Hubbison's win the Mud Crab Derby in Derby!!

Prison Boab Tree

Lunch with the Hubbisons

Bob and Carl discussing something

Derby Jetty

Bob and Fay about to tackle Wassa's Brekky

The winners of the Mary Island Fishing Club Mud-Crub Derby!

Hubson and 'trainer' Bob Hubby

Some of the losers

The choice is made

Bob making his selection

Doing it tough in Derby

Derby Jetty at high tide

Koolan Island Iron Ore Mine

The Horizontal Waterfalls - only the smaller one was running

Ditto

And another one

Amazing mud flats around Derby

Our pilot Kate

Sunset over Derby Jetty

The Hubbisons at Derby Jetty

Well, what an amazing couple of days we've had here in this surprisingly interesting town!! It just goes to show that you don't want to listen too much to other people's opinions of a place. We'd had a couple of people give us their pretty negative thoughts on Derby so we came here not expecting much! We have all been pleasantly surprised but maybe that has something to do with winning $250 last night after our carefully selected (by Big Boss Bob) mud-crab, 'Hubson' beat 150 other mud-crabs!! We turned up at the Mary Island Fishing Club just to see what happens at such an event and before you know it Bob and Warwick had decided to get our own crab for $10 and really enter into the spirit of things. Bob made the all important decision and selected a likely looking young crab who was clambering over all the other poor crabs in the large tub. We decided on the name Hubson for short as it had to be written on his back and Warwick told them that Bob Hubby was the trainer. So we proceeded to wait anxiously for his heat - no 5. The race commentator was extremely entertaining and made the whole thing hilarious! Eventually Hubson got his chance and he was a real sprinter winning his heat easily. So of course we had to hang around then until the grand final didn't we? There were 5 more heats and then a break while they auctioned off each crab in a Calcutta. This took quite some time as you can imagine and bids went up to $350!! One fellow bid and won 8 out of the 20 crabs - must have spent about $1,000.00! So of course there was a huge build up to the grand final race and much excitemen tas the 20 crabs were released. You can imagine how excited we were and expecially Warwick when Hubson made a bee-line for Bob and took out 1st place!! We just couldn't believe it!!

Now to go back to Friday 29th - we arrived here about lunch time and were thrilled to get a lovely grassy campsite - a welcome change from red sand!! Lazed around for the afternoon. Bob walked a long way to a camping store to get a 240v camping light and met up with a personable young Irish fellow whose name is Carl. He kindly brought Bob back here and Carl stayed and talked on and on as only the Irish can do!

Saturday 30th - Went to the jetty to see the low tide and found a fuel tanker there loading fuel onto a barge which was taking it to one of the island's at the mouth of King Sound. This happens daily as there are 2 iron ore mines on islands up there - Cockatoo and Koolan. From there we went to the CWA markets , came back for a breather and then back to the jetty to see the high tide. It rose 25' in 6 hours yesterday - a king tide would be 35'! It's amazing to see this phenomonon! Then it was off to the mud crab races and I've already covered that.

Sunday 31st - set off to find the Baptist church without success and ended up at a little church - think it was called Family Church - where they welcomed us very warmly and we all felt blessed to be there. The Pastor and his wife were from Papua New Guinea.

Then it was off into the beautiful blue yonder for our flight over the Horizontal Falls and the Buccaneer Archaepeligo. Wow what an amazing flight that was!! Glorious day, fantastic scenery and very pleasant and informative young female pilot. To cap off the day we had a lovely seafood meal at a little restaurant overlooking the jetty enjoying another amazing sunset! What an incredible country we live in!

I'm not sure where next I'll be able to add to the Blog as we begin our trek along the Gibb River Road tomorrow with Windjana Gorge our first stop. We've heard varying reports about the road ranging from 'absolutely terrible to 'not as bad as people make out' so we are hoping the latter is closer to the truth!' Love to all and thanks for reading our blog! Yvonne

Exploring the Dampier Peninsular

Beautiful pearl worth $120,000.00

Cape Leveque scenery

Church of the Sacred Heart beagle Bay

Interior of church is beautifully decorated with pearl shell

Lunching at beautiful Cape Leveque

Wassa enjoying the water at Cape leveque

Wassa the 3 tea-bag man! He uses the left-overs from the rest of us.

Fay, Bob and Wassa talking to protester re Woodside Gas and Oil Installation

Ice-cream anyone?

Down on the beach for sunset

Wading beauties!!

Wading beauties and handsome friend!!

Tuesday 26/7 - Y and W caught bus into China Town and visited the Pearl Luggers Museum to hear of the pearling glory days of the 1900s - lots of divers died. The iconic Roebuck Hotel is nearby. B and F joined us and we had a lazy picnic lunch at Town Beach Park. Later nibblies cheese and bikkies, sipping wine and enjoying the sunset over Cable Beach. We haven't taken up the camel-riding option but we watch 2 trains of them walk by our campsite every morning and evening.

Wednesday 27/7 - Early start today to explore Cape Leveque at the northern tip of the Dampier Peninsular. Talked to road-side campers protesting the proposed humungous Woodside Gas Project here on the Kimberley coast. A team from 60 Minutes is in town to report on this protest. Enroute we called into Beagle Bay Aboriginal Community. A Roman Catholic Mission was first established here in 1890. A lovely church was built here in 1915-16 and is ornately decorated throughout the interior with mother-of-pearl shell. Cape Leveque campsite, Resort and beach provides idyllic "get-away-from-it-all" facilities, at a price. We then went on to the community at One Arm Point and stumbled upon an interesting and very successful Trochas Shell Hatchery, exporting their product to Italy for buttons, jewellery etc.

Thursday 28/7 - Last full day in Broome .Y and F headed for the laundry. B replaced a couple of car fuses and globes. W just lazed about. In the afternoon we cruised downtown for Y to have a haircut, some souvenir shopping and a little more sight-seeing. For our last sunset on Cable Beach we drove down onto the sand with dozens of other 4wd vehicles and mingled with the camel trains whilst watching another glorious sunset. A fitting way to end our time here in Broome.

Balmy Broome or as Bob says "A new broom sweeps clean!!

Bob Fay and Warwick with Rev Beverley Ham

Large Boab tree along Great Northern Highway

Fresh water 'croc' in Geikie Gorge

Along the promenade at Cable Beach

Lovely old Broome Uniting Church

Awaiting sunset at Cable Beach

Beautiful sunset over Cable Beach

Bob and Warwick relaxing at our campsite

Friday 22 July - After a lazy morning at Fitzroy Crossing we took ourselves off on the Geikie Gorge 1 hour cruise with about 60 others. Saw about 30 fresh-water crocs lazily sunning themselves on the river-bank. Massive floods have left striking colours and formations in the gorge - all very relaxing. Dining in the resort Bistro was very pleasant. Hordes of travellers are accommodated here.

Geikie Gorge

Saturday 23/7 - Time to head for the Kimberley capital, Broome. First we rang through at 8.30 am and we were able to reserve an unpowered tent site at Cable Beach Caravan Park. Lots of traffic to and fro along the Great Northern Highway. Broome is a booming town - gas, oil, mining, tourism - 16,000 residents and in peak time the population expands to over 40,000! A large new sub-division under construction will sell blocks for around $300,000.00. The International Airport is central in town with old China Town at one end and many resorts all around. With our tent city erected we are thinking of spending a little longer in Broome.

Sunday 24/7 - Enjoyed 9am Uniting Church service with 71 yr-old Rev. Bev Ham preaching. Several kids in church - lots of grey nomad travellers. Last year the congregation celebrated the Centenary of the church in their wide-verandahed, open-sided, tropical style church. We sat behind June and Doug Friend from Blaxland! Visited the Info Centre after church and booked our flights from Derby to Horizontal Falls for next weekend. The mighty Visa card does it again. Late afternoon we mosied off to Cable beach to watch the glorious over the Indian Ocean through the palm trees. We were joined by many others. Witnessed 2 camel trains returning and dozens of 4WDs coming off the beach. Cable Beach Resort is sheer opulence - we strolled through as though we owned it (well Warwick did anyway) but this is definitely out of our price-range!

Monday 25/7 - HOORAY looks like we have solved our crazy "can't open/can't close/can't start without alarm bells ringing" in the Landrover. Problem-solver Bob put new battery and adjusted terminals in vehicle remote-control gizmo and hey presto, our frustrations are over, we hope! We are really starting to holiday now! Through modern technology we are able to keep in touch with family and grandchildren in particu;ar. This afternoon Fay and Yvonne returned home from their Cultured Pearl Farm Tour sprouting about their extravagant purchases and we thought we were going to have to mortgage our houses for a while or at least spend the kids' inheritance!

Tanami Track - we did it!!

At the end of the Tanami Track

Wraps for lunch

Roadside mechanic!

Egg bread for breakfast

Bob looking for spares!

Outback sunset

Roadside lunch

Washing up team

Tuesday 19/7 - We departed 'Alice' with 5 jerry cans of fuel and a full tank. We commenced our assault on the infamous Tanami Track of 1100 kms. Rumous about burnt-out 4wds and deserted trailers abound! The first 200 kms are sealed to Tilmouth Well Roadhouse, an oasis for sure. Then the gravel challenged us with bulldust and corrugations. We drove into Yuendumu Aboriginal Community and topped up our fuel - several good-looking buildings here including a Baptist Church. After enjoying fresh sald wraps on the side of the road, lovingly provided by our catering 'girls', we drove on to Chilla Wells in search of a campsite but we found only a deserted aboriginal outstation. Up the road a bit we stopped about 5pm to set up our tent city complete with porta pottie in it's own tent for the night.

Wednesday 20/7 - Our longest stretch between fuel supplies is 600 kms. Up with the sparrows after a beautiful starry night we breakfasted, dismantled our gear, packed it all into our compact rig of Landrover and trailer and headed for the NT/WA border. Enroute we met a lone cyclist promoting "Bikes 4 Life" - he is cycling around the world for 5 years - and we thought we were doing it tough! On to Billiluna Aboriginal community for fuela and hot shower, but no 'dongas' - so it's tent city on the roadside again tonight. Bob, the good Samaritan, sold his one spear trailer wheel bearing to a young bloke in desperate need. And so to another flawless starry night with delicous cooked "what do you call this Darl?" meal!

Thursday 21/7 - Our third and last day on the Tanami Track. We soon came upon a young Mum and her 3 boys next to a stranded, one-wheeled "Johnno's" trailer - the ssame trailer we heard about yesterday. Husband/father, Seamus, turned up very frustrated - Bob's bearing was tghe wrong size. Then a moment of inspiration - they realised that the spare wheel had a bearing that would do the job. Bob soon had his tool box out and the new bearing installed and well greased! wassa played AFL footie with the boys. By midday we made it to the Great Northern Highway. We and our rig had survived the Tanami Track!

Our all-female crew then took over the cockpit and steared us the 270 kms of beautiful bitumen road to Fitzroy River Lodge, where we are luxuriating in a very comfortable Safari Tent complete with ensuite fo9r 2 nights! Off to see Geikie Gorge tomorrow - we are finally in the Kimberley!

Wassa is today's Blogger