Category Archives: WA

The Bungle Bungles, Kimberley, WA

4X4, Australia, Bungle Bungles, desert, Kimberley, landscape, Landscape, mountains, plains, Purnululu National Park, river/creeks, WA, WA

The Bungle Bungle Ranges in the Purnululu National Park (The Kimberley) has the most extensive beehive rock formations in the world. While well known to local Aboriginals and Cattle Station owners, it did not become known to the world until the early 1980s.

Within 5 years it was a National Park and within 20 years it was World Heritage listed.

The beehives are formed by wind driven sand and rainfall (plus millions of years of weathering).

The beehive domes consist of different layers of sandstone; some orange, some black. The black layers hold more moisture allowing cyanobacteria growth which cause the black colour. The orange-coloured layers are stained with iron and manganese mineral deposits within the sandstone (in lay terms – rust!).

Typically, you see the domes from ground level. The Doc took a helicopter flight over The Bungle Bungles. The images are split into two groups; first, the rock formations out of which the beehives are weathered. Here you see deep gorges, meandering rivers (floodways now) and steep gorge walls. Second the domes or beehives themselves, from the air. Make sure you click on the pictures to see the full size images.

The Doc has been posting fewer images lately, but the Bungles deserves more to appreciate its stunning beauty.

Gascoyne Region, WA

4X4, Australia, Carnarvon, coastal, desert, Gascoyne Region, Landscape, ocean, river/creeks, sunrise, sunset, WA

The Gascoyne Region in Western Australia was visited as part of the Kimberley/Pilbara trip in 2015. There are still many images The Doc has never posted, here are some more.

At the mouth of the Gascoyne River is the township of Carnarvon. NASA built a tracking station at Carnarvon to help with the Gemini and Apollo space missions. The tracking station is now gone but there is a major telecommunications hub still there. The Carnarvon tracking station was also used to track long range missiles from the RAAF Woomera Test Range launched from South Australia into the Indian Ocean over Carnarvon.

The Doc stayed in the Carnarvon caravan park for a week, touring around the region and having the Patrol serviced for the trip back across Australia.

The Doc drove a few hours up the river to the Kennedy Ranges National Park (and nearly came to grief crossing the Gascoyne River). The images are from this trip, plus a quick side trip to the Quobba blowholes near where HMAS Sydney was found off the coast. HMAS Sydney being sunk with all hands lost by a German raider, the Kormoran, disguised as a merchant ship.

Remember to click on the image to see the full size. Enjoy.

Video of the Quobba Blow Holes.

Pilbara textures

Australia, bark, desert, Landscape, other, Pilbara, rock, Textures, WA, WA

The trip to The Kimberley also included The Pilbara, where iron ore mining occurs on an industrial scale. At Port Headland, 6 bulk ore carriers are loaded at once (more now as the terminal has expanded) and over 20 ore carriers are moored off the port awaiting their turn. Trains bring the iron ore to the port – trains 495 carriages long!

Port Dampier near Karratha is the other large port. It is not as big as Port Headland but impressive nonetheless.

The Pilbara has amazing textures, heavily influenced by the abundant iron in the rocks. So many things are red, the rocks, the sand, the dust and the visitors. The red is caused by the oxidation of the iron in the rocks. Who said you cannot bend rock?

The Pilbara also had some interesting barks, distinctly different from the Kimberley. Enjoy.

Paruna Sanctuary – landscape, flora and wildflowers

Australia, AWC, bark, Landscape, Paruna, Textures, WA, WA, Wildflowers

The Doc hiked at AWC’s Paruna Sanctuary about an hours drive out of Perth. It is one of AWC’s smaller properties.

The Doc walked around Possum Loop, the shortest walk. He took about 3 hours practising macro photos.

After the walk The Doc located Karakamia and then had a pub lunch at Chidlow a nearby town. That night he was booked for a Guided Tour of Karakamia.

Here are landscape photographs around the loop.

Here are a few more flora and wildflower photos. Enjoy. Remember the thumbnails are blurred, click to see the full size image.

 

Kimberley/Pilbara Trip Trivia

Artesian Range, Australia, AWC, Bowra, Broome, Charnley River, Charnley River - Artesian Range, Derby, desert, flowers, Kimberley, Landscape, landscape, Mornington, Mornington, Newhaven, NT, Pilbara, plains, river/creeks, Textures, trees, WA, WA

The Doc decided to put some trivia together about the longest trip so far. Enjoy.

Time, distances and economy

  • the Kimberley/Pilbara Trip lasted 108 days;
  • total distance travelled was 27,000 kilometres exactly (what a coincidence!). The Patrol has now driven over 70,000 kilometres on The Excellent Adventure;
  • most kilometres travelled in one day, 1,032 kilometres;
  • average kilometres travelled each day was 250kms. In reality the figure was less, as 9,000kms was driven to and from the Kimberley which were concentrated days of driving;
  • best fuel economy was 12.4 litres per 100 kilometres. In 2WD, not towing, driving on the bitumen;
  • worst economy 15.1 litres per 100 kilometres. In 4WD, towing the trailer in sand at Cape Peron National Park;
  • average for the trip 14.4 litres per 100 kilometres, which makes sense as the trailer was attached for much of the trip. So the Pod Trailer adds about 2 litres per 100 kilometres, a modest increase compared to towing heavy trailers or caravans;
  • most expensive diesel was $2.50 a litre at Mt Barnett Station Roadhouse, Gibb River Road; and
  • total fuel bill, decided not to add it up!

Flights

Several flights were taken on the trip including:

Corrugations

Over 60% of the trip was offroad. On badly corrugated roads, you can hit over 10 corrugations every metre (the four wheels do). A very, very conservative figure would be the car, trailer and driver went over 20 billion corrugations!!!! No wonder things break and get damaged.

Breakages

The breakages included:

  • hub cover on Patrol, it fell off and was lost on Charnley River Station;
  • broken wire on coolant alarm (it has broken twice before). Field repair that is still working;
  • striped thread on a shock absorber. The front shock was replaced (The Doc was carrying spares). No dramas as the damage was detected early;
  • after a car service an ignition fuse started to blow. It turned out to be a bare wire shorting on the rear towbar and nothing to do with the service;
  • front control arm bushes needed replacement;
  • a broken windscreen 3 days before the trip finished. Thanks to the driver who did not slow down properly on the Plenty Highway. The Doc got more stone hits on the windscreen that morning than the rest of the trip combined;
  • rivets on an awning came out, thanks to the corrugations on the Plenty Highway on the return trip.

Tucker

Best meal, no contest, Restaurant at Mornington Wilderness Camp. Drysdale River Station also put on a good meal.

Cadjeput Waterhole
Murchinson River, Kalbarri National Park
ASCII

Katherine to Kununurra – The Kimberley

Australia, bark, desert, Kimberley, lakes, Landscape, landscape, plains, river/creeks, sunrise, sunset, Textures, WA, WA

The Doc is now writing up the more detailed reports of his recent Kimberley trip. Sydney to Katherine is already posted, click here.

Today we drive from Katherine to Kununurra, click here.

Here is a map of the whole trip, 27,000 kilometres in total by road, plus about another 1,500km by air.

KimberlyWholeTrip

Leper Colony

Australia, Kimberley, WA, WA

One of the places to visit at Derby is the old Bungarun Leprosarium. It is no longer called leprosy but Hansen’s disease to avoid the stigma of associated with “leprosy”. The Doc bets the title caught people’s attention.

The Bungarun Leprosarium closed in the 1980s and the ruins are still in good order. It had an A class hospital, living quarters, morgue, gaol and cemetery. The cemetery is well maintained by the inmates from the nearby regional prison.

For many years the Leprosarium was run by the Sisters of St John of God. Surprisingly it was only closed 30 years ago. More surprising was the suggestion that isolated cases still occur around the West Australian and Northern Territory border to this day.

It was an eerie place to visit. A few photos from The Doc’s short visit.

Kimberley Carnage – dropping like flies – 22 May

Australia, Kimberley, WA, WA

When The Doc arrived at Drysdale River Station on 19 May the damaged trailers total was three. The tally started on 1 May. The bushfires had closed the road for a week, so the total was for 2 weeks only.

Drysdale River Station is located on the Kalumburu Road, off the Gibb River Road, on the way to Mitchell Falls and Kalumburu.

On returning from Mitchell Falls on 22 May the total dramatically increased that day. The day’s total included:

  • wheel fell off a Jayco Expanda caravan;
  • damaged wheel bearing on a camper trailer;
  • spring fell off another camper trailer;
  • a new Nissan Patrol had 2 tyres slashed on the side wall;
  • a Mitsubishi Triton came in with a bent chassis, too fast into a floodway towing a caravan;
  • sheared studs on another caravan;
  • a steering rack shaken loose on a Toyota Landcrusier; and
  • a camper trailer had been abandoned just before Drysdale River Station.

While the Kalumburu Road is not great, the Mitchell Plateau Track to the Mitchell Falls is a shocker, this is what did most of the damage. Some of the damage is preventable by not over loading the vehicle and driving slower. However, the road was so bad there will always be damage, even if you are prepared and cautious.

ASCII
Qoubba blow holes
Murchinson River, Kalbarri National Park

Mornington Magic

Australia, AWC, Broome, Kimberley, plains, river/creeks, WA, WA, Wildlife

The Doc’s visit into the Central Kimberley was to visit AWC’s Mornington Sanctuary. The Sanctuary is the home of WildlifeLink Research Centre, AWC main research centre across The Kimberley, covering Mornington-Marions Downs,  the Artisan Range, Tablelands and other properties. It is from where EcoFire is managed across much of the Central Kimberley.

AWC describes Mornington and Marion Downs as “almost 6,000 square kilometres of the iconic Kimberley region. Bounded to the south by the rugged King Leopold Range, the properties contain some of Australia’s most spectacular scenery.  Massive mesas and dramatic sandstone escarpments overlook vast savanna woodlands, while a network of tropical rivers, including the Fitzroy River, carve deep gorges through the ancient landscape. “

What a magical place. Report is here.