A TASTE OF THE GIBB RIVER ROAD PART 3

Home Valley Station

We were a little sad to be leaving El Questro, it had been a great camp and we had really enjoyed the scenery and the silence, but new adventures were at hand and so we rejoined the Gibb River road, turned left and set off for Home Valley Station, not very far down the road.

There is now a surprising amount of traffic on the Gibb, far more than I had been told to expect and too many of them are travelling way too fast.  The section of road from the El Questro turnoff is very loose and rocky – and corrugated in parts as well. 

Many people, mainly young blokes in oldish 4wds travelling at 90 and 100 kph in the opposite direction are a major hazard, especially when they don’t slow at all or keep to the left when passing, throwing up rocks in all directions.

I was hit by a large stone, about the size of a sardine tin, it clipped the windscreen low down and then I believe, slid up the screen and bounced off the snorkel – had it hit the screen full on it would have come straight through. It wasn’t until later that I discovered it had cracked the screen – idiots, there’s no need for that !

While travelling along we caught sight of a dingo just about to amble across the road. I stopped and grabbed the camera, quietly getting out and slowly walking around the back of the car and trailer. The dingo had stopped and was looking at the car, when I appeared with the camera he stayed quite still in the grass, unafraid, just surveying the scene and looking quite inquisitive. Unfortunately I was not able to focus because of the grass and scrub and he turned and walked and then ran away.

I followed through the scrub trying to get a shot but the dingo was too quick and was gone. This was the third close encounter with a dingo this trip, the last two being in Kakadu and once again I was unable to get a clear photo. Clearly, there is no shortage of dingoes on the Gibb.

One good thing that I have learnt recently is that dingoes catch and kill feral cats, good to hear, although it remains troubling that we have seen cats in the middle of nowhere, apparently miles from civilisation – they are a worry.

And then we came to the Pentecost River crossing, a place I had wanted to visit for many years now. The crossing is tidal, being not that far from where the river meets the west arm of Cambridge Gulf and becomes one of the rivers to be seen doing so from the Five Rivers lookout on The Bastion at Wyndham.

The five rivers to be seen from The Bastion are the Pentecost, The King, The Durack, The Forest and the Ord.

The Pentecost was fairly shallow when we crossed.

Pentecost River Crossing, Cockburn Range in the background

Just past the turnoff to Home Valley Station is a spot we had been told looks back on the Cockburn Range and was a great photo opportunity. It is said to be an Aboriginal meeting place and a place where the boundary of two Aboriginal groups exists. There is a sign welcoming visitors to their country.

Aboriginal meeting place, more Cockburn Range

When we arrived there we met a German couple who were also admiring the view. We noticed (before them) that they had an almost flat tyre in their little hired camper.

The bloke seemed a little unsure of where to start - I should have kept driving - It was more than 30 degrees and very dusty - but in the interests of international relations I, with the help of his wife and some advice and assistance from him, got the job done.

Doing my bit for international relations backside up in the dirt !!

Home Valley Station is quite a fancy operation these days, certainly far better than I had read about and expected. Their caravan / camping area is nicely grassed and there is a first class swimming pool and a fancy restaurant and bar.

Of course fancy also equals relatively expensive, especially the restaurant. We also ate there a couple of times and the service and the quality of food is very good.

We spurned the luxury of the caravan park area and decided to camp on the banks of the Pentecost River about 7 or so Km from the main area.

Our campsite on the banks of the Pentecost River

The camping area has spectacular view of the Cockburn range. I just love the Cockburn range and can’t get enough of the general area. You will probably note that point from the number of photographs of the range.

There were quite a few crocodiles in the general area, but we understand that none had been known in the camping ground. During the day we could see the odd crocodile across the river, so caution is recommended when strolling along the river.

Afternoon light on part of the Cockburn Range, looking from the campsite

Camping is not permitted right on the river (wise) but was allowed in an area on the other side of a track along the river. We felt quite safe as did those in the ten or fifteen other sites.

The amenities were excellent, with plenty of septic toilets and plentiful really good showers with plenty of solar hot water.

Is that a log on the other side of the river?

A very bitey log !!

Home Valley Station is a large beef producer and also has quite a few longhorn cattle as well, for a reason I was not able to discover. They do look good though, maybe a little menacing!

An impressive amount of beef !

There is a boat launching ramp near the camp and while we were there, two other campers Lana and Pete, launched their boat and went after a barramundi.

They had not been fishing long when Lana hooked one. It was an impressive display as the large barra jumped out of the water a number of times before she was able to bring it to the side of the boat and Pete expertly slid it into the landing net.

The barra was over the legal size (I believe that 90 cm is the limit) and therefore had to be put back, but not until after Lana posed for a couple of photos with the fish.

Hooked Up !

I just missed the fish jumping !

Safely in the net

This picture is going straight to the pool room !!!

To his absolute credit, Pete “swam” the fish for quite some time to help it recover before releasing it. To do this he leaned over the side and moved the fish through the water by hand. 

Bearing in mind the presence of crocs and remembering that crocs love barra, this was an impressive action.  

One more pic of the Cockburn range

NEXT BLOG

More Home Valley Station

Regards

A TASTE OF THE GIBB RIVER ROAD PART 2

FIRSTLY, I MUST APOLOGISE FOR THE RECENT LACK OF POSTS. I HAVE BEEN OUT OF PHONE AND INTERNET RANGE FOR A FEW DAYS AT BARN HILL STAION AND THEN FOR ANOTHER FEW DAYS AT A SERIES OF FREE CAMPS.

BACK TO THE GIBB RIVER ROAD EXPERIENCE. 

El Questro has a wide range of trails that allow exploration of a large part of the property. The trails are kept in pretty good shape

We started with Chamberlain Gorge, a short trip on a reasonable track. El Questro also offers boat trips on the gorge, but they seem mainly to be used by  those that arrive on the various bus tours or arrive after a vehicle transfer from Kununurra or Wyndham, I guess it’s the only way for them to see anything.

I heard a story at El Questro that they previously offered hire canoes on Chamberlain Gorge until one day when a large croc attacked the canoe of two German tourists. They were reportedly not injured. I note that hire canoes are not now offered.

Chamberlain Gorge,

Chamberlain Gorge was just another gorge so we came, we saw and we left, heading to Branko’s Lookout across quite a difficult crossing of the Chamberlain River over an area of large and very loose river stones and then up quite a steep and long ascent, but it was worth the effort.

The Durack Tree. It's my picture so I'll make it big  !!  lol

On the track to the river crossing we passed the Durack Tree, a boab blazed by one of the Durack brothers when they first passed through the area. Another photo opportunity.

Branko’s is a spectacular  lookout, gazing down on a section of the Chamberlain River. You can’t see from this shot, the two freshwater crocs lying in the sun on the banks. The Cockburn Range is in the background.

Branko's Lookout. Spectacular !

There is a trip to this lookout available from the El Questro  township, about $60 a head. These trips seem to be taken by  those that arrive on the various bus tours or arrive after a vehicle transfer from Kununurra, I guess it’s the only way for them to see anything.

 They travel in an open body built on to a Toyota troopcarrier – sounds a bit hot and scary to me, it was 30 plus degrees the day we made the trip.

A few Km further on is yet another gorge – Explosion Gorge – so named because the locals used to go fishing there with said explosives, (what old mate Rick Stubbs would call “expanding bait”) – I’ll bet they caught plenty.

Explosion Gorge. Pity I Don't carry a few grenades !

After a hard day’s trail driving is was nice to return to our campsite and just sit and relax with a drink and the camera.

Relaxing in the shade. You can see the swing out kitchen in this shot.

I was able to get quite a few nice shots including a Little Corella that was part of a screeching gang of around 200 that came wheeling in at least twice a day and zoomed around the surrounding trees creating bird mayhem before screeching off again. Also found a small flock of Double Barred Finches scratching in the dirt of the track. They were very flighty and it took me a long time to get this shot.

A Little Corella.

A Double Barred Finch. For some inexplicable reason, this finch reminds me of Phil Koperberg !

That night after a very pleasant dinner under the stars, again accompanied by regular visits from the insect eating bat and some strong rustling in the surrounding bush (probably a roo) we retired only to be woken again around 3am (and again later) by another dingo, this time with a deeper and longer howl – eerie but not unpleasant.

Later that morning we tackled Saddleback Ridge – I had heard it was quite a difficult track and there were a couple of warning signs.  After crossing the Pentecost once again we came to quite a steep and loose track up through a few switchbacks and ever upwards to reach the ridge top and  along the ridge to the lookout over El Questro  and its surrounds.

Part of the track to Saddleback Ridge

The spectacular view of El Questro and surrounding country from Saddleback Lookout.

A great view and worth the effort – although I don’t know what would have happened if we had met someone coming the other way while going up or down, in those circumstances you just hope the other driver knows what he / she is doing.

I did make a call on the CB before going up and again before going down, it’s a sound practice that has worked for me before.

Saddleback Ridge is also offered as a sunset  trip in El Questro’s open backed troopcarriers – it would be even scarier and dustier than the trip to Branko’s Lookout, probably costs about $80 a head as well!.

Saddleback Lookout from the banks of the Pentecost River.

A shallow crossing of the Pentecost River heading out of El Questro. No real reason to put this in, I just like it !!

Back to the campsite for lunch and a relaxing afternoon.

COMING NEXT

Home Valley Station

Regards

TJ

A TASTE OF THE GIBB RIVER ROAD PART 1

This trip we had decided to do something a little different, leave the van at Kununurra  and hire a camper trailer so we could explore some of the more remote areas, in this instance a trip along the early stages of the Gibb River Road from the top end.

The Gibb River Road is an unsealed road of about 700 Km running from near Wyndham in the north to Derby at the southern end. It was originally constructed to take off thousands of cattle from the many large stations and transport them to  the meatworks at Wyndham at one end,  the export facility at Derby at the other end, or elsewhere.

Many off-road and semi off-road caravans make the 600 odd Km trip but our van is not suitable for that type of travel on the rough and very often corrugated road. 

Those with Hema maps of the Kimberley will, no doubt, remember the cover photograph of the Pentecost River crossing with the Cockburn range in the background. One of my aims on this trip was to get a shot of the Patrol (and me) at that crossing.

We had taken a day trip once before down part of the Gibb to El Questro and had been impressed by the views of the Cockburn Range, the rivers and the surrounding country. This trip we planned to stay at El Questro for a few nights, then move on to Home Valley Station a little further down the road for another few nights, and then go to Drysdale River Station.

We arrived in Kununurra a couple of days early and used the time to re-stock our food supplies and buy a few extras for the different type of camping that we would be undertaking. 

We have previously stayed at the Lakeside Caravan Park Kununurra and did so again, securing a very nice and quiet site on the lake. As usual, the bird life around the lake was prolific and I spent many hours chasing Kingfishers, Crimson Finches, Blue Winged Kookaburras  and many other birds around the place. One evening I was becoming annoyed at the constant woofing of a dog, to then realise it was a pair of Barking Owls having a chat!

It was slightly daunting to realise that we wouldn't have the home comforts that we are very used to in our caravan - no aircon, no lounge, no fans, no microwave, no  large fridge / freezer and, for Rob particularly, no shower and toilet.

I had set up the Patrol to support this extra trip, with the trusty Waeco fridge / freezer on its slide out, the dual battery system,  boxes for additional food etc, some tinned food just in case, a box containing  a  range of recovery gear, a box of tools and a number of  rechargeable camp lights, we were well prepared. I will be more than happy if I finish this trip without even opening the box with recovery gear.

We were due to pick up the camper trailer at 10 am and were there right on time. An inspection of the trailer found it was very sturdily put together and had, in fact been built precisely for the type of roads and tracks found around the Gibb River Road. It was dust proof, thanks to a clever method of sealing and was fitted with or contained absolutely everything we needed for the trip down to linen, cooking gear, items like a torch, batteries, matches, detergent and tea towels, table, chairs and whatever tools may be required.There is also a large dustproof storage area

It looks to be quite compact, but is very spacious when set up. This sized unit woul be ideal for a fanily with two or three kids. It weighs around 750Kg. Check out the maker ;

www.downundercampers.com.au

 

Hooked up and ready to go

A quick lesson on how to put the unit up, some time to pack our stuff away and we were on our way. It's highway from Kununurra to the Gibb River road turnoff (about 55 Km) and the Gibb is sealed through to the El Questro turnoff (about 33 Km) where it becomes a bit corrugated in parts with loose stones with a couple of creek crossings thrown in over the 16 or so Km.

We decided to take a private camp spot on the banks of the Pentecost River six or seven Km up from the El Questro township, far better that the general campground. It turned out to be a great choice.

Our private site was right on the river, isolated, well away from the track, quiet and very peaceful

You can see that the camper trailer, when set up, is quite spacious. The bed is in a raised section in the trailer, with storage underneath. There was another annexe that we could have used, but we were happy with the basic setup.

Down river

Up river, including a small swimming hole at top

Views of the bend in the Pentecost River from our campsite. We did not see a single person the entire time we were at the campsite.

The small "swimming hole" was an area where the river stones had been placed to dam  a section, creating a small hole about the size of a spa. There were no holes in the vicinity that would hide a crocodile.

It really was an idyllic spot, nice just sitting and reading, listening to the never-ending sounds of the river and the large numbers of birds. There were a few animal pads through the tall grasses and a couple of times we had a startled wallaby walk right into the camp, only to charge off noisily into the surrounding scrub.

Our dinner was accompanied by a small insect-eating bat that came swooping by at regular intervals feeding off the insects that were attracted to our light.

Sleep came easily and we slept very soundly until about 4am when we were woken by the chilling sounds of dingoes howling quite close by. I have no fear of dingoes, they're only dogs after all,  but Robyne was quite frightened at the time - I guess it's partly the dingoes bad press and partly the fact that it was a completely moonless night, also fear of the unknown.

I can imagine the consternation that would have been caused had this happened while  we were camping with our grandchildren (as we do every January). I can just imagine Annalise and Krystal, Amy-Rose and Lauren rushing in to their parent's bed after the first eerie howls, it would have been hilarious. I'd also hazard a guess that my daughters Donna and Leanne would be a bit nervous as well !

I went out the next morning to see where the dingoes had been and found their tracks on the dirt track about 80 metres from our camp.

Dingo tracks, a fairly large dingo at that!

We were to have a visit from one or more dingoes ever night we stayed there

At breakfast the next morning we discovered that something had been eating our fruit. My guess is that it was a possum.

After a leisurely breakfast we checked out the brochure provided by El Questro and decided to explore many of their attractions, but that's another story.

Part 2 coming soon.

Regards

TJ

We're Back From The Bush

We're back from our taste of the Gibb River Road.

We hired a camper trailer from Kununurra and travelled to El Questro, Home Valley Station and towards Drysdale River Station. 

Our account of that trip will have to wait while I catch up with the blogs I have fallen behind on.

My last blog  concerned Kakadu. 

After Kakadu we drove to Darwin for a few days and while there caught up with my nephew Marc and his family (hi folks).

We then returned to Katherine and I again caught up with old friend, Bureau of Meteorology star, sailing legend, flash shirt wearer and ace forecaster Kenn Batt. 

We whiled away a Saturday afternoon with lunch and a few drinks at the Katherine Club - a fine establishment.

Then it was time to hit the road again and head west towards WA, with first stop being Victoria River (NT) and the first sight of one of my favourite trees- the Boab.

Short and fat slim and tall and everywhere in between, all shapes and sizes are there.

Often looking more dead than alive, the Boab is equipped to survive extremely harsh conditions.

Boabs are not always round and squat, many are slimmer and upright, many have a distinctively Entish look (LOTR afficionados will understand !)

Known by the local indigenous people as "godawon", the Boab is plentiful. It may provide them with a source of water in its hollows, its leaves are made into bush medicine and the white powder within its pods are used as food.

The Victoria is a substantial river and the reason for the loaction of the roadhouse and attached caravan park is that they are situated near the old Victoria River crossing. It must have been quite a difficult crossing when the river is up, but we found it to be relatively easy to cross the day we visited.

The old Victoria River crossing. After bumping across , intrepid motorists are faced with about 50 metres of track before it just finishes with bush. A wasted crossing these days !!

Today's high level crossing

Blue Mountains residents may recognise the Shaws Darwin Express truck. They are often seen coming and going on the Great Western Highway











We decided to stay for two nights so we could make another attempt to shoot the Purple Crowned Fairy Wren, found in the cane grass thickets along the river. We have previously tried and failed. The area is a known crocodile habitat, so that rules out exploring along the riverbank. Additionally, snakes are quite prevalent and the lack of any clearly defined paths / tracks through the cane grass makes walking through there a bit hazardous. 

Just driving in through the cane grass is interesting, although this trip the track was a little wider than previously.

Part of the home of the Purple Crowned Fairy Wren taken through the windscreen. When the river floods, the wrens take to the surrounding trees and return to the cane grass when the river drops.

We were unsuccessful once again, here is a shot of one taken from a captive breeding programme.

As you can see, a personal shot of this magnificent wren would be worth the trouble - 

Oh well, maybe next time !

No reason for this pic, I just like it. Taken on the banks of the Victoria river

Another shot of the Victoria River, looks peaceful, but don't even think about a swim!!

Having toured the area extensively we left Victoria River and headed to Kununurra WA via Timber Creek, a run of around 350 Km.

Timber Creek does not have a great deal to recommend it, there's a roadhouse with fuel and normal roadhouse type food and a servo,  a few houses and little else.

The servo's diesel was about 10 cents a litre more than the roadhouse, glad I chose correctly.

The border inspection when crossing into WA is quite strict. Absolutely no fruit or vegetables may cross! We'd been through into WA a few times before so we knew what to expect and had eaten our fruit and veggies down until we had about tow apples to declare (and lose).

Once, a few years ago they even confiscated a fruit box that I had packed some books in.

The inspection people are unfailingly polite, but quite firm

Kununurra's principal claim to fame is, of course, Lake Argyle and the Ord River scheme. The dam impounds some 18 times the capacity of Sydney Harbour (or 18 Sydharbs) that equates to around 8 million 600 thousand acre feet of water. If it was ever to floodto its maximum it would impound the equivalent of 70 Sydharbs

As a complete layman in these matters it does seem to me that there is a huge amount of water available but not the amount of irrigation / food production one might expect. 

Kununurra also features one of the largest Boabs I have seen, giving me another chance to publish a large pic that coincidentally shows the Patrol and caravan  as well.

One of the largest and healthiest Boabs we have seen, on the Highway at Kununurra (No, it's not a trick shot, the tree is huge !)

A couple more pics;

Kununurra also has a population of Comb Crested Jacanas. I don't kow they get around with those long legs and huge feet.

 

The Crimson Finch is also prolific in the Kununurra area. Its range is confined to the top of Australia

 An Azure Kingfisher in the early morning light. He was just outside the caravan

I'll post this now and get busy on the next blog which will deal with our adventures in a hired camper trailer along part of the Gibb River Road.

Regards

TJ