Dispatch from the Kimberley

August 13th 2021

The Bungle Bungles : striped orange and black domes, are about 350 million years old. Rising some 820 feet above the savannah grassland, these beehive shaped sandstone cones are now a World Heritage Site.

What would attract visitors to The Kimberley in Australia?

Where is it ? Why go?

Is the attraction :-

30,000 year old rock art with Balanggarra & Nyaliga people, as custodians?

Phenomenal natural wonders such as Montomery Reef ?

The might of colossal tides resulting in the Horizontal Falls ?

Exquisite fabric designs from Barbara Women’s Centre in Manigrida?

South Sea Island pearls?

The Colors?…azure waters, crystal blue skies, red & ochre earth.

The Bungle Bungles in the Purnululu National Park?

Flora & fauna -crocodiles, camels, turtles, manta ray, wading & flying birds, crabs, pink sea

cucumbers, boab trees, kapok bushes, the kimberley rose, coral tree, acacia?

“Staircase to the moon” phenomenon in Broome?

All of the above?

Dispatch from The Kimberley

waters is to be ignorant of the volume of sharks and salt water crocodiles in the

Kimberley waters. By some reports there are crocodiles every 30 feet. These salt water crocodiles are highly aggressive and territorial, can grow to 18 feet and can weigh up to a ton. With less sharp teeth than their freshwater counterparts, they have incredible jaw

strength and pull prey underwater silently. So stealthy are they that victims are gone with not even a splash and with no time to scream. So I am afraid I must paraphrase the old adage and say “Water water everywhere and not any place to swim”

Where is THE KIMBERLEY?

Three times larger than England, with a population of less than 40,000,

the Kimberley region – spread over Australia’s remote entire north-western corner, is

bordered on the north by the Timor Sea, west the Indian Ocean, the Pilbara region to the

south, and the Northern Territory to the East. It is known for remoteness, large swaths of wilderness, rugged ranges, dramatic gorges and a largely isolated coastline.

One can explore The Kimberley by many means: land, helicopter, glamping near

swimmable rock pools, cruises with helicopters and zodiacs. It won’t be long we are told, that international visitors will be permitted back to Australia. For the moment Covid has prevented this.

This sojourn to the Kimberley was on a cruise traveling west from Darwin to Broome.

It is an absolute certainty that any notion involving swimming in the idyllic azure

Darwin, capital of the Northern Territory has strong Asian influences because of

its proximity to Asia. Too, are strong Aboriginal cultures. With a tropical Savannah

climate with distinct wet and dry seasons, the flowers and trees are vibrant: frangipanni, banksia and boab trees, eucalyptus and many varieties of acacia.

Part of the Bawinanga Aboriginal Corporation, based in Maningrida, Arnhem

Land, Northern Territory, representing some 4,000 aboriginal people, is the Bábbarra Womens Centre, close to Darwin airport in Winnellie. Bábbarra Designs has operated since the 1990’s and is the main enterprise with the textile workshop specializing in

hand-printed fabric design by some 28 artists. The Centre is governed by women for

women. The absolutely gorgeous, intricate designs are screen- printed or lino-cut printed on cotton, linen or silk. Thousand year old imagery references the life of the land, the foods hunted and collected, as well as ancestral stories: ancient narratives using contemporary mediums.

Exhibitions have included “Jarracharra” (named after the cold wind which signals

the beginning of the dry season) which opened at the Australian Embassy in Paris in late 2019. Five artists traveled 9,000 miles from remote Arnhem Land to Paris to

showcase their vibrant designs, with Vogue Australia to capture the event. Women

without passports, some without birth certificates, the artists tackled desert, rivers and

red tape to get to Paris for Paris Fashion week.

Some fabrics I have purchased from Bábbarra Womens Centre

The King George Falls

The King George Dual Falls near Kunnanurra are fed by the wet season. The King George River plunges 100 ft over the falls into tidal waters.

These multi-tiered Mitchell Falls are quite remote and can be seen by air

Sigh, sigh.. wouldn’t you love to just dive in to the turquoise waters ?

Oh Oh………….. we have to remember Mr. Crocodile and those baby nurse sharks! One can be reassured though that all zodiac operators and personnel are very safety conscious in the Kimberley.

Jar Island, surrounded by the turquoise waters of the Timor Sea, located

southern part of Vansittart Bay is home to some best examples of the Bradshaw Gwion Gwion rock art which many think predated aboriginal art by some 30,000 years, and

the Wandjina Aboriginal rock art estimated to be closer to 1,000 years old. There is art at various locations on Jar island. We met the aboriginal custodians :the Balanggarra people and the Nyaliga people who flew there by helicopter to meet our zodiacs.

Bradshaw Gwion Gwion and Wandjina rock art

One minute the ocean looks like open water for as far as one can see. And THEN it is as if the reef arises out of the water. YES it is rising out of the water but because the tide is retreating. Suffice it to say, advanced skill in maritime navigation is required.

This MONTGOMERY REEF was described by Sir David Attenborough as as “one of the greatest natural wonders of the world” It is the world's largest inshore reef and is located in one of the most spectacular tidal landscapes on earth - about 12 miles off the coast of the Kimberley Mountains in northwestern Australia. The tidal range varies from 30 to 39 feet and is the highest in the southern hemisphere. When the sea level drops by up to 30 ft within six hours at low tide, not only do the islands get bigger, but the entire reef platform which has a size of 115 square miles, emerges from the ocean. As the water cannot flow off the platform as fast as the sea level falls, the outward movement forms a torrent of water, creating a river cutting

through the reef and hundreds of cascading waterfalls.

The Montgomery Reef

the 2 gorges as the location of the HORIZONTAL FALLS

Notice the level of high water on the rocks

If one researches the World’s highest tides, almost every source cites the Bay of

Fundy in Nova Scotia as the highest. Subsequent rankings are quite varied and so whilst very high tides are present in the Kimberley we can only quote Sir David Attenborough again:-

“The frothing, surging, boiling Horizontal Falls are a spectacle unlike anywhere else on the planet.” Perhaps here is the only place in the world where we can see a horizontal

waterfall, a result of huge tidal movements between 2 gorges. From the seemingly placid

waters of Talbot Bay, as the high tide recedes, water is trapped between gorges, and the surge through gaps in the McLarty Range with such explosive force creates a waterfall effect. With each change of tides, taking place within 60 seconds twice a day, the direction of the falls reverses creating tidal whirlpools.

Really it is simply astonishing.

The Horizontal Falls

The famed Japanese Pearl producer Kokichi Mikimoto is widely recognised as the father of modern day pearl cultivation. Broome and the Kimberley area of Western Australia creates the perfect environment for the collection of natural and farmed Pinctada

Maxima Oysters. The majority of the oysters are harvested from the area south of Broome, near 80 Mile Beach. They are then transported to other areas of the

Kimberley. Needless to say there are many pearl stores showcasing for you, pristine

South Sea Island individual pearls of many sizes, or strands, plus museums of pearling and trips to pearl luggers in Broome.

Because of the huge numbers of camels imported from British India and

Afghanistan[1] during the 19th century for transport and construction during the

colonisation of the central and western parts of Australia, Broome conducts a highly attractive sunset camel ride each evening.

Camel riders Sunset Cable Beach Broome

the colors of the James Price Bay near Broome

Photo permission Kimberleytravel.com.au

Broome was founded in 1883 as a port for the pearling industry.

Staircase to the Moon

A natural phenomenon which occurs when a full moon rises over the exposed tidal

flats of Roebuck Bay, in Broome, “The Staircase to the Moon” happens 2 - 3 days a month between March and October. What a sight!

SOURCES

Photo of Jill : Joe Mazza Bravelux inc.

Bábbarra Womens Centre https://babbarra.com Images : from license with Shutterstock

Book on Broome: Di Morrisey : Tears of the Moon