to say goodbye to new friends and hit the road to Mataranka.

P.S We did cross the Roper Bar in the car... impressive with a lot of water flowing over it. I wasn’t getting out for a photo, too scared the car was going to wash away. Bugger! By crossing the bar we were in Arnhem Land but that was as far as we went.

Wild donkey on our way to the Roper River.

Our Tomato Island Campsite.

Ben fixing his cast net.

Silly Pig!

Finally a Barra worth keeping!

To The North - Devils Marbles, Tennant Creek and Daly Waters!

Leaving Alice Springs for the second time we are heading north to the Devils Marbles for a quick overnight stay before heading to Daly Waters Pub. The marbles weren't as we expected them to be and overall very disappointing!

The Devils Marbles are directly beside the highway heading north to Darwin, and therefor an easy and VERY POPULAR overnight stop for travellers. We arrived reasonably early in the afternoon (lucky for us) to find only a few camp spots available and not a great deal to look at. After witnessing Ayers Rock, Kings Canyon and The Olga's just days before, the marbles were a bit of a let down. The camping area here has no facilities, everyone parks on top of each other and packs up to hit the road the following day... so that is exactly what we did.

Continuing north we got to Tennant Creek, no overnight stop but we decided to take a underground tour of the old gold mine. Of course, Ben has seen enough underground mining but he humoured me and tagged along anyway. The history in this area is rich and very interesting, we put on our hard hats and ear muffs and headed into the underground shaft. Along the 1 hour tour our guide explained how the miners spent days without coming out of the shaft, and rationed water that much that they'd pee in their gold pans instead of using water... not joking! Our guide started up the old equipment the used in the mine and we had a new found appreciation for the mining pioneers.

It was late in the afternoon when we arrived at the very famous Daly Waters Pub. What a great place... I was so tempted to stop and work here! A quick camp set up and off the the pub for a "Beef & Barra BBQ" listening to "Chilli" their local entertainer, songwriter, balladeer, poet, spinner of tall yarns, a champion bullrider and rodeo clown. My god we laughed and I don't think I have ever felt to Australian and proud of it! A truly smashing pub... the way they're meant to be, the walls are covered in memorabilia, bra's, undies, thongs, hats and all sorts of things people had left behind. You could spend hours looking at the things from years passed. I am so disappointed we forgot to leave our thongs behind..... next time!

Lucky for us we were able to chat to some guys at the pub that had just returned from the Roper River... our next stop. I don't think they had much of a clue really... they caught a few fish and told us the road was shocking but nothing could deter us from heading to the Roper Bar and catching some Barra.

The only photo we took at The Devils Marbles

Ha ha... Miner Ben!

Old Gold Mine Shaft

Ben eyeing off some old equipment.

Walking out of the ine shaft.

Jewellery store across from Daly Waters Pub...Interesting.

Daly Waters Pub!

Finke about it!

Those that know Ben well will know that there was no way we could drive back to Alice Springs the same way we had come and of course “I didn’t come on this trip to stay on the highway!”  Finke hosts the annual desert race from Finke to Alice and back again. Motorbikes and desert vehicles. As we weren’t going to be in Alice for the race Ben at least wanted to drive the track, so we did.

From Ayers Rock we travelled back to the east to Kulgera, only 20kms from the South Australian border, visited the geographical centre point of Australia on the way and soon arrived at Finke.What an eye opener. The locals greeted us with a fire in the middle of the street, about 30 dogs roaming around and needless to say we drove straight through and spent a nervous overnight stay about 50km out of town. The Finke Race follows the old Ghan rail track and while the history and ruins along the way are very interesting they are unkept, damaged and littered.

Closer to Alice Springs, along the Finke track we took the turn off to visit Chambers Pillar. The history here is amazing. Explorers left there initials and date carved into the pillar to show they had made it that far and travelled through. If anything, the Finke track made us realise how tough our ancestors would have done it, travelling through this country in a 4wd could be hard going enough, let alone on a camel!

Finally we made it back to Alice for a brief overnight stay before heading north again. I must make a special mention of another 2 places before we go. “Fresh In The Desert” is a fresh produce shop in Alice where you can get anything from Dragonfruit & Camel Ham (as we did) to potatoes and deli items. Worth a visit. The other is the small Italian pizza restaurant which served possibly the best pizza i have ever bought! Yum.

Camel Ham & Dragonfruit

Geographical centre point of Australia!

Driving the Finke Desert Race Track

Chambers Pillar.