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Gday all, just trying to gather some info and or tips for doing some of the Kimberly in our 670ht barcrusher, it has a 270 litre fuel tank obviously we’d need to carry some more fuel, we have a simrad sounder with maps and radar, vhf and marine radios, we have a sat phone, we’re thinking/hoping to get from Wyndum to King George’s river and return, would we be out there on our own or is there regular traffic we’re abit nervous about being stranded if something should go wrong, any advice would be appreciated, thanks
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Hi Broady, I assume you are planning to go 2021.
April/May is usually the time Darwin Boats head for the East Kimberley area for a few weeks at a time. The King George and Berkeley Rivers are a must see and you will find other boats there that time of year. It’s also the end of the “run-off” and end of cyclone season and trailer boats from Wyndham head up there after barra.
The Bonaparte Gulf can get very rough, particularly when you have to head back to Wyndham in south easterlies. Probably the best advice you will get, is don’t set deadlines to be somewhere on a certain date. Pick weather windows that are safe to sail in the Bonaparte Gulf, and if that means you have to sit and wait for a week, that is what you should do. You need to get accurate weather forecasts. Probably via your sat phone will be the only option.
It’s a long trip in a small boat and you are likely to be sailing by yourself for most of the trip until you get to the destinations like the KGR and Berkeley.
If your boat and its crew are well prepared and you have plenty of fuel, you will find it’s a fantastic place and you’ll love the trip.
Have fun, Ross
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Hey mate, flick me a email and I’ll give ya a bit of advice. Done it in a 8m boat
spike
jakekirra@yahoo.com.au
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Hey mate , We burn 100 Litres of fuel to the mouth of the Berkley from Wymdham in good/fair weather in a 7.2m plate boat with a 225 Suzuki loaded for a few days . Its approx another 80ks to the mouth of the KGR . The mouth of the Berkley is shallow sand bars and not recommended at low tide , recommend approaching from the inside of Revelly Island . Usually takes us about 2 to 3 hours to get to the mouth of the Berkley in good/fair weather with out stopping for a fish etc . There are places like in behind Thurburn Bluff to tuck away out of the Northerlies if they come up although dont recommend the creeks behind Thurburn you will need at least half tide rising at most times , the southern side of Buckle Head is ok in a northerly or an easterly although shallow in places once you tuck inside the bay . . Recommend the BOM Site for tide predictions going round to KGR . You will notice the tides in Wyndham may be 6 or 7m movement and at Revally Island they move considerably less on the same tide . We work on 1 Litre per kilometre for fuel consumption in fair weather @ about 3800 to 4200 rpm. Mid year the prevalling wind is an easterly and can be quite strong . Better boating weather in the warmer months September to April although obviously can be stormy and hot but if you want waterfalls etc its the best time . As Ross has pointed out above pick your weather and tides 10 – 15 knots out the front is bearable but 20 + Knots youll hate it or youll err on the side of staying put . Enjoy Mate !
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