Friday 19 July 2013

3 July – 6 July 2013 – Gibb River Road (El Questro)



It was so cold this morning that again we laid in bed for as long as possible.  When Josh and I finally got up, we woke the kids and moved them from their own beds and into ours so that we could start to pack things away.  Maddi came around and wanted the kids to play, so up they got and went out into the warm sunshine.  We eventually pumped up the tyres and made our way in a northerly direction.  We sent Shaun and Liz a few messages while we had service, arranging to meet them later in the day to start the Gibb River Road and asking them to pick up a couple of supplies for us along the way.  On our way down The Great Northern Highway on our way to the Bungles Bungles, I noticed a fantastic boab tree that was half missing so Josh marked it on the GPS for stopping at on our way back out.  We stopped at this lovely boab tree at March Fly Creek for a few photos before continuing to Turkey Creek for fuel.  It took a long time here to fill the fuel tanks - their system was crap where you couldn’t fill past $99 worth, which doesn’t work for us when we need $200-$300 for full tanks.  Josh gave them a piece of his mind on their service before we continued on.  We stopped again at Don Doon for fuel as this was the last garage before beginning the Gibb River Road (GRR).  Mid afternoon we met up with the Harris family (who were coming from Kununurra), we took a few photos of the road signs and started our journey.  The road was bitumen until we reached Emma Gorge, but the corrugations were ahead of us.  We pulled over and the guys let all the tyre pressures down before pressing on.  We were travelling along the corrugations at a maximum of 30km/hour before coming to Moonshine Creek.  I had wanted to take photos from the other side as Josh drove across but although the water was scarce and shallow, I still had crocodiles on my mind so gave it a miss.  There was one more river crossing before reaching The Station and that was across the Pentecost River – it didn’t seem as bad as in pictures but Josh assures me that there is another crossing of this river nearer to Home Valley.  It was after sunset when we pulled up at The Station - just in time to see a trail ride of horses arriving back.  We booked in and then, in the dark, had to find somewhere to set up camp.  The night temperature here wasn’t much different to that near the Bungle Bungles – it was bloody cold at night.  We sat up for a few drinks outside, and although we had long pants, jumpers and jackets on, we couldn’t get warm enough.  Maybe we were now just accustomed to the lovely northern weather such as Darwin?

We had booked in for a few nights here at El Questro as there was so much to see!  We were in the cars by late morning after deciding what to do for the day.  We stuck to the north western side of The Station out past the Durack Boab and bound for Branco’s Lookout via another fairly low and dry crossing of the Pentecost.  This was a pretty steep low range climb to the top of the track but so worth the effort.  Once we arrived at the top, we had a spectacular view of the Pentecost River and beyond.  In the distance we could see the El Questro Homestead sitting very high and pretty overlooking the water’s edge.  It was stunning and very hot, fortunately there was a little bit of shade whilst we cooked up lunch whilst checking out the breathtaking views and watching the crocodiles below.  We got talking to other travellers whilst here, before heading back down the mountain for a quick look at Explosion Gorge (although the road right in was closed) and then to Branco’s waterhole, where Josh and Matt pulled out their fishing rods.  Josh was standing too close to the water’s edge for my liking but he figured the crocodile we saw in the distant (not sure if it was a saltwater or freshwater) couldn’t jump up the small rock he was balancing on.  No luck in the fishing department but we did catch a bit of a tan.  We made one final stop in towards Chamberlain Gorge where we found the boat tour departure point.  The kids had a great time throwing rocks into the river from the jetty whilst the adults enjoyed a cold beer.  We ended our day back at camp and went for a swim in the safe section of river near to camp.  After a quick change, Sami and Olivia went to reception to join in on Junior Rangers where they did some craft, learnt the bushies way of how to start a fire and then got to eat lots of marshmallows over their fire – and in the meantime us adults were preparing dinner for the night.  Our night ended with a game of Family Trivial Pursuit – good for a few laughs but the night air was bitter again.

Friday, we opted to do the Zebedee Springs (which is only open until noon) followed by the well-known Emma Gorge today.  We took off to Zebedee Springs leaving Liz and Shaun behind to sort a few family matters out and hit the short road to this lovely place.  Once we got there it was only a short walk from the carpark up the hill to the Springs.  There were people scattered everywhere in the small pools and trickling waterfalls of water.  It was quite full and there wasn’t much room for us to plonk our butts but it didn’t take long for people to vacate areas and we ended up with a great spot at the top of all these pools in the crystal clear, and mighty warm, water.  The Harris family turned up before too long and we made some room for all 8 (plus an additional boy, Lucas) to fill our tiny pothole of water.  It was before lunch time when we departed the Springs and hit the corrugations once more until we reached the Emma Gorge Homestead.  As we drove into this additional El Questro owned property, the surroundings were same same, but different to El Questro.  It was smaller but lush and green and it had a large restaurant and bar area right near the reception with picnic tables in the grassed shady area alongside.  We pulled out our rice paper rolls for lunch and went to sit at the picnic tables for lunch.  Upon cleaning up our mess, we got appropriate shoes on, packed the water and donned on our hats and hit the track bound for the Emma Gorge waterfall.  The track was first surrounded by long grasses, followed by lots of small rocks and a path which followed the creek.  The kids decided to race off ahead while us oldies took our time and enjoyed the views.  The rocks gradually got bigger but we still didn’t’ manage to see the kids slowing down ahead.  The bright orange cliff faces surrounded us and the waterholes appeared more frequently.  Shaun and Liz slowed down behind us (probably enjoying the peace and quiet) while Josh and I caught up to Sami and Olivia who had lost Matt and Zoe ahead – Sami was extremely concerned for Zoe’s safety at this stage and on the verge of tears with worry.  A few kind words and cuddles consoled her and it wasn’t long before we caught up to Zoe sitting on a rock waiting for the rest of us.  Matt on the other hand had continued along the “blue” track and beaten us all to the waterfall.  All in all our walk took about an hour from one point to the other of Emma Gorge and every step was beautiful – the sun was shining down, the reflection off the rocks and water holes was lovely and the serenity of the place was surreal.  We also crossed the path of many other tourists doing the same walk and it was nice to say your g’days or stop and have a chat.  The actual waterfall was running but it wasn’t heavy.  The shady side of the cliff faces surrounding the pool were covered in leaves and moss which was very pretty.  The floor of the plunge pool was all rock and there were big rock overhang sections above the pool too – it was very pretty.  The kids climbed up the rocks on the right side of the plunge pool where they found hot spring water coming up from the rocks and forming a small pool of water that then trickled down into the main pool.  They spent most of their time giggling in the top pool having an absolute ball.  The signs upon entering here all stated that it closed at 3pm so by around 2.30pm we were on our way back out of the gorge.  Again, Matt and Zoe raced back to the car, whilst we stayed on the heels of Sami and Olivia to get them back safe.  Back at the carpark we had a bit of a look about the reception, restaurant and small shop to fill in some time before grabbing ice-creams and fighting our way back to the El Questro campgrounds along those mighty corrugations.  We decided to drive up to Saddleback Ridge Lookout to enjoy the sunset tonight and what a site it was.  Branco’s Lookout was amazing but this Lookout took the cake.  It was a really slow climb to the top of this mountain and we had to pass the group of horse-riders on their way down the hill.  Once we reached the top, there was a viewing platform and only a couple of people to contend with for the best view.  We weren’t there long before it was time for the sun to set and you had to be quick to get some good pictures as the sun disappears behind the horizon very quickly.  The 360 degree view that surrounds you from this lookout is magical!  It was worth every effort to get to this point!  After showers and dinner tonight, we all settled in for another game of Trivial Pursuit in the cold night air.
We woke up Saturday morning without any aching muscles from our big day of walking yesterday.  Josh went down to the reception area to extend our stay for an extra night, see about booking into dinner (a night off from cooking!) and at the same time asked about the other walks that would lead to great sites.  I thought we were going to walk into Amalia Gorge today but when Josh got back to camp he announced that the best one to do was El Questro Gorge.  I’d previously heard that this was the hardest of them all… excellent – we had a challenge on our hands, especially taking the kids with us!  The Harris family were tossing around the idea of hiring an electric boat to float down some rivers today so we went our separate ways.  The El Questro Gorge turnoff is not far back across the Pentecost River but there was also another water-crossing to get through which was even deeper – about half a metre high.  We took it slow and steady and it really wasn’t too difficult.  It didn’t take us long to get there, tie our joggers, pack our water and set off.  The first 30 minutes of this walk was a blue track again, but mostly through rocky creek beds, followed by areas of mini palms, across planks and over fallen trees  – that is until you come to a lovely waterhole, perfect for swimming at.  However, to get further into this gorge you actually had to wade through the waist height water whilst holding everything above your head to avoid it getting wet.  The depth was actually higher for the kids so Josh and I carried their clothes across and they swam to the big boulders that we had to climb out of in order to get to the next section.  Josh,  thankfully, was able to climb out first.  I passed everything up to him to keep it clear from the water and then he literally held the kids hands and yanked them up out of the water one at a time and onto the first level of the three ledged boulder.  Thankfully, he was still there to help me out too as I couldn’t do it on my own.  Majority of walkers stop at this point and now we see why.  We decided to leave what we could, such as the kids’ clothes, here at this boulder mark as it was pointless carrying it further when we had heard there were more water crossings.  The markers also changed colour from this point – it was no longer a blue walk, but instead a red track!  Yes, it became even more difficult.  We were gradually climbing higher the further that we walked into the gorge and the rocks became bigger and harder to climb or find a way around.  The kids were coping remarkably well even though there was the occasional stumble.  As we kept on along the track, we passed aboriginal rock art, had to scale around a large rock over the top of a waterhole and also had to scale up the side of a small waterfall – thankfully we all got through it safely.  We had the benefit of shade throughout a large part of our hike which helped us not to tire too quickly.  After two hours of a rather quick hike, and only passing one other couple in the gorge (they only went as far as marker no. 14 out of the 17 markers) we finally reached the main waterfall.  I was so proud of the kids for making it all the way in!  The waterfall was flowing and we had the place to ourselves.  The water was a little cool but I’d swum through many waterholes in my clothes along the way, so what the heck – I was going swimming!  We all had a dip but the kids didn’t stay in too long.  They were more interested in opening the Twisties, the only food that we’d brought in with us.  Josh and I on the other hand swum over to the waterfall and climbed a little way up – it was fantastic to have achieved such a big walk without injuries or complaints.  However, then we had to make the trek back!  I had warned the girls that they’d just done the easy part – the two hour hike in and now they needed to keep their concentration to stay safe on the way back out.  Our legs were all feeling it on the way out, it was more of a downhill and we really needed to use our balance and thigh muscles to stop us rushing down the rocks.  On our way out, we passed one other couple that were nearing the main waterfall, and then further out there was one other family that also had two (older) children.  They were at the point of scaling the side of a small waterfall so we just encouraged them to keep going.  We found the clothes that we’d left near the first challenging waterhole.  Here, Josh decided to jump off the rock instead of climbing down the massive boulder.  Once he was down, I passed him the small bags and kids clothes and then helped the kids to get down into the waist high water again.  Thankfully the walk out was a bit quicker than the walk in as it only took around an hour and a half.  Josh and Zoe went off ahead while I stayed close behind Sami and she followed the markers to find our way out too.  Back at the car, we celebrated this massive walk by finally having some lunch and then driving just down the road.  There was a billabong nearby but we weren’t sure how far away it was or whether it was worth visiting.  Josh waved a passing car to a stop for information.  They wound their window down – only for us to notice a couple who we had previously met at Banka Banka and Daly Waters Pub.  After a quick discussion with Graeme and Sharon, we thanked them for the advice and offered to catch up for a drink back at the pub.  When we arrived back at the van, the Harris family was nowhere to be found so we headed straight for the showers, then did a load of washing, and then headed to the bar while the girls went to Junior Rangers.  Graeme and Sharon soon met up with us for a few drinks and were hanging around for dinner so sat with us for the night.  It was around 6pm by the time the Harris’s returned – they’d driven back to Kununurra for a last chance to stock up on supplies before continuing on our journey along the Gibb River Road.  I was thankful that they’d also bought another case of wine to stock up my own supply too.  We all had a fantastic night sitting by the outdoor campfire, enjoying the great country music, and eating some great food that we didn’t have to cook!  Thankfully it didn’t seem as cold tonight – but that could have just been the wine….

































































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