Gibb River Road

Scroll down to Gibb River Road to see a video of our first river crossing. I finally got the video working correctly. All I needed was fast internet and lots of time!

Broome

The long dirt road finally came to an end and just a few miles up the bittumen was the town of Broome. Broome was founded in the late 1880s as a pearling port. Today it is a tourist destination with the Indian Ocean on one side and Roebuck Bay on the other.

After being in the Outback for awhile, we decided to treat ourselves with a stay at the Cable Beach Resort. The beach was named for the telegraph cable that was laid between Broome and Java in 1889. The beach runs for 22 kilometers along the azure colored Indian Ocean. Our stay on this side of Broome was a great way to dust off the red dirt and join civilization again.

The Indian Ocean at Cable Beach

Sally Holding up the sun at Cable Beach. It didn't work!

Sunset at Cable Beach

Camel Rides on Cable Beach
The camels have just finished there stroll along the beach with the passengers watching as the sun sets on the Indian Ocean. Since I had my camel ride last summer we decided to just watch everyone else and take pictures as the camels walked back to their accomodations.



After a few days at Cable Beach we headed to the Roebuck side of Broome. Here we enjoyed the local market, walks through town and hours on the veranda overlooking the mangroves lining the bay.

Mangroves lining Roebuck Bay

We spent hours watching the high and low tides of the bay. During the low tides a narrow river ran down the center of the bay. The small island was accessible by foot. As tides changed the bay returned and boats traveled the waterways. Fun and relaxing!

Broome was a great stop but after trading in our 4wdr for a car we started our 4,400kilometer drive to the southern part of Western Australia.

Boabs for Carol

These are for you Carol! Enjoy the personalities of the Boabs!

Wildflowers

Enjoy the Pictures of Western Austalia wildflowers!

New Roads

There aren’t many roads up in the far north of Western Australia so when one comes along, it is our duty to take it. Actually, we’d long planned to head north off Gibb River Road to Mitchel Falls. As we headed up this bumpy, corrugated bit of red dirt we made a decision to stop at Dysdale Roadhouse, set up camp, spend the night and head south again. Mitchell Falls would just have to wait for another day…or maybe never at all!

Another early start to the day and back to Gibb River Road heading west…until another dirt road with a sign for an outback camp, Mt Hart. Off we go on another bumpy, corrugated dirt road this time with dry river beds with rather large river rocks worn smotth by the floods during the wet season.. We might have turned around had it not been for the fun of crossing the wet rivers and there were plenty of them on the 50k track up to Mt Hart Wilderness Lodgte. Here we camperd by the river again but this time there were only friendly crocs, you know those freshwater ones that only nip at you but don’t eat you! The campground was adequate with a swimming area in that croc (friendly though0 infested river! The stars were beautiful and once again we were up and on the road by 6:30 the next morning. Places to go and things to see!

Home Valley Station

Home Valley is a 615,108 acre outback oasis located in the east Kimberley at the foot of the Cockburn Range. It is a working cattle ranch and an indigenous training facility as well as a great spot to stop and camp.



After a bit of exploring and loads of teasing about crocs, we decided to camp down at the picture perfect Pentecost River Bush Camp…where the crocs hang out. We set up camp and spent hours scanning the riverbanks, viewing the escaprments and enjoying the bird life. Saltwater crocodiles lazed on the banks fortunately close enough to see but far enough away to be sage. Fish jumped in the river and Brahma bulls and their lady friends grazed nearby. With a almost modern bathroom, life was perfect here.

Stars were magnificent with only a sliver of a moon. Our open air tent without the rain fly allowed full viewing. No chance of rain here for another6 months.

The life of a bush camper starts early in the morning and we wee packed up and on the road by 6:30 only to make it 10Ks down the road with a stop for a flat tire! The Gibb River Road is known for eating tires so we headed back to Home Valley Station to have it fixed. An hour later were were heading west for our next adventure.