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Kimberley & Pilbara

Kimberley Coast: Faraway Bay to Drysdale River

March 27 - April 6, 2019

Overview

This trip takes you deep into the wilderness along the Kimberley Coast, one of Australia's most rugged and least known regions. By going at the end of the wet season, we guarantee good water supplies and flowing waterfalls, but this does mean that it will be hot and humid. Fortunately, you can always cool off with a swim.

Be warned! trips like this are always subject to change due to weather or other conditions outside our control.

Looking for Aboriginal art sites is an important part of this trip. We will visit the best sites we found on previous trips and search for others. Although it is seldom possible to date most of the paintings, existing research suggests that the styles we see will range from more than 10,000 years old to more recent images from the 20th century. If you are not particularly interested in the art, you might still enjoy exploring the various rock formations or perhaps relax near a pool and watch the birds or have a swim while others go exploring. The choice is yours.

The pictures show some of the highlights. They don't show the work needed to get from one beautiful place to the next.

Twin Falls in flood, April 2011. Photo: T Dixon Twin Falls in June 2012.

From the Faraway Bay airstrip, a relatively easy walk brings us to our first campsite. We can tell you it will be a nice spot but we can't tell you exactly where it will be as that will depend on the conditions and how we've been going.

After 2-3 relatively easy days, we make our way west to a major north-south creek. Much of the route is fairly flat, but there is some rough country and a substantial distance to be covered. Once we have reached this creek, we follow it north to where it drops 30-40 metres over a cliff into a tidal gorge. Immediately to the west, a smaller creek cascades down into the same gorge, just one more of the unknown wonders of the Kimberley Coast. The two photos here are of those falls and were taken from nearly the same spot. One was taken in June and one in April.

From here, we work our way west to lower Drysdale River. We may choose to follow one of the routes we have used in the past or we may choose to explore further afield in the hope of finding something more interesting. Whichever we choose, we eventually reach a nice sandy camp just above a private fishing camp. Next morning, we fly back to Kununurra on a float plane.

Important Notes

Terrain and difficulty. This is potentially one the most strenuous trips we offer. The first few days, however, should be relatively easy allowing you time to acclimatise.

Although we will be averaging less than ten kilometres per day, some of the areas through which we will be travelling are quite rugged. This, combined with the need to carry 11 days worth of food, makes good physical fitness absolutely essential.

Besides above average fitness, you will also need a sense of adventure and a desire to explore one of the least known wilderness areas in Australia. You will also need the ability to swim.

You do not, however, need to be a superman or superwoman. Some of those who have done previous trips were in their mid 60's, a few of the younger participants had never done a walk longer than three days before coming out to the Kimberley Coast.

The trip includes some rock hopping with a full pack on and even a bit of clambering over large boulders. See our rock hopping page for more information. Anyone who has done some off-trail rock hopping is unlikely to have any problem with the terrain.

We expect warm to hot conditions, possibly quite humid at times, with relatively little rain for most of the trip. However, the weather is completely unpredictable at this time of year. Since 1992, we have encountered the tail ends of four cyclones. The edge of Cyclone Chloe in 1995 poured rain on us for a full week and turned the landscape into a quagmire. In 1998, we didn't get a cyclone, but we did get one incredible overnight storm where we had strong wind and over 200 mm of rain. In all four cases, the rain turned the coastal waterfalls into some of the most spectacular sights ever seen on any of our trips.

This trip spans the transition from the wet season to the dry season. For more information about walking in the wet season, click here.

Yes, this trip is a challenge but your rewards will be great — spectacular waterfalls, wildflowers and an incredible Kimberley wilderness experience no other operator can offer you.

More Information

Willis's Walkabouts, 12 Carrington Street, Millner NT 0810, Australia walkabout@bushwalkingholidays.com.au

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