TRAVEL WESTERN AUSTRALIA by FACTS4YOU.NET

by Admin

Broome to Geikie Gorge WA and Back – The Longest Day!!!

<= Never smile at a crocodile. Here’s a friendly (?) croc sun bathing on a sand bank at Geikie Gorge, in the Kimberley, as we cruised past in our “tinny” boat!

Day three, and we had decided to book a “four wheel drive” style coach tour from Broome, to enjoy a boat trip up the colourful Geikie Gorge river system. Now this trip to Broome had already produced a couple of “shocks” along the way. We were about to receive shock number three!

The coach collected us at around 8 am at Seashell’s Resort at Cable Beach. Prior to leaving the resort we made plans to enjoy an early evening BBQ amongst the tropical grounds of the resort when we arrived home from the tour. The evenings in Broome had been warm, balmy, and very still. We thought a barby would be the icing on the cake after our pleasant drive and boat trip up the fantastic gorge.

We settled into our seats on the coach. The tour guide/driver then passed back to each tour member a form to fill in as to what we would like for dinner that evening at the Willare Roadhouse along the Great Northern Highway? Hold on a moment….dinner this evening. We had been told we would be back in Broome mid afternoon….where on earth were we travelling to that we would be having dinner in the middle of the never never THAT NIGHT? And where and what was Wilare?

Well here came shock number three. You see, you need to really grill and quiz travel agents on matters like this. Either the travel agent gave us details on one tour and then sold us another. I will never know. Anyway a few friendly questions to our friendly tour guide soon wrecked our day! The trip we were on travelled some 400 kilometers east inland to Fitzroy Crossing. We then had to travel over some unmade road, board a small boat, conduct the two hour trip around the Gorge, get back on the coach and travel that same damned 400 + kilometers all the way back to Broome. Now I blame myself for this stuffup. I should have consulted a map before booking the tour..900 kilometres to take a short boat trip is a bit stoopid! And out in the outback it’s not like you are travelling through beautiful mountain country to make the long, long trip worth the trouble!

We were firmly committed by then. So we determined to make the best of the trip. A few hours later, with a very numb behind, I was already wishing I had stayed back at our resort in Broome! Eventually after driving through mind numbing, flat, scrubby country, occasionally relieved by a few odd shaped Baobab trees we reached Wilare Roadhouse. Thank goodness…another 30 minutes would have been too much.. Where’s the loo?

The Coach Stop at Wilare Road House a Few Hundred K East of Broome

There is nothing at Wilare. However I was that relieved, pardon the pun and the coffee break rejuvenated the old body to get ready to endure the next couple of hundred K’s to Fitzroy Crossing. Back later with the rest of the trip to Geikie Gorge WA and crocodiles!

Part Five is now posted : “Wilare Bidge Roadhouse to Giekie Gorge to Broome”

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