Broome to Darwin 2016.

Our spot at Roebuck Bay

Our last weekend in Broome was all about cleaning up,

The Good Cartel Drive Thru.

provisioning up and packing up! The caravan and car got a wash, as did everything else that had been out in the elements. It is amazing how much dust there is! I still don't understand how the underside of the awning gets so dirty, but it does. But in a hot climate, washing things down is a pleasant and cool task! Carolyn had her list of essential  groceries, as there isn't much shopping between Broome and Kununurra, so one last visit to the supermarket was made.

The dragon boats are off!

On Saturday, Town Beach was the scene for the annual

Going the wrong way!!.

Dragon Boat Regatta. They were set up bright and early, as it was forecast to be 39 degrees! It was quite a party scene. All was ready for the first race. The crews were decked out in bright regalia and had some interesting team names, like Busty Ladies, a crew that had more men than women, all dressed in hot pink. There were the Broome Buccaneers and more!! The starter's gun sounded, and the crews in the first four boats all started paddling furiously, headed for the finish line 500 metres straight out in the bay. It was a circus!! They headed in all directions. One did a complete 360 and headed back up the beach! Another disappeared into the mangroves on the right of the bay, and the other two crashed into each other several times! Eventually someone crossed the finishing line!! Thankfully they got better during the middle of the day, but as alcohol was involved, the afternoon was all downhill. An eventual winner was declared, amidst equal amounts of cheering and jeering, and the crowds retreated to who knows where. It was a huge amount of fun.

One last coffee with Stan.

Sunday, we walked across and had our last breakfast with Stan. It was a pretty quiet morning. Stan had by now restricted his opening to Wednesday to Sunday from 7.00am to 11.00am, which was understandable, and he was obviously over it! He only had 3 more weeks before closing. We chatted for quite a while, and he told us he hoped he would sell up after next season, but who knows! He was getting ready for a weeks R&R in Sydney, first week in December, before heading back to Broome for Christmas. We asked what they did for Christmas, and he simply said "stay home!" Nothing much is open, and the resorts like Cable Beach Club, just cater for their own, in house guests.

One last visit to Good Cartel.

We decided to get up very early to try and beat the heat. It

A Kimberley local!

was forecast to get into the mid 40's where we were headed! Sunrise is currently around 4.40am! We were up at 5.00am and ready to hitch up by 5.30am, and then our plan hit a snag! Our brand new Trail a Mate jack refused to operate! We tried everything, but nothing worked. So plan B meant unpacking the boot and getting out the jack and lots of timber blocks, to get the caravan lowered and onto the car! By 7.00am we were hitched up, and heading back to Kimberley Camping to replace the jack. Of course they didn't open until 8.30am, so with smoke coming out my ears we headed over to The Good Cartel for coffee. Having already said our goodbyes to the friendly staff, they got a shock to see us back! So, armed with coffee, we headed back to wait for someone to arrive at Kimberley Camping. Thankfully they were on time and very helpful, except that they didn't have a replacement jack in stock! So we bought an old fashioned jockey wheel, and even in this regard, they only had a short one, when we really needed a long one!

Back on the road.

So, at 9.00am we finally hit the road, deciding we would get

Kimberley east of Derby.

to Fitzroy Crossing for the night. As we drove, we watched the outside temperature gauge quietly rising. It stopped at 42!! The country side was a real mixed bag. Much of it was still dry season brown and dead, but then we would drive through a patch where the storms had dumped, and the trees were fresh and the grass green. The roadside camps, always busy during the season, were empty. All along the road the evidence of the dry season bush fires was hard to miss. We even drove through some sections where the fires were still burning. It is an amazing phenomenon. The fires burn slowly, and therefore only blacken the grasses and ground covers, allowing nature to regenerate with the first sign of rain. The larger trees have their trunks scorched black, but only up around 2-3 metres, with the tree canopy untouched!

Lunch stop at Ngumban Cliffs.

We made a lunch stop at one of the well appointed

Brolga at a rare waterhole.

Roadside Campgrounds. None of them offer much shade. As we opened the car doors, it was like stepping into a blast furnace. Carolyn made us a quick sandwich, and we stood in the shade of a small tree. Small birds arrived with their beaks open. You can't help but wonder where they find water in this hot land. Carolyn provided a bowl of water and we were soon entertaining every bird in the vicinity, as well as a couple of lizards! It was a quick stop, and once everyone was finished drinking, we were back on the road. There was hardly another car or truck on the road. Sometimes, we would drive for 30 minutes or more without seeing another vehicle! Occasionally, we would see a large herd of cattle huddled in the shade at a bore, but not much else in the wildlife department. Sadly, we saw a lot of cattle hit by cars or trucks, something we did not want to experience!

Hot & alone at Fitzroy Crossing.

After around 5.5 hours we arrived in Fitzroy Crossing. This

Mostly kangaroos at Fitzroy Crossing.

is pretty much an Aboriginal Community. It is a strange town, in that it is spread out all over the place. There is no town centre. You literally have to drive 1-2 kilometres from shop to shop! As a tourist destination, it is the place to stay to explore the incredible Geike Gorge, and many people choose to drive out to Tunnel Creek and Windjana Gorge from here as well. But all that is closed now. Neither of the roadhouses are welcoming, so we decided to refuel at the truckies self serve. You just use a card, and pre enter an amount of money higher than what you think you'll need, then away you go. As I went to pick up the pump handle it was boiling hot. I had to use a glove!! As on previous visits, we stayed at Fitzroy River Lodge, a resort and caravan park combined. It is well out of town, and very quiet, both from a noise perspective as well as customers!! We now tripled the number of caravans in the park!! With the temperature gauge showing 43, we cranked up the air conditioner, which after an hour or so had struggled to get the temperature down to 30!! It is a nice grassy park, and is full of kangaroos. There were hundreds of them lying around under the shady trees. It was a quick dinner and an early night so we could get back on the road early to beat the heat.

Storm hit near Kununurra.

Today it was a long and pretty boring drive. We stopped in

Lovely Kimberleyland Caravan Park.

at Halls Creek to top up the fuel. Nothing ever changes in Halls Creek! We played a quick game of spot the white man. Carolyn cheated, and I told her I did not count!!! We gave up and went into the bakery, which is quite nice, and bought our coffees, which we took out to the shade of a tree near our car. There were storm clouds everywhere, and we had noticed a nice green tinge to the landscape, evidence of the first storms of the wet season. Things are starting to look nice and fresh. Just outside Kununurra, we ran into a huge storm. Firstly, the wind was ferocious, buffeting the car and caravan quite severely, and then the rain came! Huge drops that splatted loudly on the windscreen, until it became torrential, forcing us to stop on the side of the road for 15 minutes while the storm passed, which it did as quickly as it came! Ten minutes later we were in Kununurra, and it was dry as a bone!!

Feeding the locals.

The thing that strikes you about Kununurra is just how

Jabiru.

green it always is. There are lots of wide open green spaces and parks, that are constantly irrigated. The construction of the Ord River dams at Kununurra and Lake Argyle, has resulted in a never ending supply of water for the region. We checked back in at Kimberleyland Caravan Park, where we stayed on the way up. This time we had no trouble getting a lakefront site. It was just lovely, and we got out the chairs and set ourselves up under the shady trees, for Happy Hour. The lake is full of wildlife. Sitting by the water's edge you can see the fish and tortoises in the water, and water birds, such as the resident Jabiru, as well as pelicans, cranes, herons, cormorants of many types, brilliantly coloured kingfishers, and the big footed wader called a Jacana. These little guys are so cute, with their huge feet. The manager came down around

The Ord dam.

5.00pm to feed the resident freshwater crocodile, who loves his kangaroo snags! The Jabiru also loves them and sneaks around the crocodile trying to blindside him!! Terrific fun to watch! The Jabiru was by himself and extremely friendly, which is unusual. They mate for life and are normally quite reclusive, so the manager assumed he'd lost his partner. We stayed 4 nights, primarily because the caravan park was offering a "pay for three stay four" deal. We drove out to Lake Argyle for a look. We love Lake Argyle, where the caravan park was also deserted. But generally we just lazed around the pool and the shady lakeside.

The Black Russian Caravan.

Leaving Kununurra we headed for Katherine, this time

Toastie plus great coffee.

stopping for morning tea at Victoria River Roadhouse, because everything in Timber Creek was closed!! Turned out to be a great bit of fortune as the food was excellent, but shock horror, the coffee was instant!!! I didn't know that still made that stuff!! With a one and a half hour forward time change, our day was flying by. We got into Katherine, and this time decided to stay at a small caravan park we had sussed out on our last visit. It is the Boab Caravan Park, which is small but beautifully laid out and maintained. The big drive thru sites are all concreted, and they keep the lawns watered and green. With lots of Mango Trees and Gum Trees offering shade, it was a lovely spot. We were only there overnight, but we will be back!! In the morning, we decided to do breakfast on the run, and Carolyn had done her research! We headed for the "Black Russian Caravan", a great initiative by two young girls from Darwin. They are set up right outside the Visitor Information Centre, with heaps of parking for cars and caravans. They keep it simple, and offer a variety of Toasties, with a great choice of fillings, as well as cakes and great coffee. There are rugs and cushions under the trees as well as milk crates, stools, and little tables to sit at. Really tasty and cheap!!

In Darwin under Storm clouds.

Three hours drive and we were back in Darwin. It is 4 years

Poincianas in full bloom.

since we were last here. We went back to the same caravan park, The Free Spirit Resort, which is still fantastic, with a huge resort pool, and large caravan sites, all set amidst tropical gardens full of palms and Poinciana Trees, which are in full bloom and spectacular! The temperature had gone down into the mid 30's, but the humidity has ramped up to be 90% plus. Two steps and you are wringing wet!! We stayed a week and it just flew by. We really liked Darwin last visit. It is a modern, vibrant place, with a strong Asian influence. We noticed lots of new housing estates, so it is growing quickly. Mostly we did some retail therapy, to do some Christmas Shopping, and stay out of the heat and humidity! The wet season is well and truly on its way, and we were welcomed with a huge storm on our first night. It was awesome, with lots of lightning and thunder and a deluge! In fact, we only had one day when we didn't get at least one storm. The storms were very localized. We would be driving in bright sunshine, and then just drive into a wall of water!!

Magpie Geese everywhere!!

We sought out Parap Village, a trendy little part of Darwin

Breakfast at Parap Market.

with gourmet cafes and food outlets. There were new choices from last visit, and found The Laneway which was bustling everyday, and after our first visit we understood why! Great food, and coffee, with excellent service. You really notice it back in a cosmopolitan town. Where we have been for the past 4 months, the service was friendly, but laid back and very casual, with lots of untrained staff doing their best, but here everything was professional and quick! We were happy to learn that Parap Markets were still happening every Saturday. All the other markets, including the famous Mindil Beach Markets, were now closed for the wet season. We returned on Saturday, to join the Darwin locals in the traditional Darwin street food breakfast, mostly Asian influence. We had a fantastic Satay Chicken Roti Wrap. Absolutely delicious, and so far removed from Bacon & Eggs!! After breakfast we wandered and did our fruit and veggie shopping form the various stalls. Heaps of mangoes, pawpaw and papaya. Yes, it is Mango season here already, and they are cheap and plentiful!! They are our favourites!, and we sure loaded up!! We also took a visit to Cullen Bay Marina, which we love. It is a peaceful place to enjoy a coffee or delicious breakfast, which we did! Also, at this time of year you can't help but notice the Magpie Geese. There are thousands in every park and green space. They are an absolute pest, eating everyone's garden!!

Drinks at Stokes Hill Wharf.

We did manage a couple of lovely nights out. On the Friday

Sunset at Darwin Waterfront.

we went into the Darwin Waterfront, and out to Stokes Hill Wharf. This is a great spot, with plenty of parking. It is the main wharf of Darwin, but it also holds some historical exhibits about the bombing of Darwin, as well as food and beverage outlets. There are heaps of tables and chairs, and the food choices are wide and varied, and very good quality. There is a formal restaurant as well, if you are so inclined. We found a table, purchased our drinks and just grazed on hot and cold nibbles, like oysters, calamari etc. It is a fantastic spot to watch a Darwin sunset. The water in front of the wharf is teeming with large fish, which the kids all feed, and the harbor cruise boats come and go. We had a great night.

Dinner at Hunuman Restaurant.

Saturday night, we took ourselves into Darwin City to the

It was delicious!!

renowned Hunaman Restaurant. Carolyn had done her homework again!! This is a very interesting restaurant, that specializes in Thai and Indian cuisine. It is right in town, next to the Darwin  Entertainment Centre, and is very big, with air conditioned indoor, and outdoor under the fans. We sat out under the fans and it was very comfortable. The food was amazing, so full of incredible flavours. The whole fish with hot & sour sauce was great, as was the butter chicken, and the prawns were incredible. A top notch restaurant, and we had a wonderful night. That girl of mine never ceases to amaze me how she keeps up with all these new and exciting places! 

Darwin Free Spirit Pool area.

On our last day, we couldn't resist one more box of mangoes from one of the dozens of roadside vendors. There are a number of varieties of mango, and Calypso is our favourite! We found a young guy selling Calypso, and Carolyn went to work on the guy, as we wanted a box not too ripe to take on our travels. The young guy was so obliging, and Carolyn finished up with an overloaded box of 3 dozen mangoes for $25.00. What a bargain. That should almost see us to the East Coast!!! That afternoon, we got packed up just in time before one last big storm had us scurrying inside. We were up bright and early to beat the heat, and on the road by 6.30am, headed back to Katherine.