With nothing to hang around for at the roadhouse, we got going pretty quickly this morning.  Too quickly as it turned out.  We left behind the doormat.  Amazingly this is the first time we’ve left anything behind.  Kids might be next…

We’d only been on the road for about an hour when we got to the infamous Gibb River Road.  The Tanami was supposed to be the road that shook up the suspension.  Gibb River was supposed to be the tyre shredder.

The Gibb comes in two flavours: The first is when its been used for awhile and its all rutted and pot holed.  In this state the pot holes get filled in with bulldust and you can’t see them.  So, you hit them at full speed and blow a tyre.  The second state is when the grader has been past recently and smoothed out the road, but also unearthed all the sharp rocks … which slice through the tyres.

A second mounted spare tyre for both car and van are recommended before tackling the Gibb River Road.  We had neither, but we did have a tyre repair kit.  We were hoping that the short 80km or so section that we had to do was in good condition.

It turned out to be in great condition.  The road had been graded recently, but long enough ago that most of the rocks had been given a chance to settle.  There were good wheel track paths to follow and even a few short bitumen sections.  Looks like the reputation is undeserved … at least for this leg of the Gibb.

We did have to contend with a couple of small river crossings on the way into El Questro, but they were all on a good rocky base and were no more than about 500mm deep.  Not high enough to get into the van, but high enough to really give the underneath of the Prado that wash I wanted to give it in Broome.

El Questro is still a working cattle station and, despite the tourist operations, the cattle station is the main focus of business.  The tourist accommodation comes in many flavours, from basic campsites in the communal camping area, all the way through to the 5-star homestead with everything provided.  We were lucky enough to be there early enough in the day to be able to get a private campsite along the Pentecost river.

The private campsites all have different facilities and access requirements.  We weren’t able to score one with an eco-loo, but we were able to get one with moderate 4wd access and a deep section of the river suitable for swimming.  We’re all really happy with the site, which is important as we’re here for 4 nights.

Blake & Hannah almost had kittens when they discovered a ready made rope swing all setup and ready to go.  They didn’t manage to find it before Dad had found it and jumped in though.  There was also plenty of riverside for them to play on and make cubbies and other stuff kids do.  There is the possibility of small freshwater crocs being in the area, but they avoid humans … especially noisy ones, so Hannah will be fine.

We had to do a full setup including floor as we’re setup on soft sandy dirt.  It’s going to get everywhere, but the floor might help a little bit.  The chainsaw even got unpacked as we’re allowed to have a campfire here.  You can collect any fallen timber you find so I’m sure we’ll find some somewhere.

Most of the afternoon was spent pottering around the campsite, floating down the river, swinging on the rope, working on the tan, etc.  Tough stuff, but somebody has to do it and today that poor sap was me!

We collected all the info sheets on the various 4wd tracks and walking tracks in the area.  There was one that sounded pretty cool right near our campsite.  This is Saddleback Ridge and involved plenty of steep climbs and switchbacks as well as a river crossing for good measure.  It sounded like a great place to watch the sun set, so that’s exactly what we did .

The river crossing was the deepest we’ve had to do so far.  The track was pretty steep and slippery too.  I actually needed to use low range for a change.  Most of the climb was in first gear too.  It’s only 3.5km each way, but takes about 25 minutes to negotiate, each way.  The vegetation is quite diverse along the track.  From the well watered Pentecost valley with its abundance of Pandanus, Cluster Figs and fresh water Mangroves it quickly changes to the arid and rocky scree slopes sparsely covered with spinifex, a few strands of snappy gums, grevilleas and acacias.  There’s even the odd Boab in there to remind you that you’re definitely in the Kimberley.

The views at the top are well worthwhile.  360 degree views of the Wilderness Park escarpments, The station and the homestead in the distance.  The ridge itself is mainly made out of King Leopold sandstone, which at around 1800 million years is one of the oldest rocks in the world.

There’s a geocache up there too, which kept Blake occupied finding it for awhile.  The disadvantage of going up to the top of the ridge for sunset is that you need to drive down in the dark … including the river crossing.  No problem for the trusty Prado.  Our crack in the windscreen has been joined by another good sized star.  Glad I haven’t been able to replace it yet now.  The crack itself is now clear from the edge to the centre of the screen.

When we got back to camp we noticed that something had attacked one of the noodles while we were gone.  All sorts of noises from the rivers edge and the surrounding foliage pointed the finger at a goanna.

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