The Great Kimberley Overland – 13 days
Get wild on a 13-day tour through the remote Kimberley. Sparsely populated and ruggedly beautiful, the Kimberly is the ultimate adventure destination. Swim in gorges filled with clear waters and under waterfalls. Hike through red-rock formations and palm oases. Learn about the rich First Nations history of the area from Traditional Custodians, take guided walks that illuminate local geography and listen to Outback yarns over a beer in the pub. Get active in this unique and captivating corner of Australia.
Trip overview
- Start – Broome, Australia
- Finish – Broome, Australia
- Destinations – Australia
- Physical rating – 3/5
- Group size – Max 20
- Explore the Tunnel Creek cave system with a Bunuba guide and learn about Janamarra, a First Nations freedom fighter who used the caves to evade police in the late 1800s.
- Take a guided hike through the Wunaamin Miliwundi Ranges Conservation Park, where you can swim under a waterfall and see ancient First Nations rock art.
- Spend two nights in a private safari camp in the heart of Purnululu National Park, with glorious views of the Bungle Bungle Range.
- Explore the natural wonders and First Nations histories along Western Australia’s Dampier Peninsula on a guided 4WD adventure.
- Visit a working pearl farm to learn of the long history of this trade, and experience some of the world’s most fierce tropical tides on an included cruise around the Buccaneer Archipelago.
- Spend the night in a comfortable safari-style camp with included meals prepared for your small group after days exploring the red earth of the western Kimberley.
- This trip is operated and run by our trusted partner, Kimberley Wild Expeditions. You will be travelling with a mixture of both Kimberley Wild Expeditions customers and our customers. We work closely with Kimberley Wild Expeditions to ensure that all of our customers enjoy their time away
- This trip involves strenuous activities like hiking on uneven terrain. It is best suited to travellers with a very high level of mobility and fitness. Details on physical activities can be found in the itinerary.
- Weather conditions can be extreme in the Kimberley. Have a think about what time of the year best suits you best to travel in.
- Accommodation on this tour is a mixture of camping with limited facilities, camping with full facilities and a hostel.
- You’ll be travelling through regions with very little mobile service or internet connection.
- Rise and shine! This trip includes lots of early starts.
Itinerary
The Dampier Peninsula is an extraordinary blend of pristine beaches and dramatic coastlines, rich in traditional Aboriginal culture. Travelling north, learn about the region’s fascinating history from our guided commentary. Our first stop is the Beagle Bay Aboriginal Community, home of the Beagle Bay Church with its glimmering pearl shell altar, for morning tea. Next, we visit the garden community of Lombadina, home to an old bush church, a local craft shop and a delightful community bakery – enjoy their fresh wood-fired bread for our picnic lunch. Across the peninsula we discover the remote Cygnet Bay Pearl Farm. In 1946 Dean Brown skippered a rickety wooden lugger into an unknown frontier to discover this hidden paradise: his descendants continue to operate what is now the oldest Pearl Farm in Australia. Embark on an extraordinary Sea Safari through the Islands of the Giant Tides to experience the remarkable tidal flows of King Sound.
Please note that the tour commences early this morning in Broome at our default pick-up location (details can be found in the Essential Trip Information document), unless you or your booking agent requests an alternative pick-up location well ahead of departure. We do not take responsibility for missed tours if we have not been advised of an alternative in advance and you are not at the default location on time. You may want to stay a night in Broome prior to the trip’s departure. Today’s drive will be approximately 250km / 3 hours.
This morning we gain an insight into this remote pearling industry on the Farm Tour, concluding with an in-depth pearl grading and appreciation session that will leave you feeling like a pearl expert. We then journey further north to the One Arm Point Aboriginal Community to tour a local aquaculture hatchery perched right on the tip of One Arm Point overlooking the impressive Buccaneer Archipelago. We also enjoy the company and cultural insight of local guide Wossy, as he shares stories of growing up in the remote Bardi Jawi community and a few bushtucker secrets. After a picnic lunch visit the Round Rock viewpoint to search the bay for dolphins and turtles, while a refreshing dip at nearby Jologo Beach is a great way to finish up. On the return journey to Broome, keep an eye out for wildlife, such as dingoes, wallabies and wild donkeys, before arriving at your accommodation at approximately 5.00pm.
Today’s drive will be approximately 250km / 3 hours. Please note that our return into Broome this evening will be at around 5pm.
Departing Broome we travel through the remote and beautiful Kimberley landscape, as our guide shares stories of local history, people and the environment. Enjoy a morning tea break by the Fitzroy River and visit the Derby ‘Boab Prison Tree’ before we hit the Gibb River Road. The afternoon is devoted to exploring Tunnel Creek. In this 750-metre cave system carved through the Napier Range, we discover stalactites, secret caves and a large variety of wildlife. It is here we also learn the legend of Jandamarra, an Aboriginal freedom fighter who used the tunnel as a hide-out in the late 1800’s. That night we settle into our first night under the Kimberley night sky just outside Windjana Gorge.
The Napier Range is over 350 million years old and home to the geological wonder of Windjana Gorge. Beneath gorge walls rising 90m, we spend the morning searching for freshwater crocodiles, local birdlife and indigenous bush tucker. In the afternoon we head off for Bell Gorge, a hidden highlight of the West Kimberleys. This idyllic retreat, considered amongst the most beautiful in the area, boasts cascading waterfalls and crystal clear pools formed over millions of years – an easy place to while away a few hours! Spend day 3 swimming in paradise: discover the cool waters of water lilie-laden Galvans Gorge and stunning Adcock Gorge. Amid the rugged beauty of Manning Falls we swim in deep clear pools, relax, explore wandering streams, uncover local wildlife and take a dip in the waterfall pools.
Enjoy two nights in the comfort of our own private safari camp near Manning Gorge. The camp features large tents on raised platforms with twin stretcher beds, mattresses and our own sheltered kitchen area. Nearby shared ablutions have hot showers and flush toilets.
Our journey up the Gibb River Road continues to the iconic El Questro Wilderness Park. Two nights in our private campsite allows free time join one or more of the many activities on offer. We include a refreshing dip in the Zebedee Springs and walk into Emma Gorge while a cruise on Chamberlain Gorge, bush tucker walk or bird watching tour are amongst the many optional activities. You may choose to simply explore this beautiful wilderness park at your own
leisure.
Our private camp on the grounds of El Questro also features large tents on raised platforms with twin stretcher beds, mattresses and our own sheltered kitchen area. Nearby shared ablutions have hot showers and flush toilets.
Emerge from the Gibb River Road for a few hours free time in Kununurra. In the afternoon, travel onto the shores of the expansive Lake Argyle, the heart of the Ord River Irrigation System which has transformed this dry region into a lush agricultural oasis. There is free time to join a sunset boat cruise on the lake (approx AU$100pp, own expense), visit the historic Durack Homestead Museum or take on one of the many bush trails to explore the area.
After a leisurely morning, head south down the Great Northern Highway to Purnululu National Park, home of the magnificent Bungle Bungles. With two nights here staying overnight in our private Bungle Bungle Safari Camp in the heart of the park, allows a full day to explore the highlights of this extraordinary National Park, the most famous of which are the Bungle Bungle domes. Rivers created this landscape of unique orange and black striped ‘beehive’ geological formations over a period of 20 million years. Unbelievably, only the locals knew it existed until the early 1980’s; once discovered by others, the area was made a national park in 1987. We explore Echidna Chasm (2km), known for its towering Livistonia Palm trees, and take a short walk (2-3km) into stunning Cathedral Gorge, where towering rocks create a natural amphitheatre.
In the heart of Purnululu National Park, our eco safari tents at the Bungle Bungles Safari Camp boast views of the Bungles Massif from your door. The camp features modern facilities, a covered dining deck with panoramic views and an open air campfire around which you can relax beneath a sparkling Kimberley night sky: chatting, star-gazing and sharing the adventure with like-minded travellers.
Enroute to Fitzroy Crossing, we break the long journey with a visit the gold rush town of Halls Creek to see the remarkable China Wall. We also enjoy lunch
at Marys Pool and visit a remote Aboriginal Art Gallery, before an evening by the Fitzroy River at Fitzroy Crossing.
This morning join a Darlgunya Cultural Walk where our local Indigenous guide greets you with a smoking ceremony and billy tea, then leads a stroll through the remnants of the old postal settlement. Learn about the wild Fitzroy River: its plants, wildlife and significance to local culture. Enjoy lunch by the river before returning to Broome – hopefully in time to enjoy the sunset on Cable Beach.
Inclusions
