Wednesday, 6 April – Day 21
Today is David’s birthday so as soon as we awoke Steve took the satphone to the bow and sent him a birthday text. This is the first birthday that we haven’t seen him since he was born 28 years ago. We then enjoyed another cooked breakfast (we are getting used to these every second day!) whilst we watched the large croc that had taken up station behind Odyssey.
At about 8.30am we boarded Homer again to head to Ruby Falls. Again, Glenn and Roy took the opportunity to head out in the dinghy to try for some more fish – they really are serious about it. The rest of us aboard enjoyed the cruise and a few of us flicked a few lures at snags along the way with no luck at all.
As Homer moored at the base of the climb that we needed to make to get to the falls we noticed another croc lurking in the water near the rock wall. They literally are everywhere! Most of the passengers climbed to the top of the falls – a steep but not too difficult climb, others opted to stay at the lower pool in a safe area free from crocs. Tricia was one of these. She is still struggling but she is soldiering on and taking every opportunity to make the most of everything the trip has to offer.
We took a refreshing swim in the pool at the base of the top falls and then followed Mark further upstream to have a look at what was there. A lovely large billabong was found atop of the falls which we explored. Finding a suitable swimming hole however was proving difficult so Steve extracted himself from the group and headed back to the upper swimming hole that we had just left. He had the swimming hole to himself and enjoyed the opportunity. Paula opted to stay with the main group.
Just before we left another group on a different tour arrived so our timing was impeccable! We made our way back to Odyssey and set sail for Montgomery Reef. We had lunch on the move and arrived at the reef just before it was exposed by the outgoing tide. Phillip Parker King named it after Andrew Montgomery, the surgeon on his ship HMC Mermaid during their 1820 exploration of the Kimberley coast. Montgomery was speared by Aborigines and was in a bad way. Somehow he managed to survive and the reef was named in his honour as a consequence.
At about 80km in length and 270 sq km in area, Montgomery Reef(more info here) is Australia's largest inshore reef and consists at low tide of shallow lagoons, sea-grass beds and occasional islets. It is uninhabited although on its eastern edge are slivers of land that are home to an enduring human mystery. Less than 1km long and 300m wide, these islands, known somewhat ironically as the High Cliffy Islands, were once the terrain of the Yawijibaya Aboriginal people. They are said to have lived there for about 7000 years and to have been physically superior and very tall people who travelled the tides on mangrove rafts.
In 1929 a documentary crew filmed these people; soon after, the entire tribe of about 300 disappeared without trace. There is no convincing explanation of their demise, with speculation ranging from credible theories such as a tsunami or war with another tribe to absurdities such as alien abduction.
We sailed down “Turtle Gully” in Homer to watch the water cascading off the crown of the reef. The water movement is incredible and created whirlpools, eddies and waves. The only thing that annoyed Steve was some inconsiderate passengers that chose to stand at the bow of Homer blocking the view of others, especially those wanting to take photos. One person in particular did this EVERY time we were aboard and we could tell that other passengers were starting to get annoyed too.
We eventually made our way back to Odyssey and set sail for Talbot Bay. The trip was a long steam and would take some time. The seas were the choppiest to date, but still no problem for all aboard. This evening we rang David using our satphone to wish him happy birthday. An early night – in bed by 8.30pm!
Thursday, 7 April – Day 22
We awoke this morning in Talbot Bay and Steve quickly took the opportunity to send a Spot Satellite Tracker message to home as we were still steaming when we went to bed.
Today is our last full day aboard Odyssey. Where has the time gone? We set off at 7am aboard Homer to visit Cyclone Creek, but we detoured briefly to visit both of the Horizontal Falls at low tide before the water started pouring through. We were able to take Homer through the narrow chasms that the water is forced through as the tide moved in and out. If the water was moving Homer wouldn’t be able to do this, but as we were at the bottom of the tide the water was (briefly) still.
We then continued our journey to Cyclone Creek. Enroute, we motored past the Horizontal Falls tourist operation that we would be visiting later in the day and watched seaplanes landing with passengers for the operation. You can fly in from Broome, ride their specially made boat through the falls and stay the evening on a room on their pontoon.
Cyclone Creek is very beautiful with large sedimentary and conglomerate formations that have been shifted and folded by the movement of the tectonic plates thousands of years ago. The volume of water that moved in as we cruised was amazing.
After our cruise along Cyclone Creek we returned to Odyssey for a short break before we set off for the Horizontal Falls. On arrival we were offered a swim in specially constructed cages where we could watch the Tawny Nurse Sharks swim and even feed them.
After the swim (our first in salt water for the whole trip) we boarded the purpose built boat that would take us through the falls. The boat is quite powerful and has three 300HP motors mounted on the back. As we boarded Eddy suggested that we take a front seat, so we did just that. The boat motored (rapidly) to the falls and when we arrived the change from when we were there this morning was astounding. The water was pumping through the first (wider) chasm. We charged through this a couple of times. It doesn’t show on photos or the video that we took, but there is a fall of over a metre from one end of the chasm to the other. Steve nearly wet himself the first time they went through!
The boat then moved to the narrower of the two chasms. This one looked even hairier. The fall between the two levels was 4 metres and most aboard were worried about how the boat, purpose built or not, would negotiate the boiling water. We were then informed that the fall was too much and we would not be able to drive through. The boat was backed into the falls and the motors were used to allow us to hold our position. It was scarier than it sounds and the volume of water following through the small gap is difficult to imagine!
Finally, we made our way over the larger falls again, back to the Horizontal Falls base, onto Homer and back to Odyssey. We set sail for Yampi Sound. As we sailed we past Koolan and Cockatoo Islands. We were able to clearly see the sea wall that was breached at the mine on Koolan Island in November 2014 flooding the mine and halting operations. Koolan Island was of particular interest to Paula as she was offered her first ever teaching position here in 1981.
At about 3pm we anchored in Silver Gull Creek and boarded Homer to visit the Squatter’s Arms, a small single dwelling settlement set up by Phil and his wife (dec) some years ago. They built everything up from scratch and have created extensive gardens. The house and grounds are now on Aboriginal lands, but Phil has been granted permission to stay.
There is a freshwater spring at the site and an old water tank remains from the days when Koolan Island used to get their fresh water from there. It has since been converted into a fresh water swimming pool which we gratefully enjoyed. We wandered around the gardens and had a chat with Phil and his mate Scott before boarding Homer to head back to Odyssey. We were treated to Phil’s “Silver Gull Salute” as we headed downstream. A unique farewell!
On boarding Odyssey we set sail for Broome. The trip would take all night and we met the roughest seas of the entire trip. It was nice lying in bed feeling the surge of the swell during the night, but some of the other passengers did not think the same way and were a little green around the gills in the morning. Fortunately, we were fine!
Friday, 8 April – Day 23
We sailed all night through choppy seas and awoke to our last continental breakfast. Following breakfast and packing up our belongings, we sat on the bow for the last time watching the landscape pass.
We settled our bar tab (apparently ours was the largest) and collected the souvenirs that we had ordered. All the passengers then settled in the galley to watch the slide presentation that Bec had prepared overnight. It was absolutely excellent and we all received a copy to take with us!
We arrived at Broome wharf at about 10am and offloaded aboard Homer as there were construction works on the wharf limiting access for vehicles. We were the first group dropped off at the Odyssey Expeditions depot. Our vans and vehicles were there waiting for us and all appeared to be in good order, although we did find a number of dead green ants in our fridge!
Glenn wanted to get Tricia to the hospital so that she could be checked over so Steve rang the Roebuck Caravan Park to see if we could check in early. We received a positive response so we hooked up the vans and set off.
We checked in and drove to our sites which were right on the bay. Reversing in was a challenge as space for turning was very tight, but we finally made it after a couple of tries. We set up water and power and Glenn and Tricia did a basic setup before setting off to the hospital. We hoped all would be good for them both.
Whilst Glenn and Tricia were gone, Paula started washing our clothes from the trip. Having the washing machine in the van is very convenient, however the loads have to be very small so washing will take some time. We quickly put together a menu list for our trip home and headed off to the shops to resupply drinks and food.
Glenn contacted us while we were shopping and informed us that Tricia would be kept in the hospital, but that she was more comfortable. We have arranged to meet Pam and Roy for dinner at the Mangrove Hotel and Glenn is planning to join us there. Karina and Luke are driving to Broome from Karratha. It’s looking like Tricia will be stabilised and then will fly home. The plan at this time is for Karina to fly with her. Glenn is considering driving the car and van to Karratha and leaving both there and flying to Perth to be with Tricia. We have no idea when Tricia will be well enough to make the journey yet.
Glenn made it back to the caravan park in time to hitch a ride with us to the Mangrove for dinner. We enjoyed a lovely meal with Pam and Roy, though the service was lacking a little. The company more than made up for that. During the evening, the weather started rolling in across Roebuck Bay. Steve had left the awning out on the van when we left and was worried that the thunderstorm might blow it away, so we made our farewells relatively early and headed back to the van. Fortunately, all was well when we got there. It did rain a little, but the storm passed around us so we ended up leaving the awning out all night.
Saturday, 9 April – Day 24
We woke up early! It seems that our body clock is still set to the early starts that were de rigueur on the cruise. We used the time to catch up on some Facebook, read the paper and make some soup for Steve to have for breakfast. Paula was still making her way through the washing and collected some items from Glenn to help him out as he was understandably spending a lot of time at the hospital.
We hit the shops again, this time for Steve to buy some fittings so that he could install a breather pipe in the sullage hose draining the waste away from the van. The shower was draining slowly so Steve decided to put his mind to a solution. We also stopped off at Woolies for a few forgotten items and then drove via Cable Beach into the centre of town for a wander around. Paula used the opportunity to look for some pearl earrings but couldn’t find anything that appealed to her. She wants something very unusual so will have to keep looking. Steve just breathed a sigh of relief!
The Saturday markets were running so we wandered up to those and only ended up buying a couple of spring rolls to eat. The stalls were interesting but there was nothing that appealed enough to either of us to make us open up our wallets.
We made our way back to our van where Paula continued with the washing and Steve set up the satellite dish so that he could watch the footy on TV (Western Derby!). The terrestrial antenna seems to be faulty so we will have to have that looked at when we get home. Steve also made the modifications to the sullage hose and it now works a treat. Steve also emptied out the car as we had volunteered to take Pam and Roy to the airport to catch their flight back to Kununurra.
The weather was really humid so Steve had a lovely shower after all of his activity, then it was a small lunch and then off to pick up Pam and Roy to take them to the airport. On the way back we stopped at the hospital to see Tricia. She is now in the High Dependency Unit and looked a little better, but it was obvious that she is still struggling. We weren’t there long before Karina, Luke and the kids arrived with Glenn not far behind. Tricia’s face lit up when she saw her grandchildren – it was a delight to see. We decided to leave to give them some family time and headed back to the caravan park, stopping briefly to grab a carton for our friend Kevin who is camped at Cape Keraudren.
Paula was straight back into washing, Steve caught up on his journal and enjoyed a beer. The air conditioning in the van is a delight in this very humid weather. Glenn made it back from the hospital in time to watch most of the football and have a couple of beers. He has been on the go since we got back from the cruise and it was good to see him relax a little. Luke and Karina joined us a little later for a nice evening. We were originally planning to leave for home tomorrow, but decided to defer our departure to see if we could be of any assistance to Glenn.
Sunday, 10 April – Day 25
We had a slower start to the day today. We decided to head over to a little café that is located at Town Beach to have breakfast. It was a very convenient 100 metre walk! Glenn joined us for what turned out to be a lovely meal and we enjoyed the view of Roebuck Bay together.
We wandered back to the van after our feed and Glenn headed back to the hospital returning at lunchtime. He wasn’t back for long when he had a call from Karina informing him that Tricia had taken a turn and her heart rate was high. He informed us before he left that she may not be back in Perth until next weekend.
We headed off to get some fuel with the intention of stopping by the hospital to see Tricia but Glenn called suggesting that it might be better to wait until her condition improved a little. Karina phoned us a little later and asked if we could see the caravan park office to extend Glenn’s stay by another day. We did just that and had no problem.
We eventually visited Tricia at about 4pm and she was looking a little better. She has been suffering from tachycardia which may be as a result of anxiety. We spent some time with her and chatted. She seemed quite calm and relaxed which was good news. We eventually left Glenn and Tricia at the hospital and drove back to the caravan park. We decided to walk to the Town Beach Bar which was open and have a drink. Once there we realised that this used to be the Satay Hut that we visited in 1989 when we went to Broome with Ian and Beth.
We decided that we needed to leave in the morning as we had to be back in Perth to meet with the company doing our renovations. We intend to spend a couple of nights at Cape Keraudren on the way. It looks like Tricia will be flown back to Perth by Flying Doctor so Glenn is staying with her till then and will hopefully catch us at the Cape.
Monday, 11 April – Day 26
The weather was again very hot and humid this morning. We packed up slowly and after a goodbye to Glenn left the caravan park by about 9am. We made good time to Sandfire Roadhouse with a good tailwind. We refuelled (147.9c/l) and made a quick lunch which we decided to eat in the car - it is air conditioned and everywhere else is too hot!
We arrived at Cape Keraudren just before 3pm. Kevin and Maree were there along with Jacko, Kevin, Lynne, Ian Badger (Roadhouse) and Shirley (Roadhouse). We said our hellos and then set up the van. Once again it was very hot. We then settled in for a few beers and a catch up.
We had a lovely shower (the van is a treat) and hit the sack early.
Tuesday, 12 April – Day 27
Steve was up early to head off to see if he can catch some mud crabs. He knows of a couple of creeks where crabs can be found at low tide. After trying the first creek with no luck he moved to the second and picked up two good sized crabs that were enough for both of us.
On his return he completed a few chores, cooked the crabs and relaxed. We had fresh mud crab for lunch along with a nice cold glass of white wine – yum. We had a slow afternoon enjoying a couple of dips in the ocean to cool off near the boat ramp. Glenn arrived at about 2.30pm and joined us for a cooling dip. Tricia was scheduled to fly out today on the RFDS, but her flight was cancelled. She might be leaving tomorrow instead now.
We enjoyed a meal with the Clarkes and Jacko which was good fun. The regulars at the Cape are doing a big camp oven meal for Ian Badger who has sold the Pardoo Roadhouse and leaves on Thursday. Our contribution will be providing nibbles.
We went back to our van to shower and get ready for bed. We heard that Tricia had another turn, so Steve went to sit with Glenn for a while to provide a little company. Her condition improved which eased Glenn’s mind a little.
Wednesday, 13 April – Day 28
We awoke early again today. Sleeping in is proving to be difficult. We had a light breakfast, then Steve decided to give his throw net a try. He has practiced throwing it at home, but has not used the net in anger yet. He has had the appropriate licence for some time so thought he would give it a go on the low tide.
Steve did well for his first effort catching a lot of small mullet for bait. Mullet were everywhere! Jacko came down after a while and showed Steve another method of throwing the net which he really liked. Once we had enough bait for Kevin Steve continued to practice but he did notice that it got harder to throw as he got tired. Glenn came down also and had a go quite successfully!
The rest of the morning was quite relaxing. We enjoyed a coffee and chatting with the others at the camp until lunchtime. As the tide was now coming in, Kev and Jacko headed off to the beach to fish. Glenn decided to try his luck with fly. We decided to lounge around a read. Our pursuit was the most successful! We packed up a little in preparation for departure tomorrow, but decided to leave the rest until morning.
That evening we enjoyed a marvellous meal over at Kevin and Lynne’s van. The food was fantastic and the company just as good. It was a cooler evening which made things much more comfortable.
Thursday, 14 April – Day 29
We were up and about by 6am and started packing up slowly. It took a little longer than we anticipated and we finally left at about 9am after farewells all around.
We made Hedland in good time and filled up at the Shell. We needed to pop into the shopping centre to get a new battery for the smoke detector which was beeping and driving us crazy. Steve also took the opportunity to get some more beer as he had all but run out. Glenn pushed on and the plan was to meet for lunch along the road.
Our stop at the shopping centre was very quick and we were soon pushing into a very strong headwind as we turned onto the Great Northern Highway. We met up with Glenn about one hour down the road and then travelled together again to Mt Robinson Rest Area, arriving just before 4pm.
We quickly set the vans up and then enjoyed some nibbles and a couple of beers. Initially we had the entire area to ourselves but later on two other campers pulled in. We had a good evening, enjoying nice dinner at the picnic table which was nearby. We were off to bed early as we want to make an early start tomorrow.
Friday, 15 April – Day 30
We were up at 6am, had a quick breakfast hit the road before 7am. Glenn is understandably keen to get home to see Tricia. We had good tailwinds most of the way which made travelling very pleasant. We travelled to Mt Magnet and arrived at about 3.45pm. Paula and I decided to stay for the night, but Glenn was keen to push on a bit further in the daylight. We wished him well and then headed to the caravan park. We were suitably impressed. The charge was $27 per night and it had many drive through bays and was very neat and clean.
Steve tried to set up the TV again using the fixed antenna and soon realised that the problem was with the antenna cable, not with the antenna itself. We walked into town to the local hardware store and were able to get a replacement cord. The owner was very helpful!
We decided to have a drink at the very rustic looking Grand Hotel on the main street. It turned out to not be very grand and was rather old and grotty. We then walked across the road to The Commercial Club Hotel and had another drink and a look at the menu. We were considering having a meal there but the menu wasn’t inspiring and was pretty expensive. We decided instead to cook tea at the caravan and watch the football on TV.
We enjoyed a nice meal of chorizo eggs and had a lovely evening watching TV, enjoyed a warm shower and then an early night.
Saturday, 16 April – Day 31
We had a slow start today as we did not have far to travel. We enjoyed a leisurely breakfast and hit the road by 9am. Again we enjoyed a pleasant drive with strong tailwinds pushing us along. We enjoyed the best fuel consumption of the entire trip.
We refuelled in Dalwallinu and pushed on to New Norcia arriving at about 2pm. We set up for an overnight stay, had a late lunch and walked over to the roadhouse to pay our camping fee. Steve managed to contact Glenn who made it into Midland at about 10.30am. Tricia is not travelling too well.
We eventually showered and headed to the New Norcia Hotel for tea. It was a lovely evening, but the mozzies thought so to, so although we started outside we soon moved inside! The hotel was busy, so we ordered early. We like to make the last meal of a trip a celebration whenever we can! Steve ordered pork belly and Paula the old favourite chicken parmigiana.
We were back at the van by 7.30pm where we had a quiet final night for the trip.
Sunday, 17 April – Day 32
We had a leisurely start to our final leg today and arrived home by about 11am. Now the clean-up begins!
Some reflections:
We enjoyed the trip immensely and would recommend it to anyone who is even remotely interested. The Kimberley is magnificent country, almost indescribable - beautiful, harsh, dry, wet, hot humid – MAGNIFICENT! It feels like home to us.
The cruise is a must do, but don’t leave it too late – you need to be fit to get the most from the experience.
Glenn and Tricia are good company. We enjoy travelling with both of them. Hopefully there will be other opportunities in the future.
The Trooper is super! We have never been so comfortable on a camping trip.
The Landcruiser is a magnificent vehicle and makes the long drives easy!
Until our next trip!
Post Script –
After arriving home we were able to visit Tricia twice more. It turned out that her condition had deteriorated significantly over the time that we were away. The fact that she held up like she did was a testament to her inner strength and desire to experience every aspect of the cruise that she could. Tricia passed away quietly in the early hours of the 21st of April. There will always be a champagne glass at our campfires in her memory. Vale Tricia.