Monday, August 31, 2009
Sunday, August 30, 2009
Broome to Port Samson
Hello again,
We spent 12 days in Broome, and found it to be of a cosmopolitan nature. Whilst there, Avril got the flue & kindly shared it with me. We both had to go to the doctors for antibiotics, $79 each per visit. If your time is over 15minuits, then the fee would have been $159 per visit. Nothing is cheap here, but the atmosphere is great. we were lucky with our caravan park in Broome, our site was right next to the swimming pool which was huge & fabulous. We had our first swim in the Indian Ocean, at town Beach, & drank wine & ate nibblies on Cable Beach at sunset, whilst watching the camel trains. We also went to a pearling farm called "Willy Creek", where Avril tried on a $20,000.00 string of pearls. Unfortunately they didn't suit her, so she had to settle for a $40.00 pair of pearl earings. When we left Broome, we travelled to a working cattle station called "Barn Hill" where we stayed for the weekend. This place is situated right on the coast, & the beach is fabulous. To get there, tou have to drive for about 12 k on a dirt & sand road, which was very rough, & soft in parts. We slid around a bit, but managed to get in & out without sustaining any damage. There was red dirt everywhere, & the ablutions didn't have a roof. The atmosphere was great, and made up for the short commings of the place. On Sunday night, there was a communal roast dinner, attended by about 200 of us, & an Aboriginal band, with lots of dancing.
We had a great time there. The swimming at this place was excellent, as the beach was very nice.Then it was off to 80 Mile Beach. We stayed there for 4 days & got in some fishing, & caught fish. No swimming there. Whilst fishing, there were sharks patroling up & down the beach all the time. Once again the park was great & we got to spend a few days with friends we have met some months ago. We are now at a place called Port Samson, which is a pretty place. As this is mainly a mining area, most of the towns nearbye are fairly dumpy. (Roebourne,Cossack, Dampier & Wickham). Our caravan park is right on the coast & we can watch whales with their babies each morning. we will be here for a week, & will be doing a tour of Hammersley Iron on Friday. There is a pub just across the road, which has a balcony that overlooks the harbour, & it's very well patronised. I'll post some pictures soon.
Love to you all ,
Avril & Doug.
We spent 12 days in Broome, and found it to be of a cosmopolitan nature. Whilst there, Avril got the flue & kindly shared it with me. We both had to go to the doctors for antibiotics, $79 each per visit. If your time is over 15minuits, then the fee would have been $159 per visit. Nothing is cheap here, but the atmosphere is great. we were lucky with our caravan park in Broome, our site was right next to the swimming pool which was huge & fabulous. We had our first swim in the Indian Ocean, at town Beach, & drank wine & ate nibblies on Cable Beach at sunset, whilst watching the camel trains. We also went to a pearling farm called "Willy Creek", where Avril tried on a $20,000.00 string of pearls. Unfortunately they didn't suit her, so she had to settle for a $40.00 pair of pearl earings. When we left Broome, we travelled to a working cattle station called "Barn Hill" where we stayed for the weekend. This place is situated right on the coast, & the beach is fabulous. To get there, tou have to drive for about 12 k on a dirt & sand road, which was very rough, & soft in parts. We slid around a bit, but managed to get in & out without sustaining any damage. There was red dirt everywhere, & the ablutions didn't have a roof. The atmosphere was great, and made up for the short commings of the place. On Sunday night, there was a communal roast dinner, attended by about 200 of us, & an Aboriginal band, with lots of dancing.
We had a great time there. The swimming at this place was excellent, as the beach was very nice.Then it was off to 80 Mile Beach. We stayed there for 4 days & got in some fishing, & caught fish. No swimming there. Whilst fishing, there were sharks patroling up & down the beach all the time. Once again the park was great & we got to spend a few days with friends we have met some months ago. We are now at a place called Port Samson, which is a pretty place. As this is mainly a mining area, most of the towns nearbye are fairly dumpy. (Roebourne,Cossack, Dampier & Wickham). Our caravan park is right on the coast & we can watch whales with their babies each morning. we will be here for a week, & will be doing a tour of Hammersley Iron on Friday. There is a pub just across the road, which has a balcony that overlooks the harbour, & it's very well patronised. I'll post some pictures soon.
Love to you all ,
Avril & Doug.
Kununurra to Broome
Hello everybody,
After we left Kununurra, we took 7 days to get to Broome. During that time we had 3 nights in free bush camps, which were beside rivers. These places are great for their atmosphere & the people you meet.We stayed 1 night in Halls Creek, which didn't seem as bad as we were led to believe. In fact we quite liked it. Whilst there, we drove out to Old Halls Creek, which was a disappointment as it looked like a rubbish dump, & the road was worse than a lot of 4/wheel drive tracks. After Halls Creek was Fitzroy Crossing, where we stayed for 2 nights. The caravan park was great, one of the best we have stayed in. We saw the Prison Boab Tree, the longest water trough in the southern hemisphere, & went for a cruise on the Fitzroy river. Next stop was Derby, where the tides are over 10 metres. At low tide the water retracts past the horizon, & when it comes in, it is so fast that the water is brown with mud. The jetty at the port is a u shape, & you can drive along it to where you want to fish from. It's all one way, so there are very few problems.We then drove to Broome & had managed to book into a great caravan park, where we stayed for 12 days. It is very hard to get a good caravan site in Broome at this time of year as they are constantly booked out. I'll blog again soon, Love to you all, Avril & Doug
After we left Kununurra, we took 7 days to get to Broome. During that time we had 3 nights in free bush camps, which were beside rivers. These places are great for their atmosphere & the people you meet.We stayed 1 night in Halls Creek, which didn't seem as bad as we were led to believe. In fact we quite liked it. Whilst there, we drove out to Old Halls Creek, which was a disappointment as it looked like a rubbish dump, & the road was worse than a lot of 4/wheel drive tracks. After Halls Creek was Fitzroy Crossing, where we stayed for 2 nights. The caravan park was great, one of the best we have stayed in. We saw the Prison Boab Tree, the longest water trough in the southern hemisphere, & went for a cruise on the Fitzroy river. Next stop was Derby, where the tides are over 10 metres. At low tide the water retracts past the horizon, & when it comes in, it is so fast that the water is brown with mud. The jetty at the port is a u shape, & you can drive along it to where you want to fish from. It's all one way, so there are very few problems.We then drove to Broome & had managed to book into a great caravan park, where we stayed for 12 days. It is very hard to get a good caravan site in Broome at this time of year as they are constantly booked out. I'll blog again soon, Love to you all, Avril & Doug
Tuesday, August 11, 2009
The Kununurra Area
Hello Everybody,
The Kunun urra area is really beautiful in a rugged way. The town is built at the side of Lake Kununurra, which is really a part of the Ord River, & is very pretty. We were fortunate enough to get the number 1 prime site for our caravan, which overlooked Lake Kununurra, with an expanse of lawn between us & the lake. OnOn most evenings, just before sunset, we would see a couple of fresh water crocodiles(George & Mildred), some turtles & many fish. When the sun had completely gone, out came the bandicoots to dig & do whatever bandicoots do.
Whilst in Kununurra, we did a day trip to Wyndham. That is the nearest deep-water port to the East Kimberleys. The main street was fairly neat & tidy, but the old town & port area were a little worse for ware. Although the area looks dry & rocky, there is an abundance of water here as five rivers all enter the sea near Port Wyndham.
We also drove out to Lake Argyle, & saw some magnificent scenery on the way.When we arrived there, we watched a film about the building of the Ord River Dam.That was very interesting & set the scene for our cruise on the lake, which has been proclaimed an inland sea.At present it is 21 times the size of Sydney Harbour & has 90 islands in it. In flood,the wet season, it is 58 times the size of Sydney Harbour & has 70 islands in it.The hydro electric power station at the base of the dam, supplies power to Kununurra, Wyndham, & the Argyle diamond mine.
The Ord River irrigation scheme is impressive, but much smaller than anticipated, & no pumping is used. It is all gravity fed, so all the farms need to be laser levelled, which they do every seven years.
One day we hired a tinny with a 20 horse power outboard engine, & travelled about 30 kilometers up the Ord River & back again. It was a lovely trip
& we saw some fabulous bird life.
Love to you all,
Avril & Doug.
XXXX XXXX XXXX
The Kunun urra area is really beautiful in a rugged way. The town is built at the side of Lake Kununurra, which is really a part of the Ord River, & is very pretty. We were fortunate enough to get the number 1 prime site for our caravan, which overlooked Lake Kununurra, with an expanse of lawn between us & the lake. OnOn most evenings, just before sunset, we would see a couple of fresh water crocodiles(George & Mildred), some turtles & many fish. When the sun had completely gone, out came the bandicoots to dig & do whatever bandicoots do.
Whilst in Kununurra, we did a day trip to Wyndham. That is the nearest deep-water port to the East Kimberleys. The main street was fairly neat & tidy, but the old town & port area were a little worse for ware. Although the area looks dry & rocky, there is an abundance of water here as five rivers all enter the sea near Port Wyndham.
We also drove out to Lake Argyle, & saw some magnificent scenery on the way.When we arrived there, we watched a film about the building of the Ord River Dam.That was very interesting & set the scene for our cruise on the lake, which has been proclaimed an inland sea.At present it is 21 times the size of Sydney Harbour & has 90 islands in it. In flood,the wet season, it is 58 times the size of Sydney Harbour & has 70 islands in it.The hydro electric power station at the base of the dam, supplies power to Kununurra, Wyndham, & the Argyle diamond mine.
The Ord River irrigation scheme is impressive, but much smaller than anticipated, & no pumping is used. It is all gravity fed, so all the farms need to be laser levelled, which they do every seven years.
One day we hired a tinny with a 20 horse power outboard engine, & travelled about 30 kilometers up the Ord River & back again. It was a lovely trip
& we saw some fabulous bird life.
Love to you all,
Avril & Doug.
XXXX XXXX XXXX
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