The future face of caravanning

This is a glimpse of what caravan parks will look like in the future.

Who said it was a way to escape from the world and rough it a little!

A long stretch!

Eighty Mile Beach
An isolated beach on the north west coast of Australia. 300 kms from Broome, 250 kms from Port Hedland. It is almost as far away from Melbourne as you can get.

Not a person in sight. You can walk for miles and just enjoy the serenity.

And the sunsets are magnificent!


The bird life is a bit limited, but that's OK. There are few seagulls and other shorebirds, together with the odd kite around the sandhills.

Still it's a great place to visit for peace and quiet. There are myriads of shells spread along the beach, and you can even have a dip in the shallow waters.

Just one little problem.....
you can't get anywhere near the water for a few hours around high tide.

The transformation is unbelievable - and stretches as far as the eye can see.

It's a tough life

Just a little way south of Broome, and a few kms off the road is Barn Hill Station. At peak season the 100 powered sites at this place are booked out, and the numerous unpowered sights are often crowded.

Almost everyone you see here is staying here. Visitors don't drive 10 kms down the dirt road to take a peek. There's a lot to do...walk on the beach, swim, read, relax, walk on the beach swim, read, relax, watch the sunset - and then do it again tomorrow. Fishing is an option, but it's not really on our agenda.

They also have a small lawn bowls rink, and regular events include a BYO BBQ on Wednesdays, and a Sunday roast each week during the peak season.


The picture on the right is of a regular visitor. Afternoon tea was coffee, and a few potato chips. This guy liked the crumbs - and managed to be around three days in a row to make sure he didn't miss out.

One interesting feature is the arrangement of the sites.
Most caravan parks are quite regular and ordered in their layout. Scattered amongst the trees and the winding access paths they are all not at all regular, in location or in size.
Most caravan parks have numbered sites. At Broome we had site 238. Here we are in Calf Cradle. All one hundred powered sites are named!

The facilities are a little rustic, but that adds to the charm of the place.

It's a tough life - but after a few days here I know why people keep coming back.

Broome, Broome, Broome

Tourist mecca of the north west - Broome.

Beaches and bays, Coles and Woolies - they are all here.


Our camp was in the town and on the bay - not the best equipped, but certainly the best located of the caravan parks in the town. If you are looking to spend more time at Cable Beach there are other options, but this one worked for us. It was a short walk to Town Beach, best placed for 'Stairway to the Moon', and not far from most other venues.

Want to buy some souvenirs?

This is the place. Galleries galore and plenty of pearls - all you need is money! A Tahitian pearl necklace came cheap at just under $1,000. Cheaper options were available but earrings are just not my style.

Us...well we just enjoyed the environment and even took time for a swim (around high tide!)

Along the way we visited Broome Bird Observatory, and managed to spot some whales (a long way off), some dolphins (just off Town Beach), and a turtle - along with the the usual selection of macropods.

Windjana Gorge

From Derbe we took the day trip to Windjana Gorge and Tunnel Creek.

While the landscape around seems monotonously flat there are breaks in the plains with amazing gorges and unique geological formations. They exclamation marks in the vast expanse that is Australia.

Having recently visited Geiki Gorge we were looking for something spectacular. Windjana is not that, despite having its own unique features.

What it did offer were close encounters with crocs - lots of them. Standing on the shore of the creek/waterhole we could see four freshwater crocs within about twenty metres.

Tunnel Creek didn't offer crocs, although they are found in the creek, but did offer a unique walk along and in the creek which has forged its way through the limestone rocks that make up the small range of hills.



Fruit bats and ghost bats inhabit the caves, and we also spotted an eel in one of the lighter areas of the tunnel.


Fortunately the water was a little less than knee high at this time of the season - earlier visitors must wade through water that is waist deep (or more) if they are to get through the tunnel. Waist deep might be OK, but then it depends on how high your waist is!

Waist deep for me might not be as comfortable for Beth.

Quote of the Day

"Tomorrow I'll wake up and have breakfast. Half of Africa won't. Tell me, is that fair?"

Mick Malthouse (AFL football coach) responding to a question about Collingwood only having 6 days befoere they play the Adelaide Crows who will have 8 days break before the match).

Geiki Gorge (Darnghu)

Along the track a number of folks commented on Geiki Gorge. For them it was a place well worth visiting. Having taken the short detour in to the gorge we agree.

After the Bungles Bungles we spent a couple of nights at Halls Creek, and checked out China Wall. The other sites recommended at the Visitor Centre were a few too many km's further along the unsealed road.

How one row of rocks is quartz, while the rest is the standard rust red of the area is one of those 'freaks of nature' (or the creativity of a quirky designer).

Another bit of creativity was evident with a photo friendly Gilberts Dragon.

The next day we made it to Fitzroy Crossing, and invested a day exploring Geiki Gorge. We plenty of time to explore, rest and read. Apart from taking the 2 km walk we also took to cruise - a one hour round trip along the Fitzroy River. During the wet the water running through the Gorge would fill Sydney Harbour in under a day - or that is the claim. Seeing the markers that reveal the various floods levels in the last 20 years I can believe it.

Easily accessible, and relatively cheap, the cruise up the gorge in the afternoon was well worth the wait.

Bungle Bungles and Beyond

Australia's unique landscape is on show in the Kimberleys.

A day at the Bungle Bungles (a.k.a. Purnululu) was time and money well spent.


Not having a 4WD a one day tour was a good option for us. Fourteen hours from go to whoa...with a 5.30 a.m. start it was a BIG day, but it was time well spent.

The road in was rough - and it took two hours to cover the 50 or so kilometers of unsealed road to the National Park. Corrugations, creek crossings, bulldust, and numerous corners and crests made driving slow, and wisely our hosts organised for morning and afternoon tea breaks to be taken along this road.

Echidna Chasm and Cathedral Cave were the two sites visited during the day, and we shared an excellent lunch in between the hours we spent walking underneath the hot sun.



What can you say about this area? A visit is really the only way to appreciate it...and our photos do not do it justice.


If you get a chance to visit, do it.

We had no choice but to spend the money for an organised tour. Others who drove their 4WD's spoke about the challenge of the road, and more than a few have had to spent money on their vehicles AFTER driving them in the the park. Freedom to choose your own way comes with its own costs.