Lazy days in the Buccaneer Archipelago on luxury Kimberley cruise

So far on my cruise through the remote Kimberleys, I have explored rocky Iron Island.  I've gazed in awe at incredible Montgomery Reef.   Clambered up Raft Point to view amazing aboriginal paintings.
Landed at Langgi Beach to find simply sensational stone statues standing in lonely sentinel.

But all adventurers must sometimes take it easy.  How peaceful to relax on a comfortable lounger as we plough peacefully through the Buccaneer Archipelago. Gentle tropical breezes wafting across the deck.  The only decision to be made is to wonder what might be on the five star menu for lunch ! 

There are more exciting places in store on this cruise and it will be great to experience them in the next few days. In the meantime, I'll just have a short siesta......will keep you posted.

The sensational stone warriors of Langgi Beach.

If ever there is a beach that is unlike no other, then that place in my opinion, would have to be Langgi Beach in the Kimberleys.   Simply spectacular statues, standing in stony silence.   Eerie, weird, bizarre, all adjectives that describe this remarkable cove.
These natural sandstone pillars are a sacred site for the Worora people. The aborigines believe that these formations are warriors killed in a Dreamtime battle.
It is easy to imagine how these eroded rocks could be taken for mythical beings, or long lost ancestors.   Well worth a visit on your Kimberley cruise holiday.

Cruising up a Kimberley creek with cunning crocs for company.

My mission, should I choose to accept it ( and I did) was to go where I had never gone before.  On a night cruise in an open Xplorer landing craft up a remote creek in the Kimberleys. 
This was part of my cruise itinerary on the Oceanic Discoverer.  After a barramundi dinner on board the luxury vessel, our party boarded the landing craft for an adventure cruise amongst dangerous crocodiles.
Needless to say, no-one was trailing their hands in the water.  We progressed at a slow speed up an unnamed, and pitch black mangrove creek.  As you can imagine, it is an eerie feeling being out on a dark tropical night, up the creek without a paddle, although admittedly we did have a reliable engine for propulsion.
Evil looking eyes glowed in the darkness.  Crocs on the port bow ! I took a couple of snapshots, hoping that the subject of my photos didn't "snap" me up in the process.  Looked at my watch.  Eight 'o croc ! 

Whilst the crocodiles I saw this evening were not big, probably around 2 metres, there is a continuing problem of "rogue crocs" in the Kimberley area.  The Australian saltwater crocodile is the biggest reptile in the world, and can weigh up to over 1000kg.A fascinating experience, but it was a relief to leave "Crocodylus porosus" in its natural habitat, and return to our comfortable ship.

Magnificent aboriginal art adorns a cool cave atop a distant Kimberley peak.

Art galleries are always interesting places, but take it from me, this one really rocks ! With other members of our cruise, I climbed up a short but steep hill from Raft Point in the Kimberleys.
On our way up, we puffed and panted along a rocky trail past boab trees and great views of Steep Island out in the bay.

The climb was worth the effort in the tropical heat, because a cool shady rock overhang awaited us.
We sat in respectful silence as our guest lecturer told us about these ancient inscriptions.
As you can see in the above photo, the cave ceiling and walls are adorned with some excellent examples of Wandjina aboriginal art.

 These particular ones are known as Bradshaw paintings. They are powerfully drawn in earthy colours, and make a very impressive display. Bradshaw was the name of an early pastoralist who discovered these fine works of art back in the early 1800's.

The cave also had some other visitors, including a rock python wedged in a back cavity, and a large hornets nest just above where I was sitting.  This all added to the excitement of our trek !

Extraordinary island - Ayers Rock of the sea in the Kimberleys.

 

 

The Kimberley is full of remarkable sights and this one is no exception to the rule.  The top picture shows Steep Island - Ayers Rock of the sea.  As you can see, it bears a marked resemblance to its more famous counterpart - Ayers Rock of the inland - Uluru.
After investigating Montgomery Reef, my cruise has now progressed to Doubtful Bay.  Steep Island is a distinguishing landmark in this tranquil spot.. The waters around Steep Island are excellent for barramundi fishing.  Don't be deceived by the tranquillity, because these are dangerous waters too, with sharks and crocs in abundance.
Today, our cruise party divided up into two groups.  The first went on a leisurely cruise around Steep Island to examine the geology and flora. Good luck to them.
I decided to go ashore with the other group at rocky Raft Point. Our aim is to check out some interesting aboriginal drawings at the top of a nearby hill. This will involve a boulder hopping scramble up a scrubby slope. More about this in next post.   

Mysterious Montgomery reef - now you see it, now you don't.

One of the highlights of my West Australian cruise on Oceanic Discoverer. A vast reef, appearing as if by magic out of the ocean on a falling tide, is a marvellous and most unexpected sight.

I'm sitting in an inflatable landing craft, about 20 km off the Central Kimberley coast.  As far as the eye can see, there is water cascading off an endless wall of rocky coral.  Due to extreme tides in this area, the reef literally "grows" in front of my eyes as water pours off in a thousand rivulets down a multitude of crevices.

 

In a few hours when the tide comes in, there will be no trace of any reef, no coral, no rocks. Just a vast expanse of ocean. The show will be over until Nature puts on an encore with the next falling tide.

This astonishing mass of rock is the largest inshore reef in Australia, being an incredible 80km long.  It covers an area of over 270 square kilometres. By comparison, this is roughly the same area as Taipei City in Taiwan, home to over two million people... Montgomery Reef, home to zero people.

Montgomery Reef was named after Andrew Montgomery. He was ship's surgeon on HMS Mermaid, captained by explorer Phillip Parker King in 1821.
Definitely worth seeing if you can get out here. The "full Monty" is an incredible spectacle to behold.

Small inflatable boat, extremely rapid ride, horizontal waterfall off Kimberley coast.

Does the idea of hanging on grimly in a small inflatable boat, whilst shooting at breakneck speed down an extremely powerful torrent of water appeal to you ?  If so, then you should ride the horizontal waterfalls in Talbot Bay, between a narrow gap in the towering McLarty Ranges of the Kimberleys.

It was with some trepidation that I joined a fellow group of thrill seekers, and the experience proved memorable to say the least.  Perhaps the best advice I can offer is "Hold on and spray !"
The risk factor includes vast tidal whirlpools, plus roving crocodiles in the vicinity. All of which provides an incentive to keep firmly seated, and hang on tight. This is probably one of the "must do" attractions in the Kimberley.

Not only was the water flowing freely, but all who experienced the ride, found their adrenalin flowing freely.  Afterwards, back on our cruise expedition ship Oceanic Discoverer, the beer flowed freely as my fellow passengers and I celebrated our successful adventure !

Exploring rockpools on Iron Island, Kimberleys.

Poking around rockpools is fun.  And the rockpools of remote Iron Island are no exception to this rule. Whilst we were awaiting the return of the landing craft, I found and photographed this bunch of unusual and quite attractive striped shells.  Not being an expert conchologist, I'm guessing that they look like small versions of trochus sea snails.
Trochus snails are sought after to make mother of pearl products such as buttons, beads or pendants.
I've heard that the meat of the mollusc is edible too.  It might be OK for a snack or two, if I was ever cast away on Iron Island.
If any experienced shell collectors are reading this blog, please feel free to enlighten me, or correct me on my trochus pics. Thanks.

Climbing to the top of remote Iron Island, West Kimberleys.

Ships log - Day Two.   Made good progress today up the Yampi Sound, and into the area of iron ore mining operations.   Passed Cockatoo Island, then dry and dusty Koolan Island.  These rocky outcrops seem to be mainly Precambrian quartzite sandstone, and their redeeming feature is that there are some marvellous rock formations to view.
Made landfall on isolated Iron Island, uninhabited, but with a pleasant sandy beach.  I climbed a low ridge after we landed, a relatively easy scramble up a rocky track. The views from the tussocky ridge were worthwhile climbing up for, and the rest of the landing party from the boat soon followed me up.
No snakes to be seen, nor much wildlife.
 Probably not the best place to be marooned for any length of time because I didn't see any fresh water, or for that matter, MacDonalds.

 

Stowaway discovered on Kimberley cruise

Ships Log, Oceanic Discoverer 0600 hours.  I was taking an early stroll on the promenade deck this morning.  To my great surprise, I discovered the ship had gained another passenger during the night, lounging on the deck railing. 
To my inexperienced eye, it looked like some form of tropical mantis.  All the more remarkable as we were about ten miles off the Kimberley coast. A long way for a mere arthropod to fly. No wonder he felt like a rest !
Later when I reviewed my photo of the hitch-hiking insect, it didn't appear to have the large eyes of a praying mantis. The ordinary garden mantis as you may know, has quite bulbous eyes, which go red at night, and pink during the day.
If you look closely at the second photo, you'll see Arthur ( for want of a better name) has two ET style eyes, very small.  Other suggestions as to what species he could be, include a goliath stick insect ( eurycnema goloioth) or even a Giant Phasmid ( diapherodes gigantea). If the latter is correct, Arthur is probably aptly named, as the male phasmid is a bit smaller than the female.
What do you think Arthur is ?  Could he be a new species perhaps ?  Would be interested to know, and any feedback appreciated.

First day at sea - is that a ghost ship off the port bow in the Kimberleys ?

It's sunset and the light is fading fast.  I'm standing on the deck of the ultra modern, hi tech Oceanic Discoverer. We have just left tropical Broome on the West Coast of Australia on a ten day cruise. Is it my imagination, or do I see a ghost ship off the port bow ?
Perhaps I had a welcome drink too many when boarding.  Yet I do recall that the famous explorer and adventurer Phillip Parker King travelled this way in 1821.  His vessel was the HMS Mermaid.  Only 18 metres in length, the brave captain and crew must have endured primitive conditions in their single masted rigged cutter.
Compare this with the OD, or Coral Discoverer as it is now known in 2015.  Equipped with every conceivable modern navigational device, it carries 72  passengers on four decks of luxury. An efficient crew of 25 are helping make our voyage as comfortable as possible.
In the next few days, we will follow in the steps of the intrepid Parker King. I'm looking forward to seeing the locations he discovered.

Cruising the forgotten islands of the Kimberley Coast

Have you ever wanted to get away from it all ? To really discover those off the beaten track spots in outback Australia ? If you do, then take a look at the remote and unexplored coast of North West Australia.  It's a very surprising and unique destination !
Not many people know there are well over 2500 islands off the Kimberley Coast. Most are unnamed. Only 352 actually have names. What a great place to explore, photograph and discover exotic locations that most of us have never visited.
Come with me on a ten day cruise from Broome to Darwin. In this blog, I'll describe how I travelled on the luxury expedition ship Oceanic Discoverer (recently renamed Coral Discoverer ). We will be sailing through the  Buccaneer and Bonaparte Archipelagos. All aboard for adventure !