September 29th, 30th, & October 1st, 2011- Derby- Kimberley Entrance Caravan Park

Thursday September 29th saw us up early and heading off to Derby WA. We got away before 8AM and stopped for a few breaks included the Boab Tree Rest Stop. This is the largest Boab tree we have seen yet. Not sure on it's age but it is massive. Look at size compared to our caravan.

Another highlight for the girls was we came across a cattle muster at the Ellendale Station. Got a couple of pictures and saw a helicopter flying at tree level bringing in a few strays. Sandra & Di would have sat there watching for hours but I thought we should move along in case we were in the way.

From there we headed North to Derby where we checked into the Kimberley Entrance Caravan Park. It is an older park but the amenities blocks are clean and there is some shade. No Pool which is a bit unfortunate given the days are still hot. At least there is a bit of a sea breeze to cool us off. Derby is a bigger town than what we expected but the whole town could use a cleanup. We did some shopping at Woolies, checked out the Visitor Centre, and took a drive down to the Derby Wharf in the afternoon. The Wharf is actually a road that stretches out through the mudflats to the piers at the far end. Luckily you can drive out on it as would be quite a hike especially in the hot sun. Derby has the highest tides in .Australia and they happened to be at their highest levels this year during our stay. High Tides reached close to 12M and Low Tide was just over 1M. It is a huge change and as a result the water is a disgusting muddy colour. We drove to the One Mile Dinner Tree to view the sunset. Very nice.

We heard from Carol and Stephen and they have now driven from Kununurra to Fitzroy Crossing. Carol's back is feeling much better. They will probably stay at Fitzroy Crossing for Grand Final as Rans is a mad Manly supporter. We will most likely meet up with them in Broome.

Friday morning John and Sandra were up early so went for a walk around town. The high tide had flooded the mudflats on either side of the town which was a first for this year. Found a car that was stranded/abandoned on the wet mud flats. We finished before 7AM but it was already very hot!  Just before lunch Terry & Di left for a 4 hour flight over the Horizontal Falls, Buchaneer Archipelago, and landed at Cape Leveque. They spent a couple of hours relaxing there before flying back to Derby where they landed just before sunset. They had a wonderful day! We didn't go on this flight as Sandra & I plan on driving up to Cape Leveque.

While Terry & Di were gone we went down to the pier and tried our hand at mud crabbing as the tide began to come in. Ian who owns the caravan park kindly loaned us a couple of crab pots. The tide was completely out when we got there and you could see mud under the piers some 40 feet below. As the tide began to come in Sandra and I lowered the crab pots down to the bottom. It was quite intimidating looking straight down at the mud as we lowered them. Lucky the supplied crab pots had long ropes. We only caught one Mud Crab and it was just under regulation so we tossed him back. The tidal current was so strong it kept lifting the pots. We kept moving them closer to shore as the tide came in further. We gave up after 1.5 hours.

We returned the pots, had some lunch, and decided to tour a couple of local attractions. We went to the Derby Prisoner's Boab Tree first. Not as large as some we have seen but of local historic significance. Near this was the "Long Trough" which they used to water large groups of cattle. From there we visited the "Windjana Art Centre". We spent a bit of time viewing the local Aboriginal Art Work and watching a short film about their culture. Our next quick stop was the original Derby Gaol. Again not much to look at but a lot of history (mostly sad) about the early treatment of Aboriginals. On the way back to the caravan Sandra & I decided on a whim to go back to the Wharf to see what the water level was. What a shock, especially when you compare to our low tide pictures just before lunch. Di & Terry got home around 5:30PM. We had a couple of drinks, an easy tea, and an early night.

Saturday morning saw John & Sandra up early for a 6AM flight to the Horizontal Falls and the Buchaneer Archipelago. We saw the sunrise just as we took off and it was a beautiful smooth flight. A bit of cloud which is unusual but our pilot, Adam, kept the plane at a low altitude so our view was good. Another great experience! The waters of the Archipalago are so blue and the Horizontal Falls were amazing! We compared notes with Di & Terry after as they had seen it at high tide and we saw them as the tide was receeding and quite low. Lots of great pictures and we can't wait to get to Cape Leveque to spend a few days in the crystal blue waters.

 

 The four of us headed down to the Wharf again just before lunch to take another shot at the mud crabs. We had better luck today as we caught about a dozen of which 3 were legal size. Might not be a full meal but will certainly be a nice appetizer. Once again were amazed by the scope of the tide and the force with which it comes in. We will spend the afternoon relaxing and preparing for the next leg of our adventure, Broome!