SYDNEY BROOME TRIP 2006 - Saturday 24 June to Friday 30 June

SYDNEY BROOME TRIP 2006
Saturday 24 June to Friday 30 June
El Questro to Derby
Blog 9

El Questro is a fantastically organised place with all the walks and 4WD clearly marked for easy identifications. Our day started crossing the beautiful Pentacost River to the hot Zebedee Springs. There were lots of people swimming in the springs but we didn’t stay for very long. We walked halfway into El Questro Gorge until the water hole that was so deep that the water would have been up to Mike’s neck. The walk was great and the scenery was most beautiful.

We then stopped at Jackeroo’s waterhole for lunch there. It was beautiful spot and we chatted with another couple who were also touring. We decided to spend the afternoon doing some of the 4WD tracks and headed to Saddleback Ridge Lookout. It gave panoramic views of the area and was definitely worth the steep climb to get there.

We then drove along the Explosion Track which got its name from a very environmentally unfriendly way of fishing which is no longer used. The first stop along the track was Bronco’s Hole which is a little fishing spot. We then drove up to Bronco’s Lookout which gave us another spectacular view of the area. The helicopter was low and the people in the copter were watching us just as we were watching them.

Driving down to Explosion Hole was quite testing as there were a lot of cars parked there and the road was very rocky. We managed to get there. Our last stop for the day was the jetty at Chamberlain Gorge. It was another beautiful spot and a great way to end the day. We sat at the camp fire had drinks and stayed for the buffet dinner, music entertainment and the aboriginal man, Buddy Tyson who was an old stockman and rope and whip cracker.

On our way out of El Questro we walked into Emma Gorge which is part of the Cockburn Range. The walk was a little testing because of the stones on the track and the last section was quite steep to get to the waterfall at the end. It is a beautiful gorge with cliff face escarpment reaching up to 120m.

The waterfall and pool at the end has a warm area where the hot springs seep through. After lunch we drove to Turkey Creek which was our stop from where we could explore the Bungle Bungles.

We left Turkey Creek just after 5:30am for our day in the Bungle Bungles. The dirt road into the Purnululu National Park crossed the Mable Downs property and it was very corrugated and windy. There were many creek crossings in fact I count 18 each way when we drove home. The scenery was lit up by beautiful morning light which made it even more beautiful.

The Bungle Bungles are awe inspiring sandstone structures. The colours and smells are so beautiful that they are difficult to describe.

The path to the Echida Chasm was very rocky and most of the walk was along the dry river bed and it was a beautiful sight in the morning light. We certainly took our time to walk the 2km round trip and just soaked in the colours and spectacular scenery. The cliffs were very high, the sky was very blue, the rocks were very orange and the trees were very tall.

The Cathedral Gorge walk which begins at Piccaninny Creek was a little longer than the Echidna Chasm walk but it was more level and the path easier to walk. The striped sandstone beehives were breathtaking. There were also lots of large potholes caused by stones in the water as it rushes down, there was evidence of waterfalls that cascade down steep rock faces during the wet season and lots of honeycomb weathering.

At the end of the walk is the Cathedral Gorge which is a huge amphitheatre. One of the tourists from another group was singing a song and the acoustics of the gorge were incredible. We still had time for one more walk to a lookout from the Piccaninny Creek which was itself spectacular.

It is difficult to imagine all of these dry river beds in the wet. The walk to the lookout was hot and seemed longer than the 1km stated but the view at the end was definitely worth it. We overlooked the valley and some more beehives and it was really a Bungle Bungles outlook.

The next day we continued our journey through Hall Creek. We didn’t stay long but stopped to see some of the sights. The statue of Russian Jack who had carried an injured mate in a wheel barrow to get medical help and the Wall of China which is a huge natural quartz outcrop that looks like it has been built. The outcrop goes as for as the Bungle Bungles.

We reached Fitzroy Crossing and were lucky to find a site for the night in the busy caravan park.

Geikie Gorge was our next explore and we decided to take the CALM boat cruise into the gorge. The limestone of the gorge is weathered by the flood waters in the bottom half of the gorge and is still a light grey colour. The upper part that is exposed to the air is an orange colour. The little fairy martin sparrows were in their bottle shaped mud nests and there were lots of fresh water crocodiles along the banks of the Fitzroy river. We learnt lots of things about the plants and the aboriginal culture.

After the cruise we drove to the old Fitzroy River Crossing which had quite a steep descent but the rest was great.

After finishing at the gorge we headed for Derby which was to be our base for the next few days.

We stopped at the Old Prison BoabTree before we got to town. We managed to get to the wharf in time to watch yet another magic sunset. Derby is famous for the huge differences between low and high tide. It can be up to 11m difference.

There is an old Boab Tree and a River gum that have almost entwined as they grow side by side. The boabs are protected in the area and are not allowed to be cut down.

We decided to take a day trip leaving our caravan in Derby as it was easier to drive the corrugations on the Gibb River Road without the caravan.

We managed to get to the Windjana Gorge by 9:00am so that we could do the walk while the day was still cool. The Gorge has a beautiful narrow entrance through rocks and then opens to a wide area with the Lennard River flowing, sandy banks, lots of river gums and LOTS of fresh water crocodiles, there are more than 70 crocs in the gorge. They were sunning themselves on the banks of the river and people were quite close. The crocs were quite large and they didn’t move. It is a limestone gorge and part of the same limestone formation as Geikie Gorge and Tunnel Creek.

The gorge is carved by the Napier River as it passes through the Napier Range. The limestone was laid down over 350 million years ago during the Devonian Period when the area was covered with a shallow sea. A series of barrier reef formed along the edge of the sea extending up to 1000km. We decided to walk the 7km return journey but the most beautiful part of the gorge was at the beginning.

Our walk through Tunnel Creek was cool and our water shoes and torches were essential for the journey. It was definitely worthwhile. Tunnel Creek is named because of the 750m long underground tunnel carved out of the limestone range by flowing water. The creek once flowed across the top but water seepage enlarged the fractures in the limestone and the creek adopted the underground course. The tunnel is up to 12m high and 15m wide in parts. Apparently there are a few species of bats in the tunnel near the centre of the cave where the roof has collapsed and the light comes in but we didn’t see any even with careful looking.