DAY 79 - KUNUNURRA

17 May 2008

DAY 79 Pilbara – Kimberley Trip

KUNUNURRA


Today is market day in Kununurra. So we trotted off to the town green to see what it was about. Lots of local produce for sale including boab roots which are very delicious. As we want to go to Keep National Park we decided not to get any till we came back from there so as not to loose it to WA Quarantine people.

We then lined up in Coles with everyone else for the roasted chook. You need to take your own food and drinks tonight.

Finally we set out for a self drive tour of Kununurra. We drove pass the main irrigation channels

to Ivanhoe Crossing.

It is still closed and the water is running quite strongly over the road.

Regardless of the warning signs about crocs ie salties there were a few people fishing in the water. We then decided that we really really did want to see some salties and booked in by phone to do a Lower Ord River Cruise tomorrow.

We backtracked and went along Research Station Road past the Salad Bowl Café, as we knew it was on tomorrow’s itinerary. We drove through different irrigated fields – there was sandalwood plantations, mahogany plantations, melon, maize, chick pea and so on. We stopped at the Hoochery - a small pot distillery where rum is made. During the tour of the distillery we learnt how they made rum from the sugar cane. We returned to the caravan park for a refreshing swim in the pool before setting out for the Airnorth Kimberley Moon Experience.

Armed with our chairs, nibbles, dinner and drinks we lined up at 3.00pm with everyone else from the caravan park for a free bus pick up. Some people were taking huge eskies onto the buses. We headed of for the Kununurra Community Ampitheatre on the shores of the lagoon where with 4,000 others we settled ourselves in for a night of entertainment.

At 3:50 pm the event kick started with Chris Mathews performance. Adam Harvey was the MC. The Mirima Dancers performed Welcome to Country. After a few speeches the Muster choir with the District School choir performed a superb bracket of songs. I wasn’t expecting anything of this calibre here form a choir that was predominantly school children. Well done!

This was followed by an enjoyable performance by Rode Worx, a local band from Wyndham, and then the muster idol. The Australian Army Band Darwin was fabulous and very entertaining. Blue Shaddy, a band from Perth followed – they were good but I got tired of watching one of the members. Finally the culmination of the night – Jimmy Barnes. It may have been the culmination but my poor hubby’s ear drums were painful from the level of sound produced by the band. Even the ground was vibrating. It was LOUD. It was some decibels above what is comfortable for listening. Part of the way through the performance we moved to the back hoping that the sound would be a little less loud. After the fireworks the music continued with Peace Love and All That Stuff until the crowd had dispersed. We got back just after 10.00pm and could hear this last lot in the caravan park several kilometres away. Again problems with power – lights. The problem is with the charger and we can’t do anything about it here.