5 Aug
Sadly it is time to leave McGowan’s Island and say goodbye to our new friends Ray & Betty from Gladstone who were camping next to us in their Robust Camper (made in Rockhampton). Ray & Betty are also leaving today so maybe we will run into them again down the track.
After stopping in Kalumburu for fuel and some eggs and milk we were back on the horribly corrugated and dippy track heading south to the Gibb River Road. We travelled a little slower this time but it wasn’t long before Michael call up on the UHF to say his engine had stopped. We pulled over to wait while he had a look; it wasn’t long before he announced that his fuel tank was falling out, literally! We turned around and drove back to where he was stopped, hooked up the snatch strap and towed him off the road where we spent the next three hours re-joining wiring, broken hoses and securing the fuel tank with a couple of bolts and a ratchet strap. It wasn’t long after we stopped that Ray & Betty come along and gave us a couple bolts to use. They had left camp this morning a while before us but had taken a wrong turn coming out of Kalumburu (twice) so had lost a lot of time. They stayed a little while then were on their way. Whilst we were stopped probably about half the traffic going past stopped to check if we were ok and the rest would speed past without checking on us and leaving us in a cloud of dust. I hoped we would come across some of them stuck on the side of the road once we got going again so we could drive off and leave them in our dust!
We made it to Drysdale River Station around 5pm. At the entrance to the station is a gate and when Graham drove past me through it, I noticed one of the two safety chains on the trailer wasn’t attached to the truck. I also thought I saw something hanging down under the truck but soon forgot about that.
We didn’t bother setting up camp just went straight to the bar and ended up having an early dinner there as well. After setting up camp I mention to Graham that I thought something might be sticking out under the truck and he then found the sway bar was broken.
The next morning Michael had to do a more permanent repair job on his fuel tank and Graham had to remove the broken sway bar. On further inspection Graham also found a broken pipe bracket on the engine and a cracked dumbjack (rear spring hanger) on the trailer. So he did some welding with a couple of batteries and jumper leads which does a pretty good weld.
It was lunch time before we got away. Originally we were going to camp at Silent Grove Camp Ground near Bell Gorge but it was getting too late and it’s no fun setting up camp in the dark so we started looking out for a free camp somewhere off the side of the road, usually found along creek banks. Graham suddenly pulled over and said he needs to check the tyres, the truck feels like it’s leaning – yes, we had a flat. It had been slowly loosing air for a few days but we had been able to keep topping it up until now.
After changing the tyre, it wasn’t far until we came upon Grave Creek (near Pandanus Spring). It had a track running along it and on investigation we found plenty of fire places from people previously camping there which was good enough for us as the sun had already set and we were searching for a spot in the dusk fading light.
6 Aug
It got pretty cold last night. We ran the heater and Julie said that they froze.
After packing up camp we continued on to Bell Gorge which wasn’t that far away (I would guess less than 50km’s). On arrival we had to self register and pay a day pass park access fee of $12. We then got our sunscreen, shoes, hats etc on, gathered our water bottles, camera and Jacob’s snacks ready for the trip when Ray and Betty found us as they came back from their walk into the gorge. They were pleased to see us as they had been worried about how Michael got on with his fuel tank. After a quick catch up we headed off on the 4km return walk. It was an easy walk from the car park along a gently sloping trail to the view of Bell Falls . Getting down to the water for a swim required crossing the river at the top of the waterfall (rock hopping) followed by a relatively steep climb downwards for approximately 20 mins – there are markers guiding the way across the river and down to the water. We were only going to walk to the top, but since the walk was so easy we went all the way. It was worth it. We weren’t planning on swimming but I couldn’t resist. It was cold but beautiful and refreshing. The very slippery rocks getting in made for a good laugh.
From here we headed further along the Gibb then turned onto the Fairfield Leopold Downs Road, dropped the campers off at the camp ground at Windjana Gorge NP then shot down the track to Tunnel Creek.
Tunnel Creek National Park is Western Australia’s oldest cave system. Part of an ancient Devonian reef system, the cave has been carved by the waters of Tunnel Creek flowing beneath the Napier Range.
It is a 750 metre walk through the tunnel, wading through freshwater pools, currently up to only knee deep but can be waist deep. The cave features many beautiful formations, including stalactites and stalagmites, and is also suppose to be home to a variety of bats, olive pythons and freshwater crocodiles, not that we saw any. We were the last ones to come out of the cave around 5pm and at the entrance we found some travellers from a tour bus looking for a lady who was missing. The driver was on foot looking for her in a dry overgrown creek bed. She was eventually found when another tour bus returned to the car park as he had an extra passenger on board. The lady had gotten onto the wrong bus and the driver obviously hadn’t done a head count before leaving. Crisis averted, we headed back to Windjana with the rest of the masses to set up camp for the night and hopefully tomorrow, get to see some crocodiles.
7 Aug
After breakfast and packing up the camper we headed on the Windjana Gorge Walk. The Lennard River runs through Windjana Gorge in wet weather, but forms pools surrounded by trees and shrubs during the dry season. The 3.5km long gorge cuts through Napier Range: part of the ancient Devonian limestone reef that can also be seen at Geikie Gorge and Tunnel Creek. Freshwater crocodiles bask in the pools. The Gorge Walk begins at the camping area and winds through the gorge for 3.5km each way. There is also marine life forms fossilised within the limestone of the gorge walls. We didn’t plan on walking all the way, only wanted to see some crocodiles so sent Michael & Julie off ahead of us as they were ready to go before us. It was an easy walk, well the bit we did was anyway with the worst of it being just walking through sand and we saw roughly 70 croc’s at a quick count. We kept walking until we met up with Michael and Jules on their way back. They hadn’t completed the 3.5km to the end either deciding to turn back when they got to a muddy/boggy section. Once back to the campground we hitched up the campers and headed back to the Gibb River Road and made our way to Derby. Julie and I were pretty excited about being in civilisation again. Whilst in Derby Graham wanted to try to source some bits and pieces for some repairs and since it was Friday afternoon we would probably need to wait until Monday to do that so we planned to stay here until then.
