Broome – Kimberley’s WA

Driving from Derby to Broome, on Friday 11^th March, I was dropped at my sister’s place around 1pm.  She was at work and her friend Phil, who had been on night shift was asleep. I circled the house looking for an open door but there was none.  Phil is a very sound sleeper as well as being hard of hearing so didn’t hear me. In the end I rang Jen who came back and unlocked so I could dump my things grab my bathers and return with her to the office.  Madalah in both Derby and Broome supply accommodation to indigenous youth who are studying or working. It helps them adjust to living in town.  The Broome house also has a swimming pool which I am very grateful for as I have frequently availed myself of its shaded waters. It’s not exactly a cool dip but plunging beneath the waters is always a refreshing moment to my day.

It was nice to be back chatting with Jen although she is extremely busy with her work commitments.  Saturday we were up early, I went for my jog before breaky then we headed for Ganthiume Beach.  You can 4 wheel drive along many of Broome beaches at low tide. The tides in Broome are not as extreme as Derby but still reach around 10 mts.

That afternoon we headed out of town to the Malcolm Douglas Wilderness Wildlife Park where they rescue rogue crocodiles. It was very interesting with a feeding of the crocodiles and a bit of a history of the place with stories of some of the members given by the game warden as we walked around the pens. The capture of one of the crocs had even stared on a TV program.

Sunday I attended the Victory Life Church Broome which is a sister church of the one founded by Dawn Frazer Australia’s greatest Olympian.  While waiting for my sister to pick me up after the service I stood under a very unusual frangipani flower. The tree was the normal white frangipani but this bunch of flowers had red on them.  It was most unusual!

After lunch Jen, Matt (her 26yr old son) and I went for a drive around.  First stopping at Broome jetty where we walked as far as we could down the 700 metre long jetty.  The beach itself had some amazing red sandstone rocks.  A little further along the coast we stopped at Port Beach where I took photos of the mosaic rock formations before joining Jen in the tepid ocean for a swim to cool down.

We drove a little further and walked down a red sandy path to Riddells Beach, a spectacularly scenic stretch of beach backed by red pindan cliffs.  Standing atop this soft red rock formation we decided we didn’t want to clamber down to the beach so moved on to the next tourist attraction the Broome lighthouse.  Broome’s skeletal lighthouse stands at Gantheaume Point. This area is also known for Anastasia’s Pool, which is a small pool in the rocks that the former lighthouse keeper made for his arthritic wife.  At very low tides you can also view the oldest attractions in Broome: some 130 million year old dinosaur footprints.  Unfortunate we saw neither.

Monday, Phil leant me his vehicle which enabled me to leave the house a little later than Jen.  I stopped off for a cappuccino and to use the wifi at McCafé before joining Jen at the office to help out where needed.  It was a good opportunity to have another swim in the pool.

We travelled back to Derby on Tuesday 15^th March, this time we took one of Jen’s workers, Nathan, with us.  He colourful language was hard on the ears but such is life here in the Kimberley’s. Alcohol, smokes and bad language.  He was very knowledgeable on a variety of topics and a non-stop talker which entertained us the whole two hour trip!

Ingrid had invited Jen and me out for dinner on her block at 6pm.  We weren’t sure if we could find our way so sent her an SMS and headed out of town.  Fortunately she replied to our message before we lost reception and before the turn off to give us clear instructions on where to go.  She also warned us that the road was very boggy and slippery after the recent rains.

The red dirt roads reminded me of Uganda. The grey skies before us and the red roads beneath us were in stark contrast as we drove through the bush, boab, wattle and gums lining the roads.  Ingrid and Ali’s block was about 20 mins or 30km out of Derby. We arrived just before dusk which enabled us to find our way, park and have a look around before dinner as the sun set.  Ingrid is vegetarian but Ali isn’t so we had a mixture of salads as well as lamb ribs which were delicious. There is no electricity except that which is generated by the solar panels which powers the house and kitchen lights and runs the small car fridge.  We ate outside under the stars with a torch to light our table.  We had a lovely night before returning to Madalah for the night.

Wednesday morning at 6:30 Jen drove me back out to Birdwood Downs for another horse ride with Greg.  Jen had suggested I speak to Greg about perhaps returning to help out during the year so I asked if that was possible.  Greg suggested I come between May and August if I was interested.  Something to consider.  I could help with teaching the visitors to ride and help around the station.

Ingrid and Kiki then picked me up at 8am to take me back into Derby.  We stopped for a cappuccino at the Spinifex Hotel before heading for Madalah for Kiki’s sleep time and Ingrid’s staff meeting with Jen.  After the meeting we had lunch together before Ingrid headed back home.  That evening Jen and I joined the Madalah residents for dinner then head for an early bed.  We had hoped for an early start as Jen wanted to be back in Broome to get stuck into the work there. Unfortunately we also needed to wait for Ingrid who wanted to say goodbye. She was coming after her gym class, with a thank you gift for me.  We headed out of Derby after 10am with Nathan joining us again with his non-stop stories punctuated with colourful language.  After dropping him off at his place, we dumped our things at the house where I grabbed my bathers before heading for Jen’s work.  She dropped me off for a cappuccino on route so I could catch up with all my internet work that I had missed while being in Derby.  My phone provider doesn’t work there as the major telco provider had monopoly in the country areas preventing other providers from operating.

I then walk to Jen’s work where I took a quick dip in the pool before helping out where I could like picking up the Madalah residents from TAFE.

Often while in Broome, early in the mornings we would head to a beach.  The beaches here are amazing.  Long, wide, flat sandy stretches between sand dunes and ocean.  We often came down around 7am to take Skipper, Jen’s elderly dog, for a run and a paddle in the sea.  He loves chasing the tiny sand crabs.  One morning I took Phil’s kayak out for a very quick paddle.  Due to the small waves I was only able to paddle out, do a quick turn, and paddle back to shore.  It was both scary and fun as I was able to surf the waves.  I had to make sure the kayak was heading either into or with the wave.  If the wave had caught me side on the kayak would have flipped with me being thrown out.  I was a bit concerned with being thrown out as these waters are known for not only having sharks but also salt water crocodiles and stingers! For this reason I was determined to stay in the kayak!

Sometimes in the evenings we would return to the beach for a swim or a leisurely wander along Ganthiume or Cable Beach at low tide.  We would drive the 4 wheel drive down close to the water, park and walk back before the rising tide. Saturday evening we decided we would have a BBQ on Cable Beach.   Cable Beach is the most popular beach.  At one end there is a part of the beach where the 4 wheel drive vehicles can access.  We drove about half a kilometre up the beach, parked the vehicle then wondered off to find some kindling for our fire.  This wasn’t hard to do as the sand dunes are full of vegetation that hasn’t survived the harsh conditions.  Jen dug a pit in the sand then filled it with scrunched up newspaper and kindling before adding the larger logs which we had brought with us. While the fire settled down to coals, on which we could cook, we wondered along the beach.  I was fascinated by the patterns the water made as it shimmered in the late afternoon sun.  I noticed tiny crabs were making patterns with tiny sand balls which I presume they had sieved through looking for food.  There were also camel prints in the sand and later two teams of camels carrying tourists wandered along the waters edge.  This made for lovely sunset photos. We were not let down by the splendour of the setting sun either.  Its golden rays lighting up the clouds and streaking across the sea turning everything gold.  The sun’s rays lit up the waves making it look like a stairway across the ocean.

It was a scrumptious meal which started with crackers, cheese and dips followed with chicken skewers and rice salad eaten around a glowing fire.  A most relaxing enjoyable evening by the sea.  We sat awhile longer as the last rays of the day sunk below the ocean while the tide slowly approached.  Many vehicles were heading home to avoid the rising tide and eventually we too packed up and headed back.

Another event Jen took me to was the outdoor theatre which was screening “The Lady in the Van”.  The theatre with it’s large screen was built during the pearling boom and was attended by locals from all nationalities.  In those days the seats were segregated with the Malay’s down the front, the affluent Japanese pearlers behind them.  The westerners had the comfortable cane chairs in the following rows with the other Asian population towards the back. The local indigenous people were in the far back on a raise platform.  Today of course we all happily sit wherever we like.  The seats are rows of deckchairs which are quite uncomfortable but Jen, like most locals come prepared with their own pillows. She said that sometimes the pilots were known to fly the plane low just over the screen to entertain the guests.

The other movie night was put on by the civic centre and showed a series of short films on ethnic diversity in Australia.  They were quite interesting with Burmese and Vietnamese refugees and the early Italian immigrants and their stories.

One day I drove around Broome stopping to take a look at the old pearl luggers and the pearl museum.  I was amazed at the size colours and shapes of the different pearls for sale.

My last day in the Kimberley’s I cleaned up a bit, washed my clothes to pack then returned to Jen’s work for lunch and a swim in the pool.  And so my time in the Kimberley’s were over with a flight to Perth arriving after 8pm.

Photos:   1. Sunset Cable Beach   2. Driving on the beach   3. Jen, Phil and Matt at the crocodile farm     4. Frangipani     5. Broome jetty   6. Rock formations   7. Riddells Beach   8. Red road to Ingrids   9. Ingrid and Ali’s home   10. Ali in kitchen     11. Sunset in the Aust bush   12. Kayaking     13. Jen on Ganthiume Beach   14. Camels     15. Jen and me   16. BBQ   17. Broome outdoor theatre museum   18. Pearl luggers

Prayer & Praise Points:
Praise the Lord for safety on the roads and the sea.

Praise Him for a wonderful time with Jen and family in Broome and for Ingrid who has been such a blessing showing me around Derby.

Praise the Lord for air conditioning while I’ve been here and the cooler weather before leaving the Kimberley’s.

Please continue to praise Him for His protection, provision and my general good health as I return to Perth.

Thank you for your prayers for Mum especially for her acceptance of me staying with her and her openness to having me help her. She has been a bit lonely since my departure but all’s well I’ll probably be around for a bit now. Please continue to pray for her physical health especially for her memory.