The Kimberley, Australia | June/July 2025

An afternoon flight took us from Auckland to Sydney and a transfer from Terminal 1 to Terminal 3 (International to Domestic). Everything went well, the luggage arrived, and we had a quick trip around the fringe of the airport to Terminal 3. The next flight Sydney to Darwin arrived early on Wednesday morning – too early to deal with technology so it was taxi ride to the hotel.

Today was our recovery day so it was a trot across the road for a delicious breakfast at Roma. Feeling more alive, we walked around the streets to find some of amazing murals decorating the inner city buildings – such variety in style and subject matter: people, nature, abstract and words. My favourite was an aboriginal man decorated with traditional patterns.

The heat began to rise from a refreshing morning to a heated midday. Time for a rest before we rendezvoused for dinner. Jeremy and I walked and walked around the inner city finding parks, buildings and memorials to WWII and cyclone Tracy.

Some of us took the Mary River tour to check out the jumping crocodiles and the rest of us took ourselves off to Royal Flying Doctors and WWII Museum. The Royal Flying Doctors has an impressive history and extraordinary history of service to the Australian Outback. The story of Darwin bombing in WWII is shocking.

We met up again at 6pm to take a local bus to the Mindle Beach Night Market – so many people were there on the beach to watch the sunset. The market was crowded – maybe 1,000 people buying food from the range of food trucks and buying from the various stalls.

After breakfast and final packing, we took another local bus to the Botanical Gardens.

Darwin is far greener and cosmopolitan than expected. Lots of cafes, public art, parks and boutiques. Catching the bus back, some of us took a taxi down to the Port and others walked down the Downtown Precinct with its unique vibe. The ship was late in boarding however once all the official stuff was over, we were all greeted warmly and escorted to our cabins. Welcome drink, safety drill and our first briefing – done, done and done. After dinner the ship left the port on our eastward journey along the coastline.

We sailed until lunch time. During the morning we had zodiac briefing and a introduction to the history of the Kimberley. It soon became very apparent that The Kimberley has unique natural, cultural and marine life. There is no where left on earth so undisturbed with its vast coastland protecting fauna, flora and marine habitat.

After lunch we disembarked in our group – our group was Ospreys – and we were off on our zodiacs up the King George River to the distant waterfall. Along the way we stopped to spy Ospreys, crocodiles, herons and a dingo The river was walled by tall stacks of sedimentary rocks painted with stains of ochre, black, white and grey. Some of the stacks had crumbled into the water and were bleached white and pink. The waterfalls at the end of our ride tumbled down the cliff face, splashing from one rocky facet to another. The highlight of the day was having a waterfall shower under both falls. Surprising one was warmer than the other.  It was fast (and a chilly ride back for those of us who were wet). Wonderful to have a hot shower and warm cabin when we got back.

The Ship’s Captain and senior staff were introduced before dinner plus the owner of Heritage, Aaron Russ. Earlyish to bed to rest before an action packed day tomorrow.

Early start – we disembarked via zodiacs for a choppy ride from ship to beach. Our mission was to reach the wreck of a DC3.

The plane ran out of fuel during WWII and crash landed on the salt pan. Amazing that all on board walked away and everyone was rescued within 2 days. The bush had grown around the wreckage so on our way back to the landing site we say termite mounds, baobab trees, fresh flowers (it been a very wet) and signs of the free range cattle.

Back on board, the ship sailed to nearby Jar Island for our afternoon excursion to the rock art – Gwion Gwion style. Strange, elongated shapes, adorned with elaborate hairpieces, stand out in vivid orange against the ochre rock. It certainly was a beautiful day with the turquoise sea, white sandy beaches, the painted rocks and the azure sky.

A lot of the history is known to the Australian passengers but haven’t really come across my radar.

PS Jar Island is named after pottery found here – but alas, we didn’t see any.

(I had a migraine this day so the day’s report is from the rest of the group). We anchored offshore and zodiac to the beach. A short walk to the rock art over the boulders. The two different type off art found here was further indication of how old this art is – estimated 17,000 years. Crocs around so no swimming allowed in the turquoise water. Some of us took the cruising in zodiacs option and manoeuvred in and out of mangroves and included the surprise breakdown of the zodiac engine.

Dinner was a riot as we teased Edwin our waiter and celebrated his un-birthday.

We couldn’t have asked for better weather to visit Bigge Island. The ship anchored off the beach and it was short and swift zodiac ride to shore.

The beach was strewn with white shells and coral, washed up by the last storm that swept through the area. To the right, the familiar sturdy rock pillars and cave stood firm, while to the left lay flatter, shallower rocks dotted with sparse shrubs. Rocky, the geologist was our walking guide and he introduced us to turtle tracks and nesting sites. We also came across vole and small wallaby scat. The walk up and across to the look over the island and back to the mangroves was full of interesting fauna and flora. The last stop was the cave art and this spanned rom thousands of years old to the arrival of Tasman.

Back on board for lunch and an afternoon of talks from Marine Biologists and expedition crew. The ship set off on its long journey to Ashmore Reef and this remote part of Australia. Snorkelling tomorrow.

We sailed through the night and arrived at Ashmore Reef early morning. I awoke to a vast sea, where white foam broke gently across a low-lying reef; streaks of blue, turquoise and white blending before returning to deep blue.

The plan was to go out in the zodiacs, jump in the water snorkel along the reef line using the current and climb back into the waiting zodiac (via a steel ladder). Beneath the choppy waves, marine life was abundant, vibrant, and a constant delight. We saw the cheerful parrot fish nibbling at the coral, the darting damsel and the shyer other fish. The coral came in an abundance of shapes with dome-like formations sprouting delicate stick coral from their surfaces. The fans and bowl coral were often near the gently swaying plants with enormous leaves and numerous fish darting about. Some of the snorkellers saw a reef shark and stingray – happily I just floated along watching fish do fishy things.

Those who didn’t go snorkelling had the option of a zodiac ride over the reef to the near small island. They saw dolphins and many birds who use the reef as a waypoint on their huge migration across the world north to south.

Back on board it was lunch and sailing back to mainland Australia. Life on board the ship is a very comfortable flow of regular meals (with lots of choice), activity and talks. The mix of knowledge on board range from marine biologist to ornithologist, geologist and predator control experts.

A day of hunting for crocodiles, birds, crabs and unusual life forms. The morning zodiac cruise was timed around the low tide so we could find the strange mudskippers – fish which burrow in the mud and flap about on the top of the mud out of the water even though they are fish.

Crocodiles were about but most looked like dark brown logs – the ones we found were laying in the sun warming up and didn’t move as we clicked and zoomed about. The highlight was a pair of chestnut rails, arriving together and striking a pose on the gnarled limbs of a dead tree. Once again, the backdrop of ancient rock was the steadfast star of the show.

After lunch it was the high tide Zodiac ride and this one involved moving through the mangrove canopy. A few crocs about but mostly we zoomed up channel looking for dolphins and birds.

The highlight of my day was teasing the zodiac drivers with finding the silliest question to ask? “Does the water go all around the island?” “Is it as far there as it is to come back?” “What music do the Fiddler Crab’s Play” Outright winner “When do the rocks have their birthday?”

Today’s wonder was a reef that appears at low tide and disappears into the ocean at high tide. Our visit was timed for the low tide and as we approached the reef by zodiac, it was a narrow splice of land with channels of water flowing from the rising surface.

Birds had arrived to feed, turtles were leaving for a swim and even a whale had found it way up the ‘river’. Our zodiac drive nosed us into some of the main flows and the sparkling stream increased in volume as the tide lowered and the reed became more visible. The water below was extremely clear and we could see string-ray and even a shark. By the time we had gone as far up river as was safe and we were making our return, the reef was several metres high. The tide in the The Kimberley can be as extreme as 11 metres.

On the way back to the ship, a humpback whale came out to play and moved amongst the zodiacs. The biggest excitement was waiting for our zodiac at the gangway; a sea snake! It swam beside the ship, heading for the platform and when its head rose toward the men awaiting our return, chaos erupted: shouting, jumping, pure alarm. The snake then changed course and aimed for our zodiac—panic aboard. Fortunately, an empty zodiac nearby distracted it, prompting it to slither off into the open sea. Last seen, the zodiac driver was attempting to photograph it in the choppy water.

After lunch the ship moved over to Freshwater Bay where the local original tribe had a base for the dry season. On shore they welcomed us and marked our faces with ochre. A party of us walked up behind the shacks to the cyclone cave where there was rock art. The tribe asked that no pictures of their art be put on social media – so sorry no pics.

It was approaching sunset by the time we got back from our walk, a beautiful scene of the red sky and the silhouettes of the ships, passengers and zodiacs. A crocodile had entered the bay, so the zodiac drivers wanted us to load as fast as possible.

It was a BBQ on the deck tonight – another feast.

We sailed overnight around to Talbot Bay to the horizonal falls. This strange phenomenon is caused by tides flowing through two narrow gaps between the rock walls.

Our zodiac driver took us over to the falls as the ride was starting its flow. Water flowed into eddies, churning in the pool outside the narrow gap. There were boats from the Coral Explorer who still had permission to zoom through the gap and we watched as they charged on through. Come 2028, all permits will expire, as the local tribe has requested this sacred place be treated with respect.

Leaving the gap we moved up the twisting channel to Cyclone Falls, a safe water haven for boats when cyclones are present. On such a clear blue sky day, it was impossible to think of this area in the midst of a storm. Along the way we sighted rock wallaby, the Kimberley Rose, rocks curved and buckled by the earth’s movement, some birds and mangroves. On the way back to the ship we revisited the horizontal falls to witness the increased water flow – quite a moment hanging half way through the gap in the buffering, torrent of water.

In the late afternoon the ship repositioned itself at Dudong Bay so we could go out exploring along the bay line and return via the shallow channel only zodiac could manage. Darting in and out of mangroves, along the bay to bird resting places and the best moment of all – watching Rose scramble up the rocks to get a picture of a Kimberley Rose up close! We managed to get down that shallow channel (only 2-3 metres of water) and back to the ship.

The evening had the usual mix of informative talks and a briefing for tomorrow.

The first option this morning was a Death Walk from one small bay on Hidden Island across and down to Silicia Beach where Option 2 were swimming.

At the start of the walk were 50 brave souls. The plan was to have a wet landing on the small beach, walk through the mangroves, up the dry waterfall, through the woolly gums and further on up to the ridge line. It has to be admitted that some who chose to begin this adventure were not able enough and had overestimated their flexibility – thankfully many of these turned back at the dry waterfall.

Across the terrain were beautiful quartz rocks which varied from the purest white to those lined with ochre veins. Spinafex covered hidden holes and loose stones. We were making so much noise the snakes, spiders and other creatures were long gone. Chris Todd who was leading the adventure did an excellent job of navigating our way across the headland and eventually down into Sicilia Beach – it only took us 2 hours as we walked very slowly and stopped for breaks. A swim at the end was very welcome.  (Some of the expedition team were on crocodile watch so we could swim in safety).

Back to the ship for lunch and in the afternoon, some went on their last zodiac ride, rested or packed.

That evening was the farewell speech from the captain and thanks to the various teams on the ship. Overnight the ship repositioned itself at Broome.

We chose to stay overnight in Broome so we could experience Camel Riding at Sunset.

Before checking into the hotel we took in the sights of Broome. Known for its pearls, Broome has reinvented itself. The town hosts a number of cafes, shops and pearl buying opportunities.

It was nearly the full moon when the stairway to Heaven appears.