There’s nothing like a pandemic to make flying to the other side of the country more of a challenge but somehow I and a few others made it to Kununurra where we met up with the rest of the team. Our aim was to do a couple of off-track walks which mainly followed creek systems as water would crucial, not just for drinking, but also for swimming. It may have been winter but it sure didn’t feel like it.
First up was the Carr Boyd range which we accessed with a boat trip up the Ord River. We had allowed ourselves 6 days to walk back to a road which would allow ample time for exploring. The recent wet season had been a good one so there was still plenty of water around. We saw no-one the whole time we were out, only some wild cattle, kangaroos and the odd dead goanna floating in our water supply. Walking across the broken rocky ground was slow going but not too bad, as long as you avoided the spinifex and pandanus.
The second walk was the Cockburn Range which we accessed from Emma Gorge in El Questro. Once again we had 6 days to explore as much of this area as we wanted. A highlight of this trip was watching a meteor burn across the sky. Such are the benefits of spending evenings sitting around the fire looking at the stars. With temperatures in the high 30’s we spent a lot of time jumping into pools to cool off, often fully dressed, knowing that half an hour later you would be dry again. There were numerous aboriginal art sites to be found in this area - not surprising I suppose given the presence of permanent water. Additional wildlife on this walk included snakes, bats and a tick which I was lucky enough to experience.
Lake Argyle is about 1000km2 at normal level or 18 Sydney Harbours, and its also the reason that Kununurra exists in the first place. So it seems fitting to finish with a photo of a small part of the lake.
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