Broome - We Can't Leave!

Why leave this lovely place.

Home at Tarangau Caravan Park.

All that cold, windy, wet weather down south is sending us a message. Stay in Broome!!!! So that my friends is precisely what we will do. We are fast becoming "locals". They know us at the weekly Customs House Markets, where Carolyn makes certain we are almost first in line to secure the best of the lovely fresh fruit and veggies. Saturday morning sleep ins are a thing of the past, but with the rewards being beautiful fresh paw paw, rock melon and water melon, herbs and salad greens fresh cut that morning, I can be bought!! The paw paw and rock melon are to die for. So full of flavour. We are almost taking on an orange glow!!

Moira & Geoff at Gantheaume Point.

Lunch at  Matso's Brewery.

Following our busy time with Jill, we were ready for rest! A phone call changed all that. Friends we met last Christmas whilst down at Busselton, called us to say they would be arriving in Broome the same day Jill was heading home. We met Moira and Geoff, along with their good friends Diane and Graeme, down at Busselton just before New Year. We gelled as if we'd known each other for years, and enjoyed some lovely times together, over the two weeks of their holiday. The four of them, with another two couples, had just undertaken a fantastic trip from Perth to Cape York, travelling across the centre of Australia. We had been following their journey by

Sunset drinks at Cable Beach.

Dinner at Cafe D'Amour.

email and on Face book, admiring some wonderful photos. Moira & Geoff decided to come home from Cape York via the west coast, to catch up with us, as well as other friends at Exmouth and Karratha. We were delighted be able to catch up again. They were staying in Broome for 5 days, managing to get a site in our caravan park. They are working their way back to Perth, and back to their business. We are so at ease in the company of Moira & Geoff. It is as if we are catching up with old friends, not new! We spent the days wandering around Broome, with we "locals" showing them around the sites. We enjoyed casual lunches, some great dinners cooked at home by the girls, and a lovely night at Cafe D'Amour. Each day we would finish at the beach, to have drinks and watch the incredible sunsets of Cable Beach. We had some wonderful times cementing a friendship that feels so comfortable. We shared stories of family and friends, of places seen and yet to be seen, and all too soon the 5 days were gone. They tried to extend their stay, but as it was school holidays, there was no chance. So sadly, we were saying our farewells, and waving them good bye, but knowing we have become friends for life and will meet again many times.

Alone again.

Cruise ship arrives in Broome.

So now, we were on our own. We cheered ourselves up with a lovely breakfast at Zanders Restaurant, overlooking Cable Beach. We got back into our routine of long walks along the beach, coffee with Vinka at Kool Spot, or out at the Town Beach Cafe, which has such a lovely setting. The town is packed. It is WA school holidays, and we have to compete for tables at our favourite spots! Kids everywhere, and more food on the floor than on the tables! There are traffic jams getting onto the beach, and our treasured sunset shots now have footballs and kids in them, chasing sea gulls! God, we've even had some good rain! Thankfully that only lasted a day, and the sun came back. To add to the chaos, a cruise ship called into Broome, adding a couple of thousand more tourists to the mix.

Unpowered sites at Barn Hill Station.

Bowls in full swing.

We took a long drive to escape the crowd. South of Broome is a popular spot with caravanners, called Barn Hill Station. It is a working cattle property that has welcomed caravanners over the years, and it has now reached the stage that the caravan park seems to be the major business! We were thinking of staying here for a few days, when we eventually leave Broome. The drive in, along a pretty rough and red dirt road, changed our mind. When we reached the

Crammed in under the trees.

The beach at Barn Hill.

campground, we were shocked to see how many people were jammed in! There was a bowls tournament in full swing, and it looked pretty serious. We had a walk around. It is pretty rough camping. They have some powered sites, but the power is varied and the more you use the more you pay. The unpowered sites are mostly spread along the red cliffs, and quite rough and dusty. It is all very basic. All of the amenities blocks are "open air", so you can literally twinkle with the stars. The stretch of coastline is dramatic, with a lovely beach,

Dramatic smoke from a fire north
of Cable Beach.

Fire right beside the road.

striking red cliffs and blue water. Like many of these WA campgrounds, if you don't fish, there would not be a lot to do. As we talk to a few locals, we find that they are mostly regulars here for a long stay, and quite anti Broome. I never understand the "anti" brigade. Enjoy places for what they are. They all have their pluses and minuses! As we rumble back along the rough red track, we further contemplate that the nearest supplies are 130kms away, so this will be a no go for us. The drive back through the rough cattle country of the West Kimberley provides us evidence that the dry season is in full swing, with smoke from fires all around, and even right beside the road. The annual natural cycle of burn and replenish is under way. The sky is full of whistling kites, swooping on the insects and reptiles fleeing the blaze.

Her Earliness on the beach.

A coffee by the ocean.

My girl is an early bird. She is awake at around 6.00am, and despite her best endeavours to remain still and quiet, which lasts around 3 Milli seconds, His Weariness is dragged from bed and we head for the beach for our morning walk. Her Earliness is quickly forgiven, as it is such a wonderful thing to do, as we join the dozens of early birds, walking alone, or as couples, or with their dogs. An early morning coffee reward at Zanders, makes it all worth while. 

Rocky was a star.

Beautiful Gourdian Finch.

A little out of town is the area known as 12 Mile. No prize for guessing how it got that name!!! This is where the local agriculture happens, as well as a few wilderness parks. Back off the main highway, the fields are lush with fresh fruit and vegetables, and huge mango trees. God we wish it was mango season! We have come out to visit a relatively new Bird Park, and what a fantastic spot it is. What else would it be called but 12 Mile Bird Park! The guy who has established the place 

A Gang Gang Cockatoo.

A South American beauty.

is a passionate bird lover, especially fond of parrots. The place is a credit to him. If you are around Broome go out for a visit. The aviaries are clean an roomy, with a pathway that winds its way from one explosion of noise to another. Australia has an amazing array of parrots, and they are all here to see. We also have some wonderful finches as well, with the colours of the now endangered Gourdian Finch, just unbelievable. There are

Aptly named moustached parrot.

South American Conure.

playful white and black cockatoos that talk and follow your every move, and galas, cockateels and Major Mitchell's that try and out screech them. Add into the mix some equally amazing parrots from Asia and some brilliantly coloured conures from South America, and our senses are stunned with colour. There is even a pair of blue and gold Macaw, the largest of the parrots from South America. We wandered back and forth among the

Cheeky Rainbow Lorikeets.

Finches and doves.

 exhibits for some time. There were barn owls and curlew. The mournful cry of the curlew is a northern Australian outback sound you will never forget once you've heard it! Different breeds of ducks and other water birds, plus many of Australia's species of doves, the list of exhibits just went on and on. We came past the aviary containing around 80 rainbow lorikeets. We have seen these in their thousands in the wild. Their chatter is

Black cockatoo.

something 

Beautiful Macaw.

to behold. Here, they had just had their water supply freshened, and were all splashing around, bathing and preening themselves, all the while trying to out screech each other. We literally dragged ourselves away from the bird park because it was closing time! The sound of those lorikeets still ringing in our ears! And we got a raucous send off from the two macaw as well.
 www.12milebirdpark.com.au Well worth a visit.

Roebuck Bay.

Camel rides at sunset.

As I write, we have just moved caravan parks. We will spend our last two weeks in Broome at Broome Vacation Village. It is a park that has a lot more permanents, but we have a nice spot. Here we have concrete slabs, rather than the grass we prefer, but the park's facilities are good and the management were most helpful fitting us in. We are further from Cable Beach, but closer to the main town and the port, and just up the road from the Golf Club, so we will be dusting off the clubs and hitting the fairways. As we have already found, it is just a short drive to the beach and those glorious sunsets. Broome just goes on and on and on.....................