4 Sep 10 - Mitchell Falls

By Craig: Walk in and walk out, you reckon! It is way too hot, let’s catch a helicopter back. Yeah!


It was warm when we arrived and was going to get hotter during the walk so we were looking forward to the swim when we got there. No swimming or access allowed to the Mitchell River apparently some 40,000 year old serpent lives at the bottom of the falls but rock pools at the top of the falls are still running and a great place to cool off.


Our track in was about 4kms and a class 4 which meant a reasonable effort was required over some rocky ground.


























We had an opportunity to see the top of the falls and a number of collecting pools before we walked around to face the falls. Mitchell Falls is quite a spectacular sight with three levels each having a collecting pool.
















After seeking out a spot for photos it was time to head back to the pickup point for our heli-ride.




















The excitement was building, poor Sam was jumping up and down on the spot so excited he could hardly contain himself when we heard the sound of the chopper approaching. It was a little like one of those scenes out of MASH.











After landing, the pilot waved us over and Sam was more excited when he got front seat right next to the pilot. Now he was really smiling.









Louise was a little apprehensive but once strapped in she was smiling as well. The take off was smooth and we were quickly presented with a birds eye view of not only Mitchell Falls but the river, adjacent gorges and the surrounding Kimberly area.















WoW! What a view and what a completely different perspective being in the air gives to the area you have just tracked in on.




























Well back on the road and back onto the worst section of corrugated road travelled in our trip. After a short stop at Drysdale River Station for fuel and lunch we were within 60kms of the Gibb River Road and again the spring hanger tore away from the chassis.










This time with a lot of swearing we decided to strap it forward with a wire rope and finish the Gibb River Road and Emma Gorge before we would head back to Kununurra for another weld.























By Lou: We left camp at 7am for the 73km drive to the beginning of the Mitchell Falls walk and it took us 2 hours. We braced ourselves for a 2.5 hour walk but it only took us 1.5 hours. I’d been told there was some very good rock art along the way however I overlooked the un-signposted turnoff so we missed it. Woops at least Craig had his eye out for wildlife.


By the time we got to the plateau where the falls begin, it was nice to see the view but it was better to have a dunk in the cold water.
We found a nice little spot with a small waterfall and had a giggle and a slide and a frolic…only to discover we were covered in dozens of tiny leaches.






They didn’t mention them on the glossy brochure.







While Craig went off in search of photo opportunities, up popped the rare yellow-backed-gun-toting-rock-wallaby more commonly found in Queensland.


I don’t know why Craig thinks I was apprehensive about the helicopter flight because I wasn’t until I saw the flimsy seatbelt which was to be my only security measure for the door-less flight.
They are like the ones in a regular airplane that just flip open if you accidentally brush against them. But it wasn’t terror that pinned me upright into the seat…I was trying to stay out of the photographer’s way.

3 Sep 10 - King Edward River

By Craig: King Edward River was a place to set up camp and then leave the trailer whilst completing the 140km return journey to Mitchell falls.



















It was hot and muggy and the river had several billabongs within the camp area, time to cool off and throw Sam around.






We all enjoyed a cool dip as we looked forward to visiting Mitchell Falls and the possibility of a helicopter ride.

2 Sep 10 - Kalumburu

By Craig: The road to Kalumburu improved after passing the turn off to Mitchell Falls. We will head out to Mitchell Falls on the way back but will camp at King Edward River and leave the trailer there.

Although an improvement in corrugation the road had sections made from nasty sharp rocks: tyre killers. So caution and tyre pressure critical if we were to save ourselves from a flat or two.








The road also had a few rough sections and floodways to get through before we found our way to Kalumburu and then on to our final destination McGowans Island.
Kalumburu is the most northern Aboriginal community in the Kimberley, still sporting the mission originally established in the 1930s.




When we rocked up to the designated spot to get our permit to visit, we found some cranky locals outside who advised us that the centre wasn't open. Just coz. So we picked up a few groceries and headed out to find a campsite at McGowans Island.



Now we’re talking. What a spot, camp site almost out on the beach with beautiful views and great fishing.



















There was a great combination of time to chat with fellow campers with sunset beers on the beach, time to fish and time for Sam and others to play and catch hermit crabs which meant time for mum to relax (Dad was already in the tinny).








The fish weren’t plentiful however a catch of snapper and trevally with a shark or two thrown into the mix was fun to say the least.





Bree and Dan, a couple I had an opportunity to go out and fish with, found my catch of shark quite funny as it towed me with tinny and anchor. Never did actually see the shark but I was happy with that. On the other hand Bree had a small tiger shark do the death roll beside their tinny and on another occasion Bree brought just the head of a beautiful size fish to the boat, teeth marks and all.

Our stay at McGowan Island was a welcomed rest, sunshine and a great time which of course had to end and we found ourselves back on the road heading for Mitchell Falls.



















By Lou: There were only a handful of campers at McGowan Island and of course Sam honed in on the one with kids. Renee and Sacha, and their girls, Tenille and Jaz are a lovely family from Kilcunda in Victoria and were also getting into the relaxed vibe of the place.

At night the ground would teem with hermit crabs and it was impossible to take 3 steps without a bit of a crunch underfoot. They also gravitated to water so the kids had a field day “researching” hermit crabs.


They decided to take them to market and pranced around selling hermit crabs for “just $2”. Bargain. They were delighted when they were given 20c each by an older couple who also showed them how to run hermit crab races. Once word got out that they’d scored 20c each, other campers must have realised there was a bargain to be had, and the 20c just poured in…if you count 60c each a goldmine.

Sam and I managed to get some school done and as part of an English component about writing instructions, Sam wrote out a treasure hunt for the girls. Composing it took 3 hours, executing it took 2 minutes. Sam also wanted to play MasterChef and whipped up some crumbed chicken strips for dinner.






All up it was a lovely stop and well worth the bumps to get there. On the drive out we watched the erratic dance of a whirly-whirly cross the road in front of us.

















More sunsets...

31 Aug 10 – Drysdale River Station

By Craig: We had taken a spell from the Gibb River Road and had headed up to Kalumburu the most northern community in the Kimberly.







The road was the worst we had experienced for corrugation and rumour had it the road out to Mitchell Falls was even worse, Bugger!








An overnight spell at a watering hole, camp ground , bar, fuel and garage called Drysdale River Station allowed the bones to settle and your eyes to slowly sway back into position.
Let’s face it the corrugations were that bad in places I got nipple burns from the friction of my T shirt. In places, although you had both hands on the steering wheel, the vehicle would slide from one side of the road to the other, there was no steering. Add that to blurred vision and you pretty much get the picture and we were on the good section.






The Drysdale River itself is very low this time of the year, just billabongs remain now until the wet.