Kimberley Capers

Camping with Gummy

We spent three nights in Kununurra to rejuvenate, refuel, and restock the food provisions. We lucked out with a stunning campsite right by the lake. Steve chilled in the hammock, reassured by the fact that "Gummy," the resident 60-year-old toothless freshwater crocodile, had never bitten anyone. But in the dead of night, we were startled by the sound of aggressive splashing just a few metres away. It seemed Gummy had secured his midnight feast - gnashers or no gnashers!

Look at the reeds to see how close we were to Gummy 😲

The Gibb - Let's Go

The Gibb River Road, stretching 660km, is an epic dirt track linking Kununurra and Derby in Northwestern Australia. Known as "The Gibb," it's an iconic Australian journey that Steve has dreamed of tacking for many years. If you love exploring hidden swimming holes, beautiful waterfalls, off-road scenic drives, and dramatic gorges, "Doing the Gibb" is an absolute must.

Let the Gibb River Road adventure begin

El Questro – The Boojie Part of the Gibb

We were somewhat spoilt with our first stop on the Gibb.  With its cocktails bar and steak house, El Questro is a bit fancy, and generally, not our typical camp.  However, it is renowned for having some of the most breathtaking gorges on the Gibb, so we decided to indulge and stayed for a few nights.

Listening to a Miss Higgins cover artist with Ted the AiredaleTerrier

Emma Gorge

The hike began smoothly with effortless branch swinging and rock hopping, but as the path became tougher, I found myself scrambling over the rocks on all fours, as with as much grace as a turtle on turps. However, the reward was worth it – a delicious turquoise plunge pool awaited, setting the stage for a magnificent swim beneath the 65-meter waterfall's cascade.

You need "El-Gility" at El Questro to find swim holes like this

We didn't spot any "danger noodles", but others did

Hot Springs and Hotter Sunsets

Tucked under the shady pandanus trees and livistona palms, lies the lush Zebedee Springs, a serene oasis featuring a series of thermal pools, petite waterfalls, and warm springs. With water temperatures consistently ranging from 28 to 32 degrees, it is the perfect setting for an early morning soak.

After finding a secluded piece of paradise here I briefly feared that some cheeky kids might be taking the p*&$ by taking a pee on the alcove above us causing a warm flow over me.  Thankfully not.  The gushing warm waterfall was a natural phenomenon of the best kind.

That's warm water, not wee

After our early dip in the thermal spring, it was time to take on El Questro Gorge. The trail led us along a slender creek lined with palms and ferns, up to a secluded swimming hole with water as clear as glass. While soaking up the beauty of the rainforest, we considered tackling the second leg of the hike, which ramps up from Grade 4 to Grade 5. That silly idea lasted only a few seconds, and we headed back to our boojie camp.

Gorgeous El Questro Gorge

In the evening, we took a 4WD trail with some winding steep sections to Pigeon Hole Lookout to watch the sunset over the surrounding ranges.

Pigeon Hole Lookout

Don’t Feed the Donkey at Ellen….bray!

After El Questro, we moved on to Ellenbrae Station.  Upon checking in we were given a strict warning.  “Do not feed the donkey, as it might explode”.  My mind conjured up an image of a distressed Eeyore suffering from a serious gastro ailment.  However, it turns out, “the Donkey” was a huge wood-fired boiler providing hot water for the shower.  The caretaker liked to take care of the fire himself, without help from interfering pyromaniac campers.  

Ellenbrae's Donkey!

Mitchell Falls – Quite Literally!

Through our travels, we’ve come to learn that the absolute best destinations are the ones that are really hard to reach, which is why Mitchell Falls was a must-see.  Most people avoid the hike in and/or out by opting take a helicopter ride.  As we now class ourselves as seasoned hikers 😜, we gave the chopper, the chop, and embarked on the 9 km walk into the wilderness. 

The falls, along with the mountain and the surrounding state park, bear the name of Elisha Mitchell, a professor who tragically fell to his death from a rocky ledge above the falls on June 27, 1857, while verifying his measurements of the mountain.  I'm not sure if it's a genuine tribute – or Aussie humour that resulted in the place being called “Mitchell Falls” 😲.  It was certainly a precarious location, so we were very careful of our footing.

Mitchell Falls - but we survived

Wolfe Creek Flashbacks

En route to Mitchell Falls, we were alarmed to see a single, new and expensive hiking boot, with sock, discarded in the bush.   Were we camping with Mick Taylor or Ivan Milat, I wondered.  However, after reading the poster on the dunny wall we were relieved to see that the likely culprit was not a pyscho serial killer, but a dingo with a shoe fetish!

Critter of the Week - Brahman Cow

Burton Beef - Delicious (sorry, my vego friends)

After a quick overnight stop at Drysdale, we settled into Mount Elizabeth for 3 nights.  Mount Elizabeth is a working cattle station that covers approximately half a million acres and runs over 6,000 cattle for the family business, The Burton Beef Company.   Meals are at a set price of $40 for 2 courses, and the daily menu offers a single option: beef! The choice of dish is up to the chef's daily inspiration. We struck gold once more with a sensational roast beef dinner and apple crumble. 

Needless to say, new friendships were forged over the hearty communal feast, toasty campfire, and the best "goon-bag red" 😁 (Cask wine travels better than bottled on the corrugations ... and we're on a budget).

Sharing Gibb tales with Darryl, Mary and Denise

Nothing Defies the Defender

At Mount Elizabeth's expansive private grounds, we challenged ourselves with a 12km 4WD track, dubbed for the "fearless or foolish." I found the ride a bit nerve shattering, and it was most certainly the most challenging track we've travelled on our whole trip so far, but Steve was rapped to be pressing buttons he'd never pressed before.  Needless to say, we had Wunnamurra Gorge all to ourselves that day.  Steve congratulated himself with a celebratory dive.

Not quite an Olympic dive!

Word of the Week:  EEEWW

Rest assured, this journey is not all waterfalls and rainbows.  There are other natural surprises to be had.  Yelling "eeeww" has become a reflex when at some of the bush ablutions along The Gibb.  The shower and toilets are usually open to the elements at the bottom and top and just separated by a thin piece of corrugated tin.  Getting used to the symphony of sounds and scents from someone taking their "daily constitutional" while I try to enjoy a shower is seriously gross 😣.  

The ordeal is made worse by the fact that when you have walked the short distance from the "facilities" to the camper, your thonged tootsies are just as filthy as they were to begin with.  The struggle is real, my friends.

Meanwhile Back at Camp

Whilst I'll never come to love bush bathrooms, one thing I do love about camp life is the time it takes to do the housework.  Just 10 minutes to tidy the lounge, kitchen and bedroom.  Grueling work 😏.

Into The Wild West

Border Crossing Shenanigans

We were so excited to cross the border from the Northern Territory into Western Australia we decided it deserved a tune, so we belted out some carpool karaoke while crossing the line.  On the journey to this milestone, we munched on a random selection of WA contraband to avoid waste and copping a hefty fine.  Chowing down on a cucumber in the way you would eat a banana was a first for me 😂.  Judging by the cringeworthy playback, we should have been more concerned about being arrested for our lousy vocals than biosecurity breaches!

Lake Argyll “Resort”

Our first stop in WA was Lake Argyll, a gigantic man-made lake, 12 times bigger than Sydney harbour.  The caravan park is labelled a "resort".  A bit of a stretch for an overcrowded, red dust bowl, but its redeeming feature was an icy cold infinity pool which was a wonderful experience on this 34-degree day.

These 3 photos were taken within a 4-hour window.  Amazing how the colour of the sky changes.

We took a boat tour onto Lake Argyll to learn all about the flora, fauna and history of this beautiful place.  We believed the skipper when he assured us that the 35,000 crocodiles that call Lake Argyll home only hang out around the edges, so when he moored up in the middle of the lake, we jumped in for a float about.  Steve was delighted when the skipper threw a can of beer in front of him in the water because it bobbed up to the surface.  When he finished it, he threw the can back, and the process went on repeat.  I had to swim back to the boat for my champagne refills.  Discrimination!

Critter of the Week – The Bowerbird

Upon setting up the camper at Lake Argyll, we were annoyed to notice a pile of trash made up of bottle tops, a guitar pick, shells and other bits of white plastic.  However, our dismay turned to delight when we realised that a bird with a neon punked up pink hair do was doing a fancy dance in the trash pile.  It turns out it was a male Bowerbird, an ingenious kleptomaniac who makes a “walk through” nest and places all his stolen loot in front of it before making it his stage for a proud courtship dance ritual to impress his lady.

Wyndam – The Oldest and most Northernly Town in WA

For a little town, Wyndam really pulls its weight, and we’re glad we stayed here for a couple of days.  Just 15 minutes away from the campsite is the Five Rivers Lookout which gives a birds-eye view over the Cambridge Gulf.  We are glad we drove up there for a spectacular sunset on our first evening, because the next morning it was evacuated due to whole area being ablaze with a bush fire and we were put on "watch and alert".  

Little rock wallaby (centre, bottom left) admiring the sunset with us at Five Rivers Lookout

To escape the smoke, we ventured away from the town for the day.  We visited Marglu Billabong which was teeming with birds and fish.  We hung out in the shade of the hide with a few twitchers, working out who was who in the bird world when a 4 metre saltwater crocodile glided past us. It was an amazing sight. 

What' Scone Wrong?

Not far from the Billabong we stopped for morning tea at Parry Farm Lagoon.  We indulged in iced coffees (with ice cream 😈) and scones straight from the oven served with native Davidson Plum jam.  Of course, we had our 35-year-old argument about the correct way to eat a scone.  Can you guess which is Mhairi's and which is Steve's?  The one thing we did agree on, is that they were delicious.

Banged up in the Boab

Instead of sticking to the designated rough road, we went rogue and drove also across a dried-up flood plain to visit The Hillgrove Lockup aka The Prison Tree.  This Boab Tree has a small hollow interior which was used as a makeshift jail to house Aboriginal prisoners until the 1920’s.  

Prisoners had to climb into the hole where Steve is sitting, under police trooper guard.

Just a few kms away from the Prison Tree we discovered some great rock art

A Snappy Meal

After an insightful morning, we stopped for a bite of lunch.  There were not a lot of lunch venue options, so we called into the bakery and bravely selected the Crocodile Pie.  The $13 price tag was eye-watering, but alas, the pie was not mouth-watering.  Definitely, a one and only gastronomical experience 👎  

There was a burger joint in the town, but the sign outside Capt Robbs indicated that this place was very definitely, well and truly, closed for business 😁

Dreamtime Statues

When you drive through the tiny town of Wyndham, you're welcomed by the friendly grin of a giant crocodile, a reminder of the area's croc dangers. However, a stroll through the town's backstreets (best avoided at night) we stumbled upon a hidden gem: the stunning bronze Dreamtime Statues. These larger-than-life sculptures, located on waste ground, and not even signposted, beautifully depict early Aboriginal life.  What a great find!

Mhairi wondering whether this was a good place to stand 🙈

Big Things – The Big Boab

Wyndham Caravan Park lays claim to the biggest Boab Tree (in captivity 😉).  This lovely specimen is over 2,000 years old.

Rusty Parts

Whilst reflecting on our great day discovering Wyndham, an elderly couple in the campground invited us to watch their concert in the camp kitchen.  The duo was called Rusty Parts and Rustina.  Let’s just say our carpool karaoke would have won Australia’s Got Talent if we were competing against these two!  The best of the bad songs was called "Grapefruit and Snails" which was about a meal they served up to their dinner party guests (because they were low on provisions and that’s all they could find in the garden!).  Whilst all the other campers in the audience quietly snuck off into the shadows, being the polite Poms we are, we sat there patiently for a full hour.  It was quite a test of endurance 🙉

Rusty Parts and Rustina, God bless 'em

The Bungles – So Good they Named it Twice

Up there with the best experiences of this mother of all road trips is visiting the Bungle Bungles – Purnulu National Park.  Intrigued by the name of these magnificent "bee hive" shaped hills, thinking it would be some romantic, mythical story, I consulted Google.  I found out that in Aboriginal East Kimberley lingo, Banggul banggul is actually the term for a type of cockroach that you see in these parts, and if you provoke it, it will squirt urine at you.  So, there you have it, the Bungles Bungles are named after pissing pests!

The drive into the Bungles was as “rough as old guts“ (a phrase we have come to love), and we were warned not to attempt it, especially in a Land Rover (how rude!) and towing a camper trailer.   So glad we didn’t listen to the naysayers.  What a magical place.  In our two days here, we hiked most of the trails including The Echidna Chasm, Mini Palms, Whipsnake Gorge, The Domes and The Cathedral.  Everyone needs to add this epic place to their bucket list.

The view from the loo in the National Park

Steve at "The Window"

The Mini Palms Hike

The price I paid to experience this wonderland was blisters on blisters.  In our pre-trip preps, lots of people told us we needed to take a Bunnings bucket with us.  After carting this piece of plastic that has taken up valuable real estate, I finally found a use for it.  Filled with cold water and Fairy Liquid, it's a Bungle Bungles Bunion and Blister Bliss Bucket.  It felt better than any foot spa I've had.

(After changing the water) Steve used it to scrub away layers of sweat, dust, sunscreen and mozzie spray

Earning Karma Credits

For a carpenter, Steve has spent a disproportionate amount of time on this trip helping others with their mechanical malfunctions.  We figure that every person he assists earns us a "karma credit".  No doubt we’ll be making a withdrawal from karma bank account before this trip is out.

Steve helping these French backpackers find their spare tyre

More Flora and Flora Spam from the Bungles

If you've got this far, here's a nice video of cockatoos taking flight at sunset

Top Times in the Top End

Kaka – definitely – Du

Our first night in Kakadu was spent near Cooinda, where we hopped on mesmerizing sunset cruise across the Yellow Water Billabong.  The wildlife here is second to none. Covering vast wetlands, it is home to numerous species of native creatures that thrive in this environment.

What could possible go wrong 😁

Kakadu boasts a third of Australia’s bird species. An impressive amount of 60 species can be found in the wetlands.  On our cruise, we encountered Whistling Kites, Magpie Geese, Kingfisher, Jabirus, and Eagles and the Australasian Darter spreading its wings to dry.

Critter of the Week – The Jabiru

The Jabiru, armed with its razor-sharp beak, has the potential to kill a crocodile if it strikes in the right spot. At the Yellow River Billabong, they seemed to be quite comfortable in each other's presence.

Beware, Crocs Crossing at Cahill

After leaving Cooinda, we headed to Jabiru to discover more of Kakadu National Park. A standout experience was Cahill Crossing on the East Arnem border. Home to the densest population of saltwater crocodiles in the Northern Territory, and with tides that rise swiftly, it's known as the most dangerous crossing in the area.  We were captivated for hours, watching the crocs fishing for barramundi with one eye, and the brave vehicles going in for the wade, with the other.  I realised my inner evil as I caught myself secretly hoping a car would stall and get chomped (which has happened before).

Waiting for Barramundi or stalled vehicles

Brave or stupid?  You decide.

A short drive from Cahill, we endured the 36-degree heat to visit Ubirr. Ubirr is renowned for its ancient rock art, showcasing some of Kakadu's most significant ancestral figures. The artwork there is among the world's finest, each piece rich with stories and history, some dating back thousands of years. Ubirr also offers panoramic views of Kakadu, making it an ideal spot for sunset viewing. However, traveling without a bull bar, we decided against risking a kangaroo collision at dusk that could put the kibosh on the rest of our trip.

Our New Ulti Buddies

Arriving at Kakadu Lodge camp in Jabiru, we were thrilled to spot an Ulti – not an elusive Aussie animal, but a kindred Ultimate Camper Trailer. It was wonderful to connect with Denise and Stephen, who live not far from us in Avalon. We exchanged adventure stories over a glass of wine, which was even more special as we celebrated Stephen's birthday. Here's to hoping our paths cross again on another Ulti journey, or perhaps back home on the Northern Beaches.

Ultimates together at Kakadu Lodge

Purple Mango – the Best Closed Brewery Ever

Following Denise and Stephen's recommendation, we set up our next camp at the Purple Mango Brewery in Marrakai. We've stayed at several pubs during our Big Lap, but this was our first time camping at a craft micro-brewery. Can you even imagine Steve's excitement!!  Although it was officially closed for brewing day, the owner, Adam, kindly welcomed us, whipped up a gourmet pizza feast, and played State of Origin 2 for us and our diverse group of campers from the Netherlands, NT, NSW, and WA. Luckily, there wasn't a Queenslander in sight.  The mango beer and the mango daiquiri made the Blue's victory even sweeter.

Even the cane toad (bottom left) was impressed by the Blues' 38-18 triumph

Darwin Goes Crackers on Territory Day

By sheer fluke, we found ourselves in Darwin on Territory Day, a public holiday that commemorates the Northern Territory's attainment of self-governance from the Commonwealth Government.  It’s a day when Territorians come together to officially celebrate everything they love about their unique home. The holiday is popularly known as “Cracker Night.” During this time, you have a five-hour window to legally blow up fireworks anywhere you please, making it the only place in Australia you can do this.  Having heard wild tales about the firework frenzy, and eager to retain our eyes, limbs etc, we opted for a stroll to the beach near our campsite.  As you can see from the video, it was like a scene from Beirut on a bad night!  Fun though!  Next time we come back to Darwin, it will be on 1 July.

Hurray for the Sunset

We loved our first visit to Darwin and wished we could have stayed longer.  During our 6 days, we stomped all over this historic city.  I swear I’m even shorter now!  Our favourite walk was from Mindil Beach to East Point at sunset.   One of the quirky things that happens in Darwin, is the collective applause that erupts as the sun dips below the horizon.  Initially, I found it a bit corny, but I've come to see it as a beautiful expression of gratitude by those gathered to witness yet another day's end on Earth - a privilege not granted to so many.

Litchfield National Park

During our journey, we encountered travellers who were split between visiting Kakadu and Litchfield National Parks. I'm so glad we chose to explore both, as each are so uniquely different and beautiful. In Litchfield, you could fill two weeks visiting a new waterfall each day. But with only two days at our disposal, we had to pick and choose, so opted for Wangi Falls, Cascades, Florence Falls, and Buley Rockpools.

Magnetic Termites

As we’ve ventured north, I've become captivated by termite mounds and the tiny architects behind these impressive structures. It's intriguing to learn that termites are blind, yet they have an innate magnetic compass that guides them to build towers with one side perpetually shaded. These termites play a crucial role in their ecosystem, just like garden earth worms.

Gorgeous Gorges of Katherine

Based at Katherine, we dedicated a day exploring Edith Gorge on our own on our way up to Darwin, and then two weeks later (today) did a boat and walking tour to three other Gorges in the Nitmiluk National Park (aka Katherine Gorge) on the journey south.  They are both jaw-dropping gorgeous in every sense.

Edith Falls

Katherine Gorge 

A freshwater croc (the friendlier of the two) sunbaking at Katherine Gorge

...  Heading west tomorrow.  WA here we come.