Flying Back Over The Kimberley

This morning we say bon voyage to the Lloydes as we leave for Darwin. They have a few more days in Broome until they continue down the coast of Western Australia. We say hello and good bye to Tom Coight, their son who arrived yesterday who will be following in the footsteps and adventurous spirit of the Coight family...

We are packing experts by now but getting all our clothing, gear and supplies together for our Air North flight back to Darwin is complicated. For a start, everything we packed in the 4 wheel drive for our 34 day adventure, barring food and alcohol which we have consumed needs to go back on our flight with us.

Let’s add it up, 2 large clothes bags, 3 large utility bags full of camping gear and bedding, 1 drone, 2 lap tops, 1 iPad, mobiles, books, chargers, other electronic devices, filing cabinet... just kidding on that one, a bottle of Bacardi we never opened, oh and Jen’s jar of Vegemite. Between us we have in excess of 100kg to check in or take on the plane.

Fortunately with our Qantas Club baggage allowance, we are only just covered on the flight otherwise the Bacardi and Vegemite was on the ditch list. Getting it all into a taxi for the airport was a squeeze but we managed in the end and reached Broome airport without blowing a tyre on the taxi.

FLIGHT: Broome to Darwin via Kununurra

Checked in and free of our baggage, we board the Air North Embraer 170 plane (yes it does have engines) and take off after 1.00pm for a scenic flight back over the Kimberley. We recognise the dry landscapes and river beds below and reflect on how remote this place is. I pick up the Gibb River Road below and we fly right over Emma Gorge and view the Cambridge Gulf and Wyndham in the distance where the five major rivers meet. It’s even clear enough to see the Ivanhoe Crossing and the Ord River snaking it’s way through the landscape at the start of the Gibb.

After one hour of flight and just enough time for a coffee, we are landing back in Kununurra, the gateway to the Kimberley and the Gibb River Road and a place we had visited on numerous occasions at the start of our journey. It feels like home, well not for long, 30 minutes later we are back on board and taking off again for a 45 minute hop to Darwin.

CAMP: Hotel H on Smith St, Darwin

Now that we have crossed back into the Northern Territory, we gain one and a half hours on the clock so it’s now 5.30pm. Another taxi to Hotel H on Smith Street in the Darwin CBD and we are checked in and can rest up. The hotel is very modern and clean and is in a great location close to Mitchell Street and all the restaurants.

We take a walk and find a popular Italian Restaurant called Alfonsinos which does traditional pizza, just the way we like it. It’s an early night as we are picking up our Toyota Kluger and Campervan in the morning to start another adventure to Litchfield Park and Kakadu.Read more