Back tracks, detours and short cuts... Something about them just seems exciting! The moment we look at a map and spot a route around, through or over an obstacle, that thin dotted line, zig-zagging its way across the page, hinting of a road less travelled, a world less touched. You calculate the distances, scope for ideal spots to camp, stock up with supplies, make allowances for unexpected events and most importantly, have an early night before you leave. And with your dreams full of what might be to come over next few days, an adventure is born. We left Kununurra to fulfil a promise we had made to visit a spot we had missed on the Gibb River Road. But going back the way we had come seemed a little dull, especially when the potential to call past some amazing locations along the way was on offer. So with a rough plan drafted and a hunger for exploration to feed, we left the black top at the first opportunity we found. We headed down Parry Creek Road which very loosely follows the Ord River. After a quick stop at Ivanhoe Crossing we meandered our way through towering escarpments and came out at Parry Lagoon. It was here we discovered an isolated oasis which supported a huge range of water birds, Ashlyn was in paradise. We counted 25 different species of birds in this small lily covered pool of water, it was absolutely amazing. As the sun got lower in the sky we drove to Wyndham and travelled up the windy road to Five Rivers Lookout. From this vantage point we could overlook the massive expanse of tidal river systems that dominate the landscape. It must be amazing to see this place in the wet season, the sheer amount of water running off the land to meet the sea would be phenomenal. By this time the sun was setting fast, so we quickly found an overnight stop on the side of the road south of Wyndham. The next morning we couldn’t resist stopping in at Parry Lagoon again for some more bird watching. I still can’t believe how rich the diversity of bird life is here, it’s amazing. Between where we were then and our final destination lied the largest land formation in the East Kimberly region, the Cockburn Range. The back track, once an old stock mustering route, called the Karungie Track, would see us circumnavigate this mighty range. It was along here where much of the movie ‘Australia’ was filmed and if you have ever watched it you would get an idea of the impressive scenery we saw passing our windows. With winding rivers and expansive salt plains combined with the epic range dominating the horizon we could see how this place could inspire stories of the bygone mustering days. After encountering more than our fair share of bull dust we settled down for the night by the banks of the Pentecost River and tried to take in the day that had been. We rose early to make the most of our next day as we again travelled along the Gibb River Road to the place we had missed, El Questro. Although this place wasn’t quite our usual taste with its upmarket restaurant, bar and tours, there was no doubting the stunning beauty that could be found in the spring fed gorges around here. Our first stop was Zebedee Springs where we were greeted with a lush jungle of palms and ferns to be then wooed with warm crystal clear water that ranged from 28 to 32 degrees. A hot tub in paradise! We then walked down one of the less visited gorges to get away from the crowds which was quite pleasant. Unfortunately we made the mistake of leaving our binoculars behind where we went for a swim meaning I would have to make the few kilometres back and forth again. A mistake I do not want to make again! Our next days walk would take up the beautiful El Questro Gorge which has more pools of crystal clear water, only this time being a little more refreshing. I think the best part about this gorge is the fact the halfway point is marked by a lovely swimming hole followed by a rock which is quite hard to scale. This leaves the much prettier end pool and water fall to the more adventurous, away from the crowds. We spent quite while up the end of this gorge captivated by the amazing clarity of the water. It was almost as if the water were magic the way it shimmered in the light filtering through from the tall gorge walls above. After that we drove around some of the parks 4wd tracks which included some very nice lookouts and a good way to end a busy few days. Emma Gorge was next on the list which we visited on our way out. Again blessed with superb clear water, ferns all around and droplet waterfall, this was the biggest of the swimming holes El Questro had to offer. With tall gorge walls on three sides though, the water was a bit chilly. Mother Nature always seems to have a trick up her leave though and this time in the form of a deliciously warm hot spring sprouting from the rock face to one side of the pool. She ever ceases to amaze. We said goodbye to the Gibb for the final time and made tracks for Purnululu National Park, also known as the Bungle Bungles. We arrived there, after an overnight stop, keen to get out and explore the strange dome shaped structures that make this place so famous. Being perhaps a little too eager, we plotted out a 12 km walk which took us 5 hours in total over what was the hottest part of the day. Not our smartest move I will admit, but walking through the orange and black striped Bungles was amazing. We had a well-earned rest at Cathedral Gorge, a place where sound comes to life! Hot and sweaty, we made our way back to camp and freshened up with a hot shower from the car which made everything better. Then, to finish off a big day, the sunset lit up the Bungle Bungle Range in the most magnificent shade of deep orangey yellow. It was that night, whilst deciding on what we would be doing for the next month or so, we spotted another dotted line running across our maps leading to Central Australia… A short cut! With a place to be in only four weeks time, we were fast running out of time to visit some of the destinations we had planned for this leg of our trip and had to cut something out to make everything fit. It was a hard call but we opted to cut the top end of the Northern Territory out for this time around and go straight to the middle of Aus via the Tanami Road, donned the longest short cut in Australia. So with a new plan and a promise to visit Darwin next dry season we got up early to squeeze in the northern end of Purnululu NP. On this side of the park we were met with a towering range that rose high above the surrounding spinifex plains. Both of our walks saw us trek up dry river beds made entirely of round river stones and as we got closer and closer to the gorges the rock got bigger and bigger. We then reached the narrow gorges and we found the source of the stones, the walls themselves were made of the river stones themselves imbedded in sandstone left behind from a river which flowed 500 million years ago. Talk about making you feel like a tiny blip in the Earths existence. In the first of the gorges we found an oasis of ancient palms clinging on to existence in the shelter of the gap in the range, remnants of a wetter time. Next we wandered up the much narrower Echidna Chasm which at points completely blocked our view of the sky above. It was as if someone had torn the rock apart leaving a clean break which ended rather abruptly at the end. Both spots were stunning and we spent a while lying on our backs staring up at the sky above whilst seeing who could make the longest echo. Once again we climbed back into the Defender to feed our curiosity of what might be in store for us on this great desert road we would soon be thundering down. We stopped in at Halls Creek for supplies and a road report before setting off in a cloud of dust. Our first stop was at the Wolf Creek Crater, the location for one of Australia’s better known horror flicks. A movie neither of us had actually seen but we read up on the basic plot on the drive out. I think I’m kind of glad we haven’t seen it to be honest after reading how gory it was and needless to say we wouldn’t be accepting any help from strange old men without due caution. The crater itself was very impressive and you could imagine how much force must have been involved in carving a hole of that size in the ground. It was quite strange really in the middle of the sparsely vegetated plain with no other major landmarks visible nearby. It was here we hoped to get one of those dead quiet desert nights with billions of starts lighting up the sky above us. Unfortunately we were joined on that night by some backpackers who were out to party at the expense of the entire camp grounds pleasure and lit a quite large camp fire. Even when asked to keep the noise down they refused quite rudely and continued on as they pleased. What goes around comes around though and the next morning we may of went out of our way somewhat to make plenty on noise as we left in the morning. What was even better was the applause and encouragement we got whilst doing it from the crowd of the other campers there. It was hilarious! It certainly made our morning after a bad night much better and we were grinning from ear to ear as we drove back out to the main road. From there we travelled into the Tanami Desert and were quite surprised by what we found. First of all the road was in exceptionally good condition and was a dream to drive on. Then there was the low vegetation that we passed through along the way. It was like nothing we had seen before and the diversity in such a dry place was astonishing. Although appearing a dull greenish brown to the unobservant, the low scrub was dotted with stunning splashes of vibrantly coloured wild flowers. Almost every colour of the rainbow could be found along the roads entire length with the odd open spinifex plain dotted thousands of tall termite mounds as far as the eye could see. That night we were sure to find a camp far from anyone else and finally got to see more stars then we had ever seen before, Ashlyn’s mind was blown. We still didn’t get to experience the dead silence though as the creek we camped next to was where all the nearby cattle and donkeys spent the night. Oh well not to worry… they were still better fellow campers then the rude French people…. With Alice just a hop, skip and jump away we powered though the last section in the Tanami and made it in time to catch the very end of the local markets which was cool. Even better was the fact we met some very inspiring fellow vegans who were handing out the tastiest little cup-cakes to passers by. We were in heaven when they told us that fellow vegans get unlimited cup-cakes! They even gave us a little to go box with a few to take with us but they didn’t even last the 2 minute walk back to the car they were that good. It was so good to finally actually meet some people with the same interests as us and connect on that level. And now as I sit in our tent rugged up to the max trying to keep warm I ponder, how many more little dotted lines will we follow as we slowly make our way down to Adelaide over the next month? I think it’s time to get that map out again….
Posted on: Mon, 05 Aug 2013 12:23:22 +0000
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