Off the see the Kimberleys

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For all the pictures from this part of the trip: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2321085&id=16912798&l=e3d2e60f27

After being able to sleep in for 4 days, I had to get up early to leave the lovely town of Broome and head towards Darwin. Our first stop was to see the Prison Boab Tree. It was used as a "prison cell" in the 1890s by the local police to lock up Aboriginal prisoners over night, on their way to Derby for sentencing.


Our next stop was Windjana Gorge Nat'l Park. The Napier range is an ancient reef system that was pushed up into mountains. You can still see some coral in the rock. At Windjana Gorge we saw some freshwater crocs! Winjana Gorge was a starting point for an Indigenous man who ended up becoming an outlaw in the eyes of the Europeans. His name was Jandamurra and he started an armed rebellion against European settlers in the 1890s. The Europeans chased him through the Range but he knew of secret passages, one of which was Tunnel Creek. Tunnel Creek is a 750 m long tunnel underneath the Napier Range. Then off to our bush camping spot for the night... Now this is sleeping under the stars!


Today was a day of mostly driving but got the tail end of a beautiful sunset in Purnululu Nat'l Park and as a bonus we got dumplings from the fire for dessert!


Off to the The Bungle Bungles today! (Interesting fact: The area was only "discovered" by whites by a film team in 1983.) First stop was Piccaninny Creek, where we walked up the dry creek bed and got to see the Bungles up close. Next stop was Cathedral Gorge which ended in a beautiful open area! Echidna Chasm was the next gorge with some very narrow passages. Our guide, Sharpy, cooked a cake on the fire for us tonight!


We started today with a dip in the Zebedee Hot Springs before heading to Mini Palms! The last gorge of the day (and my favorite) was Emma Gorge, which was the longest hike and had lots of rock climbing! Definitely worth the hike, but the coldest water by far!


A little history on the Bungle Bungles:
Over the span of 350 million years, rivers washed sand and pebbles into the area, layer-upon-layer, and the sand was ground finer and harder together until it formed sandstone rock. Strong winds and heavy rains have eroded the sandstone away to form the dome shapes we see today. The Bungle Bungles gain their tiger-stripes from black algae growth that permeates the more porous layers of the rock, and a glossy orange build up of manganese and iron staining. Standing within these domes, you cant even begin to fathom the time it has taken for this process to occur.


Today lots of driving but we stopped at the 5 River Crossing and Lake Argyle, then we crossed into the Northern Territory, got to see a great sunset, then set off for one more night of bush camping.


Another day of driving with a stop at Edith Falls and Catherine Gorge before heading into Darwin for a what would begin a crazy time in Darwin!

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Comments

[Jenna]

Zebedee Springs - I could hang there all day :)

[Toni and Phil]

Hi Lish, Wow! The Bungle Bungles are amazing. It sounds like your trip is lots of fun with many new adventures. Take care; we miss you! Love, Toni and Phil