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10 weeks after leaving Broome we arrived in Darwin, and what an extraordinary Kimberley experience we had. The landscapes are wild and timeless, the anchorages dramatic and inspiring, the rock art remarkable, and the remote isolation deeply moving. Where else in the world can you cruise for 2.5 months without any settlements, built infrastructure or internet access. My version of paradise!!
Unfortunately we missed the beach party – only by a few days – but did enjoy impromptu sunset drinks on the beach at Swift Bay with a few KCCYC die hards! Aside from these 3 cats we only saw 7 other private yachts on the whole trip, so we really enjoyed the company and helpful insights.
I’d like to pass on BIG thanks to Ross and all the KCCYC crew for the very helpful anchoring notes we downloaded from the website. Used in combination with Denis Ford’s notes from the DSC website we found lots of amazing anchorages and shore trips.
After much debate we came up with our 5 top Kimberley locations – it was very hard to trim them down – which we loved the most:
1. St George Basin / Prince Regent River / Kings Cascade
2. Hunter River / Porosus Creek
3. Palm Island / Swift Bay area
4. King George River
5. Berkeley River
And because that didn’t start to capture all the amazing places we visited and the experiences we had, our top 5 hidden gems were:
1. Crocodile Creek – probably the most amazing overnight anchorage I will ever enjoy!
2. Rainforest Ravine
3. Pauline Bay rock art site in Vansittart Bay
4. The waterfall and waterhole up the creek at Deception Bay
5. Sheep Island in Camden Harbour
I could keep going, but I think the magic of the Kimberley is finding your own special places, so I hope everyone who has / is cruising the Kimberley coast this season found their own places that touched their heart and soul.
Thanks again to the KCCYC for helping us plan and enjoy such a remarkable part of the world.
Hi Paul,
We’ll be cruising between the Abrolhos Island groups and will keep a lookout for you when we pass Big Rat. What type of boat is Humdinger – how will we recognise you? We are a 50ft Jeanneau sailing monohull.
Cheers Andrew
Hi Ross – Thanks for the good advice. Hopefully we’ll get to meet you at the Beach Party. Cheers Andrew
Hi Everyone,
We are very nearly ready to depart Fremantle, and expect to be underway next week!!! We will spend some time in the Abrolhos Islands on the way North, and should be in Broome by mid May. From there we have about 3 months up our sleeves to cruise the Kimberley Coast and reach Darwin.
Looking at earlier posts it seems there are a couple of options to refuel en route through the Kimberley;
- Dog Leg Creek – which is too early in our trip to be much help, and
- Honeymoon Bay from a visiting fuel barge – can anyone please advise contact details so I can talk to someone to find out how this works and pre order if necessary
Can anyone also please advise if there are any public transport options in and out Honeymoon Pool which might allow a crew changeover there?
Lastly – will there be a KCCYC Beach Party this year? If so, whereabouts and when? Wed love to join in!!
Cheers Andrew and Donna
Hi Robert,
I believe it’s possible the State Government will ban travel to the whole Kimberley region – via the permit system or otherwise – but more likely they will just restrict entry to the communities. In fact the communities themselves can choose to close off to outside access. Kalumburu did this last season and have indicated they will remain closed next year.
In this case it would be possible to cruise the KC and land in most places, subject to other restrictions or limitations imposed by the land councils.
I believe we are unlikely to know about any restrictions until after the State borders open on 5th February so we won’t be applying for our permits until some time after then.
Does anyone else have a view or any insights into the issue?
Cheers, Andrew
We are hoping to spend around 3 months cruising in the Kimberley next year, departing Broome in mid May and travelling through to Darwin. This will be dependant on any regional travel restrictions imposed by the State Government – which we believe are highly likely after the WA state border is opened in February 2022. Given the very low vaccination rates in the Kimberley, and the local immune compromised aboriginal population, don’t be surprised if is not possible to cruise there next year. The Government has already flagged this possibility.
