Cool day today only getting to 32! Still warm when we got up at 5.30am. Had a wonderful day at El Questro. What a fantastic place. Up at 5.30am – can’t get use to the WA time zone, gets light so early - we had had brekkie, walked Coco and out the door by 7.15am. An one hour drive to Emma Gorge from Kununurra via the Great Northern Highway and the Gibb River Road – yes we can say we have driven on the Gibb River Road! The GBR to El Questro is partly unsealed and we followed the grader part of the way which made it easier as in parts it was quite corrugated. 4wd is recommended. Great views of the ranges. Drove to Zebedee Springs which are a series of hot spring rockpools. The pools are closed at 12 noon to allow tour groups to use them. We got here about 8.30am and there were only a few people there which meant we had our own little pool to ourselves. The pools are quite lush and tropical surrounded by pandanus palms and livistona palms. Very very beautiful and a lovely crystal clear water with a temperature like a luke warm bath. From here we drove to The Station Township which is the central hub with a shop supplied with the essentials, souvenirs and fuel. Camping sites are provided here and if you are lucky might be able to score you own private campsite on the edge of the Pentecost River, we looked at one and it is very quiet and private all to yourselves. The Station is fairly rustic and basic but that is part of the El Questro wilderness and beauty. There are lots of 4wd only tracks and gorge walks that you can do. We went to the Branco Lookout which was a good use of John’s 4wd skills, the first being crossing the Chamberlain River which is very wide about 150m and lots and lots of rocks and boulders in the water. The water wasn’t deep at all it was more a case of negotiating the rocks, we had to use 4wd low gear to get through. That was the most challenging part and going up a narrow steep hairpin was another little challenge. The view was spectacular overlooking the Chamberlain River. Down the hill again across the river and onto Emma Gorge. What a lovely spot. Green grass, two restaurants under the verandah and swimming pool. We sat on the lovely green cool grass and ate our picnic lunch before tackling the gorge walk. The walk to the gorge takes an hour each way (3.2km return). Actually took us half an hour to get there and 45 minutes back. The fact sheet about the walk would put off the not so adventurous walker as it is pretty much walking over rocks all the way and crossing creeks. Closer to the plunge pool at the top the steeper its gets. Not to be deterred we did the walk and yes it was walking and climbing over rocks but not so bad and Emma Gorge is absolutely spectacular – the best we have seen. Hardly anyone there and after a hot sweaty walk a swim was a must to. The water was icy cold at first but once in it was just beautiful and cooling. The waterfall is a gentle fall of water and droplets of water from the waterfall seem to fall of the ferns growing on the sheer rock edges into the water. To lie in the water and look up through the water droplets at the green ferns lit up by the sun was magic. Now we know why Emma Gorge is rated on of the Kimberleys most spectacular gorges – it is. A camera cannot do it justice at all. In the corner of the gorge a hot thermal spring comes through the rock and John found heaps of frogs there enjoying the water. We stayed here for quite a while before the trek back down. There are so many boab trees in this area and they are all different shapes and sizes. Some have circumstances over 15m and some are over 1000 years old! We had a wonderful wonderful day so much better than we had imagined. The next best thing would be to stay at the El Questro Homestead which is pure luxury. It would actually be fantastic to see El Questro after the wet if you could get through of course. The reason they charge a fee per person is to cover costs to maintain the park particularly after the wet season when they have to rebuild the access roads and tracks, re-mark the walking tracks, erect signage and clear away flood debris. So fair enough as it is a wonderful rugged wilderness park and well worth the visit. We got home about 5.00pm – 9.5 hours for poor Coco all alone – she was so happy to see us – she is so patient.
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