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.