THE BUNGLE BUNGLES
We pushed on next morning and stopped for a while in the little town of Halls Creek. The girls skyped their cousins who were down in Perisher for the annual Shirley ski week and it was lovely to see all their beautiful, excited faces squashed together in front of the screen!! Then it was on to Turkey Creek, where we stayed two nights so we could access the Bungle Bungles.
These marvels are in the Purnululu National Park, which has been a world Heritage area since 2003, because of its incredible natural beauty and outstanding geological value. 'Purnululu' is the Aboriginal word for sandstone and the Bungles are composed of sandstone deposited about 360 million years ago (pretty young after being in the 1,800 million year old Kimberley)...... makes you feel like a mere dot on the timeline!
To access the park, it was a long and bumpy 53k's along a dirt road, which crossed a private cattle station, ‘Mabel Downs’. We had seen this property pinned up at the Kimberley School of the Air in Derby, as the children at this station were enrolled at the school. It's always a buzz when you actually get to see where these stations are and get some sense of how huge they are.
From the visitor centre at the National Park entrance, it was another 27K's of more rough dirt to get to the Bungles and there were cattle roaming along some parts to add to the degree of difficulty. It was mating season and the bulls were all rather fractious, head to head, horn to horn, fighting for the females.
You really have to work hard out here to reach these amazing destinations!! AND it was HOT- 39C on the mercury and hotter walking around amongst the rocks. It was worth it though. They truly look like enormous beehive domes and ironically, the spinifex grasses surrounding them exuded a delicious sweet smell of beeswax.
Over the past 20 million years, erosion by creeks, rivers and weathering has carved out these domes. It was fascinating to learn about the orange and grey bandings, which give them such a distinct identity. Some of the areas of the sandstone have higher clay content than others. These areas hold moisture, allowing cyanobacteria to grow, giving rise to the grey bands. Others have less clay and have dried out too quickly for the bacteria to grow and the oxidised iron compounds in the stone result in an orange band.
There were many different walks in this park as there were also some beautiful gorges and chasms to explore. We did the Dome walk and the walk to Cathedral gorge, which was very beautiful, but could not do more as we were all melting. Poor little Bella was as red as a beetroot and it took a lot of encouragement to keep her going. Sas was a real trooper and won the Shackleton award for her endurance! A rest in the shade of this amazing amphitheatre recharged our batteries for the return journey.
On our way back, we had our first flat. We had driven the 27k from the Bungle Bungle range back to the visitor centre, along dusty, rocky roads and several creek crossings. We had stopped for some cold drinks - out we hopped and Bella alerted us to the sound of escaping air. Yep, our first puncture, in the sizzling heat!! It was amazing we had come this far without one. Luckily we were in the best spot it could have happened. A very kind man (who was travelling indefinitely), helped ‘Shackers’ change the tyre. It is just the outback way, with everyone stopping to help each other. “Wanna hand mate?”
We drove the rest of the way home, battling to see. We had the setting westerly sun in our eyes and the dust from vehicles ahead. We arrived safely and it was heaven to have a cool shower and fall in a heap!
More photos of the Bungle Bungles
KUNUNURRA
The following morning, we journeyed on to Kununurra, a little town of the eastern Kimberley. The main features of Kununurra are the extensive waterways including the Ord Irrigation Scheme and the ancient rugged landscapes of the Kimberley ranges that surround it. The incredible abundance of water here makes it the perfect environment for farmland and crops. One day, Dan took the girls to explore to some of the local farms. We enjoyed a mango smoothie under the mango trees at Ivanhoe Farm, where we also picked up some fabulous local fresh salads, veges and fruit from their cold room.
We are really into Chia seeds so it was amazing to see that this is where they are grown! Australia is the biggest exporter of Chia in the world.
We also found a little gallery selling beautiful artefacts carved from rare Kimberley stone. This stone occurs naturally and has the most amazing colours and patterns, some like rainbows and other like Zebras. It is mined here and is the only known place in the world where it can be found.
Another crop booming here is Indian Sandalwood. Harvesting is planned for 2013 and if a success, the export of the oil and the timber will be another profitable resource for Australia.
One afternoon we also took a boat Tour of Lake Argyle and the Ord River. We saw amazing birdlife, some crocs and had a fabulous guide who gave us a sense of the vastness of these waterways.
We stopped at a little river camp and were treated to homemade pumpkin scones and mini carrot cakes for afternoon tea.
The cruise ended with sunset aboard. We then went for a beautiful dinner of BBQ barramundi at the Ivanhoe Farm meeting our new friends Noel & Joy (without planning we have bumped into them on the Nullarbor, Albany, Tom Price, Derby, Kununurra, and then Keep River!!!)
More photos of Kununurra
EL QUESTRO – (Gibb River Rd, Eastern Kimberley)
Next we ventured back onto the Gibb River Road from the eastern side and stayed for three nights at the marvellous El Questro Wilderness Park.
As it was the end of August and peak season here was nearly over, the crowds had moved on and we found it peaceful and quiet. We were lucky enough to have a private campsite called ‘Mopoke’, right down on the Pentecost river, with NOBODY in ‘coooeeee’ of the site!!
The girls played on the river bed and had an art experience making their own ochre and painting the rocks. Earth art at its best….
Every morning we woke early and visited the heavenly thermal springs at Zebedee - our spa in the outback! We loved this place. It was surrounded by Livistona Palms, giving it the feel of a rainforest, but with the sheer surrounding cliff faces of red, 1800 million year old King Leopold sandstone. Sas described it as “It was like we had been read into a book”- so magical. One morning we were the first there and had the whole spring to ourselves. A great shoulder massage and an epsom salt bath all provided by Mother Nature!
We walked the beautiful El Questro Gorge, one of our favourite walks on the trip so far. Because the trail passed along a deep, narrow gorge, flanked by sheer sandstone cliffs, it was mostly shaded. We LOVED the lush, tropical vegetation and crystal clear swimming holes.
Most of the walk was over river stones and rocks, sometimes requiring clambering over high boulders. At halfway, this pool was a refreshing dip. It was heaven to feel cool as it was again 37C and incredibly humid.
We also drove out to visit ‘Home Valley’ - another nearby station, to have the famous V8 burger at the Dusty Bar. This bar had been developed by Nick Bradley (our host in Broome), so it was essential that we checked it out to sink a beer in his honour!
We drove up to a nearby lookout of the east Kimberley Cockburn ranges - the very place that Baz Luhrmann had stood when he decided this was the place to film his movie ‘Australia’. It was easy to see why.
One day we also climbed to the top of Emma Gorge (a separate resort, but also owned by El Questro). It was about an hour each way in the hot blazing sun, so we enjoyed a swim in this huge freshwater pool and discovered a Water Monitor (type of goanna, Bella called it a Water Thermometer!!) doing the same.
More El Questro photos
We were then treated to a lunch of local Barramundi at the restaurant ‘Emma’s’, before heading back to Kununurra for a few more nights.
In Kununurra, we stocked up our fresh food supplies at the local Saturday farmer’s market and visited the Waringarri Aboriginal Art gallery. This is the oldest Aboriginally owned gallery in Australia and supports local artists. We bought two paintings by an elderly woman who had spent her whole life on the Ivanhoe River and in the stone country of the east Kimberley. After so many stony walks through river beds, they had special significance for us!
More Kununurra pics
After so long in WA, we crossed over the border into the Northern Territory,
heading to Katherine, staying one night at the Keep River national park on the way. We met up with our friends Noel and Joy who are such a kind and well-travelled couple from Rockhampton. We had a beautiful spot and explored some rock art and some Aboriginal middens, (rock shelters that have evidence of food supplies such as shells and animal bones.)
More Keep River pics
The highlight of Katherine was a day spent at the Top Didj Cultural experience and Art Gallery, where we had an authentic Aboriginal guide, Manuel, who taught us how to paint, start a fire from scratch and to throw spears and boomerangs! David and Bella tried their hand at desert dot painting and Sas and Dan learnt the art of painting turtles, doing cross hatching with a reed from a billabong.
We then spent the next five days in Nitmiluk National Park (Katherine Gorge). Nitmiluk means ‘place of cicada’ and was named by the traditional owners of this land, the Jawoyn people. It is believed the cicadas in the trees making the repeated sound of ‘nit, nit, nit’ was how the name was born. We also did a little research on this history of how the land in this area was returned to its Traditional owners. It was the unrelenting work of Vincent Lingiari, an Aboriginal Rights activist in the 1960s that started this process.
We caught up with lots of travelling families we had met previously. The Ramkes, (grain farmers from SA) and the Campbells ( ‘motelliers’ from Nowra). Sassy has a look-a-like: Ellen Ramke! It has been lovely for her to have a friend her age.
We all enjoyed the resort pool and cranked the air conditioning in Tilli to escape the unbelievable heat and humidity. (40+) We met a new family from Lennox Head who were really into gold and gem fossicking. It is an art we thought was mostly a thing of the past, but apparently it is still very much alive with clubs of people with expensive detectors all scouring the earth for treasures!! Alistair showed all the kids his bounty that he had mined on his journey….Bella is determined to now find a nugget of her own!
We enjoyed a cruise on the gorge and were reminded by this croc trap, complete with pig head as bait, as to why it is swim at your own risk! We decided to stick with the resort pool……..
We took a day trip out to the beautiful Edith Falls and walked up through the bush to a beautiful waterfall and swimming hole.
We did the Loop walk back via hilltop lookouts and across some creeks and had another refreshing swim in the lower pool before an ice block on the way home. The heat was unbelievable.
Beautiful views from a sweltering hike up to the lookout at Nitmiluk Gorge.
A great visitors centre with a little museum
And some dinners by the poolside including Barramundi baked in paperbark and lemon myrtle. SO YUM.
More Nitmiluk photos
Then it was off to Darwin with a one night stay at Douglas hot Springs on the way. At night, we were inundated with cane toads hopping everywhere, so we locked ourselves in Tilli with the air con blasting and played cards. They are so gross! We found one in David’s croc the next morning. They have become such a problem that the locals now have ‘Cane Toad Mustering‘ nights to see how many they can kill in one go……
The Douglas springs were sites traditionally used by Wagiman Aboriginal women for sacred ceremonies initiating young women into womanhood. No men were allowed in the area unless they were bringing food to the women, OR, if they were so old and blind they couldn’t see, but could still play the clap sticks for the ceremony. At times, the springs are still used by the Wagiman women for ceremonies today and are closed to the public from time to time. Dan and the girls tried to talk Shackers into bringing bacon and eggs down to the riverbank for them, but the only thing reminiscent of tradition that morning was Bella painting herself with ochre and performing her own tribal dance!
These pools are so hot in some spots that you can’t even put in a big toe. We found some warm areas early in the morning and had a soak.
More Douglas photos
Then, it was off to Darwin, better known around here as the ‘Top End’. We arrived and settled in to a three bedroom apartment in the lovely suburb of Parap. It was like Christmas watching the girls run in so full of excitement at the prospect of a staircase leading to a second level of bedrooms and couches and so much space!!! It’s amazing what 5 months in a caravan will do to the appreciation levels. We drove out that afternoon to collect Mum/Jo/Grandma, (David’s mum) from the airport. The girls put on their best dresses and even perfume and were so excited. From here, we will include the guest blog entry written by Mum/Jo/Grandma, recounting her 5 days with us….
DARWIN 6 - 10 September 2010
After what I consider a very cold winter here in Sydney, I was so happy to feel that blast of heat that greets you when you step off the plane in Darwin. It’s a little like opening the oven door. But I was happier still to see the beautiful faces of David, Danielle, Saskia and Bella They are all simply glowing! I knew I missed them – that’s why I met them in Darwin – but I didn’t realise how much. The girls greeted me with kisses and hugs and presents – so sweet. They have a rule that the first one to spot the visitor gets the first hug. I think I got three at once – David, Sass and Bella – Dan was ‘hovering’ in the car outside.
We went straight to the Parap Village Apartments (thank you Mikey Bracher) where the Shirley’s had already moved in. They parked the caravan just outside in the car park so they had access to everything there. It was the best of both worlds – they could get to anything they wanted in the caravan and have the luxury of a lovely two-story three-bedroom apartment (with laundry!). Parap Village was just across the street which made shopping and take-away coffees easy. We were greeted on our first night there by a mother possum walking along the fence with her ‘baby’ on her back.
Everyone was a bit tired after their travels, so dinner out was the only option. And a good one it was – at a beautiful Thai / Indian / Nonya restaurant not too far away – Hanuman.
When you are with the Shirley’s, you hit the ground running. Everyone was up early – the girls at the table doing their schoolwork, David dropping the caravan off for a service – and breakfast was either outside under an umbrella or inside under the fan. Bobby and Tophy live very close-by so the girls and I walked over to say hello and spend a little time there before we were picked up and went into town for a few chores and a swim in the Wave Pool for the girls and David. Dan and I sat in the shade and talked and talked and talked.
The day had slipped by so quickly so we rushed back to the apartment to change and go to Bobby’s for a family dinner. This included Bobby, Hattie (Tophy’s mother), Christopher David (up from Melbourne for a few days), Sophie, James, Leo, Ivy Rose, Rachel, Harry and Mia. Bobby had spent the day cooking (lasagne) for all of us and it was a splendid dinner!
*** mum needs to send us photos
The Paspaley pearl room (yes, Bella, they are real) was fantastic. Thank you Petey Bracher for arranging!! The little lecture by Richard about the company’s history and about the pearls themselves was fascinating. Ask Bella and Saskia anything – they know it all. The sorting room is mind-boggling – just the number is incredible. I saw a few I wouldn’t mind having. Are you reading this, Peter?
And then to the Mall where we girls got manicures and pedicures and we looked for things we needed and bought things we didn’t.
And then to pick up Bobby and go for our beautiful Darwin Harbour Sunset Cruise (thank you Bobby and Tophy) with Tophy at the helm. One of the things I love about Darwin’s weather is that it stays warm in the evening. It cools down a little – maybe to 30 degrees – and you get those beautiful tropical breezes. Sipping champagne and eating dinner on the “Alfred Nobel” while watching the sun set is a little like paradise.
Say the word shark and everyone thinks of Sydney or Perth. Say the word crocodile and you think of Darwin. So a trip to Darwin wouldn’t be complete without a cruise up the Adelaide River to see the jumping crocodiles. The water looks a bit like milk coffee so you can’t see more than a few inches down. This is perfect for the crocs – they can hide. So when you first see one rise up to the surface right near the boat, you shiver. They are very big and very ugly and they jump very high. I hope David puts the video of them on the blog.
Night markets seem to be de rigueur in tropical cities – the weather lends itself to people strolling and eating while strolling and shopping while strolling and eating. So after drinks with Nick and Sarah Bradley (and Henrietta and Mimi) we all drove off to the markets (I forget the name…) where we strolled and ate and shopped. Bella had a hair wrap (a strand of hair wrapped in cotton thread of many colours) and we watched the passing parade – mostly teen-agers making the most of a night out.
We changed our plans and cancelled a day trip to Litchfield on Friday and instead gave in to our love of art and visited the Darwin Art Gallery. I love art galleries and am more than happy to spend hours wandering through them in any city but this one is special. It is filled with the most beautiful Aboriginal art I’ve seen – and only that. Not a Matisse or a Renoir to be seen! And it is breathtakingly beautiful. It was a joy. Because the Shirley’s have been through so much of the areas from which the art came, they were a fund of knowledge. It was like having my own private specialists giving me a tour!
There is a section of the gallery that is devoted to cyclone Tracey and its aftermath. We’ve all seen some photos and heard some stories but this really made the magnitude of it hit home. There is one room you can go into – small and no lights – where you can hear what it sounded like. It was frightening. When we got out, Bobby said “It was louder than THAT.”.
And then to Sophie and James’. They are about half an hour out of Darwin (in the direction of Howard Springs where the Cleveland’s used to live) on ten acres of land. This is so Sophie can have her horses and space to ride them. The house they are building will be gorgeous. I am going to go back up when it is finished and sit on the deck and watch the sun set with a glass of wine in my hand and horses in the distance. Rachel and Dave were there with their children so it was a real cousins night – both first and second cousins - and, as always, a delight to see them all. They are special girls, Sophie and Rachel.
It was all too quick but we did so much. The most important thing for me was just to be with them no matter what the event. Having time with them was so special. Even when we are all in Sydney, we don’t get that much one-to-one (or four-to-one!) time together. It seems like a long time until they will be home in the middle of November but they are having such a wonderful time, are learning so much about Australia and spending invaluable time with each other that I mustn’t complain. I’m so proud of them and what they are doing.
THE END (thank you guest writer Mum/Jo/Grandma)
We all felt a little low that morning having said goodbye, so to cheer us up we went to the bustling Parap markets- predominantly Asian food with some of the best prawn Laksas in town. We had Walt and Tilli professionally washed to remove the deep red PINDAN dust that we had accumulated over the past three months and had a good clean up of the van interior. David did a 20K mountain bike ride (in the 38C heat and humidity - yes, crazy!), with Mikey Bracher, then we all met up for a spin on Darwin harbour in Mikey’s boat.
It was unusually rough and a couple of times we were all thrown around and soaked by the waves, so it was a big relief to make it back to fish and chips and the Wallabies game at a wonderfully air conditioned home of Roz Paspaley. Bloody Wannabies, Wobbleies…….that’s 10 in a row to the All Blacks!!!
The following morning at 6.45am Dan rode out to East point with Bobby, along a beautiful bike track on the Darwin harbour foreshore. It is not a time she is accustomed to waking to at the moment and the humidity was so high, it was more like swimming than biking! It was worth the effort and she was glad afterwards. Everyone met up for breakfast and it was great to see Rachel for the last time.
We took a day trip to Litchfield National Park and visited the amazing magnetic termite mounds and had a beautiful swim at Florence Falls.
Our last outing in Darwin was a visit to Crocosaurus Cove - a bizarre and amazing place. Where else in the world can you see LIVE six metre crocs, feeding on pork chops in the middle of the city? Only in the Territory!!! So it was a fitting exit…
We met Burt, the croc made famous by the movie Crocodile Dundee…
And held this little fella…. Only 18 months old, but still capable of biting through to the bone, (except for the rubber band around his snout…..)
KAKADU
We then headed east to the World Heritage Site of Kakadu. One of the reasons it has gained this title, is the huge range of well-preserved Aboriginal rock art. It is estimated there are over 5, 000 sites in the park, most of them being inaccessible by road. They have four main sites open to the public, which are very impressive, but the mind boggles at how much history is out there, known only to the Aboriginal people and a select few historians and geologists.
We stayed in the little town of Jabiru, at the Aurora resort/campground, which had a lovely cool pool, great Ranger slide show talks at night by the pool and a little restaurant serving good food.
We were amazed by how much there was to see and do here, it is a place of immense beauty, absolutely brimming with mind blowing ancient Aboriginal rock art and an opportunity to learn about authentic Aboriginal traditions.
We went to a great afternoon demonstration of women basket weaving and learnt how the twine is made from Pandanus leaves, boiled and dyed in crushed ochre, roots and berries. We have become so used to buying factory made goods, it is such an art to see these very skilled women make such beautiful craft from nature and all done by hand….and in their case, also by foot!
Sas and Boo were so inspired they have set up their own little business in the van, weaving bracelets from wool and selling them to Dan for pocket money!
One afternoon, we stopped at Cahill’s crossing, a crossing between Kakadu and Arnhem Land on the East Alligator River. More croc action in these croc infested waters! As the tide changes, these cunning creatures literally line up at the crossing as the water flows in at such a rapid rate, bringing an easy fish meal right to their snapping jaws. There are crazy Territorian fishermen up this way that stand in the river and on its banks, to reap the rewards as well.
We ventured out one day on a Safari tour to West Arnhem Land. We were told that the magic started the moment you crossed the East Alligator River. It was true. A vista of stunning escarpment country, wetlands home to egrets, jabirus and other exotic birds and billabongs full of lilies. We could see small fires being lit by Aboriginal women around the billabongs - a tradition used to make their hunting of the long necked turtle easier.
Arnhem Land is remote, mostly unspoilt and full of Aboriginal communities. Access requires a permit from the Northern Land Council and they are strictly enforced, as this is Aboriginal land, with many parts considered sacred sites, still used in ceremonies today. We were permitted to go as far as the small community of Gunbalanya (Oenpelli), the site of beautiful Injalak Hill –the place of ‘The Long Tom dreaming’. We climbed the hill with our Aboriginal guide “Old Tommo” and spent the next 3 hours exploring a multitude of spectacular, ancient, rock art sites. We heard the stories behind the paintings passed down to Tommo from his elders. There is so much art in the Kimberley and the Top End as the wet season here meant Aboriginal tribes spent months living in caves and rock overhangs as their shelter, giving them time to paint. We saw rocks covered in their ‘menu’ - animals hunted, caught, then painted as a thank you to the spirits for providing them with food. Barramundi, kangaroo, turtle, magpie goose, goanna, catfish and much more……
Some of the oldest art, dated at a minimum of 20, 000 years old were the paintings of the ‘Mimi spirits’ and dynamic art forms showing them hunting.
And one of our favourites, the Kookaburra feeding its young……
We found ‘ink wells’, circular hollows, that had been ground into rock surfaces, as a result of grinding down ochre for painting and seeds for cooking.
We had a picnic lunch at the top of Injalak Hill, on a rocky outcrop with a breathtaking view. The overhanging rock was covered in art, an Aboriginal version of the Sistine chapel!
After lunch, we stopped in a cave that had been used as an ancient burial ground. ‘Old Tommo’ explained the different tools used for hunting and the grinding down of different rocks to make ochres. Sometimes, they mixed them with resins from the sap of trees for rock art, or with animal blood for body painting.
As a finale to our Injalaak hill exploration, he showed us the skull and bones of an elder that had been laid to rest in a dark chasm of the cave. We were not permitted to take photos here, but it is firmly etched in our memories!
We made our descent and on the way back, we stopped in at the Injalak Arts centre. An exhibition of incredible woven baskets and a beautiful collection of artworks on barks and canvas, all done in ochres and all images from the rock art found up on Injalak Hill. The centre provides a genuine income for the community and gives the people a source of meaningful employment. There are huge problems in Aboriginal communities all over the country, but well run art centres where profits go back to the community and directly to the artists are a source of hope. We purchased an amazing work on stringy bark, a painting of “The creation mother”.
It was an unforgettable day and a real privilege to have had the opportunity to explore such remote country with one of the best rock art sites in the Northern Territory, possibly Australia. Kakadu / Arnhem Land rock art represents one of the longest historical records of any group of people in the world.
Back in Kakadu National Park, we had days exploring the other rock art sites at Nourlangie and Nanguluwur. Trekking through the bush to some sites was like being in a furnace, so it was cold oranges, iced water and more amazing art as our reward.
One evening by the pool, we had been to a ranger talk and slideshow that explained the art, its meaning and the approximate dates they were painted. It was a great way to put them all into perspective on the time line and to understand it when we saw them in the ‘flesh’.
We also visited the Warradjan cultural centre and Bowali visitor centre - both well worthwhile with great exhibitions. You get the sense that Kakadu is successfully, jointly managed, by both white operators and the Aboriginal TOs (traditional owners) who are active board members. They affectionately refer to each other as ‘whitefella’ and ‘blackfella’!
On our final night in Kakadu we went to Ubirr - another rock art gallery with an amazing view over the wetlands and famous for its sunsets.
We have been experiencing what the locals say is an early build-up to their wet season. HOT days, so humid, the air thick, moist and heavy. That night, it was confirmed. The clouds gathered and the heavens opened, as we stood high up on the rock. We were happily drenched with a cool downpour. The sun then set in the distance - quite spectacular.
More Kakadu / Arnhem Land pics
As you can see, it has been another busy and eye opening month.
The Lap of this Big Paddock continues with the next instalment - a journey down through the centre. We are heading to Alice Springs, then onto Uluru, Kata Tjuta, Kings Canyon and more, before heading back up and across to the Northern Queensland border. We will make our way home down the east coast…
Love to all,
Over and Out!! The Fucawis xxxxx
