Drysdale River – Derby – Horizontal Falls – Cygnet Bay – Broome – Halls Creek – Purnululu Bungles

It was the 22nd May 2023 and the start of the second week of our flying safari in the Kimberley. Just when we thought the trip couldn’t get any better, it did.

From Drysdale River we had an exceptionally scenic flight over the Prince Regent River and along the coast to Horizontal Falls. The Prince Regent River bed is in a fault line that runs NW to SE for some 50 or so miles in a pretty straight line. It delivered us to the Bonaparte Archipelago with its hundreds of islands and waterways.

The coastal part passed over Montgomery Reef before reaching Horizontal Falls where we did an orbit over the top to check out where we’d be staying that evening. From there it was a 20 minute hop to Derby.

We had a few hours to kill before we’d be delivered to the Falls by seaplane so called a taxi (thanks to “DLA” in OzRunways notes for the phone number) into town and visited the Mark Norval Gallery. Mark is an art teacher who has lived in Derby with his wife Mary for 40 years and has helped develop the artistic talents of local indigenous people. His gallery has an amazing array of traditional and modern art by artists from all over the north of WA. He also has a huge collection of vinyl LPs.

Back at the airport Izzy our seaplane pilot helped us aboard the amphibious Cessna Caravan for the 30 minute flight back to Horizontal Falls. With the sun lower in the sky and a prime window seat for all on board we had spectacular views of the country north east of King Sound with its thousands of islands and promontories.

Landing on the water next to our floating hotel we felt like we’d entered some sort of James Bond movie. It was populated with smart young girls whose hospitality skills surpassed anything I’ve seen for a while. It felt pretty special as the 10 of us who were staying overnight were greeted as the day visitors departed on a couple of sea planes bound for Derby. The check in was followed by a shark feeding demonstration where we could swim next to the sharks (separated by a metal grill).

With Swiss precision we boarded a fast boat for a trip out on the water to explore the surrounding bays and delivery to the Horizontal Falls for a few passes at high speed just as the sun set in the west. Hayley our skipper couldn’t help but burst with enthusiasm as she explained the geology and history of the region.

Back at the mother ship the cheese and nibbles was followed by a meal of freshly caught barra, cooked skilfully by a couple of the other girls. Those girls were all a credit to their employer. It was just fascinating how they all worked together seamlessly. After a very satisfying meal they left us to enjoy the sunset and chat with our new friends while they retired to their own cabins at the far end of the mother ship.

The Bond girls had our hot breakfast ready at 6am on the dot. We packed our bags and vacated our rooms and Hayley was ready and waiting in the speed boat as we climbed aboard at 6:30. It was off for another few passes through the wide gap as the sun rose. Hayley is a bit of a rev head so was clearly enjoying shaking us up a bit. We arrived back at the mother ship as four amphibious aircraft landed, full of day visitors. Climbing on board one of them we took off and did a couple of orbits over the falls as the day trippers whizzed through the falls below us.

On the way back to Derby we passed over the Cone Bay barramundi farm that had supplied our dinner the night before.

Landing back at Derby the bus took us into town for a coffee and a visit to another gallery who do silk screenings of local art. The wharf at Derby is pretty famous because of the 11 metre tides so we had to walk out there to have a look, passing some larger than lifelike sculptures on the way. Afterwards the Jila Gallery provided lunch and coffee.

Back at the airport we took off in MSF for one last pass over Horizontal Falls before tracking along the coast past Cockatoo Island and its iron ore mine. We landed at Cygnet Bay at the north end of Dampier Peninsula. The dirt strip is bull dust over a clay base apparently. No good when wet but fine when it’s dry. It was time for a refreshing swim in the Pearl Farm’s infinity pool. Sigi noticed she’d left her favourite Cirrus pullover at the Jila Cafe in Derby. Don’t panic! A quick phone call and the cafe owner arranged to post it to us in Brisbane free of charge. And it arrived a couple of days after we got home. Now that’s service! https://www.jilacafe.com.au

The next day in Cygnet Bay started with a 6:15 departure on an amphibious boat to the Waterfall Reef about 30 minutes away. The 11 metre tide was on the way out so there was plenty of water cascading over the edge. Flocks of terns were busy diving for fish that were being swept along by the rushing tidal waters.

Back at the Pearl Farm we took part in a tour of the operations where our guide went into great details of how pearls have been cultivated since the place was set up in the 1970s.

The accommodation at Cygnet Bay varied between bare campsites to refurbished pearler cabins to luxury glamping tents. They had a great communal kitchen for the campers and a great restaurant/bar/cafe overlooking the infinity pool. The only real negative was the $50 each way transfer fee from the airstrip. A bit steep for what it is. The deck restaurant and bar area were well designed and the food was good and reaonsably priced. The kitchenette was well fitted out so that we could make our own breakfast easily. We enjoyed both dinners there while having our breakfast out the front of our glamping tent.

After a morning walk to explore the local area we were driven out to the Cygnet Bay airstrip just after 11am. There was a bit of traffic around so I was glad to have my Ping USB device that identifies all the ADSB transmitting traffic in the vicinity and displays them in OzRunways on the IPad. Turning left past One Arm Point we headed west initially in an attempt to spot the Cape Leveque airstrip that has been decommissioned. Couldn’t spot it.

So we continued down the coast at 4500ft, passing Luc in his Cherokee, who was further inland at 2500ft. The sealed strip at Lombadina, used by the offshore oil and gas traffic as a refuelling base, stood out, as did the dirt strip at Beagle Bay. There were lots of fires burning inland so the visibility was not ideal due to the smoke but was still greater than 25km along the coast. Descending to 1500ft by James Price Point we were cleared by Broome Tower and followed a Cessna in to join base on RWY10. It’s a big runway.

After tying down and arranging transport for our passengers to the BNB, Luc organised a minor repair to WKE and we walked over to the tower to have a chat with the air traffic controllers. They were happy to show us around and explain their procedures and systems.

The Courthouse BNB turned out to be an oasis not far from Chinatown. The owner had it on the market as she wanted to retire.

After a quick cool off in the pool we caught the very good bus service out to Zander’s at Cable Beach for a sunset aperitif. It was stunning as expected. After another ride back to Chinatown we grabbed the last table at Johnny Sausage, an upmarket Italian restaurant for a great meal with great service. Highly recommended.

There’s a lot to see in Broome and plenty of history. The Courthouse BNB was a great central base for exploring. Friday started with an early morning tour of the “big art” around Chinatown with Chris from Salty Plum walking tours. The Chinatown and Town Beach precincts were upgraded for $30m a few years ago and part of it was installation of numerous sculptures and other artworks. Chris spent an hour and a half with us explaining the history of the town.

After breakfast we walked along to the town beach jetty where there are sculptures in memory of the victims of the Japanese aerial attack on Broome during WWII. We were totally unaware of this attack and how many people were killed, mainly refugees escaping Indonesia. We watched a young guy pluck a number of fish out of the water at the end of the jetty. No bait required! Who needs a boat?

The museum nearby gave us a bit more info on the pearling industry over the years while Matso’s Brewery introduced us to mango beer over a Bibimbap.

A short ride on the superb Broome Explorer bus brought us to the Japanese cemetery and from there it was only a couple of km stroll to Cable Beach to see the sun slide into the Indian Ocean one last time. At 22,000 steps for the day it made our hike to Mitchell Falls pale into insignificance.

It was time to head east once more. From Broome it was more than a two hour flight to Halls Creek via the Wolfe Creek meteorite crater. But first another sunrise walk and visit to the Saturday markets.

Then it was Broome Broome out to the airport for an IFR departure from RWY10. Our track was 101 so straight ahead for just over two hours at 7000 feet over the southern reaches of the mighty Fitzroy River. There was a fair headwind (our first for the whole trip!) and some smoke so we climbed to non standard 8000 for the second half.

As we approached Wolfe Creek we descended to 6000 ft and ATC anticipated our requirements by asking what our air work would be over the crater. “Two orbits please. One right, one left.” “No IFR traffic for air work”. All good. The crater is impressive even if “only” 1km in diameter. Must’ve made quite a bang on the day.

It was only 20 minutes from there to Halls Creek where the local ARO jogged past and showed us the best spot to tie down. A refreshing plunge in the pool at the Kimberley Hotel 5 minutes walk down the road was followed by a great steak at the Sportsman’s Bar. Being asked to blow in a breath test at the entrance to the bar was a first. Apparently they have a lot of problems with preloaded patrons. You can’t enter if you’re over the limit. And they don’t discriminate. Everyone has to blow. As a result the place was a very pleasant venue.

It was an early-ish start from Halls Creek to Purnululu National Park (Bungles). We lifted off at 8:30 and tracked via the Macintosh Hills then on towards the south west entry for a spectacular scenic flight around the Bungles at 3000ft, as described in ERSA. It was a maze of gorges in between plateaus for the most part, with the iconic stripy mounds mainly concentrated on the south eastern edge.

Landing at Bellburn airstrip at 9:30 we were greeted with morning tea before bring whisked away on a Bungle Bungle Guided Tours bus for a walking tour to Cathderal Gorge.

It involved about a 4km stroll through the park with lively descriptions of the geology and history by Gabriel and Wesley, two local Gidja people. Gabriel put on quite a show with his banter and clear descriptions while Wesley was more measured in his explanations. Lunch was in the bottom of the Cathedral Gorge itself.

The bus took us back to the Bungle Bungle Savannah Lodge where we checked in, had a quick dip then enjoyed the sunset on the opposite rock faces of the surrounding hills before enjoying dinner on the deck. Our tour of the Kimberley had come to an end and it was time to head for home.

The story concludes under “Destinations – Heading home from the Kimberley”