With borders finally open after Covid lockdowns, 17 escapees from around Australia gather at the Kununurra Country Club in north-west Australia for a buffet dinner at the start of a 12-day tour across the Kimberley, following the legendary Gibb River Road to Broome.
Like me, my fellow travellers are ready for some ‘soft adventure’. We’ve packed up our Kathmandu travel gear, our hiking boots and our water bottles in our identical khaki duffle bags. Some of us have sensibly included walking poles. We even have solar-powered torches to use at dark camp sites, courtesy of our travel company, APT.
The dinner is a chance for us to size each other up. And yes, we are mostly baby boomers, escaping winter in southern cities for the opportunity to see a part of Australia most of us haven’t been to. We are keen for some adventure but also want some creature comforts, the pleasure of not having to drive ourselves, and a knowledgeable guide.
Robbo is our man, and right from the start, he lets us know that going bush in the Kimberley requires us to put away our city slicker habits.
The first day starts with a hastily eaten brown paper bag breakfast, and a 5.45am start with our bags at the bus, a very comfortable four-wheel-drive Mercedes truck. First stop, a leisurely boat cruise along the Ord River towards Lake Argyle, some crocodile-spotting and an opportunity to find out more about the Ord River Scheme which some of us remember learning about in 1960s social studies classes.
The real adventure begins as we head to Purnululu National Park, otherwise known as the Bungle Bungles. There is a definite winter chill in the air as we arrive around sunset at our camp for the next two nights, but the warm greeting from the APT team, cosy and comfortable glamping tents, and a few drinks at the bar soon warm us up.
APT owns and operates three wilderness lodges across the Kimberley, each offering semi-permanent tents with ensuites in beautiful locations, good dining at shared tables, and access to some of the most spectacular parts of the Kimberley. The lodges are open to independent travellers, but most of the guests during our stay are on APT tours.
Purnululu National Park’s 350-million-year-old striped sandstone domes are World Heritage-listed, with many hiking trails along stony creek beds and through impressive chasms and gorges, Echidna Chasm and Cathedral Gorge being two of the most stunning. Our ground view of Purnululu is complemented by a fabulous helicopter flight, allowing us to see just how immense and wild this area is.
Like many on our tour, I have been fortunate to travel to many places with magnificent scenery, from Uluṟu in Australia to China’s Three Gorges, the USA’s Grand Canyon, and the Swiss Alps. Mostly, I was there with many thousands of other tourists, and even if the scenery was awe-inspiring, I certainly didn’t feel like I was having a unique experience. Purnululu National Park covers more than 239,000 hectares, and with few people visiting and living here, it is a reminder of the immensity of our world and our own insignificance as individuals.
From Purnululu, we head north to El Questro station, a place I have longed to visit, having read many gushing travel columns. Purnululu has spoiled me though, and the Emma Gorge Resort is a noisy disappointment with bright spotlights beaming all night into our tent and four-wheel drive vehicles moving around late at night and early in the morning on gravel driveways. For holiday-makers for whom shopping is obligatory, the resort store has lots of souvenirs and branded clothing, something which fortunately isn’t yet in place in the APT wilderness lodges.
If I had money to spare, the $2000+ per night El Questro Homestead might live up to my dreams, although Nicole Kidman is said to have found it not to her taste during the filming of Australia and apparently found alternative accommodation.
For me, the highlight of our stay at El Questro is Zebedee Springs. This beautiful oasis with its ancient Livistona palms offers a special reward for hot and dusty walkers, with a permanent thermal spring. Bathing in 28-32 degree waters surrounded by cliffs up to 1800 million years old is truly a special experience, with APT travellers having exclusive access. Public access is available for limited hours each day.
From El Questro, we head off on what Robbo describes as the longest (read, hardest) day of our trip, a 12-hour drive to Mitchell Falls. A candidate for the TV series on the world’s worst highways, the road into Mitchell Falls from the Gibb River Road is a four-hour bone-shaking, headache-inducing experience, even in APT’s comfortable truck. We feel very sorry for people driving SUVs that might be more at home in a city. It helps us get our daily steps up though, with our iPhones and Fitbits recording the trip as equivalent to more than 30,000 steps.
The pain is worthwhile as APT’s Mitchell Falls Wilderness Lodge is beautiful, with a fantastic swimming hole and access to the majestic Mitchell Plateau. I overcome my fear of helicopters and take two flights here, including a 48-minute flight over the stunning coast, landing on a rocky platform near the Mitchell Falls, a series of three falls. While some of the more adventurous walk and wade out of Mitchell Falls and see some incredible rock art, I take the easy route and another short helicopter flight back to the bus.
When you travel on a dead-end road, there’s always the return journey to look forward to, and so we head out on the bone-rattling Kalumburu Road again, although this time the journey is broken with walks to see some rock art and an overnight break at Drysdale River Station.
Seeing Kimberley rock art is a powerful reminder of the ancient history of this land, and its 60,000 years of human habitation. Art depicting the creation stories, art used in cultural practices, to record history, or to provide direction is found across the Kimberley, and while much of it remains accessible only to traditional owners, there is much that can be viewed by others. It provides a window into the world of the traditional owners, and an opportunity to learn about and seek to understand their connection with country. The welcome offered to visitors by the traditional owners is generous, given the sad history of colonization.
Much of the Kimberley is divided into enormous cattle stations, some more than a million hectares in size. Although a few are now controlled by Aboriginal owners, most remain in the hands of outsiders including wealthy mining magnates and American and Chinese companies.
Drysdale River Station is family-owned, and its owners now make most of their income from tourism, not cattle. It doesn’t claim to be luxurious, and I for one appreciate its more humble nature, with a welcoming beer garden, a simple but hearty meal, and adequate accommodation for our overnight stay. There’s very limited phone and internet access across the Kimberley, but for those desperate to stay in touch with home, there is a pay phone in an old refrigerator near the beer garden. We take heed of the warning not to leave our red-dirt-covered shoes outside the door to our room, as the local dingoes have a penchant for abandoned shoes and clothing.
Back on the Gibb River Road, we head towards Bell Gorge and the Aboriginal-controlled community of Imintji where our next APT wilderness lodge is located. This area of the Kimberley is where the ranges formerly known as King Leopold Ranges are located. Fortunately, the Western Australian Government together with the traditional owners have now re-named this area as the Wunaamin Miliwundi Ranges, putting an end to the tribute to the Belgian king who was responsible for much barbarity in the Congo.
There is unseasonal rain as we visit this stunning area, but we are still able to access the beautiful Bell Gorge. Swimming at the top of a waterfall is a highlight of the trip. For those doing the very steep walk to the lower pool, swimming with what was probably a king brown snake is also an experience, although one they may have wished not to have had.
We had hoped to visit the Imintji art centre, but unfortunately it is closed. One minor criticism of our tour is that we’ve been unable to visit an art centre. Many of us were interested in seeing traditional artists at work and being able to support their work with a purchase. Luckily, some of us had the opportunity to spend a morning at the Waringarri Aboriginal Arts Centre in Kununurra before the tour started.
On our final day, we visit Windjana Gorge National Park and Tunnel Creek National Park, with more stunning rock art, beautiful scenery and an unforgettable history. This is the land of the Aboriginal warrior Jandamarra, who led a three-year guerilla-like campaign against colonial police and European settlers. An astute and fierce warrior, Jandamarra is a hero to his people and immortalised in film, books and music. His leadership and success in fighting back against the more numerous and better-armed police exemplifies the importance of local knowledge and a loyal population, perhaps a lesson Americans and Australians might have heeded in Vietnam, and Putin might consider in Ukraine.
After a very long day of driving, we arrive in Broome just in time to catch glimpses of the fabled sunset. A final dinner with Robbo and our fellow travellers at the Cable Beach Club marks the end of the tour. It’s been a thoroughly unforgettable experience with just the right mix of adventure and comfort for our cohort of travellers. With the right vehicle, equipment and experience, you could do this trip independently, but our guide’s intimate knowledge of the region has provided a unique insight into this magnificent part of Australia.
While Broome isn’t formally part of our tour, many of us stay on for a few days and enjoy some more special experiences, such as watching Top Gun Maverick in the open-air Sun Cinema, drinks at sunset on Cable Beach, and a fantastic day with Air Kimberley flying over the Horizontal Falls and the Buccaneer Archipelago.
It’s a long way to the Kimberley from much of Australia, it isn’t a cheap holiday and nor is it easy. But what an unforgettable experience, one which whets my appetite to see more of remote Australia.
More information: www.aptouring.com.au
Photos by David McIlroy and Alison Verhoeven. Alison and David did APT’s 12-day Kununurra to Broome tour at their own expense.
