Purposeful Meandering Around Remote WA - Week 4

Wow, it’s already week 4 of our remote WA adventure, why do holidays go faster than working days?

Saturday started like all the others except there is no such thing as a sleep-in in a caravan park and the heat of a swag. We tried our best to stay in bed till 7:30 but so much was going on around us. We accomplished the remainder of our washing and finally the car repairs were completed. We headed downtown mid morning and found the local markets in full swing. After a quick look around we spied the Mango vendors, Broome grows a lot of Australia’s mangos so they’re always in plentiful supply. When in Rome, we had to indulge in some mango smoothies. Having been to Broome previously there isn’t many tourist sites that we haven’t seen but we spent a couple of hours meandering around town checking various spots. The one that always gets a laugh out of us is the jail positioned in the Main Street, residents can often be heard yelling at tourists as we gawk from afar. Down at the Port we found a cruise ship had docked for a days sightseeing around Broome. Back in town we spent the afternoon replenishing our food stocks in anticipation of the weeks ahead. As sunset loomed late, we met up with our travelling buddies for a postcard perfect fish n chips on Cable Beach, our backdrop being the Indian Ocean, camels parading past us as the sun set over the horizon. Back in the van park an early night for all of us as tomorrow is moving day.

Sunday, just like clockwork we were back in the swing of packing up and being on the road by 8:00am. We had a full days driving ahead of us as we made our way to Port Hedland, the road is repetitious and the scenery is very mundane. We had 700km ahead of us and my travelling buddy is renown for having a snooze when she’s in the car, true to form Leonie was out within 60min of us starting. Pushing down the highway, just before lunchtime we stopped at a roadhouse. The queue for $2:42ltr diesel were 8 cars long at each bowser, thankfully we had enough fuel and just wanted to stretch our legs. Back on the road it was about 3pm when we arrived in Port Hedland, we grabbed a couple of sites at a caravan park before heading out to do a bit of sightseeing. Port Hedland is like Port Kembla but on steroids, the ships are bigger and twice as many, the trains are 200+ carriages long and BHP looks way bigger. Sadly the whole town is coated in an iron ore dust which doesn’t make it very appealing. We loitered around town checking out a few different sites before meeting up at a vantage point overlooking the tidal flats as today was the first opportunity to witness the “staircase to the moon”. This crazy phenomenon relates to the outgoing tide trapping water in puddles on the sand flats, as the moon rises over the horizon it gives the effect of a natural staircase leading to the moon. 6:46pm with hundreds of people watching, nature did its thing. Personally it wasn’t as good as we’d previously seen in Broome but nonetheless it was a great spectacle. Our long day finished with dinner and a hot shower back in the van park.

Monday and once again we were on the road, one of our team had opted to head to Karratha for some mechanical repairs while the rest of us headed to Karijini NP. Our 3rd car would catch up with us in a few days after his repairs are completed. The road to Karijini is littered with mining sites extracting iron ore, this means loads of 4-trailer road trains to pass and a couple of times we had to stop for oversized heavy haulage trucks. Arriving in Karijini NP around midday we headed to Dales Gorge where we explored a few gorges and swimming holes. The vista of the area we explored was amazing, it had flowing creeks and waterfalls cutting through iron rich canyons. As the day drew to an end we shared a family moment with our son back at home who was celebrating his 19th birthday today. With no accommodation available in the NP we opted to head outside the park boundary where after a short detour off the bitumen we found a great free-camp with only one other camper. It was great to get back to bush camping, a campfire and a million stars watching over us.

It was sad leaving our bush camp on Tuesday morning, we’d really jagged a great spot. With hindsight we’d have made that our base for our three intended nights in Karijini, but when the “no vacancy” sign is posted for any form of NP camping and van parks outside the boundary only have limited sites available “you grab what you can”. Our first stop in Karijini NP today was Hancock Gorge, we’d read so much about Kermit Pool that we headed straight there. This grade-5 walk had us cautious as we weren’t really prepared for hiking but the beauty in photos we’d seen had us compelled to see it. Ladders and a equally steep walking track quickly had us in the gorge, for those of us who do canyoning it was an easy traverse through the gorge. At one spot appropriately named we had to “spider walk” along a tight cliff wall to remain dry. We passed a few people heading out of the gorge but we seemed to be the only ones heading inwards. As we reached Kermit’s Pool the vista of this slotted canyon with its deep reds and browns was amazing and the best part was “we had the place to ourselves”. For way too long we sat and photographed this beautiful spot. Returning to the top via the same route was equally as fun. Back on the plateau we rehydrated before doing it all again, this time down into handrail pool. This canyon wasn’t as spectacular as our morning walk but the pool at the end, appropriately named “handrail pool” has a handrail aiding you around a short drop and into the pool. We took a few photos before clambering out the same route we came in. After lunch we headed to Joffre and Knox gorge, Joffre was very picturesque but was in need of more water so we opted not to transverse it. However at Knox gorge there were signs warning of the risks as the track and gorge were dangerous. Like bees to honey we were drawn to the adventure and it didn’t take long before we dropped very steeply down a goat track of broken ironstone rocks. The decent into the canyon was approx 150m in elevation before it opened out into a progression of rock hopping pools and water traverses. Once again the vista was amazing and photos didn’t do it justice. By late afternoon we’d made it back to the cars and onto Tom Price for accommodation for the night. We quickly setup camp in the local van park before exploring this mining town that never stops.

We woke to our first drops of rain for the trip on Wednesday morning, sadly the forecast didn’t look promising. We slowly packed up but not before a hundred or so pink galahs joined us for breakfast and with a little coaxing I had them eating Rice Bubbles out of my hand. The light rain persisted as we headed around to the western side of Karijini NP, the positive part of the rain was it dampened the dust and we made quick time to Hamersley Gorge. Setting eyes on this place for the first time was amazing, the rain had cleared, the sun was out and it brought out the amazing colours and folds in the rocks. We made our way to the base of the gorge and watched as some brave people took a swim. Back on the road we’d seen everything we wanted in Karijini so started heading towards Carnarvon and straight into heavy rain. Red dirt roads quickly became sloppy slippery mud skate rinks when they’re wet and we had a few wild moments on the muddy roads. Thankfully, after a couple of hours driving we reached the safety of bitumen and my white knuckles could return to normal. Pressing on it was mid afternoon when we reached the Nanutarra Roadhouse, the rain was still falling and with nearly 400km still to Carnarvon we decided this place was perfect for an overnight stay. The rain eased enough that we could setup ensuring we added a few extra tarps in anticipation of a gloomy night. With the roadhouse having 5G coverage we were all set for State of Origin. We took advantage of the roadhouse’s hospitality and liquor licence as we sat glued to an iPad hoping of a Blues win. It’s funny the looks you get when no one else around you knows what SoO is and you’re yelling at an iPad…… Great win for the Blues.

Thursday, an overnight drenching had us packing up wet gear which is never fun. Once on the road heading south it wasn’t long before the rain starts again. Looking either side of the road it was obvious we’d had a lot of rain in the past 12hrs and more was predicted as a weather front blows across the Gascoyne area from the Indian Ocean. Sadly we get an email advising Steep Point roads are closed due to pending weather and hearts sink as potentially another spot is out of our grasp due to the weather….. How can the dry season be so bloody wet this year? Pressing on, water is starting to pool across the floodways but it doesn’t create too much of an issue. By lunchtime we’d arrived in Carnarvon and we’re grateful to see the sun out. We took the opportunity to dry out our camping gear and have a lazy look around town. Around 6pm our 3rd vehicle rendezvous’s with us and we each share the stories of our separate adventures. Garth having to get some vehicle repairs and a days fishing charter while we had fun in Karijini NP.

Friday, we finish week 4 with a lay day in Carnarvon, it’s a good opportunity to catch up on some washing and restock the fridge/freezer. We head into town and as with every town, we try the local bakery….. this one isn’t bad. The morning offers clear warm skies, we check out a few tourist spots before meeting up with everyone at the Carnarvon Space Centre where we learn about the importance this place played in monitoring NASA’s space missions from the other side of the planet. Leaving the space centre we quickly return to camp as more wet weather is rolling in, the local Councils have updated the road closures and our scheduled timings for Steep Point have been put on hold due to the wet weather. We need to wait till Monday to see what happens with roads being re-opened. We spend a lazy afternoon at the van park dodging the rain scrawls. Tonight’s dinner is Garth’s recently caught fish and chips. Week 4 ends with so much uncertainty on how the weather will impact our coming days.