As I start this next episode I reflect on our adventure – wow we are soooo lucky. I can’t believe all the things we done & seen. Yet still wherever we go in this vast country there are places we have missed – the list for our next trip keeps getting longer!!!!!!

July 24th

a 2K walk around this lovely park at Fitzroy crossing and we encounter 3 Fairy faced wallabies

3 course roast dinner at the restaurant was delicious – all the better as it was only $30.

July 25th

Ugh – time for caravan work- inside & out That done we rewarded ourselves with a lazy afternoon reading. Followed by Barra & chips supper.

Julyb26th

Mimbi Caves visit – what a place. Harrison our aboriginal guide gave us a wonderful insight into aboriginal life – the place had a kind of eerie serenity – if that’s possible. We saw only a very small part of these limestone caves – health & safety would be turning somersaults on this one – we loved it – climbing over huge boulders crossing deep dark underground pools. Thank goodness for our head torches – no arrows signage or fencing here!!!  We danced around the fire introducing ourselves to the spirits, Threw a rock into the pool to enter the place.  So dark photos didn’t come out This is definitely worth a visit

onto Halls Creek

July 27th

The trip on gravel roads into Mimbi Caves dislodged the oven. The oven casing has been a problem since we had the van. Time for some Heath Robinson repairs Al la Liz!!! Success – should take a bomb blast to move it now – hopefully that’s not famous last words.

Set off to Wolfe Creek ( yes, the one from the film). We did 170k of the Tanumi Track – why would anyone do more??!!!. The meteor crater is a short steep climb up the side – what an amazing “thing” perfectly round There was a welcome breeze (actually a bit more than a breeze) at the edge.  Back at Halls Creek we spotted these Sturt Peas growing by the road.

July 28th

Ready to set off to Kununarra – not yet!! Whilst I was rearranging the car boot I stood on the tow bar – it moved!!!!!! If it moved with my weight what about the caravan weight??? Ollie took the car to the local mechanic – thank goodness just the nut loose – not the entire thing again!!

Off we go. Sometimes the things we see are not so pleasant – 4 dead cows and a piece of truck with skid marks!! That must have been some crash!!!

Passed Liz & Phil and the Adventure Wild group on the road.

In Kununarra I picked up my piece of rock that we bought last time we were here and bought another. I also picked up my Bush medicine piece of material. I will have some work to do when I get home.

We are now in Kimberland C P – sunset on the Lily Pond Lake – met the locals – a Jabaru, several crocs and a heron

July 29th

Catch up with the washing and Ollie takes the car in for another windscreen repair!!!!! This one was courtesy of a lorry on the highway but small enough for a repair.

We met up with Carmel & Rod for a lovely supper. They had been “glamping” up the Gibb River are again. Rod had persuaded Carmel to camp miles from anywhere one night – oh the horror of it!!!! They were all tucked in and fast asleep when at 1am Carmel was woken by shouting and revelry. On waking Rod he reassured her it was only the locals returning from the pub ( what locals? What pub? ) Rod returned to sleep – Carmel imagined all sorts in dark – realised the sat phone and the distress flare were safely locked in the car – she hid in the dark wide awake. Then the smell of smoke – no waking Rod!!! At day break it transpires – they were locals – the fire brigade – Rod had slept through the bush fire!!!! Can’t see Rod persuading Carmel to do anything but “glamping” from now on. well – would you???

July 30th

our long awaited seaplane flight over Kununarra, Lake Argyle, the Bungle Bungle and Argyle Diamond mine, followed by our trip down the Ord River.

what a fantastic day – picked up at 7am taken to our seaplane. Just us at first. Land on Lake Argule and pick up 2 more at Argyle Dam. Off we go again over  Argyle Lake (60 by 40 K of man made lake providing irrigation and electric for Kununarra & the diamond mine) onto the Bungle Bungle ( never tire of seeing these ” beehive” like structures. Just wonderful) Then the diamond mine. Only 10% of the diamonds are high grade but they do produce the lovely pink and champagne diamonds. Apparently they reckon the private runway will be taken up when they finish in 2020 and about $250 of diamonds will found in the lamperite used to make the runway with years ago due to modern scanning techniques. Imagine that – a diamond runway! We then stopped off a small island called Mary Durak ( the Durak family owned the land where Lake Argyle is. They were of Irish descent and walked 7000 head of cattle from Queensland in the 1800’s  – they thought it would take 6 months but it took 2 1/2 years!!! I’m reading the book of the journey – Kings in grass castles. – Only the Irish !!!). After tea on the island being circled by about 10 of the 35000 crocs in the lake we took off again. Landing at the dam to drop off Des & Janet we realised we only had 20 mins to catch the coach 11.30, to the Ord river. Our flight had been 4 hours in all!!!! Much chat over the radio to hold the coach for us. (It’s a coach full of APT people – glad we didn’t go on an APT tour – Much looking at watches, muturing and glaring at us – lovely welcome not!!!) 11.45 am on the coach – stopped at Lake Argyle Village for lunch and then off on a power boat ( it had 3x V8 engines) down the Ord. And Kununarra Lake – this leads to the diversion dam and is again man made but follows the original river bed. It feeds the irrigation channels – such a simple idea – just adjusting the flow from the heavy rainy season to make it last all year. The river is truly amazing with so much to see. We went fast, we went slow, we stopped and disembarked for tea. Finally in Lake Kununarra we stopped to watch the sunset.

Now follows a picture medley of our day. But firstly – THANK YOU TIM & CHRIS AND FAMILIES FOR SUCH A WONDERFUL GIFT – it was soooo good.

 Cathedral Gorge from the air

 Echidna Gorge from the air

 Our plane

 Natural sculpture!

 Sunset on a wonderful day

July 31st

After a walk up Kelly’s Knob –

 Fire in the distance has been raging 5 daysKununarra

– and a walk in Mirima National Park in town  Our car in the distance one little local  another larger local

we looked again at the Ivanhoe crossing and dropped into a metal art studio picking up some fresh picked bananas on the way. We then met Rod & Carmel for lunch at the Pumphouse restaurant. Lovely spot on the river recommended by a local.

Said our final goodbyes to them as they return south to Perth – poor things. Thanks for your company – we’ll meet again.

Aug 1st

off to Northern Territory to the Zebra Rock Mine – I’m like a kid in the candy shop again. It is such a fascinating stone and only occurs here around Lake Argyle ( and under it!!). Picked up a couple of bits to sculpt.

what a great tour – round the mine, a piece of zebra rock then 3 round trip hours overland with BBQ brunch by Lake Argyle. What a bumpy thrilling ride we had. Thanks Max for the tour. Great fun.

Return back to Kununarra – customs officer looks in freezer and removes a whole advocacy – frozen fruit is allowed – we think he thought we’d just popped it in the freezer to get through customs – what shock he’ll get – it was at the top of the freezer to be thrown out – it’s been with us since home and we’d only discovered it at the bottom of the freezer yesterday!!!!! Hope he enjoyed it!!!!

Aug 2nd

Our wait is over the FLP parcel has arrived – took just 14 days!!!!!! Tomorrow we set off into Northern Territory.

Another adventure begins.