22nd
July: Cape Leveque – Cygnet Bay
Actually, it is next morning as per
usual. I am sitting in the car out of the mossies as the sun rises,
drinking coffee. I went for a walk at dawn (in my nightie)and found
the sea that I heard all night. I am now sitting in a cloud of
insect repellant while the other two slumber on. Actually, I know
Glen iks awake – I have disturbed him enough. We were in bed at
8.15 last night and so sleep eludes!
Firstly, about Monday. The Japanese
cemetery was very interesting. All the gravestones were in Japanese
of course and there had been a lot of destruction. But the Japanese
consul and others had done a great job of restoring the dignity of
the last resting place of what were mostly young divers, by replacing
with obviously different stone the headstones of those missing or
irreparable. Few were over 30 yrs of age and the statistics are
appalling. The cemetery houses 700 plus graves and over 600 divers
are recorded as having been drowned or suffering divers' paralysis
since 1903. 33 men died in one year! The Chinese and Malay
cemeteries were no way as well preserved. Chinese divers were
regarded as less skilful and Malay and aborigines were the least
highly regarded. There are still a lot of Japanese families in
Broome as there are recent graves just outside the divers' cemetery.
Point Gantheuame features sedimentery
rocks and there are dinosaur footprints from some huge beasts of that
era (weighing 80 tonnes) in the sandstones, observable at very low
tide. We saw none but some clay moulds of what is under water. But
it is a lovely place: red sandstones and clear blue water with white
sands on the beaches.
After lunch we went to Matso's
brewery. Frantic with tourists! Glen surprisingly liked the Lychee
beer and Chango ( a combination of Chilli and Mango beers.) I didn't
like any but then I am not a beer drinker. So I drank a 90 ml glass
of Lime and Ginger Cider. Bad decision! I didn't mind it but I know
I can't drink cider. It upsets my system!! So I paid for it!
Dinner at Amanda's was lovely. Jason
had cooked a lovely roast and we entertained Larni for a time.
Amanda had some interesting things to say about her workmates packing
shelves at Woolies. Mostly young pilots trying to get their hours up
for bigger things. So much of Broome depends on the tourist season
and it has been quite depressed of late! They worry about the ethics
of the new gas fracking industry but recognise it could be helpful
for the economy. They actually want out of Broome in a few years.
Well, Tuesday we left early for Cape
Leveque. 91 kms of unsealed road to be exact. It is interesting
that beyond 20kms north of Broome the road is unsealed for 91 kms
until we reach Aboriginal owned land. Then it is sealed again with a
normal width highway all the way to One Arm Point. I wonder about
that. The dirt (one couldn't call it gravel as it was orange red soil
and sand, hard packed in places and soft in others) road wasn't bad –
corrugations in places, humps in others, deep sand in yet others- but
it was like driving down the bottom of a narrow half-pipe. Years of
grading had produced a rounded profile to the road and it was often
difficult to see what the country was like, so deep was the road
between the banks topped with tall flowering wattle trees. It was
very pretty actually – intense blue sky, red, red soil and the
green and gold trees! Passing cars was interesting as both were up
the sides of the pipe! Too narrow in places for 2 cars down the
bottom! Then we had to avoid the 4 graders working on the top 26 kms.
That was fun!
We called in firstly to Beagle Bay and
visited the Sacred Heart of Jesus church, built from 1916 by locals
and the Pallottine monks who had taken over the mission established
in 1888 by French Trappist monks. During WW1, the monks were under
house arrest and this was when they began building. It is highly
decorated inside with pearl shell in a most individual manner.
Beagle Bay was also the site of the institutionisation of children of
the “stolen generation”, placed by the government in the care of
the Irish Sisters of St John of God. It is now the centre of a
vibrant and hard working parish with a parish school which we were
told is very successful.
We went on to Middle Lagoon over a
very corrugated road which deteriorated further with a series of
large humps and water-filled hollows. There were a dozen or so vans
in the Caravan Park out there and so people do drag vans and boats to
this retreat. A very affable local greeted us,took our money for the
permit to enter, and told us that some people book 12 months ahead to
get a top of ridge site to sit and enjoy the view! It is a truly
beautiful place and although we wanted to swim, we had to move on.
This is the land of Bushtracker vans and Campavans!
Gail particularly wanted to go to
Cygnet Bay for the pearls and so that was our next stop. We travel
along the reddest road I have ever seen. The dirt was vermillon and
the dust covered everything! But Cygnet Bay which has only been open
to the public for 4 years, was a great place to stay. We did the
tour (very interesting with fabulous pearls) ,had a very civilized
candle-lit, a la carte dinner with wine (in our shorts and sandals –
our standards have slipped) and bush camped in a secluded nook on
sandy soil. We did learn a lot more about pearls and the industry
and the establishment of Cygnet Bay by James Brown as well as th
development under his son Lyndon after the departure of the Japanese
who had pioneered the cultured pearl business.
It was lovely camping out here. But
you know, you get hoons everywhere. In bed by 8.30pm, we were woken
at 10.00 by an idiot revving through the sandy tracks around the
camps (they are in little pockets in the bush with a road threading
between). Peace shattering! But it was a very nice evening!
24rd
July: Cape Leveque – Ardyaloon & Kooljaman
After breakfast and another walk on
the beach,we packed up, paid our dues and went on to One Arm Point or
Ardyaloon, the community is called. Entry was $10 per person which
we though was rather expensive until we realised this included entry
into the Trochus Hatchery. We weren't planning to visit this but I
am so glad we did. Trochus shell has always been important to the
local people here and for the last few years they have bred shells,
fish and other marine life to release back into the seas around the
point to restock the depleted habitat very successfully. The trochus
the people gather on the reefs and in the wet season they spawn and
then they are releqsed back to the reefs. The spawn grow and in a
year are ready for release. Likewise the clams, the fish and
aenomes. Old shells are polished and sold. They have a contract
with a button maker in Italy and are looking for more. Our tour was
conducted by a young local girl who knew her stuff and was amusing in
the way she attributed personalities to the fish. (Greedy, shy,
cheeky etc.) Two guys were cleaning up shells – I don't think Work
Place Health & Safety had audited the place ever. One of them
was a local artist and he had just finished cleaning green shells,
rare and highly prized- and so I was able to buy one!
We really enjoyed the visit and after
watching the tide rip out – as it does- we drove back to Kooljamin
at Cape Leveque. This is another community again and there is a
great camping ground here. No vans allowed but lots of tents. We
climbed up the hill past the lighthouse – now solar driven- and
down for a lovely swim. The beach was white and beautiful, the water
green-blue and crystal clear and the cliffs and rocks, red.
Absolutely lovely! The water was very salty and cool but even Glen
was inspired to swim. It was so refreshing. Lots of people camp
down here in beach shelters and there are facilities. We climbed
back up after a fresh water shower and Glen was hankering for some
Calamari and Chips for lunch. So we sat down in the restaurant in
our wet togs and ate a lovely lunch. Very cool!! We went down to
the western beach to see the red cliffs. Spectacular! But very hot
with very crumbly red mudstone looking extremely fragile.
We had no time left and so missed
Lombadina. However, we had by this time, seen some fantastic beaches
and, more importantly, seen some hard working, innovative and
creative communities. I was impressed by the organisation, tidiness
and community spirit of these urban areas. Lots of dogs but no kids
on the street – all in school,no-one sitting around aimlessly and
no drunks. I agree, Denis, that it is a pity that southern media
don't highlight these aspects of the north.
We drove home; it took us 2 ½ hrs
but there was very litle traffic on the road. Where the graders had
been was brilliant and the rest was bearable. The long shadows made
it more difficult but we all agreed it had been worth it! A lovely,
lovely relaxing place. I wish we had had more time there.
22nd
July: Cape Leveque – Cygnet Bay
Actually, it is next morning as per
usual. I am sitting in the car out of the mossies as the sun rises,
drinking coffee. I went for a walk at dawn (in my nightie)and found
the sea that I heard all night. I am now sitting in a cloud of
insect repellant while the other two slumber on. Actually, I know
Glen iks awake – I have disturbed him enough. We were in bed at
8.15 last night and so sleep eludes!
Firstly, about Monday. The Japanese
cemetery was very interesting. All the gravestones were in Japanese
of course and there had been a lot of destruction. But the Japanese
consul and others had done a great job of restoring the dignity of
the last resting place of what were mostly young divers, by replacing
with obviously different stone the headstones of those missing or
irreparable. Few were over 30 yrs of age and the statistics are
appalling. The cemetery houses 700 plus graves and over 600 divers
are recorded as having been drowned or suffering divers' paralysis
since 1903. 33 men died in one year! The Chinese and Malay
cemeteries were no way as well preserved. Chinese divers were
regarded as less skilful and Malay and aborigines were the least
highly regarded. There are still a lot of Japanese families in
Broome as there are recent graves just outside the divers' cemetery.
Point Gantheuame features sedimentery
rocks and there are dinosaur footprints from some huge beasts of that
era (weighing 80 tonnes) in the sandstones, observable at very low
tide. We saw none but some clay moulds of what is under water. But
it is a lovely place: red sandstones and clear blue water with white
sands on the beaches.
After lunch we went to Matso's
brewery. Frantic with tourists! Glen surprisingly liked the Lychee
beer and Chango ( a combination of Chilli and Mango beers.) I didn't
like any but then I am not a beer drinker. So I drank a 90 ml glass
of Lime and Ginger Cider. Bad decision! I didn't mind it but I know
I can't drink cider. It upsets my system!! So I paid for it!
Dinner at Amanda's was lovely. Jason
had cooked a lovely roast and we entertained Larni for a time.
Amanda had some interesting things to say about her workmates packing
shelves at Woolies. Mostly young pilots trying to get their hours up
for bigger things. So much of Broome depends on the tourist season
and it has been quite depressed of late! They worry about the ethics
of the new gas fracking industry but recognise it could be helpful
for the economy. They actually want out of Broome in a few years.
Well, Tuesday we left early for Cape
Leveque. 91 kms of unsealed road to be exact. It is interesting
that beyond 20kms north of Broome the road is unsealed for 91 kms
until we reach Aboriginal owned land. Then it is sealed again with a
normal width highway all the way to One Arm Point. I wonder about
that. The dirt (one couldn't call it gravel as it was orange red soil
and sand, hard packed in places and soft in others) road wasn't bad –
corrugations in places, humps in others, deep sand in yet others- but
it was like driving down the bottom of a narrow half-pipe. Years of
grading had produced a rounded profile to the road and it was often
difficult to see what the country was like, so deep was the road
between the banks topped with tall flowering wattle trees. It was
very pretty actually – intense blue sky, red, red soil and the
green and gold trees! Passing cars was interesting as both were up
the sides of the pipe! Too narrow in places for 2 cars down the
bottom! Then we had to avoid the 4 graders working on the top 26 kms.
That was fun!
We called in firstly to Beagle Bay and
visited the Sacred Heart of Jesus church, built from 1916 by locals
and the Pallottine monks who had taken over the mission established
in 1888 by French Trappist monks. During WW1, the monks were under
house arrest and this was when they began building. It is highly
decorated inside with pearl shell in a most individual manner.
Beagle Bay was also the site of the institutionisation of children of
the “stolen generation”, placed by the government in the care of
the Irish Sisters of St John of God. It is now the centre of a
vibrant and hard working parish with a parish school which we were
told is very successful.
We went on to Middle Lagoon over a
very corrugated road which deteriorated further with a series of
large humps and water-filled hollows. There were a dozen or so vans
in the Caravan Park out there and so people do drag vans and boats to
this retreat. A very affable local greeted us,took our money for the
permit to enter, and told us that some people book 12 months ahead to
get a top of ridge site to sit and enjoy the view! It is a truly
beautiful place and although we wanted to swim, we had to move on.
This is the land of Bushtracker vans and Campavans!
Gail particularly wanted to go to
Cygnet Bay for the pearls and so that was our next stop. We travel
along the reddest road I have ever seen. The dirt was vermillon and
the dust covered everything! But Cygnet Bay which has only been open
to the public for 4 years, was a great place to stay. We did the
tour (very interesting with fabulous pearls) ,had a very civilized
candle-lit, a la carte dinner with wine (in our shorts and sandals –
our standards have slipped) and bush camped in a secluded nook on
sandy soil. We did learn a lot more about pearls and the industry
and the establishment of Cygnet Bay by James Brown as well as th
development under his son Lyndon after the departure of the Japanese
who had pioneered the cultured pearl business.
It was lovely camping out here. But
you know, you get hoons everywhere. In bed by 8.30pm, we were woken
at 10.00 by an idiot revving through the sandy tracks around the
camps (they are in little pockets in the bush with a road threading
between). Peace shattering! But it was a very nice evening!
24rd
July: Cape Leveque – Ardyaloon & Kooljaman
After breakfast and another walk on
the beach,we packed up, paid our dues and went on to One Arm Point or
Ardyaloon, the community is called. Entry was $10 per person which
we though was rather expensive until we realised this included entry
into the Trochus Hatchery. We weren't planning to visit this but I
am so glad we did. Trochus shell has always been important to the
local people here and for the last few years they have bred shells,
fish and other marine life to release back into the seas around the
point to restock the depleted habitat very successfully. The trochus
the people gather on the reefs and in the wet season they spawn and
then they are releqsed back to the reefs. The spawn grow and in a
year are ready for release. Likewise the clams, the fish and
aenomes. Old shells are polished and sold. They have a contract
with a button maker in Italy and are looking for more. Our tour was
conducted by a young local girl who knew her stuff and was amusing in
the way she attributed personalities to the fish. (Greedy, shy,
cheeky etc.) Two guys were cleaning up shells – I don't think Work
Place Health & Safety had audited the place ever. One of them
was a local artist and he had just finished cleaning green shells,
rare and highly prized- and so I was able to buy one!
We really enjoyed the visit and after
watching the tide rip out – as it does- we drove back to Kooljamin
at Cape Leveque. This is another community again and there is a
great camping ground here. No vans allowed but lots of tents. We
climbed up the hill past the lighthouse – now solar driven- and
down for a lovely swim. The beach was white and beautiful, the water
green-blue and crystal clear and the cliffs and rocks, red.
Absolutely lovely! The water was very salty and cool but even Glen
was inspired to swim. It was so refreshing. Lots of people camp
down here in beach shelters and there are facilities. We climbed
back up after a fresh water shower and Glen was hankering for some
Calamari and Chips for lunch. So we sat down in the restaurant in
our wet togs and ate a lovely lunch. Very cool!! We went down to
the western beach to see the red cliffs. Spectacular! But very hot
with very crumbly red mudstone looking extremely fragile.
We had no time left and so missed
Lombadina. However, we had by this time, seen some fantastic beaches
and, more importantly, seen some hard working, innovative and
creative communities. I was impressed by the organisation, tidiness
and community spirit of these urban areas. Lots of dogs but no kids
on the street – all in school,no-one sitting around aimlessly and
no drunks. I agree, Denis, that it is a pity that southern media
don't highlight these aspects of the north.
We drove home; it took us 2 ½ hrs
but there was very litle traffic on the road. Where the graders had
been was brilliant and the rest was bearable. The long shadows made
it more difficult but we all agreed it had been worth it! A lovely,
lovely relaxing place. I wish we had had more time there.
22nd
July: Cape Leveque – Cygnet Bay
Actually, it is next morning as per
usual. I am sitting in the car out of the mossies as the sun rises,
drinking coffee. I went for a walk at dawn (in my nightie)and found
the sea that I heard all night. I am now sitting in a cloud of
insect repellant while the other two slumber on. Actually, I know
Glen iks awake – I have disturbed him enough. We were in bed at
8.15 last night and so sleep eludes!
Firstly, about Monday. The Japanese
cemetery was very interesting. All the gravestones were in Japanese
of course and there had been a lot of destruction. But the Japanese
consul and others had done a great job of restoring the dignity of
the last resting place of what were mostly young divers, by replacing
with obviously different stone the headstones of those missing or
irreparable. Few were over 30 yrs of age and the statistics are
appalling. The cemetery houses 700 plus graves and over 600 divers
are recorded as having been drowned or suffering divers' paralysis
since 1903. 33 men died in one year! The Chinese and Malay
cemeteries were no way as well preserved. Chinese divers were
regarded as less skilful and Malay and aborigines were the least
highly regarded. There are still a lot of Japanese families in
Broome as there are recent graves just outside the divers' cemetery.
Point Gantheuame features sedimentery
rocks and there are dinosaur footprints from some huge beasts of that
era (weighing 80 tonnes) in the sandstones, observable at very low
tide. We saw none but some clay moulds of what is under water. But
it is a lovely place: red sandstones and clear blue water with white
sands on the beaches.
After lunch we went to Matso's
brewery. Frantic with tourists! Glen surprisingly liked the Lychee
beer and Chango ( a combination of Chilli and Mango beers.) I didn't
like any but then I am not a beer drinker. So I drank a 90 ml glass
of Lime and Ginger Cider. Bad decision! I didn't mind it but I know
I can't drink cider. It upsets my system!! So I paid for it!
Dinner at Amanda's was lovely. Jason
had cooked a lovely roast and we entertained Larni for a time.
Amanda had some interesting things to say about her workmates packing
shelves at Woolies. Mostly young pilots trying to get their hours up
for bigger things. So much of Broome depends on the tourist season
and it has been quite depressed of late! They worry about the ethics
of the new gas fracking industry but recognise it could be helpful
for the economy. They actually want out of Broome in a few years.
Well, Tuesday we left early for Cape
Leveque. 91 kms of unsealed road to be exact. It is interesting
that beyond 20kms north of Broome the road is unsealed for 91 kms
until we reach Aboriginal owned land. Then it is sealed again with a
normal width highway all the way to One Arm Point. I wonder about
that. The dirt (one couldn't call it gravel as it was orange red soil
and sand, hard packed in places and soft in others) road wasn't bad –
corrugations in places, humps in others, deep sand in yet others- but
it was like driving down the bottom of a narrow half-pipe. Years of
grading had produced a rounded profile to the road and it was often
difficult to see what the country was like, so deep was the road
between the banks topped with tall flowering wattle trees. It was
very pretty actually – intense blue sky, red, red soil and the
green and gold trees! Passing cars was interesting as both were up
the sides of the pipe! Too narrow in places for 2 cars down the
bottom! Then we had to avoid the 4 graders working on the top 26 kms.
That was fun!
We called in firstly to Beagle Bay and
visited the Sacred Heart of Jesus church, built from 1916 by locals
and the Pallottine monks who had taken over the mission established
in 1888 by French Trappist monks. During WW1, the monks were under
house arrest and this was when they began building. It is highly
decorated inside with pearl shell in a most individual manner.
Beagle Bay was also the site of the institutionisation of children of
the “stolen generation”, placed by the government in the care of
the Irish Sisters of St John of God. It is now the centre of a
vibrant and hard working parish with a parish school which we were
told is very successful.
We went on to Middle Lagoon over a
very corrugated road which deteriorated further with a series of
large humps and water-filled hollows. There were a dozen or so vans
in the Caravan Park out there and so people do drag vans and boats to
this retreat. A very affable local greeted us,took our money for the
permit to enter, and told us that some people book 12 months ahead to
get a top of ridge site to sit and enjoy the view! It is a truly
beautiful place and although we wanted to swim, we had to move on.
This is the land of Bushtracker vans and Campavans!
Gail particularly wanted to go to
Cygnet Bay for the pearls and so that was our next stop. We travel
along the reddest road I have ever seen. The dirt was vermillon and
the dust covered everything! But Cygnet Bay which has only been open
to the public for 4 years, was a great place to stay. We did the
tour (very interesting with fabulous pearls) ,had a very civilized
candle-lit, a la carte dinner with wine (in our shorts and sandals –
our standards have slipped) and bush camped in a secluded nook on
sandy soil. We did learn a lot more about pearls and the industry
and the establishment of Cygnet Bay by James Brown as well as th
development under his son Lyndon after the departure of the Japanese
who had pioneered the cultured pearl business.
It was lovely camping out here. But
you know, you get hoons everywhere. In bed by 8.30pm, we were woken
at 10.00 by an idiot revving through the sandy tracks around the
camps (they are in little pockets in the bush with a road threading
between). Peace shattering! But it was a very nice evening!
24rd
July: Cape Leveque – Ardyaloon & Kooljaman
After breakfast and another walk on
the beach,we packed up, paid our dues and went on to One Arm Point or
Ardyaloon, the community is called. Entry was $10 per person which
we though was rather expensive until we realised this included entry
into the Trochus Hatchery. We weren't planning to visit this but I
am so glad we did. Trochus shell has always been important to the
local people here and for the last few years they have bred shells,
fish and other marine life to release back into the seas around the
point to restock the depleted habitat very successfully. The trochus
the people gather on the reefs and in the wet season they spawn and
then they are releqsed back to the reefs. The spawn grow and in a
year are ready for release. Likewise the clams, the fish and
aenomes. Old shells are polished and sold. They have a contract
with a button maker in Italy and are looking for more. Our tour was
conducted by a young local girl who knew her stuff and was amusing in
the way she attributed personalities to the fish. (Greedy, shy,
cheeky etc.) Two guys were cleaning up shells – I don't think Work
Place Health & Safety had audited the place ever. One of them
was a local artist and he had just finished cleaning green shells,
rare and highly prized- and so I was able to buy one!
We really enjoyed the visit and after
watching the tide rip out – as it does- we drove back to Kooljamin
at Cape Leveque. This is another community again and there is a
great camping ground here. No vans allowed but lots of tents. We
climbed up the hill past the lighthouse – now solar driven- and
down for a lovely swim. The beach was white and beautiful, the water
green-blue and crystal clear and the cliffs and rocks, red.
Absolutely lovely! The water was very salty and cool but even Glen
was inspired to swim. It was so refreshing. Lots of people camp
down here in beach shelters and there are facilities. We climbed
back up after a fresh water shower and Glen was hankering for some
Calamari and Chips for lunch. So we sat down in the restaurant in
our wet togs and ate a lovely lunch. Very cool!! We went down to
the western beach to see the red cliffs. Spectacular! But very hot
with very crumbly red mudstone looking extremely fragile.
We had no time left and so missed
Lombadina. However, we had by this time, seen some fantastic beaches
and, more importantly, seen some hard working, innovative and
creative communities. I was impressed by the organisation, tidiness
and community spirit of these urban areas. Lots of dogs but no kids
on the street – all in school,no-one sitting around aimlessly and
no drunks. I agree, Denis, that it is a pity that southern media
don't highlight these aspects of the north.
We drove home; it took us 2 ½ hrs
but there was very litle traffic on the road. Where the graders had
been was brilliant and the rest was bearable. The long shadows made
it more difficult but we all agreed it had been worth it! A lovely,
lovely relaxing place. I wish we had had more time there.
22nd
July: Cape Leveque – Cygnet Bay
Actually, it is next morning as per
usual. I am sitting in the car out of the mossies as the sun rises,
drinking coffee. I went for a walk at dawn (in my nightie)and found
the sea that I heard all night. I am now sitting in a cloud of
insect repellant while the other two slumber on. Actually, I know
Glen iks awake – I have disturbed him enough. We were in bed at
8.15 last night and so sleep eludes!
Firstly, about Monday. The Japanese
cemetery was very interesting. All the gravestones were in Japanese
of course and there had been a lot of destruction. But the Japanese
consul and others had done a great job of restoring the dignity of
the last resting place of what were mostly young divers, by replacing
with obviously different stone the headstones of those missing or
irreparable. Few were over 30 yrs of age and the statistics are
appalling. The cemetery houses 700 plus graves and over 600 divers
are recorded as having been drowned or suffering divers' paralysis
since 1903. 33 men died in one year! The Chinese and Malay
cemeteries were no way as well preserved. Chinese divers were
regarded as less skilful and Malay and aborigines were the least
highly regarded. There are still a lot of Japanese families in
Broome as there are recent graves just outside the divers' cemetery.
Point Gantheuame features sedimentery
rocks and there are dinosaur footprints from some huge beasts of that
era (weighing 80 tonnes) in the sandstones, observable at very low
tide. We saw none but some clay moulds of what is under water. But
it is a lovely place: red sandstones and clear blue water with white
sands on the beaches.
After lunch we went to Matso's
brewery. Frantic with tourists! Glen surprisingly liked the Lychee
beer and Chango ( a combination of Chilli and Mango beers.) I didn't
like any but then I am not a beer drinker. So I drank a 90 ml glass
of Lime and Ginger Cider. Bad decision! I didn't mind it but I know
I can't drink cider. It upsets my system!! So I paid for it!
Dinner at Amanda's was lovely. Jason
had cooked a lovely roast and we entertained Larni for a time.
Amanda had some interesting things to say about her workmates packing
shelves at Woolies. Mostly young pilots trying to get their hours up
for bigger things. So much of Broome depends on the tourist season
and it has been quite depressed of late! They worry about the ethics
of the new gas fracking industry but recognise it could be helpful
for the economy. They actually want out of Broome in a few years.
Well, Tuesday we left early for Cape
Leveque. 91 kms of unsealed road to be exact. It is interesting
that beyond 20kms north of Broome the road is unsealed for 91 kms
until we reach Aboriginal owned land. Then it is sealed again with a
normal width highway all the way to One Arm Point. I wonder about
that. The dirt (one couldn't call it gravel as it was orange red soil
and sand, hard packed in places and soft in others) road wasn't bad –
corrugations in places, humps in others, deep sand in yet others- but
it was like driving down the bottom of a narrow half-pipe. Years of
grading had produced a rounded profile to the road and it was often
difficult to see what the country was like, so deep was the road
between the banks topped with tall flowering wattle trees. It was
very pretty actually – intense blue sky, red, red soil and the
green and gold trees! Passing cars was interesting as both were up
the sides of the pipe! Too narrow in places for 2 cars down the
bottom! Then we had to avoid the 4 graders working on the top 26 kms.
That was fun!
We called in firstly to Beagle Bay and
visited the Sacred Heart of Jesus church, built from 1916 by locals
and the Pallottine monks who had taken over the mission established
in 1888 by French Trappist monks. During WW1, the monks were under
house arrest and this was when they began building. It is highly
decorated inside with pearl shell in a most individual manner.
Beagle Bay was also the site of the institutionisation of children of
the “stolen generation”, placed by the government in the care of
the Irish Sisters of St John of God. It is now the centre of a
vibrant and hard working parish with a parish school which we were
told is very successful.
We went on to Middle Lagoon over a
very corrugated road which deteriorated further with a series of
large humps and water-filled hollows. There were a dozen or so vans
in the Caravan Park out there and so people do drag vans and boats to
this retreat. A very affable local greeted us,took our money for the
permit to enter, and told us that some people book 12 months ahead to
get a top of ridge site to sit and enjoy the view! It is a truly
beautiful place and although we wanted to swim, we had to move on.
This is the land of Bushtracker vans and Campavans!
Gail particularly wanted to go to
Cygnet Bay for the pearls and so that was our next stop. We travel
along the reddest road I have ever seen. The dirt was vermillon and
the dust covered everything! But Cygnet Bay which has only been open
to the public for 4 years, was a great place to stay. We did the
tour (very interesting with fabulous pearls) ,had a very civilized
candle-lit, a la carte dinner with wine (in our shorts and sandals –
our standards have slipped) and bush camped in a secluded nook on
sandy soil. We did learn a lot more about pearls and the industry
and the establishment of Cygnet Bay by James Brown as well as th
development under his son Lyndon after the departure of the Japanese
who had pioneered the cultured pearl business.
It was lovely camping out here. But
you know, you get hoons everywhere. In bed by 8.30pm, we were woken
at 10.00 by an idiot revving through the sandy tracks around the
camps (they are in little pockets in the bush with a road threading
between). Peace shattering! But it was a very nice evening!
24rd
July: Cape Leveque – Ardyaloon & Kooljaman
After breakfast and another walk on
the beach,we packed up, paid our dues and went on to One Arm Point or
Ardyaloon, the community is called. Entry was $10 per person which
we though was rather expensive until we realised this included entry
into the Trochus Hatchery. We weren't planning to visit this but I
am so glad we did. Trochus shell has always been important to the
local people here and for the last few years they have bred shells,
fish and other marine life to release back into the seas around the
point to restock the depleted habitat very successfully. The trochus
the people gather on the reefs and in the wet season they spawn and
then they are releqsed back to the reefs. The spawn grow and in a
year are ready for release. Likewise the clams, the fish and
aenomes. Old shells are polished and sold. They have a contract
with a button maker in Italy and are looking for more. Our tour was
conducted by a young local girl who knew her stuff and was amusing in
the way she attributed personalities to the fish. (Greedy, shy,
cheeky etc.) Two guys were cleaning up shells – I don't think Work
Place Health & Safety had audited the place ever. One of them
was a local artist and he had just finished cleaning green shells,
rare and highly prized- and so I was able to buy one!
We really enjoyed the visit and after
watching the tide rip out – as it does- we drove back to Kooljamin
at Cape Leveque. This is another community again and there is a
great camping ground here. No vans allowed but lots of tents. We
climbed up the hill past the lighthouse – now solar driven- and
down for a lovely swim. The beach was white and beautiful, the water
green-blue and crystal clear and the cliffs and rocks, red.
Absolutely lovely! The water was very salty and cool but even Glen
was inspired to swim. It was so refreshing. Lots of people camp
down here in beach shelters and there are facilities. We climbed
back up after a fresh water shower and Glen was hankering for some
Calamari and Chips for lunch. So we sat down in the restaurant in
our wet togs and ate a lovely lunch. Very cool!! We went down to
the western beach to see the red cliffs. Spectacular! But very hot
with very crumbly red mudstone looking extremely fragile.
We had no time left and so missed
Lombadina. However, we had by this time, seen some fantastic beaches
and, more importantly, seen some hard working, innovative and
creative communities. I was impressed by the organisation, tidiness
and community spirit of these urban areas. Lots of dogs but no kids
on the street – all in school,no-one sitting around aimlessly and
no drunks. I agree, Denis, that it is a pity that southern media
don't highlight these aspects of the north.
We drove home; it took us 2 ½ hrs
but there was very litle traffic on the road. Where the graders had
been was brilliant and the rest was bearable. The long shadows made
it more difficult but we all agreed it had been worth it! A lovely,
lovely relaxing place. I wish we had had more time there.
22nd
July: Cape Leveque – Cygnet Bay
Actually, it is next morning as per
usual. I am sitting in the car out of the mossies as the sun rises,
drinking coffee. I went for a walk at dawn (in my nightie)and found
the sea that I heard all night. I am now sitting in a cloud of
insect repellant while the other two slumber on. Actually, I know
Glen iks awake – I have disturbed him enough. We were in bed at
8.15 last night and so sleep eludes!
Firstly, about Monday. The Japanese
cemetery was very interesting. All the gravestones were in Japanese
of course and there had been a lot of destruction. But the Japanese
consul and others had done a great job of restoring the dignity of
the last resting place of what were mostly young divers, by replacing
with obviously different stone the headstones of those missing or
irreparable. Few were over 30 yrs of age and the statistics are
appalling. The cemetery houses 700 plus graves and over 600 divers
are recorded as having been drowned or suffering divers' paralysis
since 1903. 33 men died in one year! The Chinese and Malay
cemeteries were no way as well preserved. Chinese divers were
regarded as less skilful and Malay and aborigines were the least
highly regarded. There are still a lot of Japanese families in
Broome as there are recent graves just outside the divers' cemetery.
Point Gantheuame features sedimentery
rocks and there are dinosaur footprints from some huge beasts of that
era (weighing 80 tonnes) in the sandstones, observable at very low
tide. We saw none but some clay moulds of what is under water. But
it is a lovely place: red sandstones and clear blue water with white
sands on the beaches.
After lunch we went to Matso's
brewery. Frantic with tourists! Glen surprisingly liked the Lychee
beer and Chango ( a combination of Chilli and Mango beers.) I didn't
like any but then I am not a beer drinker. So I drank a 90 ml glass
of Lime and Ginger Cider. Bad decision! I didn't mind it but I know
I can't drink cider. It upsets my system!! So I paid for it!
Dinner at Amanda's was lovely. Jason
had cooked a lovely roast and we entertained Larni for a time.
Amanda had some interesting things to say about her workmates packing
shelves at Woolies. Mostly young pilots trying to get their hours up
for bigger things. So much of Broome depends on the tourist season
and it has been quite depressed of late! They worry about the ethics
of the new gas fracking industry but recognise it could be helpful
for the economy. They actually want out of Broome in a few years.
Well, Tuesday we left early for Cape
Leveque. 91 kms of unsealed road to be exact. It is interesting
that beyond 20kms north of Broome the road is unsealed for 91 kms
until we reach Aboriginal owned land. Then it is sealed again with a
normal width highway all the way to One Arm Point. I wonder about
that. The dirt (one couldn't call it gravel as it was orange red soil
and sand, hard packed in places and soft in others) road wasn't bad –
corrugations in places, humps in others, deep sand in yet others- but
it was like driving down the bottom of a narrow half-pipe. Years of
grading had produced a rounded profile to the road and it was often
difficult to see what the country was like, so deep was the road
between the banks topped with tall flowering wattle trees. It was
very pretty actually – intense blue sky, red, red soil and the
green and gold trees! Passing cars was interesting as both were up
the sides of the pipe! Too narrow in places for 2 cars down the
bottom! Then we had to avoid the 4 graders working on the top 26 kms.
That was fun!
We called in firstly to Beagle Bay and
visited the Sacred Heart of Jesus church, built from 1916 by locals
and the Pallottine monks who had taken over the mission established
in 1888 by French Trappist monks. During WW1, the monks were under
house arrest and this was when they began building. It is highly
decorated inside with pearl shell in a most individual manner.
Beagle Bay was also the site of the institutionisation of children of
the “stolen generation”, placed by the government in the care of
the Irish Sisters of St John of God. It is now the centre of a
vibrant and hard working parish with a parish school which we were
told is very successful.
We went on to Middle Lagoon over a
very corrugated road which deteriorated further with a series of
large humps and water-filled hollows. There were a dozen or so vans
in the Caravan Park out there and so people do drag vans and boats to
this retreat. A very affable local greeted us,took our money for the
permit to enter, and told us that some people book 12 months ahead to
get a top of ridge site to sit and enjoy the view! It is a truly
beautiful place and although we wanted to swim, we had to move on.
This is the land of Bushtracker vans and Campavans!
Gail particularly wanted to go to
Cygnet Bay for the pearls and so that was our next stop. We travel
along the reddest road I have ever seen. The dirt was vermillon and
the dust covered everything! But Cygnet Bay which has only been open
to the public for 4 years, was a great place to stay. We did the
tour (very interesting with fabulous pearls) ,had a very civilized
candle-lit, a la carte dinner with wine (in our shorts and sandals –
our standards have slipped) and bush camped in a secluded nook on
sandy soil. We did learn a lot more about pearls and the industry
and the establishment of Cygnet Bay by James Brown as well as th
development under his son Lyndon after the departure of the Japanese
who had pioneered the cultured pearl business.
It was lovely camping out here. But
you know, you get hoons everywhere. In bed by 8.30pm, we were woken
at 10.00 by an idiot revving through the sandy tracks around the
camps (they are in little pockets in the bush with a road threading
between). Peace shattering! But it was a very nice evening!
24rd
July: Cape Leveque – Ardyaloon & Kooljaman
After breakfast and another walk on
the beach,we packed up, paid our dues and went on to One Arm Point or
Ardyaloon, the community is called. Entry was $10 per person which
we though was rather expensive until we realised this included entry
into the Trochus Hatchery. We weren't planning to visit this but I
am so glad we did. Trochus shell has always been important to the
local people here and for the last few years they have bred shells,
fish and other marine life to release back into the seas around the
point to restock the depleted habitat very successfully. The trochus
the people gather on the reefs and in the wet season they spawn and
then they are releqsed back to the reefs. The spawn grow and in a
year are ready for release. Likewise the clams, the fish and
aenomes. Old shells are polished and sold. They have a contract
with a button maker in Italy and are looking for more. Our tour was
conducted by a young local girl who knew her stuff and was amusing in
the way she attributed personalities to the fish. (Greedy, shy,
cheeky etc.) Two guys were cleaning up shells – I don't think Work
Place Health & Safety had audited the place ever. One of them
was a local artist and he had just finished cleaning green shells,
rare and highly prized- and so I was able to buy one!
We really enjoyed the visit and after
watching the tide rip out – as it does- we drove back to Kooljamin
at Cape Leveque. This is another community again and there is a
great camping ground here. No vans allowed but lots of tents. We
climbed up the hill past the lighthouse – now solar driven- and
down for a lovely swim. The beach was white and beautiful, the water
green-blue and crystal clear and the cliffs and rocks, red.
Absolutely lovely! The water was very salty and cool but even Glen
was inspired to swim. It was so refreshing. Lots of people camp
down here in beach shelters and there are facilities. We climbed
back up after a fresh water shower and Glen was hankering for some
Calamari and Chips for lunch. So we sat down in the restaurant in
our wet togs and ate a lovely lunch. Very cool!! We went down to
the western beach to see the red cliffs. Spectacular! But very hot
with very crumbly red mudstone looking extremely fragile.
We had no time left and so missed
Lombadina. However, we had by this time, seen some fantastic beaches
and, more importantly, seen some hard working, innovative and
creative communities. I was impressed by the organisation, tidiness
and community spirit of these urban areas. Lots of dogs but no kids
on the street – all in school,no-one sitting around aimlessly and
no drunks. I agree, Denis, that it is a pity that southern media
don't highlight these aspects of the north.
We drove home; it took us 2 ½ hrs
but there was very litle traffic on the road. Where the graders had
been was brilliant and the rest was bearable. The long shadows made
it more difficult but we all agreed it had been worth it! A lovely,
lovely relaxing place. I wish we had had more time there.
22nd
July: Cape Leveque – Cygnet Bay
Actually, it is next morning as per
usual. I am sitting in the car out of the mossies as the sun rises,
drinking coffee. I went for a walk at dawn (in my nightie)and found
the sea that I heard all night. I am now sitting in a cloud of
insect repellant while the other two slumber on. Actually, I know
Glen iks awake – I have disturbed him enough. We were in bed at
8.15 last night and so sleep eludes!
Firstly, about Monday. The Japanese
cemetery was very interesting. All the gravestones were in Japanese
of course and there had been a lot of destruction. But the Japanese
consul and others had done a great job of restoring the dignity of
the last resting place of what were mostly young divers, by replacing
with obviously different stone the headstones of those missing or
irreparable. Few were over 30 yrs of age and the statistics are
appalling. The cemetery houses 700 plus graves and over 600 divers
are recorded as having been drowned or suffering divers' paralysis
since 1903. 33 men died in one year! The Chinese and Malay
cemeteries were no way as well preserved. Chinese divers were
regarded as less skilful and Malay and aborigines were the least
highly regarded. There are still a lot of Japanese families in
Broome as there are recent graves just outside the divers' cemetery.
Point Gantheuame features sedimentery
rocks and there are dinosaur footprints from some huge beasts of that
era (weighing 80 tonnes) in the sandstones, observable at very low
tide. We saw none but some clay moulds of what is under water. But
it is a lovely place: red sandstones and clear blue water with white
sands on the beaches.
After lunch we went to Matso's
brewery. Frantic with tourists! Glen surprisingly liked the Lychee
beer and Chango ( a combination of Chilli and Mango beers.) I didn't
like any but then I am not a beer drinker. So I drank a 90 ml glass
of Lime and Ginger Cider. Bad decision! I didn't mind it but I know
I can't drink cider. It upsets my system!! So I paid for it!
Dinner at Amanda's was lovely. Jason
had cooked a lovely roast and we entertained Larni for a time.
Amanda had some interesting things to say about her workmates packing
shelves at Woolies. Mostly young pilots trying to get their hours up
for bigger things. So much of Broome depends on the tourist season
and it has been quite depressed of late! They worry about the ethics
of the new gas fracking industry but recognise it could be helpful
for the economy. They actually want out of Broome in a few years.
Well, Tuesday we left early for Cape
Leveque. 91 kms of unsealed road to be exact. It is interesting
that beyond 20kms north of Broome the road is unsealed for 91 kms
until we reach Aboriginal owned land. Then it is sealed again with a
normal width highway all the way to One Arm Point. I wonder about
that. The dirt (one couldn't call it gravel as it was orange red soil
and sand, hard packed in places and soft in others) road wasn't bad –
corrugations in places, humps in others, deep sand in yet others- but
it was like driving down the bottom of a narrow half-pipe. Years of
grading had produced a rounded profile to the road and it was often
difficult to see what the country was like, so deep was the road
between the banks topped with tall flowering wattle trees. It was
very pretty actually – intense blue sky, red, red soil and the
green and gold trees! Passing cars was interesting as both were up
the sides of the pipe! Too narrow in places for 2 cars down the
bottom! Then we had to avoid the 4 graders working on the top 26 kms.
That was fun!
We called in firstly to Beagle Bay and
visited the Sacred Heart of Jesus church, built from 1916 by locals
and the Pallottine monks who had taken over the mission established
in 1888 by French Trappist monks. During WW1, the monks were under
house arrest and this was when they began building. It is highly
decorated inside with pearl shell in a most individual manner.
Beagle Bay was also the site of the institutionisation of children of
the “stolen generation”, placed by the government in the care of
the Irish Sisters of St John of God. It is now the centre of a
vibrant and hard working parish with a parish school which we were
told is very successful.
We went on to Middle Lagoon over a
very corrugated road which deteriorated further with a series of
large humps and water-filled hollows. There were a dozen or so vans
in the Caravan Park out there and so people do drag vans and boats to
this retreat. A very affable local greeted us,took our money for the
permit to enter, and told us that some people book 12 months ahead to
get a top of ridge site to sit and enjoy the view! It is a truly
beautiful place and although we wanted to swim, we had to move on.
This is the land of Bushtracker vans and Campavans!
Gail particularly wanted to go to
Cygnet Bay for the pearls and so that was our next stop. We travel
along the reddest road I have ever seen. The dirt was vermillon and
the dust covered everything! But Cygnet Bay which has only been open
to the public for 4 years, was a great place to stay. We did the
tour (very interesting with fabulous pearls) ,had a very civilized
candle-lit, a la carte dinner with wine (in our shorts and sandals –
our standards have slipped) and bush camped in a secluded nook on
sandy soil. We did learn a lot more about pearls and the industry
and the establishment of Cygnet Bay by James Brown as well as th
development under his son Lyndon after the departure of the Japanese
who had pioneered the cultured pearl business.
It was lovely camping out here. But
you know, you get hoons everywhere. In bed by 8.30pm, we were woken
at 10.00 by an idiot revving through the sandy tracks around the
camps (they are in little pockets in the bush with a road threading
between). Peace shattering! But it was a very nice evening!
24rd
July: Cape Leveque – Ardyaloon & Kooljaman
After breakfast and another walk on
the beach,we packed up, paid our dues and went on to One Arm Point or
Ardyaloon, the community is called. Entry was $10 per person which
we though was rather expensive until we realised this included entry
into the Trochus Hatchery. We weren't planning to visit this but I
am so glad we did. Trochus shell has always been important to the
local people here and for the last few years they have bred shells,
fish and other marine life to release back into the seas around the
point to restock the depleted habitat very successfully. The trochus
the people gather on the reefs and in the wet season they spawn and
then they are releqsed back to the reefs. The spawn grow and in a
year are ready for release. Likewise the clams, the fish and
aenomes. Old shells are polished and sold. They have a contract
with a button maker in Italy and are looking for more. Our tour was
conducted by a young local girl who knew her stuff and was amusing in
the way she attributed personalities to the fish. (Greedy, shy,
cheeky etc.) Two guys were cleaning up shells – I don't think Work
Place Health & Safety had audited the place ever. One of them
was a local artist and he had just finished cleaning green shells,
rare and highly prized- and so I was able to buy one!
We really enjoyed the visit and after
watching the tide rip out – as it does- we drove back to Kooljamin
at Cape Leveque. This is another community again and there is a
great camping ground here. No vans allowed but lots of tents. We
climbed up the hill past the lighthouse – now solar driven- and
down for a lovely swim. The beach was white and beautiful, the water
green-blue and crystal clear and the cliffs and rocks, red.
Absolutely lovely! The water was very salty and cool but even Glen
was inspired to swim. It was so refreshing. Lots of people camp
down here in beach shelters and there are facilities. We climbed
back up after a fresh water shower and Glen was hankering for some
Calamari and Chips for lunch. So we sat down in the restaurant in
our wet togs and ate a lovely lunch. Very cool!! We went down to
the western beach to see the red cliffs. Spectacular! But very hot
with very crumbly red mudstone looking extremely fragile.
We had no time left and so missed
Lombadina. However, we had by this time, seen some fantastic beaches
and, more importantly, seen some hard working, innovative and
creative communities. I was impressed by the organisation, tidiness
and community spirit of these urban areas. Lots of dogs but no kids
on the street – all in school,no-one sitting around aimlessly and
no drunks. I agree, Denis, that it is a pity that southern media
don't highlight these aspects of the north.
We drove home; it took us 2 ½ hrs
but there was very litle traffic on the road. Where the graders had
been was brilliant and the rest was bearable. The long shadows made
it more difficult but we all agreed it had been worth it! A lovely,
lovely relaxing place. I wish we had had more time there.
22nd
July: Cape Leveque – Cygnet Bay
Actually, it is next morning as per
usual. I am sitting in the car out of the mossies as the sun rises,
drinking coffee. I went for a walk at dawn (in my nightie)and found
the sea that I heard all night. I am now sitting in a cloud of
insect repellant while the other two slumber on. Actually, I know
Glen iks awake – I have disturbed him enough. We were in bed at
8.15 last night and so sleep eludes!
Firstly, about Monday. The Japanese
cemetery was very interesting. All the gravestones were in Japanese
of course and there had been a lot of destruction. But the Japanese
consul and others had done a great job of restoring the dignity of
the last resting place of what were mostly young divers, by replacing
with obviously different stone the headstones of those missing or
irreparable. Few were over 30 yrs of age and the statistics are
appalling. The cemetery houses 700 plus graves and over 600 divers
are recorded as having been drowned or suffering divers' paralysis
since 1903. 33 men died in one year! The Chinese and Malay
cemeteries were no way as well preserved. Chinese divers were
regarded as less skilful and Malay and aborigines were the least
highly regarded. There are still a lot of Japanese families in
Broome as there are recent graves just outside the divers' cemetery.
Point Gantheuame features sedimentery
rocks and there are dinosaur footprints from some huge beasts of that
era (weighing 80 tonnes) in the sandstones, observable at very low
tide. We saw none but some clay moulds of what is under water. But
it is a lovely place: red sandstones and clear blue water with white
sands on the beaches.
After lunch we went to Matso's
brewery. Frantic with tourists! Glen surprisingly liked the Lychee
beer and Chango ( a combination of Chilli and Mango beers.) I didn't
like any but then I am not a beer drinker. So I drank a 90 ml glass
of Lime and Ginger Cider. Bad decision! I didn't mind it but I know
I can't drink cider. It upsets my system!! So I paid for it!
Dinner at Amanda's was lovely. Jason
had cooked a lovely roast and we entertained Larni for a time.
Amanda had some interesting things to say about her workmates packing
shelves at Woolies. Mostly young pilots trying to get their hours up
for bigger things. So much of Broome depends on the tourist season
and it has been quite depressed of late! They worry about the ethics
of the new gas fracking industry but recognise it could be helpful
for the economy. They actually want out of Broome in a few years.
Well, Tuesday we left early for Cape
Leveque. 91 kms of unsealed road to be exact. It is interesting
that beyond 20kms north of Broome the road is unsealed for 91 kms
until we reach Aboriginal owned land. Then it is sealed again with a
normal width highway all the way to One Arm Point. I wonder about
that. The dirt (one couldn't call it gravel as it was orange red soil
and sand, hard packed in places and soft in others) road wasn't bad –
corrugations in places, humps in others, deep sand in yet others- but
it was like driving down the bottom of a narrow half-pipe. Years of
grading had produced a rounded profile to the road and it was often
difficult to see what the country was like, so deep was the road
between the banks topped with tall flowering wattle trees. It was
very pretty actually – intense blue sky, red, red soil and the
green and gold trees! Passing cars was interesting as both were up
the sides of the pipe! Too narrow in places for 2 cars down the
bottom! Then we had to avoid the 4 graders working on the top 26 kms.
That was fun!
We called in firstly to Beagle Bay and
visited the Sacred Heart of Jesus church, built from 1916 by locals
and the Pallottine monks who had taken over the mission established
in 1888 by French Trappist monks. During WW1, the monks were under
house arrest and this was when they began building. It is highly
decorated inside with pearl shell in a most individual manner.
Beagle Bay was also the site of the institutionisation of children of
the “stolen generation”, placed by the government in the care of
the Irish Sisters of St John of God. It is now the centre of a
vibrant and hard working parish with a parish school which we were
told is very successful.
We went on to Middle Lagoon over a
very corrugated road which deteriorated further with a series of
large humps and water-filled hollows. There were a dozen or so vans
in the Caravan Park out there and so people do drag vans and boats to
this retreat. A very affable local greeted us,took our money for the
permit to enter, and told us that some people book 12 months ahead to
get a top of ridge site to sit and enjoy the view! It is a truly
beautiful place and although we wanted to swim, we had to move on.
This is the land of Bushtracker vans and Campavans!
Gail particularly wanted to go to
Cygnet Bay for the pearls and so that was our next stop. We travel
along the reddest road I have ever seen. The dirt was vermillon and
the dust covered everything! But Cygnet Bay which has only been open
to the public for 4 years, was a great place to stay. We did the
tour (very interesting with fabulous pearls) ,had a very civilized
candle-lit, a la carte dinner with wine (in our shorts and sandals –
our standards have slipped) and bush camped in a secluded nook on
sandy soil. We did learn a lot more about pearls and the industry
and the establishment of Cygnet Bay by James Brown as well as th
development under his son Lyndon after the departure of the Japanese
who had pioneered the cultured pearl business.
It was lovely camping out here. But
you know, you get hoons everywhere. In bed by 8.30pm, we were woken
at 10.00 by an idiot revving through the sandy tracks around the
camps (they are in little pockets in the bush with a road threading
between). Peace shattering! But it was a very nice evening!
24rd
July: Cape Leveque – Ardyaloon & Kooljaman
After breakfast and another walk on
the beach,we packed up, paid our dues and went on to One Arm Point or
Ardyaloon, the community is called. Entry was $10 per person which
we though was rather expensive until we realised this included entry
into the Trochus Hatchery. We weren't planning to visit this but I
am so glad we did. Trochus shell has always been important to the
local people here and for the last few years they have bred shells,
fish and other marine life to release back into the seas around the
point to restock the depleted habitat very successfully. The trochus
the people gather on the reefs and in the wet season they spawn and
then they are releqsed back to the reefs. The spawn grow and in a
year are ready for release. Likewise the clams, the fish and
aenomes. Old shells are polished and sold. They have a contract
with a button maker in Italy and are looking for more. Our tour was
conducted by a young local girl who knew her stuff and was amusing in
the way she attributed personalities to the fish. (Greedy, shy,
cheeky etc.) Two guys were cleaning up shells – I don't think Work
Place Health & Safety had audited the place ever. One of them
was a local artist and he had just finished cleaning green shells,
rare and highly prized- and so I was able to buy one!
We really enjoyed the visit and after
watching the tide rip out – as it does- we drove back to Kooljamin
at Cape Leveque. This is another community again and there is a
great camping ground here. No vans allowed but lots of tents. We
climbed up the hill past the lighthouse – now solar driven- and
down for a lovely swim. The beach was white and beautiful, the water
green-blue and crystal clear and the cliffs and rocks, red.
Absolutely lovely! The water was very salty and cool but even Glen
was inspired to swim. It was so refreshing. Lots of people camp
down here in beach shelters and there are facilities. We climbed
back up after a fresh water shower and Glen was hankering for some
Calamari and Chips for lunch. So we sat down in the restaurant in
our wet togs and ate a lovely lunch. Very cool!! We went down to
the western beach to see the red cliffs. Spectacular! But very hot
with very crumbly red mudstone looking extremely fragile.
We had no time left and so missed
Lombadina. However, we had by this time, seen some fantastic beaches
and, more importantly, seen some hard working, innovative and
creative communities. I was impressed by the organisation, tidiness
and community spirit of these urban areas. Lots of dogs but no kids
on the street – all in school,no-one sitting around aimlessly and
no drunks. I agree, Denis, that it is a pity that southern media
don't highlight these aspects of the north.
We drove home; it took us 2 ½ hrs
but there was very litle traffic on the road. Where the graders had
been was brilliant and the rest was bearable. The long shadows made
it more difficult but we all agreed it had been worth it! A lovely,
lovely relaxing place. I wish we had had more time there.
22nd
July: Cape Leveque – Cygnet Bay
Actually, it is next morning as per
usual. I am sitting in the car out of the mossies as the sun rises,
drinking coffee. I went for a walk at dawn (in my nightie)and found
the sea that I heard all night. I am now sitting in a cloud of
insect repellant while the other two slumber on. Actually, I know
Glen iks awake – I have disturbed him enough. We were in bed at
8.15 last night and so sleep eludes!
Firstly, about Monday. The Japanese
cemetery was very interesting. All the gravestones were in Japanese
of course and there had been a lot of destruction. But the Japanese
consul and others had done a great job of restoring the dignity of
the last resting place of what were mostly young divers, by replacing
with obviously different stone the headstones of those missing or
irreparable. Few were over 30 yrs of age and the statistics are
appalling. The cemetery houses 700 plus graves and over 600 divers
are recorded as having been drowned or suffering divers' paralysis
since 1903. 33 men died in one year! The Chinese and Malay
cemeteries were no way as well preserved. Chinese divers were
regarded as less skilful and Malay and aborigines were the least
highly regarded. There are still a lot of Japanese families in
Broome as there are recent graves just outside the divers' cemetery.
Point Gantheuame features sedimentery
rocks and there are dinosaur footprints from some huge beasts of that
era (weighing 80 tonnes) in the sandstones, observable at very low
tide. We saw none but some clay moulds of what is under water. But
it is a lovely place: red sandstones and clear blue water with white
sands on the beaches.
After lunch we went to Matso's
brewery. Frantic with tourists! Glen surprisingly liked the Lychee
beer and Chango ( a combination of Chilli and Mango beers.) I didn't
like any but then I am not a beer drinker. So I drank a 90 ml glass
of Lime and Ginger Cider. Bad decision! I didn't mind it but I know
I can't drink cider. It upsets my system!! So I paid for it!
Dinner at Amanda's was lovely. Jason
had cooked a lovely roast and we entertained Larni for a time.
Amanda had some interesting things to say about her workmates packing
shelves at Woolies. Mostly young pilots trying to get their hours up
for bigger things. So much of Broome depends on the tourist season
and it has been quite depressed of late! They worry about the ethics
of the new gas fracking industry but recognise it could be helpful
for the economy. They actually want out of Broome in a few years.
Well, Tuesday we left early for Cape
Leveque. 91 kms of unsealed road to be exact. It is interesting
that beyond 20kms north of Broome the road is unsealed for 91 kms
until we reach Aboriginal owned land. Then it is sealed again with a
normal width highway all the way to One Arm Point. I wonder about
that. The dirt (one couldn't call it gravel as it was orange red soil
and sand, hard packed in places and soft in others) road wasn't bad –
corrugations in places, humps in others, deep sand in yet others- but
it was like driving down the bottom of a narrow half-pipe. Years of
grading had produced a rounded profile to the road and it was often
difficult to see what the country was like, so deep was the road
between the banks topped with tall flowering wattle trees. It was
very pretty actually – intense blue sky, red, red soil and the
green and gold trees! Passing cars was interesting as both were up
the sides of the pipe! Too narrow in places for 2 cars down the
bottom! Then we had to avoid the 4 graders working on the top 26 kms.
That was fun!
We called in firstly to Beagle Bay and
visited the Sacred Heart of Jesus church, built from 1916 by locals
and the Pallottine monks who had taken over the mission established
in 1888 by French Trappist monks. During WW1, the monks were under
house arrest and this was when they began building. It is highly
decorated inside with pearl shell in a most individual manner.
Beagle Bay was also the site of the institutionisation of children of
the “stolen generation”, placed by the government in the care of
the Irish Sisters of St John of God. It is now the centre of a
vibrant and hard working parish with a parish school which we were
told is very successful.
We went on to Middle Lagoon over a
very corrugated road which deteriorated further with a series of
large humps and water-filled hollows. There were a dozen or so vans
in the Caravan Park out there and so people do drag vans and boats to
this retreat. A very affable local greeted us,took our money for the
permit to enter, and told us that some people book 12 months ahead to
get a top of ridge site to sit and enjoy the view! It is a truly
beautiful place and although we wanted to swim, we had to move on.
This is the land of Bushtracker vans and Campavans!
Gail particularly wanted to go to
Cygnet Bay for the pearls and so that was our next stop. We travel
along the reddest road I have ever seen. The dirt was vermillon and
the dust covered everything! But Cygnet Bay which has only been open
to the public for 4 years, was a great place to stay. We did the
tour (very interesting with fabulous pearls) ,had a very civilized
candle-lit, a la carte dinner with wine (in our shorts and sandals –
our standards have slipped) and bush camped in a secluded nook on
sandy soil. We did learn a lot more about pearls and the industry
and the establishment of Cygnet Bay by James Brown as well as th
development under his son Lyndon after the departure of the Japanese
who had pioneered the cultured pearl business.
It was lovely camping out here. But
you know, you get hoons everywhere. In bed by 8.30pm, we were woken
at 10.00 by an idiot revving through the sandy tracks around the
camps (they are in little pockets in the bush with a road threading
between). Peace shattering! But it was a very nice evening!
24rd
July: Cape Leveque – Ardyaloon & Kooljaman
After breakfast and another walk on
the beach,we packed up, paid our dues and went on to One Arm Point or
Ardyaloon, the community is called. Entry was $10 per person which
we though was rather expensive until we realised this included entry
into the Trochus Hatchery. We weren't planning to visit this but I
am so glad we did. Trochus shell has always been important to the
local people here and for the last few years they have bred shells,
fish and other marine life to release back into the seas around the
point to restock the depleted habitat very successfully. The trochus
the people gather on the reefs and in the wet season they spawn and
then they are releqsed back to the reefs. The spawn grow and in a
year are ready for release. Likewise the clams, the fish and
aenomes. Old shells are polished and sold. They have a contract
with a button maker in Italy and are looking for more. Our tour was
conducted by a young local girl who knew her stuff and was amusing in
the way she attributed personalities to the fish. (Greedy, shy,
cheeky etc.) Two guys were cleaning up shells – I don't think Work
Place Health & Safety had audited the place ever. One of them
was a local artist and he had just finished cleaning green shells,
rare and highly prized- and so I was able to buy one!
We really enjoyed the visit and after
watching the tide rip out – as it does- we drove back to Kooljamin
at Cape Leveque. This is another community again and there is a
great camping ground here. No vans allowed but lots of tents. We
climbed up the hill past the lighthouse – now solar driven- and
down for a lovely swim. The beach was white and beautiful, the water
green-blue and crystal clear and the cliffs and rocks, red.
Absolutely lovely! The water was very salty and cool but even Glen
was inspired to swim. It was so refreshing. Lots of people camp
down here in beach shelters and there are facilities. We climbed
back up after a fresh water shower and Glen was hankering for some
Calamari and Chips for lunch. So we sat down in the restaurant in
our wet togs and ate a lovely lunch. Very cool!! We went down to
the western beach to see the red cliffs. Spectacular! But very hot
with very crumbly red mudstone looking extremely fragile.
We had no time left and so missed
Lombadina. However, we had by this time, seen some fantastic beaches
and, more importantly, seen some hard working, innovative and
creative communities. I was impressed by the organisation, tidiness
and community spirit of these urban areas. Lots of dogs but no kids
on the street – all in school,no-one sitting around aimlessly and
no drunks. I agree, Denis, that it is a pity that southern media
don't highlight these aspects of the north.
We drove home; it took us 2 ½ hrs
but there was very litle traffic on the road. Where the graders had
been was brilliant and the rest was bearable. The long shadows made
it more difficult but we all agreed it had been worth it! A lovely,
lovely relaxing place. I wish we had had more time there.
22nd
July: Cape Leveque – Cygnet Bay
Actually, it is next morning as per
usual. I am sitting in the car out of the mossies as the sun rises,
drinking coffee. I went for a walk at dawn (in my nightie)and found
the sea that I heard all night. I am now sitting in a cloud of
insect repellant while the other two slumber on. Actually, I know
Glen iks awake – I have disturbed him enough. We were in bed at
8.15 last night and so sleep eludes!
Firstly, about Monday. The Japanese
cemetery was very interesting. All the gravestones were in Japanese
of course and there had been a lot of destruction. But the Japanese
consul and others had done a great job of restoring the dignity of
the last resting place of what were mostly young divers, by replacing
with obviously different stone the headstones of those missing or
irreparable. Few were over 30 yrs of age and the statistics are
appalling. The cemetery houses 700 plus graves and over 600 divers
are recorded as having been drowned or suffering divers' paralysis
since 1903. 33 men died in one year! The Chinese and Malay
cemeteries were no way as well preserved. Chinese divers were
regarded as less skilful and Malay and aborigines were the least
highly regarded. There are still a lot of Japanese families in
Broome as there are recent graves just outside the divers' cemetery.
Point Gantheuame features sedimentery
rocks and there are dinosaur footprints from some huge beasts of that
era (weighing 80 tonnes) in the sandstones, observable at very low
tide. We saw none but some clay moulds of what is under water. But
it is a lovely place: red sandstones and clear blue water with white
sands on the beaches.
After lunch we went to Matso's
brewery. Frantic with tourists! Glen surprisingly liked the Lychee
beer and Chango ( a combination of Chilli and Mango beers.) I didn't
like any but then I am not a beer drinker. So I drank a 90 ml glass
of Lime and Ginger Cider. Bad decision! I didn't mind it but I know
I can't drink cider. It upsets my system!! So I paid for it!
Dinner at Amanda's was lovely. Jason
had cooked a lovely roast and we entertained Larni for a time.
Amanda had some interesting things to say about her workmates packing
shelves at Woolies. Mostly young pilots trying to get their hours up
for bigger things. So much of Broome depends on the tourist season
and it has been quite depressed of late! They worry about the ethics
of the new gas fracking industry but recognise it could be helpful
for the economy. They actually want out of Broome in a few years.
Well, Tuesday we left early for Cape
Leveque. 91 kms of unsealed road to be exact. It is interesting
that beyond 20kms north of Broome the road is unsealed for 91 kms
until we reach Aboriginal owned land. Then it is sealed again with a
normal width highway all the way to One Arm Point. I wonder about
that. The dirt (one couldn't call it gravel as it was orange red soil
and sand, hard packed in places and soft in others) road wasn't bad –
corrugations in places, humps in others, deep sand in yet others- but
it was like driving down the bottom of a narrow half-pipe. Years of
grading had produced a rounded profile to the road and it was often
difficult to see what the country was like, so deep was the road
between the banks topped with tall flowering wattle trees. It was
very pretty actually – intense blue sky, red, red soil and the
green and gold trees! Passing cars was interesting as both were up
the sides of the pipe! Too narrow in places for 2 cars down the
bottom! Then we had to avoid the 4 graders working on the top 26 kms.
That was fun!
We called in firstly to Beagle Bay and
visited the Sacred Heart of Jesus church, built from 1916 by locals
and the Pallottine monks who had taken over the mission established
in 1888 by French Trappist monks. During WW1, the monks were under
house arrest and this was when they began building. It is highly
decorated inside with pearl shell in a most individual manner.
Beagle Bay was also the site of the institutionisation of children of
the “stolen generation”, placed by the government in the care of
the Irish Sisters of St John of God. It is now the centre of a
vibrant and hard working parish with a parish school which we were
told is very successful.
We went on to Middle Lagoon over a
very corrugated road which deteriorated further with a series of
large humps and water-filled hollows. There were a dozen or so vans
in the Caravan Park out there and so people do drag vans and boats to
this retreat. A very affable local greeted us,took our money for the
permit to enter, and told us that some people book 12 months ahead to
get a top of ridge site to sit and enjoy the view! It is a truly
beautiful place and although we wanted to swim, we had to move on.
This is the land of Bushtracker vans and Campavans!
Gail particularly wanted to go to
Cygnet Bay for the pearls and so that was our next stop. We travel
along the reddest road I have ever seen. The dirt was vermillon and
the dust covered everything! But Cygnet Bay which has only been open
to the public for 4 years, was a great place to stay. We did the
tour (very interesting with fabulous pearls) ,had a very civilized
candle-lit, a la carte dinner with wine (in our shorts and sandals –
our standards have slipped) and bush camped in a secluded nook on
sandy soil. We did learn a lot more about pearls and the industry
and the establishment of Cygnet Bay by James Brown as well as th
development under his son Lyndon after the departure of the Japanese
who had pioneered the cultured pearl business.
It was lovely camping out here. But
you know, you get hoons everywhere. In bed by 8.30pm, we were woken
at 10.00 by an idiot revving through the sandy tracks around the
camps (they are in little pockets in the bush with a road threading
between). Peace shattering! But it was a very nice evening!
24rd
July: Cape Leveque – Ardyaloon & Kooljaman
After breakfast and another walk on
the beach,we packed up, paid our dues and went on to One Arm Point or
Ardyaloon, the community is called. Entry was $10 per person which
we though was rather expensive until we realised this included entry
into the Trochus Hatchery. We weren't planning to visit this but I
am so glad we did. Trochus shell has always been important to the
local people here and for the last few years they have bred shells,
fish and other marine life to release back into the seas around the
point to restock the depleted habitat very successfully. The trochus
the people gather on the reefs and in the wet season they spawn and
then they are releqsed back to the reefs. The spawn grow and in a
year are ready for release. Likewise the clams, the fish and
aenomes. Old shells are polished and sold. They have a contract
with a button maker in Italy and are looking for more. Our tour was
conducted by a young local girl who knew her stuff and was amusing in
the way she attributed personalities to the fish. (Greedy, shy,
cheeky etc.) Two guys were cleaning up shells – I don't think Work
Place Health & Safety had audited the place ever. One of them
was a local artist and he had just finished cleaning green shells,
rare and highly prized- and so I was able to buy one!
We really enjoyed the visit and after
watching the tide rip out – as it does- we drove back to Kooljamin
at Cape Leveque. This is another community again and there is a
great camping ground here. No vans allowed but lots of tents. We
climbed up the hill past the lighthouse – now solar driven- and
down for a lovely swim. The beach was white and beautiful, the water
green-blue and crystal clear and the cliffs and rocks, red.
Absolutely lovely! The water was very salty and cool but even Glen
was inspired to swim. It was so refreshing. Lots of people camp
down here in beach shelters and there are facilities. We climbed
back up after a fresh water shower and Glen was hankering for some
Calamari and Chips for lunch. So we sat down in the restaurant in
our wet togs and ate a lovely lunch. Very cool!! We went down to
the western beach to see the red cliffs. Spectacular! But very hot
with very crumbly red mudstone looking extremely fragile.
We had no time left and so missed
Lombadina. However, we had by this time, seen some fantastic beaches
and, more importantly, seen some hard working, innovative and
creative communities. I was impressed by the organisation, tidiness
and community spirit of these urban areas. Lots of dogs but no kids
on the street – all in school,no-one sitting around aimlessly and
no drunks. I agree, Denis, that it is a pity that southern media
don't highlight these aspects of the north.
We drove home; it took us 2 ½ hrs
but there was very litle traffic on the road. Where the graders had
been was brilliant and the rest was bearable. The long shadows made
it more difficult but we all agreed it had been worth it! A lovely,
lovely relaxing place. I wish we had had more time there.
22nd
July: Cape Leveque – Cygnet Bay
Actually, it is next morning as per
usual. I am sitting in the car out of the mossies as the sun rises,
drinking coffee. I went for a walk at dawn (in my nightie)and found
the sea that I heard all night. I am now sitting in a cloud of
insect repellant while the other two slumber on. Actually, I know
Glen iks awake – I have disturbed him enough. We were in bed at
8.15 last night and so sleep eludes!
Firstly, about Monday. The Japanese
cemetery was very interesting. All the gravestones were in Japanese
of course and there had been a lot of destruction. But the Japanese
consul and others had done a great job of restoring the dignity of
the last resting place of what were mostly young divers, by replacing
with obviously different stone the headstones of those missing or
irreparable. Few were over 30 yrs of age and the statistics are
appalling. The cemetery houses 700 plus graves and over 600 divers
are recorded as having been drowned or suffering divers' paralysis
since 1903. 33 men died in one year! The Chinese and Malay
cemeteries were no way as well preserved. Chinese divers were
regarded as less skilful and Malay and aborigines were the least
highly regarded. There are still a lot of Japanese families in
Broome as there are recent graves just outside the divers' cemetery.
Point Gantheuame features sedimentery
rocks and there are dinosaur footprints from some huge beasts of that
era (weighing 80 tonnes) in the sandstones, observable at very low
tide. We saw none but some clay moulds of what is under water. But
it is a lovely place: red sandstones and clear blue water with white
sands on the beaches.
After lunch we went to Matso's
brewery. Frantic with tourists! Glen surprisingly liked the Lychee
beer and Chango ( a combination of Chilli and Mango beers.) I didn't
like any but then I am not a beer drinker. So I drank a 90 ml glass
of Lime and Ginger Cider. Bad decision! I didn't mind it but I know
I can't drink cider. It upsets my system!! So I paid for it!
Dinner at Amanda's was lovely. Jason
had cooked a lovely roast and we entertained Larni for a time.
Amanda had some interesting things to say about her workmates packing
shelves at Woolies. Mostly young pilots trying to get their hours up
for bigger things. So much of Broome depends on the tourist season
and it has been quite depressed of late! They worry about the ethics
of the new gas fracking industry but recognise it could be helpful
for the economy. They actually want out of Broome in a few years.
Well, Tuesday we left early for Cape
Leveque. 91 kms of unsealed road to be exact. It is interesting
that beyond 20kms north of Broome the road is unsealed for 91 kms
until we reach Aboriginal owned land. Then it is sealed again with a
normal width highway all the way to One Arm Point. I wonder about
that. The dirt (one couldn't call it gravel as it was orange red soil
and sand, hard packed in places and soft in others) road wasn't bad –
corrugations in places, humps in others, deep sand in yet others- but
it was like driving down the bottom of a narrow half-pipe. Years of
grading had produced a rounded profile to the road and it was often
difficult to see what the country was like, so deep was the road
between the banks topped with tall flowering wattle trees. It was
very pretty actually – intense blue sky, red, red soil and the
green and gold trees! Passing cars was interesting as both were up
the sides of the pipe! Too narrow in places for 2 cars down the
bottom! Then we had to avoid the 4 graders working on the top 26 kms.
That was fun!
We called in firstly to Beagle Bay and
visited the Sacred Heart of Jesus church, built from 1916 by locals
and the Pallottine monks who had taken over the mission established
in 1888 by French Trappist monks. During WW1, the monks were under
house arrest and this was when they began building. It is highly
decorated inside with pearl shell in a most individual manner.
Beagle Bay was also the site of the institutionisation of children of
the “stolen generation”, placed by the government in the care of
the Irish Sisters of St John of God. It is now the centre of a
vibrant and hard working parish with a parish school which we were
told is very successful.
We went on to Middle Lagoon over a
very corrugated road which deteriorated further with a series of
large humps and water-filled hollows. There were a dozen or so vans
in the Caravan Park out there and so people do drag vans and boats to
this retreat. A very affable local greeted us,took our money for the
permit to enter, and told us that some people book 12 months ahead to
get a top of ridge site to sit and enjoy the view! It is a truly
beautiful place and although we wanted to swim, we had to move on.
This is the land of Bushtracker vans and Campavans!
Gail particularly wanted to go to
Cygnet Bay for the pearls and so that was our next stop. We travel
along the reddest road I have ever seen. The dirt was vermillon and
the dust covered everything! But Cygnet Bay which has only been open
to the public for 4 years, was a great place to stay. We did the
tour (very interesting with fabulous pearls) ,had a very civilized
candle-lit, a la carte dinner with wine (in our shorts and sandals –
our standards have slipped) and bush camped in a secluded nook on
sandy soil. We did learn a lot more about pearls and the industry
and the establishment of Cygnet Bay by James Brown as well as th
development under his son Lyndon after the departure of the Japanese
who had pioneered the cultured pearl business.
It was lovely camping out here. But
you know, you get hoons everywhere. In bed by 8.30pm, we were woken
at 10.00 by an idiot revving through the sandy tracks around the
camps (they are in little pockets in the bush with a road threading
between). Peace shattering! But it was a very nice evening!
24rd
July: Cape Leveque – Ardyaloon & Kooljaman
After breakfast and another walk on
the beach,we packed up, paid our dues and went on to One Arm Point or
Ardyaloon, the community is called. Entry was $10 per person which
we though was rather expensive until we realised this included entry
into the Trochus Hatchery. We weren't planning to visit this but I
am so glad we did. Trochus shell has always been important to the
local people here and for the last few years they have bred shells,
fish and other marine life to release back into the seas around the
point to restock the depleted habitat very successfully. The trochus
the people gather on the reefs and in the wet season they spawn and
then they are releqsed back to the reefs. The spawn grow and in a
year are ready for release. Likewise the clams, the fish and
aenomes. Old shells are polished and sold. They have a contract
with a button maker in Italy and are looking for more. Our tour was
conducted by a young local girl who knew her stuff and was amusing in
the way she attributed personalities to the fish. (Greedy, shy,
cheeky etc.) Two guys were cleaning up shells – I don't think Work
Place Health & Safety had audited the place ever. One of them
was a local artist and he had just finished cleaning green shells,
rare and highly prized- and so I was able to buy one!
We really enjoyed the visit and after
watching the tide rip out – as it does- we drove back to Kooljamin
at Cape Leveque. This is another community again and there is a
great camping ground here. No vans allowed but lots of tents. We
climbed up the hill past the lighthouse – now solar driven- and
down for a lovely swim. The beach was white and beautiful, the water
green-blue and crystal clear and the cliffs and rocks, red.
Absolutely lovely! The water was very salty and cool but even Glen
was inspired to swim. It was so refreshing. Lots of people camp
down here in beach shelters and there are facilities. We climbed
back up after a fresh water shower and Glen was hankering for some
Calamari and Chips for lunch. So we sat down in the restaurant in
our wet togs and ate a lovely lunch. Very cool!! We went down to
the western beach to see the red cliffs. Spectacular! But very hot
with very crumbly red mudstone looking extremely fragile.
We had no time left and so missed
Lombadina. However, we had by this time, seen some fantastic beaches
and, more importantly, seen some hard working, innovative and
creative communities. I was impressed by the organisation, tidiness
and community spirit of these urban areas. Lots of dogs but no kids
on the street – all in school,no-one sitting around aimlessly and
no drunks. I agree, Denis, that it is a pity that southern media
don't highlight these aspects of the north.
We drove home; it took us 2 ½ hrs
but there was very litle traffic on the road. Where the graders had
been was brilliant and the rest was bearable. The long shadows made
it more difficult but we all agreed it had been worth it! A lovely,
lovely relaxing place. I wish we had had more time there.
22nd
July: Cape Leveque – Cygnet Bay
Actually, it is next morning as per
usual. I am sitting in the car out of the mossies as the sun rises,
drinking coffee. I went for a walk at dawn (in my nightie)and found
the sea that I heard all night. I am now sitting in a cloud of
insect repellant while the other two slumber on. Actually, I know
Glen iks awake – I have disturbed him enough. We were in bed at
8.15 last night and so sleep eludes!
Firstly, about Monday. The Japanese
cemetery was very interesting. All the gravestones were in Japanese
of course and there had been a lot of destruction. But the Japanese
consul and others had done a great job of restoring the dignity of
the last resting place of what were mostly young divers, by replacing
with obviously different stone the headstones of those missing or
irreparable. Few were over 30 yrs of age and the statistics are
appalling. The cemetery houses 700 plus graves and over 600 divers
are recorded as having been drowned or suffering divers' paralysis
since 1903. 33 men died in one year! The Chinese and Malay
cemeteries were no way as well preserved. Chinese divers were
regarded as less skilful and Malay and aborigines were the least
highly regarded. There are still a lot of Japanese families in
Broome as there are recent graves just outside the divers' cemetery.
Point Gantheuame features sedimentery
rocks and there are dinosaur footprints from some huge beasts of that
era (weighing 80 tonnes) in the sandstones, observable at very low
tide. We saw none but some clay moulds of what is under water. But
it is a lovely place: red sandstones and clear blue water with white
sands on the beaches.
After lunch we went to Matso's
brewery. Frantic with tourists! Glen surprisingly liked the Lychee
beer and Chango ( a combination of Chilli and Mango beers.) I didn't
like any but then I am not a beer drinker. So I drank a 90 ml glass
of Lime and Ginger Cider. Bad decision! I didn't mind it but I know
I can't drink cider. It upsets my system!! So I paid for it!
Dinner at Amanda's was lovely. Jason
had cooked a lovely roast and we entertained Larni for a time.
Amanda had some interesting things to say about her workmates packing
shelves at Woolies. Mostly young pilots trying to get their hours up
for bigger things. So much of Broome depends on the tourist season
and it has been quite depressed of late! They worry about the ethics
of the new gas fracking industry but recognise it could be helpful
for the economy. They actually want out of Broome in a few years.
Well, Tuesday we left early for Cape
Leveque. 91 kms of unsealed road to be exact. It is interesting
that beyond 20kms north of Broome the road is unsealed for 91 kms
until we reach Aboriginal owned land. Then it is sealed again with a
normal width highway all the way to One Arm Point. I wonder about
that. The dirt (one couldn't call it gravel as it was orange red soil
and sand, hard packed in places and soft in others) road wasn't bad –
corrugations in places, humps in others, deep sand in yet others- but
it was like driving down the bottom of a narrow half-pipe. Years of
grading had produced a rounded profile to the road and it was often
difficult to see what the country was like, so deep was the road
between the banks topped with tall flowering wattle trees. It was
very pretty actually – intense blue sky, red, red soil and the
green and gold trees! Passing cars was interesting as both were up
the sides of the pipe! Too narrow in places for 2 cars down the
bottom! Then we had to avoid the 4 graders working on the top 26 kms.
That was fun!
We called in firstly to Beagle Bay and
visited the Sacred Heart of Jesus church, built from 1916 by locals
and the Pallottine monks who had taken over the mission established
in 1888 by French Trappist monks. During WW1, the monks were under
house arrest and this was when they began building. It is highly
decorated inside with pearl shell in a most individual manner.
Beagle Bay was also the site of the institutionisation of children of
the “stolen generation”, placed by the government in the care of
the Irish Sisters of St John of God. It is now the centre of a
vibrant and hard working parish with a parish school which we were
told is very successful.
We went on to Middle Lagoon over a
very corrugated road which deteriorated further with a series of
large humps and water-filled hollows. There were a dozen or so vans
in the Caravan Park out there and so people do drag vans and boats to
this retreat. A very affable local greeted us,took our money for the
permit to enter, and told us that some people book 12 months ahead to
get a top of ridge site to sit and enjoy the view! It is a truly
beautiful place and although we wanted to swim, we had to move on.
This is the land of Bushtracker vans and Campavans!
Gail particularly wanted to go to
Cygnet Bay for the pearls and so that was our next stop. We travel
along the reddest road I have ever seen. The dirt was vermillon and
the dust covered everything! But Cygnet Bay which has only been open
to the public for 4 years, was a great place to stay. We did the
tour (very interesting with fabulous pearls) ,had a very civilized
candle-lit, a la carte dinner with wine (in our shorts and sandals –
our standards have slipped) and bush camped in a secluded nook on
sandy soil. We did learn a lot more about pearls and the industry
and the establishment of Cygnet Bay by James Brown as well as th
development under his son Lyndon after the departure of the Japanese
who had pioneered the cultured pearl business.
It was lovely camping out here. But
you know, you get hoons everywhere. In bed by 8.30pm, we were woken
at 10.00 by an idiot revving through the sandy tracks around the
camps (they are in little pockets in the bush with a road threading
between). Peace shattering! But it was a very nice evening!
