Heartland: Experience the magic of the East Kimberley
NATURAL WONDERS, ANCIENT CULTURES AND AGRICULTURAL INGENUITY ARE PLENTIFUL IN THIS REMOTE CORNER OF WA.
MY INTRODUCTION TO the East Kimberley region is off to a good start — I’m seated beside a young high school student returning home from boarding school in Perth, who animatedly points to landmarks from the aeroplane window as we track north-east from Broome. “That’s where my grandfather told me stories,” he says, indicating the river carved out of the valley floor below as we approach Kununurra, the largest town and agricultural centre of the region. On the other side of the aircraft, the lapis lazuli mass of Lake Argyle — Western Australia’s largest man-made fresh water reservoir — is visible in the distance. As the plane descends, the seemingly infinite red landscape suddenly transforms into a verdant patchwork of irrigated paddocks and orchards radiating from the banks of the Ord River and Lake Kununurra. As we disembark we hear greetings of “Welcome to Miriwoong and Gajirrawoong Country”, echoing the words of the contemporary bronze sculpture that sits outside the East Kimberley Regional Airport terminal. “That’s when I know I’m home,” the boy beams. After a quick exchange of goodbye and good luck, he disappears into the small gathering inside. His excitement is infectious and while it’s not a homecoming for me — I’ve never been to the Kimberley before — I can’t wait to discover this vast, mystic wilderness. By now it’s a balmy late afternoon in the dry season (which runs from April to September). Before nightfall, there’s time to get my bearings and drive out to Ivanhoe Crossing, a scenic causeway on the Ord River 13 kilometres from town, as well as Kelly’s Knob Lookout, the rocky outcrop on the northern fringe of Kununurra that provides a lofty vantage point over the township and the Ord River Irrigation Area. Just 37 kilometres from the Northern Territory border, Kununurra is surrounded by natural wonders and is the ancient home of the Miriwoong, Gajirrawoong and Gija people. Local guides offer art and cultural tours and there are a number of galleries in town, including Waringarri Aboriginal Arts, where you can meet the artists. There’s a vibrant buzz in town; innovative farmers grow superfoods on the fertile flats and share their favourite places to fish and camp with seasonal workers and outback adventurers rolling in with dusty four-wheel drives from the Gibb River Road, Mitchell Plateau, Purnululu National Park or Lake Argyle. Less than 60 years old, Kununurra is a relatively new settlement created to service the Ord River Irrigation Scheme. Local pioneers of the Durack family were the first to trial tropical agriculture on the banks of the Ord River from 1941. Two decades later, the Kununurra Diversion Dam was built in the first stage of an ambitious irrigation project. Sandalwood, mangoes, chia, chickpeas and melons are just some of the local produce now grown on 14,000 hectares of irrigated farmland, with a further 6500 hectares expected to become available later this year. Just over 100 kilometres west of Kununurra is El Questro, a sprawling wilderness park and resort spanning the Cockburn Range, with boab-studded savanna plains, the Zebedee thermal springs, pockets of remnant rainforest, gorges and waterfalls. There are multiple accommodation >
“The dream has always been to find a place where the middle of nowhere can feel like the centre of the universe.”
options available, from the campground at El Questro Station or the safari-style tented cabins of Emma Gorge to the luxurious and secluded El Questro Homestead, gracefully overlooking the Chamberlain River. Allow at least a few days to unwind and explore the enormity of El Questro Station, with self-guided hike and drive options available, as well as guided tours by air, horseback, four-wheel drive, boat and foot. Ranger Lewis Mcpherson has worked here for two seasons on various tours and recommends the El Questro Gorge Trail, which meanders through lush ferns and livistona palms to a waterfall. The 30-year-old studied environmental science at the University of Newcastle before swapping the east coast for the west. He’s a great source of information about the local flora, fauna and geology during our half-day Explosion Gorge and Branco’s Lookout tour, as we navigate through the oxidised red cliffs of Chamberlain Gorge. I’m impatient to spot a crocodile and we’re eventually rewarded when the aluminium dingy drifts by an exposed boulder, revealing a Johnstone’s crocodile happily sunning itself, unperturbed by our presence. Turns out it was a juvenile, just over a foot long — not quite the awe-inspiring specimen I’d hoped to encounter from the safety of the boat. Exploring this 283,000-hectare adventure playground is a considerable perk of Lewis’s job. “One day I’m four-wheel driving across a river and taking guests up a remote gorge in a tinnie, pointing out ancient geological features and looking for crocs; the next I’m hiking up a gorge, then being helicoptered to a private waterfall. Learning about our indigenous culture has also been a real highlight,” he says. Another remarkable landmark of the East Kimberley is the Bungle Bungle Range in Purnululu National Park, just over an hour by air south of Kununurra. The scenic flight provides a bird’s-eye view of the Ord River Irrigation Area, the Argyle Diamond Mine (where almost all of the world’s pink diamonds are currently produced) and Lake Argyle before arriving at the World Heritage site. At the Bellburn airstrip we are transferred to a helicopter for a mesmerising 30-minute flight over the orange-and– black-ringed beehive-shaped domes that form the Bungle Bungles. Our pilot, Kobi Schooley, hails from central Queensland and it’s his first year working in the Kimberley. “Like anyone who has the pleasure of living and working in the bush, the dream has always been to find a place where the middle of nowhere can feel like the centre of the universe,” 19-year-old Kobi says. “The Kimberley region certainly has a spectacular way of achieving this.” As we marvel at this sandstone massif, wrought by the winds off the Tanami Desert over the past 350 million years, it’s easy to agree with him. Shrouded in silica and algae, which casts a coppery glow deep into the crevices and ravines, it’s a breathtaking vision that remains in my mind as I taxi down the runway a few days later on my flight home. For whether they be man-made or natural, the wonders of the East Kimberley are bound to cast a spell that will long outlast your visit.
Allow at least a few days to unwind and explore the enormity of El Questro Station.