Hughes Kimberley Calling

Mike and the boys' opening the boxes of shoes from Sydney

I now have to combine my blog entries, as daily writing is becoming impossible. My writing had been completed from 4am when I was unable to sleep any longer. It seems I have cured my insomnia somehow and as a result I just do not have the extra couple of hours each day required. I am so sorry to all that I am just so far behind.

 Day 1 of term 3 was a little surprising as 3 of my non-attenders turned up. It was great to see them and I hoped it was the start of a more positive school experience for them. I wanted so much to be able to give these girls something to make their life a little easier, even if it was just functional literacy and numeracy so they were less likely to become victims throughout their lives.

Trying on a shirt for size

We were amazed today at the arrival of numerous boxes of goodies from Sue Boudakin, a parent from Mike’s school in Sydney. She had offered to collect anything she could that would assist us here. I suggested that prizes for teenage girls such as nail polish and trinkets would be greatly appreciated. We have only one budget shop in Kununurra that is not really very budget and so it is very hard to buy prizes. Many thanks to the staff at St Philip Neri and St Aloysius for their generous donations.

Today the school signed up for Mathletics. This is an online computer programme that moves students at their own pace through the Maths curriculum. I have decided to start my girls on Year 2 as they have so many gaps in their knowledge due to the transient nature of their schooling. This way it can be simple revision for some or skill building for others. They do not realize it is Year 2 level. These students love this approach to learning for it provides sensory (by clicking the mouse) and visual stimulus simultaneously. As many of them are unable to sit and concentrate during a conventional lesson this serves a great educational purpose.

The MSJ girls have brekky at our house

To our delight, we welcomed a volunteer from The Netherlands. Naomi has just finished high school and in her holiday before starting university she took the opportunity to come to Australia and work with our children. She is young, enthusiastic, very pretty (much to the delight of Mike’s high school boys’), artistic and very warm and accommodating. The girls adopt her as their big sister. I am amazed that one so young is capable of so much in the classroom. One would only hope that she does eventually become a teacher and return to the Kimberley.

The students from Mount St Joseph, my school in Sydney arrived this week and did community service at the nursing home. They also came to the art centre and spent a very pleasant afternoon painting with the girls. It was so wonderful to see my colleagues from Sydney once again and we appreciated the fact that they took time out of their holidays to come with the 5 students. MSJ has always supported the work of the Josephites in this school and reinforces this support with the financial backing of the Books in Home Programme.

Juliette invites the girls into her fairy bed

Michael was overwhelmed when he was called to the school office to collect his mail delivery. To his surprise he opened the doors to a troop carrier laden with boxes of shoes. Sue Boudakin and Jenny Carter (both parents from St Aloysius College) had initiated this donation with the support of Australian Air Express. They had collected for our students a variety of shoes, predominantly joggers and other sporting shoes. The fact that they were second hand meant nothing to our students.

The Year 5/6 teacher was taking an excursion to the Argyle Diamond Mine on Thursday and for safety reasons all students (who never normally wear shoes) are expected to. Sister Mary drove a little girl home to get her shoes, only to find she would not come out of the house again as she was so embarrassed to admit she did not own a single pair of shoes. Like always, Sister Mary took her back to the convent and gave her a pair of her own shoes to wear. The very next day we were able to give this girl probably her first pair of shoes and the smile on her face said everything.

Swimming at the thermal spring

For our literacy lesson this morning the students emailed Sue and Jenny. It was important that they learned to say thank you for the efforts others have made in supporting them. The welfare system does make them take a lot for granted.

I am now so far behind in my writing that I will be combining days and giving far less detail.

Mini Palms Gorge, Bungle Bungles.

Heading back from El Questro, we were going to Kununurra Show. Now when you live where we do, these are events to really look forward to. There was no available accommodation, so I rang a couple we had met in the Bungles a few months ago who had become good friends.  Peter and Di had recently moved up from Hamilton in Victoria. Di was second in charge and had got a transfer to Kununurra, Peter was off the land and had that wonderful country dry wit.. Their children had grown up, (one having emigrated to Iceland of all places), and they were now ripe to embrace life’s adventures.

I rang and asked if we could camp in their back yard. They had visitors up from Hamilton, but it was no problem. They were going away for the Saturday night and said the house was ours to use as our own. Peter even defrosted for us an enormous barramundi steak to have as our dinner the night they were away.

Bungle Bungles

Lizzy and Urda were amazed how Pete and Di opened their hearts so warmly to complete strangers. We talked together about that is just how it is up here for many people. You are all away from family and friends, and so the new folk you meet quickly become your surrogate family. Having Juliette makes this easier for they all remember grandchildren they have left behind.

The show was fun, with some uniquely country events such as the watermelons races. Kids were made a pair of clogs out of a large watermelon and had to slide along a sudsy plastic sheet in a relay. The Ord Valley is famous for its beautifully sweet melons and so it was only right they featured.

After being in town for a few days we headed off to Warmun, and Lizzy was amazed by the wide open spaces and beautiful scenery of the drive home. We did many loads of washing and repacked our things ready to head off again camping in the Bungles the next day.

Again we had a great time at the bungles but the road had deteriorated significantly since the last visit, so much so that Mike declared that was the last time he was putting our car through that! It was a wonderful few days as you can see by Urda’s beautiful photos.

The final part of our holidays was back to Kununurra for we girls had booked a full day tour on Lake Argyle and the Ord River. This was sensational as both skippers had a wonderful knowledge of the bird life which was very extensive. I think the highlight though was approaching the spillway at Kununurra at sunset and sailing slowly around the wetlands. With the pink of the sky reflecting off the water, ringed by the beautiful rugged ranges that were bathed in the glow of sunset, the experience was breathtaking. The variety of birds and close encounters with crocs was awesome.

We said goodbye to the girls on Saturday afternoon, but Peter and Di were taking them back to their place for dinner and a shower before their late flight. We get on the road early as it is just too dangerous to drive at night with the cattle and kangaroos.

A great holiday was had by all!

Juliette and a bower bird nest

The Pentecost River with the Cockburn Range as a backdrop

This was taken from the car as we crossed the Pentecost River

I am so far behind that if I don’t start combining days I will never catch up. Just a sign of how busy it is up here. I thought I would have all this time for rest and relaxation!!!!!

The magnificent Cockburn Range

The Gibb River Road is one of Australia’s great road trips. Around 700km of dirt that goes from near Wyndham to Derby, on the west coast. It is notorious for shredding tyres and damaging suspension. Along it though are many of the most significant delights of the Kimberley: Emma Gorge, El Questro Wilderness Park, Cockburn Ranges and the tun off to Mitchell Plateau and Kamlumbaru. The Gibb River Road is only open for about 6 months of the year as it is completely impassable for the remainder. Even though we had not had rain since February, as we crossed the Pentecost River, the water came up to the doors of our 4WD.

     Mike looks over the Pentecost River and contemplates the vastness.

 Having said that, those grey nomads touring Australia turn this place into a highway. The camping ground at El Questro was bursting at the seams, so much so that I wished we had stayed at the much newer and well appointed Home Valley Station.

Juliette making jewellery from the long grass.

The people who live on these stations during the wet are isolated for up to 6 months of the year. When you speak to them, that is their favourite time, the land is the most beautiful, the rivers and waterfalls are awesome and there are no tourists. It just always strikes me how we who live in cities forget that their are people living such completely different lives. I think it would be an awesome experience.

       The beautiful Emma Gorge

Zebedee thermal springs in El Questro.

 This morning Urda and Juliette had a horse ride. It was Urda’s first time on a horse and she headed out with a group for a ride for a couple of hours. Juliette was led around the paddocks close to home for about half and hour. She was beside herself with excitement as she had only ridden little ponies at fairs and corrected me every time I called this one a pony.

It was an extremely hot day (so much for the 2 days of winter) and Urda did not let go of her reins as she was scared she would fall off, hence she did not drink enough water and began to feel the effects of heat exhaustion.

We went up to the Five Rivers lookout at Wyndham to show Lizzy. It was great to see it so far into the Dry as the estuaries were much drier, and the land looked even more unforgiving. It is a shame that the tourist season misses the Wet, as that is when this whole landscape is at its most spectacular.                                                                                                                                                                                                               

 We called in onfriend Tim who teaches in Wyndham and his wife Stef. They are expecting their first child in December. Since she has had back surgery she is unable to deliver her baby at Kununurra as they only deliver low risk mums. She will be returning to Melbourne for the delivery as the next option here was Darwin. By this time Urda was feeling very unwell and had to lie down on their floor. We got her back to Lyn and Damian’s and tucked her in to bed. The rest of us had a big dinner cooked by Lizzy (who is great to take on holidays as she loves to cook) and settled in for a great night of good food and great company.

A little python had been spotted poking its head out from a gap in the tiles above the shower. Having a shower that night I was so nervous, constantly looking around, ready to deal with a snake that fell from the ceiling. The toilet at the farm is off the laundry and Lyn requests that a light here is left on all night so you can see any unwanted visitors. Someone had turned the light off and Damian’s niece Kim stepped on a python when she went to the toilet in the middle of the night. She did not scream as I would have but calmly went back to her room, got her camera and photographed it so she could show us in the morning. She is a braver girl than me!

Together at the farm over looking the Ord River

 We just love Lyn and Damian. Juliette adores them both and they are so generous with the time they spend with her. She is up early with her farm girl clothes on to go and help Lyn with the chores. Her favourite jobs are riding on the four wheeler and collecting the eggs. She is braver than me, for a large olive python lurks in the chook house and makes an occasional meal of one of the chooks.

We headed out to Digger’s rest, which is farm stay accommodation out from Wyndham. During the making of the movie of Australia the cast and crew were accommodated here in portable huts (except Nicole Kidman who was helicoptered in from Kununurra each day). Some of the scenes were filmed here, including where Nicole and Hugh danced under the boab tree.

Wyndham is the port town where the five East Kimberley rivers drain into the Cambridge Gulf. As it was now the Dry season, the water had receded considerably and rather than go the whole way along the bumpy road which is notorious for shredding tyres, we could speed along the mud flats left behind by the receding water. This was great fun as up here, most dirt roads have to be negotiated very cautiously, but being baked flat mud it was like a highway. A couple of months ago this was croc infested water, huge salties and beautiful water birds could be seen dotted along its surface.

We stopped for a photograph at the prison tree, which is an enormous boab that is hollow on the inside. In days gone by they were ideal places to secure prisoners whilst you camped for the night. These truly are remarkable trees as you wonder how something so hollow inside can survive for hundreds (possibly thousands) of years.

Juliette, Lizzy and Mike inside the prison tree-an enormous boab that is completely hollow in the centre

On we went to Diggers’ Rest and as we drove in, our first reaction was one of disappointment. This beautiful Kimberley landscape had been trampled to dust for some distance around the homestead. They keep goats for the live export trade and as they do not venture very far from home, the intensity of so many hard hooves on the fragile soil had removed any vegetation and it really was a dust bowl.

Rustic was how you would describe Diggers’ Rest! Having said that, the warmth of the hospitality made up for this. They have a number of volunteers including young girls from Europe, who work with the horses. They quickly had Juliette bottle feeding a baby goat called Slurpee. This was the kind of accommodation where the owner cooks the barbecue at night and all the station staff sit and eat with the guests (who numbered about 12 this night).  It was great conversation and around the fire after dinner two of the girls played the guitar and sang like angels. For the tired and exhausted group that we were from our exertions this term, this was the perfect antidote.

We had been watching a grass fire that was some distance from the homestead and had passed a number of these also on the way in to Digger’s. At this time of year fire in the Kimberley is very common. The Indigenous use them to encourage new growth or to hunt animals. Unfortunately though these days, many are just plain arson. There is a lot of education happening with the Indigenous about the long term effects of the fire. It is causing a loss of biodiversity in the native grasses as a non native grass seems to shoot more efficiently than the native grasses and so the Kimberley is slowly being covered by a grass that has far less nutritional value for the animals that inhabit the area.

Juliette needed a visit to the toilet around half past eleven. When we got out of the tent, the sky to the south east was ablaze and I was a little worried. I knew we would be safe where we were as the goats had destroyed every piece of vegetation for some distance around the homestead, but I was worried about getting home tomorrow, or if any animals needed to be moved. Damian was still up watching TV and we woke one of the guys who worked on the property. He assured us the fire had just reached a clump of trees along the river, hence its height and intensity, but it would die down as soon as I moved through this. Damian got some wonderful pictures which you can see here.

Fire at Digger’s Rest