It was early May when Dot and I embarked on our second long holiday just 3 days after returning from the brilliant sojourn in Tasmania. This time we headed to one of Australia's most remote regions - the Kimberleys in the far northwest of the continent. This region is not just remote, but almost empty of people. It's resident population is just 35,000 people, many Aboriginal, living in an area roughly 700 km E-W and 600 km N-S (or 435 x 373 miles). Its total area is about 1.5 times the size of the UK.
There are, however, six major settlements - Broome, Derby, Fitzroy Crossing, Kununurra, and Wyndham, with Broome easily the largest and its urban population is probably a little over 10,000, followed by the port of Derby and Kununurra, which is located in the heart of the Ord River irrigation area. We visited all but Wyndham. But the main reason to travel through the Kimberleys is the breathtaking scenery, coupled with some odd cultural experiences. A succession of posts will reveal our joyful experiences.
To start with, we spent the first two nights, and the last two as well at the famous Cable Beach Resort started by a British Peer, Lord McAlpine whose memorial stands in front of the resort. His main activity was cattle raising, but he soon recognised the region's tourist potential. The resort is festooned with Chinese and Mongolian imagery - witness this horse at the entrance and, just in front of the door, a replica of the terracotta warriors from Sian.
The resort has many pathways crisscrossing adorable gardens, ponds, swimming pools and so on.
More Chinese decor - and, right, one of the lovely swimming pools.
Here's a Boab (or Baobab) tree which store water in their trunks - found all over the Kimberleys as we'll soon see.
Entrance, left, to one of the many excellent dining areas.
And the resort's main entrance/
Cable Beach nearby is a massive crescent-shaped sandy beach where I went swimming on a couple of occasions. By the way, at Broome's low latitude, the water was nice and warm! It got its name because that's where Australia was initially connected to to Indonesia via under-water cable!
What more can I say about this beach. The photos are idyllic.
Well, actually there is a lot more to say. The beach is famous for two daily events, the first of which concerns the sunset over the Indian Ocean. Hundreds of people stand of the cliff-top, lie on the beach or sit in their cars watching the sun go down and photographing the changing colour of the clouds. Here's my take on this custom.
And here, on the right are the fascinated spectators. Anyone recognise Dot? But this ritual is matched by a second crucial event. The beach is famous for its camel rides and, even more so, the rides at sunset where both dimensions can be caught simultaneously. I took a lot of shots of camels, some of which are attached here.
This 'blue' camel train is awaiting its passengers to amount. One sits on these beasts while on the ground and holds on tight as they arise on their legs.
Here's the red camel train arriving back with its passengers.
The red train is about to arrive at its station which, unlike the blue camels, has an elevated platform which makes easier to get on and off.
This is what it looks like when sitting astride a camel. Guess who took the picture!
Good! You got it in one! I have to say that it still quite a job getting seated comfortably even with a 'platform'. My mate carrying me had been in the job for two years after being captured in the deserts of northern South Australia and was extremely well-behaved.
The blue camel train arrives back in the opposite direction to us ... and the sunset is about to kick in. Oh, and here I am again taken by one the numerous professional photographers who circle the trains. One agreed to take images of me on my camera, which was cheaper.
Here I am late on our journey with the sun about to hit the horizon. The absence of cloud diminished the attractiveness of the sunset, but not the journey itself.
The experience is highly recommended.
A great start to our 9 day excursion into the wilds of Western Australia.
AS
There are, however, six major settlements - Broome, Derby, Fitzroy Crossing, Kununurra, and Wyndham, with Broome easily the largest and its urban population is probably a little over 10,000, followed by the port of Derby and Kununurra, which is located in the heart of the Ord River irrigation area. We visited all but Wyndham. But the main reason to travel through the Kimberleys is the breathtaking scenery, coupled with some odd cultural experiences. A succession of posts will reveal our joyful experiences.
To start with, we spent the first two nights, and the last two as well at the famous Cable Beach Resort started by a British Peer, Lord McAlpine whose memorial stands in front of the resort. His main activity was cattle raising, but he soon recognised the region's tourist potential. The resort is festooned with Chinese and Mongolian imagery - witness this horse at the entrance and, just in front of the door, a replica of the terracotta warriors from Sian.
The resort has many pathways crisscrossing adorable gardens, ponds, swimming pools and so on.
More Chinese decor - and, right, one of the lovely swimming pools.
Here's a Boab (or Baobab) tree which store water in their trunks - found all over the Kimberleys as we'll soon see.
Entrance, left, to one of the many excellent dining areas.
And the resort's main entrance/
Cable Beach nearby is a massive crescent-shaped sandy beach where I went swimming on a couple of occasions. By the way, at Broome's low latitude, the water was nice and warm! It got its name because that's where Australia was initially connected to to Indonesia via under-water cable!
What more can I say about this beach. The photos are idyllic.
Well, actually there is a lot more to say. The beach is famous for two daily events, the first of which concerns the sunset over the Indian Ocean. Hundreds of people stand of the cliff-top, lie on the beach or sit in their cars watching the sun go down and photographing the changing colour of the clouds. Here's my take on this custom.
And here, on the right are the fascinated spectators. Anyone recognise Dot? But this ritual is matched by a second crucial event. The beach is famous for its camel rides and, even more so, the rides at sunset where both dimensions can be caught simultaneously. I took a lot of shots of camels, some of which are attached here.
This 'blue' camel train is awaiting its passengers to amount. One sits on these beasts while on the ground and holds on tight as they arise on their legs.
Here's the red camel train arriving back with its passengers.
The red train is about to arrive at its station which, unlike the blue camels, has an elevated platform which makes easier to get on and off.
This is what it looks like when sitting astride a camel. Guess who took the picture!
Good! You got it in one! I have to say that it still quite a job getting seated comfortably even with a 'platform'. My mate carrying me had been in the job for two years after being captured in the deserts of northern South Australia and was extremely well-behaved.
The blue camel train arrives back in the opposite direction to us ... and the sunset is about to kick in. Oh, and here I am again taken by one the numerous professional photographers who circle the trains. One agreed to take images of me on my camera, which was cheaper.
Here I am late on our journey with the sun about to hit the horizon. The absence of cloud diminished the attractiveness of the sunset, but not the journey itself.
The experience is highly recommended.
A great start to our 9 day excursion into the wilds of Western Australia.
AS
