A bit more of Derby and onwards to Fitzroy Crossing

This morning, we visited this just outside Derby ...

It's known as the Boab Prison Tree, used in the 1890s as a lockup for Aboriginal prisoners on their way to Derby for sentencing.  It's also connected with Aboriginal traditional religious belief and is a protected site.  

Continuing our journey, we stopped over in Fitzroy Crossing, at the "posh" River Lodge which has a swimming pool and air conditioned bar.  That kept us all happy for the afternoon.  

Next stop, Halls Creek, which is not the Rough Guide's favourite place:  "Wise travellers will fuel up and move on". Let's see.  Meanwhile, here are some pictures of termite mounds. 

They're all over the place and collectively look like graveyards.  Very spooky indeed.  

Derby Day

We're in Derby today (pronounced 'Durby') on the edge of the Kimberley, a very remote region in the far north western corner, the size of California with a population of only 38,000.  

We rented a 4wd and took a trip along the legendary Gibb River Road, a 660km dirt track through the heart of the Kimberley, running from Derby to Kununurra.  We drove a small portion of that (around 120km) to Windjana Gorge to admire the views.  We saw plenty of freshwater crocodiles basking in the pools along the gorge walk.  They're apparently not as aggressive as their saltwater cousins, but we kept our distance all the same.  This region is also known for its Boab trees, which were dotted along the route.  Some Boabs are over 1500 years old and each one seems to have a character and personality of its own. 

A tiring day, but a great first glimpse of the Kimberley and some white knuckle off-road driving. 

Along the Windjana Gorge walk

Crocs galore

Boab tree

It's Broome time

400km northeast of Eighty Mile Beach and here we are in Broome, the official halfway point of our journey from Perth to Darwin.   We've jumped seasons from 'winter' (warm days and chilly nights) to the tropical 'dry' season of the north end - a humid 30c during the day and not much cooler in the night.  It's quite a dramatic change.  Our campsite is full of Melbournian and Sydneysider pensioners escaping their cold winters.  Those we spoke to have been here for months and are slowly thinking about making their way home.  Yesterday there was a 'Christmas in July' party, complete with turkey and balloons.  Wacky.

Broome flourished during the "pearl rush" of the 1880s and by 1910 was producing 80% of the world's pearl shell.  The town is full of pearl showrooms and interesting museums and exhibitions on the subject. It's also famous for Cable Beach, 22km of white sand and turquoise sea.  We did the tourist thing and took a camel ride along the beach.  Well, it's not something you get to do every day. 

Went out for dinner in the evening after reading in the Rough Guide:  "the food (in Broome) is quite literally the best for thousands of kilometres, so make the most of it".  It was indeed very good!  

An ibis wandering around

Camel train

Cable Beach

Sunset on Eighty Mile Beach

Spent the night in Karratha, developed in the 1960s to accommodate the growing iron mining industry and later, petroleum and natural gas operations.  So it's not really the place to hang around if you're a tourist. It was however very useful for stocking up on goodies and cheap diesel before heading out into the wilderness again.  

Winding our way further along the North West Highway, we passed Port Hedland, another industrial town, known for its salt works.  Taking a tip from some fellow campers, we decided to stay at Eighty Mile Beach.  And what a tip that was!  A real gem of a place, hidden away at the end of a 10km bone-rattling dirt track.  We arrived just in time for sunset.  

The dirt track, also known as an unsealed road

The beach

The sunset 

Roadhouse rock

No internet connection yesterday folks, as we were out in the sticks.  Having decided on a slight route change, we spent an extra morning at the beautiful Coral Bay and then headed out north east to Nanutarra Roadhouse.  As well as providing essential refuelling for vehicles and their drivers, these roadhouses also offer (basic) overnight facilities for weary road train drivers and travellers alike.  We pulled up alongside a friendly couple and their dog called Jack.  The opening question around these parts is invariably:  "you headin' north or south?".  

There was more to this rocky outpost than first met the eye.  Next to the highway runs the Ashburton river, and we caught a glimpse of it just as the sun was setting.  

Ashburton River

Black swans, the faunal emblem of Western Australia

Road train 

Coral Bay - one-legged snorkelling 

More of Coral Bay

Snorkelling around Ningaloo Reef (day 8 out of 24)

Woke up to the usual dawn chorus and the smell of bacon.  A universal camping fact:  no matter how early you get up, there's always somebody already out there rustling up a cooked breakfast.  

  

Today we went snorkelling around the easily accessible Ningaloo Reef in Coral Bay.  A glass bottom boat took us to two of the "hotspots", from where we donned flippers and masks and plunged into the 22c water.  Hannah and Ruby were well prepared, as they use snorkelling gear in their swimming classes and both swam like little fish today.  The views were magnificent.  We swam with fish of all shapes and sizes, including rather menacing looking "nor west" snappers. Our skipper told us about a famous large groper fish in the area nicknamed Merv, after Mervyn Hughes, the famous Australian fast bowler.  The female has the ability to change sex to a male, so he was previously known as Mervette.  

Unfortunately, no photos of the snorkelling as we were all in the water together.  

Aboriginal culture and the Coffee Pot train

After spending the night at the quietest campsite ever, we headed off to visit Gwoonwardu Mia, also known as the Gascoyne Aboriginal Heritage and Cultural Centre.  It tells the fascinating story of the Aboriginal people of the Gascoyne region, in their own words.  After taking a ride on the Coffee Pot Train along the One Mile Jetty in Carnarvon, we hit the road to Coral Bay and the Ningaloo Reef. 

 

Gwoonwardu Mia

Coffee Pot Train

Making our mark in Coral Bay

Bananas in Carnarvon

The girls managed one more visit to the dolphins this morning at Monkey Mia before packing up and continuing our journey. Today's stopover is the Welsh sounding town of Carnarvon, a seaside resort also famous for its banana plantations.  

How's the weather been so far, I hear you ask?  Well, we've had sunshine every day with temperatures around 19 to 21c. There was torrential rain in Perth on our second night and a brief shower this evening.  So for the rainiest month of the year, we've been quite lucky.  However, the days are short, with sunrise around 7am and sunset at 6pm.  It gets quite chilly in the evenings and some nights have been uncomfortably cold, so we splashed out on some blankets to supplement our thin duvets.  It will get warmer as we move further north (that just doesn't sound right!). 

Meanwhile, back in Carnarvon, we set up camp for the night and had dinner in the communal kitchen. This is a great feature of Australian camping culture.  Every campsite provides gas barbecues, stoves and a seating area. A good way to mingle with the neighbours and more convenient than cooking in the camper van, which can get a bit cramped. 

Feeding the dolphins in Monkey Mia

En-route to Carnarvon

Bananas!  The view from our back window at the Carnarvon campsite

Dolphins and Didgeridoos

What a day!  Up at 7am to see the dolphins and this time, bingo. They came up really close to the shore, as they have apparently been doing every morning for the last x years. There were a lot of spectators and a guide with a microphone, which gave it a bit of an "aquarium show" feeling.  But it was still amazing to see wild dolphins so close up.  

After breakfast, we boarded the "Shotover"catamaran for a sailing and wildlife spotting excursion around Shark Bay.  We saw more dolphins plus cormorants, gannets and a loggerhead turtle. The trip was worth it just for the sailing, let alone all the wonderful sights. 

We rounded off the day with dinner and a show: a great guitarist and didgeridoo player called Fingers Mitchell Cullen, playing an interesting mix of folk and slide guitar and a triple set of didgeridoos. 

A pelican. Better late than never. 

Hoist the sail me hearties

Yes, it was brrrrr cold out there. 

The long and winding road

Long drive today, through Kalbarri National Park and onto the Northwest Coastal Highway towards Monkey Mia, today's destination.  There's more of a feeling of remoteness now, with long, winding roads, no towns and very few places to take a break.  We eventually stopped at the Billabong Roadhouse, which was like something out of a movie:  squeaky signpost flapping in the wind, tumbleweed drifting past and characterful staff.  Another 2 hours of driving and we finally arrived at Monkey Mia Nature Resort.  Hoping to see some dolphins tomorrow.

Shark Bay

Our catamaran for tomorrow's Dolphin spotting trip

Pelican brief

Up at the crack of dawn (alright, 8am) for the daily pelican feeding show down by the riverside.  We got an interesting intro from the local pelican expert, but unfortunately the main act didn't show up owing to family commitments (breeding season). So it was back to the camp for toasted muffins and scrambers, followed by a bike tour along the coastal path.  It's a stunning coastline, with big rollers breaking over the reef at the mouth of the Murchison River.  Dinner at the communal barbie rounded off a lovely relaxing day.  

Cervantes, Kangaroos and Kalbarri

Busy day yesterday.  After vacating the apartment, picking up the camper van and raiding the local IGA supermarket, we set off north to Cervantes and our first stop over.  The camper is enormous compared to what we're used to at home and has all the luxuries: bathroom with shower, microwave, airconditioning and buckets of storage space (but sadly, no Nespresso coffee machine!). The roads so far have been mainly single lane highways with a speed limit of 110 km/h and very little traffic.  

After a very chilly first night, we visited the famous Pinnacles in Nambung National Park, an expanse of limestone pillars originally formed underground and since uncovered by the south-westerly winds. On the walk there, we came face to face with a group of kangaroos bouncing around in the bushes. A welcome sight after all the promises we'd made to Hannah and Ruby. 

Continuing along the scenic Indian Ocean Drive, we arrived at Kalbarri where we will spend the next 2 nights. 

Sunset in Cervantes

The Pinnacles

Skippy

The Beast

Sunset in Kalbarri

Perth wrap-up

And so we say farewell to Perth.  A few reflections on the world's remotest city and first impressions of Australian life, before we embark on our journey to Darwin:

Hannah:  it's warm for winter.  I don't understand everything they say.  The food tastes different. Loved the Bell Tower and Kings Park. 

Ruby:  I like the way they speak English.  Loved the adventure playground in Kings Park.  The milk tastes funny.  Nice dresses in the shops. 

Grit:  the architecture reminds me of the UK, and Basingstoke in particular.  Not much wildlife around and not one cat or dog seen. Lovely friendly people.  

David:  friendly, engaging people. Excellent local produce.  Loved the vibrant atmosphere of Fremantle. Haven't heard a "g'day", a "struth" or a "fair dinkum" yet. 

Downtown Perth skyline

Fremantle Town Hall