The Dampier Peninsula, WA

Wednesday the 28th of November... We all had jobs to do this morning, the kids had their diaries to catch up on, Richard had some work to do on the van and I had loads of washing to do.  

By midday we were all done and headed over to Cable Beach. Betsy had asked us all over to help celebrate his son Ben's 16th birthday by the pool. 

After lunch all the boys headed off about 40 kilometers out of Broome to a fishing spot they'd been told about. They didn't get home until dark, and although the fish weren't biting, Ben had a great birthday fishing with the boys...

Ben, Harry & Jack

The white sands and creek systems

Nina and I took it easy around the caravan, baking cupcakes and enjoying the air con. By late afternoon we went for a swim and then headed over to the Betts family bungalow at Cable Beach where I went with Ann, Betsy's wife to the sunset bar for a drink. The boys met us a short time later after their showers. Dinner was pizzas and by 9ish, everyone was ready for bed. We said goodbye to the Betts family who were leaving the following day and headed back to  the caravan.

Richard then befriended a group of Ladies (in true Richard style) from NSW who had set up camp beside us. All in their 60s, they had flown into Broome and hired a motor home and were on a girls road trip to Perth. 

Richard gave them some driving tips and a list of places to stay which they were very grateful for. We could hear them laughing and chatting well after we went to bed. 

No doubt they will have a ball.

Thursday the 29th of November... The alarm went off early and we were up packing up the caravan so we could leave it behind. Bags packed and shopping done we took off  for Cape Leveque in the Dampier Penninsula.
It's one of those places I have always wanted to visit after reading about it many times in weather reports. The 200 kilometers of gravel road meant the caravan had to stay behind. 

We headed north, in the opposite direction to stormy Perth. The road at first was bitumen but it wasn't long before it became a corrugated, dusty 4WD track.

The pindan track to Cape Leveque

Richard was tired, so  I drove most of the way and really had to keep my wits about me. It's no wonder you can't take caravans and the whole area closes down after some rain. I could imagine the track turning into a river in no time at all, once the wet season set it.

We arrived at Cape Leveque or Kooljaman, just after lunch, and after finding our cabin we went for a swim.

Our cabin at Kooljaman

 

Inside our cabin

 The waters were beautiful and because of the strong tidal currents we were safe to swim without fear of crocs or the deadly iruganji jellyfish (apparently!) The white beaches were just like I'd imagined Cape Leveque to be....

The white beaches of Cape Leveque

Nina & Harry, ready for a swim

After a cool down we headed towards One Arm Point which is an aboriginal community, stopping to look at a marina hatchery at the Point.
It's run by locals who farm barramundi, turtles and other marine life plus trochus shells which they then turn into jewellery.

Hello turtle

All the kids were given the chance to feed a Barramundi and got the fright of their lives when all of a sudden the fish jumped at them for its dinner which is called boofing.
The looks on the kids faces, says it all...

Where are you Barra?

Oh geez!!!

Harry's turn

Boof

Nina's turn...

Is my hand still there??

We continued on along the beach where some of the local Baru Jaawi families had built their own shade huts...

The local beach shade huts

The huts line the beach

By late afternoon we were back at our accomodation. We explored the beaches surrounding our hut which were quite beautiful in low tide and full of rock pools with crabs everywhere..... The boys had a ball...

Harry catches a crab. We might need a few more for dinner.

The beautiful coastline

We then headed up to the lighthouse on the property to watch a Cape Leveque sunset....

A Cape Leveque sunset

The kids watch the sun go down

When we got back to our hut, I found this in our toilet.....

Ok frog, who invited you?

It decided to crawl up into the toilet rim and set up camp there for the entire time... only waking up at night to croak at the top of his lungs. Needless to say every time I went to the toilet it was with slight trepidation that he wouldn't decide to jump out or up!!! I was also hoping it hadn't attracted any other unwanted guests.

Dinner was a BBQ before we all crashed, well tried to... without air conditioning, it was still in the high 30s when we went to bed so cold showers were in order for everyone beforehand. Besides the heat there was also the problem of sandflies and mosquitoes in an open air hut.. and that green tree frog!! I had a feeling it was going to be a long night.

Friday the 30th of November, we knew we had woken early but we were not sure what time it was when we all headed down to the beach for a swim, partly to wake up and partly to soothe our itchy bites.  It was low tide and the kids had fun collecting shells. 

When we walked back up to the hut we were surprised it was just after 6. 
We had brekky and decided to head off to do some more exploring of the area. 

The first port of call was the Lombadina Aboriginal Community. 

The park inside the community

We were pleasantly surprised at how well kept the entire community was. All the gardens were well looked after and it was neat and tidy.
We had been told to make sure we picked up a loaf of Lombadina bread from the Bakery. It's cooked in the old style tins and in wood fired ovens. After picking up two loaves we called into the Lombadina Catholic Church. It was hand built in 1934 by the locals and still stands today having withstood cyclones and fires.... It even remained standing when Richard walked in... Haha! 

The Lombadina Catholic Church

Inside the Church

The first loaf of bread (it was yummy) was consumed on the way to the Cygnet Bay Pearl Farm..... The oldest Australian pearl farm. It was interesting to see how it all began and how the pearls are graded for their lustre...

Cygnet Bay

All our sightseeing done for the day we headed back to the hut and went for another swim. 

Snorkelling off Cape Leveque

Relaxing under the beach umbrella

Harry & Nina find some shade

My three hunter gatherers on their way to spear a fish

Richard went for a snorkel  with the boys and his spear gun and arrived back at the hut a short time later with a mangrove jack... Perfect for afternoon tea. Sashimi and a glass of champas.

The rest of the afternoon was trying to stay cool under a cold shower, using frozen towels etc.. As the mercury rose somewhere into the mid 40s. 

By evening we set off to watch the sun go down before heading out to the Djarindjin Community where we were going to go night spear fishing with a local elder by the name of Bundy.

We arrived early and watched as the community went about its business. 
About 600 people live in the community which was playing host to a basketball competition with other communities from Broome to Derby. 

The place was a breath of fresh air, about 4 different community members came to ask if we were ok or needed help and those that didn't ask, waved to us or said hello as they walked past. I know we continuously hear terrible things about aboriginal communities but this one was operating the way I believe they were all intended. Alcohol is allowed, but the closest place to buy it is in Broome, 200 kilometers away, so very few bother.

Bundy was a lovely man, he has worked within the community all of his life, educating children about their traditions and cultural laws. He has won an Order Of Australia for his work with children and was a very proud man. In fact, I think the word that summed up the community was - Pride. 

Anyway, off we went, in the dark, with Bundy and his spears over sand dunes and along the beach. We stopped a couple of kilometers down the beach from the community and Bundy showed us how to follow the stars to find the car later. He also taught us that sand floating on the top of little water holes on the beach means the tide is coming in.

It was low tide so he took us into rock pools and reef systems where fish were hiding in every corner. 

Bundy and Richard looking at a shark hiding between the rocks

Bundy and Nina

Jack looks at home with his spear

Bundy took a shot at a Cod, but missed. 

On the way back to the car, walking in the shallows, a gummy shark took Richard on, coming at his legs several times. He eventually took off in another direction leaving Richard grateful he was holding a spear to ward him off.

When we returned back to the car Bundy spoke to the kids a little more about aboriginal traditions. We left with no fish, but it was an education.

Harry, Jack, Bundy, Nina & Richard

We arrived back at the hut around 8:30, everyone was asleep before long. We had a better night's sleep. This time we came prepared, we had lit coils in every corner of the room to keep the mozzies away and it was a little cooler. 

Saturday the 1st of December.... We were up bright and early and headed down to the beach for a swim. By 9 o'clock we were packed up and on our way out of Kooljaman. Along the way we saw lots of wild donkeys. Now that was a novelty and a first so far on the trip.

We stopped to check out the Beagle Bay Community and its Sacred Heart Church. 

German Priests who were under house arrest in Beagle Bay for the duration of World War 1 began building the church in 1915. 

The Beagle Bay Catholic Church

Everywhere you look in the church you will see shells, including the altar which is built entirely of shells, you could see that many people had put their heart and soul into it....

The shell altar

Inside the church

The kids in front of the shell altar

We continued on, back onto that bumpy Pindan track... and by lunchtime we were back in Broome. There was plenty of unpacking and washing to do before we leave Broome tomorrow, on our trek further south, in the direction of home.