Kimberley (Western Australia)

• 🌍 Broome — a popular destination to get a taste of the Kimberley without forgoing luxury
• 🌍 Camballin — step off point for the best Barramundi fishing within the Fitzroy River
• 🌍 Derby — a small town with a big Boab, a big jetty and a big tide
• Halls Creek - Gateway to Purnululu National Park and Wolfe Creek Crater
• 🌍 Kununurra — a relaxed town from which to explore its majestic natural attractions
• 🌍 Wyndham — one of the oldest and most northerly towns in the Kimberley, at the confluence of 5 rivers

• 🌍 Fitzroy Crossing — starting point for trips to Geikie Gorge National Park, offering the possibility of picturesque cruises on the Fitzroy River.
• 🌍 Purnululu National Park – a UNESCO world heritage site for its unusual yet fascinating Bungle Bungles.
• 🌍 Warmun (Turkey Creek) — an Aboriginal community that, besides being an entry point to the Purnululu National Park, has produced many successful Aboriginal artists.
• 🌍 Windjana Gorge National Park — around a beautiful gorge formed by an ancient coral reef now emerged, is accessed through the western side of the Gibb River Road. There is usually a large population of freshwater crocodiles.
• 🌍 Wolfe Creek Crater National Park – an almost near-circular crater, supposedly the second-largest in the world.

The Kimberley is one of the world's last great wilderness areas, and covers an area large enough to fit California and a bit more, though the total population is only about 50,000. Most of the population is concentrated in small towns such as Kununurra and Wyndham in the East and Broome and Derby on the coast in the west.

Halls Creek sits on the northern edge of the Great Sandy Desert and is a gateway to natural attractions including the striking formation of the white quartz China Wall, the orange and black striped domes of the Purnululu National Park Bungle Bungle Range, and the dramatic impression of the Wolfe Creek Crater, formed 300,000 years ago when a meteorite crashed to earth. Halls Creek is on the Great Northern Highway, 683km from Broome and 359km from Kununurra. The closest town to Halls Creek is Fitzroy Crossing, 290km to the west.

The West Kimberley Region is one of the remotest and least visited areas of the Australian coastline. Pristine white sandy beaches, awesome tides, thousand of deserted islands, magnificent scenery with cascading waterfalls and creek systems which are ideal for barramundi fishing.

Highlights of the Kimberley include a long untouched coast, magnificent wilderness scenery, rare fauna and flora and a rich and colourful history. The Kimberley thrives as a tourist destination with 85% of the population being tourists.

The area draws much of its history from its colourful pearling industry, indigenous culture, and the rugged pastoral (sheep and cattle) stations. There are several historic reminders in Broome (such as a Japanese cemetery) of the importance of pearls for the Kimberley. Museums run by local historical societies in Broome, Kununurra and Wyndham, as well as the Argyle Downs Homestead Museum at Lake Argyle, are all worth investigating to take in the history.

Due to the result of British colonisation, English is the predominant language in the region. However, in addition to standard Australian English, there are several post-contact languages spoken in the Kimberley such as Aboriginal English, Australian Kriol, Pidgin English and the Malay-based Broome Pearling Lugger Pidgin. However, many of these are not spoken on a daily basis any more, but are spoken by few.

• Broome buzzes in the dry season, especially in the cooler July and August. The famed Cable Beach, from which you can admire the sunset while riding camels, is indeed a nice place. You will also find various historic sites and shops focusing on the world-famous pearls produced in the town. The town has a few interesting restaurants, and boosts the only nightlife for a few hundred kilometers around. Do not get overexcited however, it is very far from the eccentricity of the East Coast. Overall, it is a nice place to have a break before going to the Wild.
• The main reason to come to Kimberley is to enjoy the surrounding wilderness. Drive only a few kilometers on an unsealed track and you can quickly feel the immensity of the region. You can also observe wild birds by the thousands (provided you are not too far from a water source, you will hear them when the sun rises anyway) and wander through unusual flora (baobs all around....) Saltwater and freshwater crocodiles are found in numbers in the region, so observe if you can, but be very careful at all times near waterholes.
• The UNESCO world heritage Purnululu, with its multitude of dome formations, is one of the star attractions of the Kimberley. The park has been only "explored" since the mid-1980s, though it was known by the Aboriginals for a much longer time. The 4WD track to the park will put your vehicle to the test.
• Be it the spectacular (but very tough to access) Mitchell Falls on the Mitchell plateau, the dozens of gorges on the Gibb River Road, including the Bell Gorge, the Geikie Gorge close to Fitzroy Crossing and the Windjana Gorge in the eponym Windjana Gorge National Park, the area is simply a feast of Gorges and falls.
• Located deep within Talbot Bay in the Buccaneer Archipelago are the Horizontal Waterfalls. Massive tidal movements create a waterfall effect as water banks up against one side of the narrow cliff passage, to be repeated again on the turning tide. The tides in this area have a 10-metre variation which occurs over 6½ hours from low tide to high tide and vice versa. The waterfall phenomena has been described by David Attenborough as "one of the greatest natural wonders of the world". The sight of the turquoise blue water rushing between the rugged red hills is best viewed from the air on a scenic flight, out of Derby.
• North Kimberley is the place to see the Gwion Gwion or Bradshaw Figures Aboriginal paintings, some of which are believed to be around 50,000 years old. You will probably need the authorization of the traditional owners, so enquire beforehand, for instance with a tour operator. Some of these paintings are in very remote areas.
• In Derby, on the road to Broome, the huge Boab Prison Tree is believed to have been used as a staging point for prisoners.
• From Broome, a rough 4WD track will lead you through the Dampier Peninsula up to Cape Leveque. There are splendid beaches, nice snorkelling and good Barramundi fishing in the area. Accommodation is available at the tip of the cape at the Aboriginal owned Kooljaman Resort.

• Dive – 300 km out to sea from Broome are the Rowley Shoals -One of the world's best yet least known dive sites. The Rowley Shoals are a chain of coral atolls on the edge of one of the widest continental shelves in the world. The 3 pear-shaped atolls have shallow lagoons inhabited by corals and abundant marine life. Each atoll covers an area of around 80-90 km², rising with nearly vertical sides from very deep water. Mermaid Reef rises from about 440 m, Clerke from 390 m and Imperieuse from about 230 m. The coral atolls of the Rowley Shoals are famed for their almost untouched coral gardens, giant clams and other shellfish. Giant Potato Cod and Maori Wrasse wait to be hand fed while colourful reef fish show little fear. Drift diving in and out of the atolls sweeps you through pristine reefs with schools of Trevally, Mackerel and Tuna. See Barracuda, Morays turtles and many species of shark. As well as being inhabited by a number of species found nowhere else, the coral and fish communities of the Rowley Shoals are unique in their composition, and in the relative abundance of species.

There are very few catering options outside of the towns, so be as self-sufficient as possible if you drive into the outback.

The Kimberley is not a desert, nor is it part of the Outback, but it is still a very hot place, so drink plenty of water. There are a few bars in Broome, but otherwise the nightlife is as one would expect rather limited.

• Take care of stray animals (either wild kangaroos or cattle) on the roads and tracks, do not drive at dawn or during the night.
• Various deadly animals live in the area. Saltwater Crocodiles inhabit most river systems and coastal areas, extreme caution should be used when on or near, beaches, rivers, creeks and waterholes. Deadly jellyfish such as the dreaded Box Jellyfish and Irukandji are found in the surrounding sea (including around Broome), especially in the Wet. Do not go out swimming, unless you are absolutely certain that the area is perfectly safe.
• Except in the centre of the few towns, your mobile phone will not work anywhere, so do not count on it while going to more remote areas.
• If travelling at the time of the wet or cyclone season (during late spring to early autumn/fall), make sure you are fully aware of what cyclones can do. Plan places to stay that are not next to rivers or watercourses, and check weather advice regularly. The media coverage on this region's cyclones may be low, but that is because barely anyone lives here – however, the risk of cyclones is high.

The area is more or less surrounded by extremely inhospitable areas (Great Sandy Desert and Tanami Desert to the south and south east), the only reasonable way to leave the region is either to drive south from Broome (be prepared for at least a day of absolute nothingness of flat-straight driving before reaching the interesting areas of the Pilbara) or east from Kununurra into the tropical and humid northern parts of the Northern Territory.

Hall's Creek is the starting point of the Tanami Track, a comparatively well graded dirt road that will lead you to the Red Centre and further on to Alice Springs. A 4WD is however recommended, and it still a remote outback dirt track crossing arid areas with very little supply on the way (basically only a single roadhouse).

If, and only if, you are fully prepared and equipped (meaning a very thorough research about potential dangers and risks, as well as arrangement for fuel drops), the first 150 km of the Tanami Track are shared with the legendary Canning Stock Route, one of the most demanding and remote tracks on Earth. It is a tough 1800 km 4WD drive with absolutely no facilities and no fuel supply through the desert and very far from any civilization. The track will lead you down to Wiluna, 1000 km north of Perth. Do not attempt this track lightly.