El Questro
WA

We were both really excited about going to El Questro. From the moment you turn onto the Gibb River Road you enjoy a visual spectacle of rich colours, rocky pinnacles, massive escarpments and deep gorges. This is exactly how we expected ELQ and the Kimberley to be...majestic, impressive and breathtaking.

ELQ had only been open 3 days because the multiple water crossings between the entry and the Station Township were too deep. We felt confident the van would get through ok as it has plenty of clearance, but we were really relieved to find a lot of very recent work had been done on the 16 km dirt road and it was in quite good condition with just a few sections of small corrugation.  Of the 4 or 5 creek crossings on the way in, the last, the Pentecost River, just 500 metres from the township, was the deepest and widest, but still did not come up over the wheel hubs.

We checked in for 3 nights and found a lovely shaded spot to park the van in the very empty camping area. It is truly a beautiful place with lots of space, swimming holes on the river and just a short stroll from the amenities, bar, restaurant, shop and even fuel ($2.30/litre). It truly felt magical and we wondered just how long we would end up staying. Even James instantly relaxed.

After setting up the van we went for a walk to explore the immediate Station area before driving 8 km along the river to Chamberlain Gorge to check out the fishing. It looked good so we threw a couple of lines in. You wouldn't believe it but a huge barra followed my poppa on the very first cast, then on the next he hit it with a bang then disappeared. He then did the same thing with Brian's lure. We reckon he was a good 60 - 80 cm. We tried for a bit longer but with no success, and it was bloody hot in the sun so we headed back to camp.

Saturday night at ELQ is BBQ night so we booked in to have barra, salad and dessert for 30 bucks a head. At the Swinging Arm Bar we sat with another gray nomad couple, Lesley and Stuart, and enjoyed a beautiful, warm, starry night with live music, good conversation and yummy dinner. It was amazing how many locals turned up from surrounding station properties, and Kununurra too, pitched tents and partied on (albeit a bit noisily) till the wee hours. 

About 8am Sunday morning we headed off to Zebedee Springs, 6km back toward the entrance. The walk to the thermal springs is a few hundred metres through tropical rain forest and bush crossing shallow, crystal clear streams. What a little paradise! The waterfall that comes out of the rock face runs into a series of small pools with moss and tropical vegetation in and around it. It's a very small area but fortunately we were the only ones there. We wallowed in the 35 degree waters - heavenly!

Next we went to Amalia Gorge, a five minute drive further on. That proved to be quite a challenging trek through a very rocky obstacle course of creek beds, ledges and crevices. At a couple of points we had to traverse narrow sections on our bottoms with a drop of several metres below onto rock faces or into pools. The scenery was spectacular with swimming holes along the way and at the end of the gorge a 32 metre waterfall cascaded into a deep plunge pool. The only ones there, we stripped off and plunged in.

By the time we got back to the car about 2 hours later we were both pretty stuffed. The 35 degree heat along with the physical and mental challenge of negotiating the 3.4 km trail was good reason to head back to camp for a bit of recovery time.

Sunday afternoon Brian unloaded the tinnie, rigged up some fishing lines and we went looking for some fishing spots along Pigeon Hole 4WD track. Pigeon Hole (on the river) was closed but we got up to Lookout Point from which we were able to view the dramatic and ancient landscape of the Pentecost Valley and river and with the Cockburn Ranges in the distance. Still on the hunt for a barra, we decided to go back to Chamberlain Gorge and try to catch the one that eluded us yesterday - but without success – so headed back to camp for a relaxing drink and dinner. What a place....what a day.....what a life!

Monday I felt a bit weary after our activities of the day before so we took it easy and went down to Chamberlain Gorge to fish after breaky. We threw lures in for a bit but didn't have any luck. We took a drive up Saddleback 4WD track afterwards. It was slow going to start as it was very rocky, then we had to cross the Pentecost River at a point where it was deeper and wider than all our other crossings so far. With no snorkel we took it slowly and managed not to take on any water.

The climb up to the ridge got our attention big time. It was an extremely steep incline on a soft, newly made, narrow track with tight switchbacks. The Beast handled it with ease though our heart rates increased a few beats. The view from the lookout was spectacular. ELQ is so vast and the terrain so varied it's difficult to find words to describe it. On the return journey Brian let the Beast take over by engaging "Downhill Descent" and all he had to do was steer. He loves his Beast!   

Back at camp we wandered over to the general store and had yummy cappies and cake, booked an afternoon cruise on Chamberlain Gorge and extended our stay a couple of days. Staying more than 4 nights gave us a 20% discount, so our camp fees came down to $32/night - excellent! We had been out of network coverage since our arrival so Brian bought 3 hours of Wi-Fi time so he could do some work.

It was a dry 36 degrees and felt pretty hot, so before a late lunch we went for a dip in the rock pools adjacent to the Black Cockatoo camp where we are set up. There’s a variety of croc-free swimming holes to choose from on the river. James had a swim then rolled in the red dirt - so back at the van we had good reason to give him a well overdue bath!  

At 2.30 we headed off to Chamberlain Gorge and found our cruise group consisted of us, 3 other guests and 4 staff. It was absolutely fantastic! The scenery travelling through the steep walls of the gorge was beautiful and one of the rangers gave an informal but very informative commentary.

The gorge walls are the second oldest rocks on earth - billions of years old - and the layers are clearly discernible. ELQ is an 80 year old pastoral lease that has grown to its current size through the acquisition of adjacent leases, it comes up for renewal in 2015 and currently there are two Aboriginal claims against the land. It has had multiple owners and is currently owned by an American company, Delaware North, who pretty much leave it alone to be managed by Aussies, as it has been for the last 15 years.

Half way through the 2 hour cruise we pulled up and were lavished with enough champers and fresh fruit to cater for 20 people.....mmm....my kinda cruise. We also fed the fish - barra, catfish and dozens of archer fish that squirted water at us so we would feed them. I got saturated - that was fun. We both had a ball and thought that at $99 for the two of us it was great value.

After dinner I took James for his pre-bedtime walk while Brian did the dishes (we share the duties and James is one of mine). We wandered through the staff area which houses and feeds the 80 staff who tend the 400 visitors that are in the park at peak period (at the moment I would doubt there are 40 of us here). The staff is a real mix of old and young - a few grey nomads like us who work their way around Oz and quite a lot of international backpackers as well as Aussies with various trades and qualifications. They all get their own (little) room and all meals are provided. It was interesting chatting to them before going back to the van for a long, lovely shower before bed.

Tuesday April 16 will be marked forever in my diary.....I climbed Emma Gorge AND I caught my first BARRA!

We left camp (and James in the van) around 8am to drive the 25km to Emma Gorge Resort which is part of ELQ. It's a pretty start to the trek - the open-deck timber buildings of the resort set in lush semi-tropical surrounds are very inviting.

The walk up to the top of the gorge zigzagged over a stream and we clambered over quite large slabs of rock for most of the way. You really have to watch your feet as just about every step is onto an uneven surface, then you have to remind yourself to stop and look up and around to appreciated the absolute beauty and grandeur of this ancient canyon. Even though it was early it was hot and quite humid in the canyon and by the time we reached top after 50 odd minutes of climbing we were both red-faced and drenched with sweat. We couldn't wait to strip off and immerse ourselves in the refreshing topaz water of the rock pool.

Emma Gorge is stunning. The entire journey through it is amazing but where the 65 metre sheer walls either side meet at the end and you swim under the cascading waterfall as it hits the pool below you feel like you are experiencing something really special.

I had a good long swim but Brian found it too cold. The downhill walk back was easier though I still managed to slip at one of the stream crossings and ended up flat on my back in water, totally filling my walking boots and saturating the camera. We quickly dried the camera off and opened all the little doors - batteries, card, flash etc and it was working ok by the time I had eventually sloshed my way back to the car.

After lunch we were struck with some obscure flurry of domesticity and cleaned the very dirty fly screens and windows in and out. That was hot and thirsty work. Late in the afternoon we went up to Chamberlain Gorge for a sunset fish. We were there quite a while with no sign of a bite when my line suddenly pulled strongly and what do you know - I landed a 40-50cm barra. Woo hoo! The minimum size is 55cm so it had to go back....but at least I can say I have caught one!

Early the next day we decided to take a drive westward along an unmade section of the Gibb River Road. We had heard from the Rangers that there was good fishing on the Pentecost River where it intersects with the GRR and in any event we wanted to ascertain its suitability or otherwise for travel with the van - really just for future reference. The road is yet to be graded, which apparently happens in April/May, but it was certainly drivable. It is quite wide and the surface varied between smooth, lightly corrugated, deeply corrugated and rocky. Our speed therefore ranged between 20km/hr and about 70km/hr. It took around 40 minutes to travel the 27 km stretch to the river.

 This area of the Kimberley is spectacular with lots of big ranges, escarpments and gorges. Approaching the river we were surprised to see how the road just disappeared into the water for a hundred metres or more before emerging again. In the wet it is obviously impassable but when we were there it was only around 40 cm though flowing very fast.

We followed the riverbank along a deep, sandy track for a couple of kilometres stopping here and there to throw lines in. We had a keen eye out for crocs as we'd been told there were heaps at the crossing. After trying a few different lures and spots with no bites we headed back to the road hoping not to get bogged. It was so hot standing on the sandy bank in full sun we could only manage 10 minutes or so at a time before joining James in the air-conditioned comfort of the Beast.   

Back at camp we had a relaxing afternoon with a swim in the billabong and just before dusk we went to Chamberlain Gorge to fish. They were biting! I pulled in three Barra between about 40 and 50 cm and Brian got one around 50 cm as well. We stayed until it was almost dark and watched the colours change around us as the sun went down. It was a beautiful balmy evening and so peaceful - just the two of us and the river.  

At dawn Thursday we bounced out of bed sure we'd catch that big barra if we got the lines in before sunrise. It was only 21 degrees at 5.30am - the coolest temperature we have felt in weeks. Sunrise over Chamberlain Gorge was very pretty and, like the evening before, there is a feeling of serenity and a sense of agelessness being in an ancient space that has changed little in millions of years. We spent a good hour fishing but got diddley squat!

The days heat up very quickly and by 7am it was already 30 degrees and on its way to a top in the mid to high 30's with humidity around 50 percent. Strenuous activity like gorge walking is best done early. You can't even do it late as it stays hot till about 5pm then it's dark by 5.30. So straight after breaky we did the Telecom Hill walk which leaves the camp ground and goes past the stables and up the hill behind the Station to a lookout. It took only an hour but we were very hot and sweaty by the time we got back.

We extended our stay another two nights (till Saturday) then spent the rest of the day  reading, swimming, work for Brian and journal updating for me before another fishing session which, yet again, yielded nothing. After dinner we went over to the Swinging Arm Bar and sat out under starry skies with a drink while one of the rangers did a slide presentation on ELQ, and Australian Geographic (a big group who have been here all week doing flora & fauna research) talked about frogs.

Last night was our last at ELQ. We both felt we were ready to explore new frontiers and while we could have stayed much longer we want to be at Daly early in May and we still have Lake Argyle and Douglas Daly to visit.

We spent some of the day preparing for travel - a full clean for the van, tinnie back on the Beast, generator and beer fridge re-stowed, water tanks topped up etc. Late morning we drove along the river 5km or so to Brumby Base where the dilapidated remains of the original station homestead stand.

This beautiful spot on the river is supposedly good for fishing - not so much barra - but black bream and sooty grunter. We spent a couple of hours casting baited lines and constantly getting bites. There were certainly plenty of fish, but they were too small to keep. I caught 3 catfish, one of which was quite large and great fun to land. They all got released, so it was a good day for all.

Today we hit the road again. We’ll go to Kununurra and do a big shop as we have totally cleaned out the fridge and the grog cupboard is getting low. We need gas and some hardware stuff as well and there will be lots of time on our mobiles. We have had no phone coverage here at ELQ so Brian will no doubt have a squillion work messages and will need to make heaps of return calls. And of course I want to speak to kids, sisters and friends. We’re not sure about coverage at Lake Argyle either so it could be a long lunch at Kununurra.

James, Brian and I love it here at ELQ. We’ve been lucky coming at the start of the season with very few people around. I can imagine it would be quite crowded in the gorges, springs, swimming holes, fishing spots and amenities block when there are 400 tourists here. Brian reckons he would like to work here so we might be back at some stage of our travels down the track.