Wet from Stem to Stern
Wednesday, 26 July, 2023: Wet from Stem to Stern
I woke knowing that this was our last full day in the Kimberley, and hoped that amongst whatever else we were going to see, we would find whales.
We started the morning motoring in the tenders across to a beach with a cave. At the same time, Reef Prince moved to a new anchorage closer to another beach that we’d visit in the afternoon.
Along the way we saw details in some of the rocks that were simply amazing. What forces had caused these curves in the seams of these rocks? Interestingly, this photo also shows the brownish rocks that are covered by water when the tide is high.
Although I knew I’d get off the boat at this beach, I wasn’t confident that I’d be able to climb back on in that location. So I stayed on the tender taking photos of red billed oyster catchers that were fishing on some rocks. As it turned out, we were there for only about 15 minutes before we upped the anchors and started across to the inlet that Reef Prince was hiding in.
The wind had become stronger than expected, and with this, the waves increased in size. We’d been warned that we might get a little wet sitting in the positions we were in on this particular tender. And, sure enough, as the wind and waves picked up, we all got wet – except for each of the skipper, who could duck behind his console!
Before long I was soaked, as wave after wave came over the side, slightly warm and very salty, and covering every part of me from the top of my head to my toes. At least I have a big shout out for dry bags – my camera stayed nice and dry.
Then we rounded a promontory, pulled up at Reef Prince’s stern that was out of the wind and waves, and climbed on. Walking up to the stairs to the drying for our shoes , you could hear the step by step squelching.
I rinsed everything out, including my hat, and hung it all around my tiny bathroom. Then it was time to go out on the bow to see where we were - taking my hat to dry it in the sun.
Sitting back to relax and watch the tide rise, the wind was still blowing although the sea in this inlet was nice and calm. Using a handy piece of rope attached to one of the poles on the bow, I tied it to my hat using a bowline (knot). That’s a very handy knot that I learned as a Girl Guide too long ago to count, and I still remembered it - my hat could dry without risk of blowing away!
After lunch, we were on our way to Broome via a stop at a beach with silicon-white sand and a rock formation at the entrance that looked remarkably like a roo bounding towards us.
I have a good imagination!
With our destination still 15 hours away, we had time to change course for whales. A pod of 4 or 5 humpbacks was in range – they were moving very fast so it was hard to tell the number. The photo shows the backs of 3 whales with a dramatic splash from a fourth.
We finally went our separate ways, and were soon back on course for Broome.
Being our last night, we were dressed in the theme of “The Sea” – some people made an amazing effort while others just added a hat, scarf or shells, or even some white paper napkins - penguin style. Dinner was drinks and fingerfood on the upper deck as the moon rose high in the sky with Venus below and to its left. A glorious evening.
I was enjoying chatting with a couple of people, when a light caught my eye. It was a lighthouse, way off on a distant point, making sure that we knew not to come too close.
Lighthouses are very cool!
Brook had let us know earlier in the day that he had some prizes to award, and award them he did. These are no ordinary prizes – each was made and painted by him during the trip.
I was amazed to be awarded the prize for “The One That Got Away” for my missed trevally. It is the tail of a diving trevally and now stands proudly in my living room!
Thursday, 27 July, 2023: A Beautiful Morning
I was wide awake early, put the last things in my bag and was out on the bow at around 6:30am. It’s always very peaceful sitting in the early morning light watching the sunlight change across the sea. And this is often my “go to" place on ships big and small.
However this morning was different. My amazing journey from Darwin to Broome would be over in 3 hours, and it was time to reflect on what I’d experienced. I looked across the Indian Ocean and realised that this is a part of the world that was new to me until this trip. Of course the sun still rose in the east, but now, the land, Australia, was also to the east - usually it’s north, south or west.
I had seen the beauty of the Kimberley, its ruggedness, glorious colours and also its harshness. Brook had taught us about the history and told us stories of our indigenous people, his people. We learned how they lived, and continue to live and survive in harsh environments, how they reacted and in some cases, didn’t react, to European explorers arriving and sometimes crashing on these shores. We have much to learn.
The sea was flat, and as the sun rose I saw a whale blow forward of us and to our left. Nothing fancy, no splashing, just a blow from a single humpback as it went along its way, well ahead of us, traveling from the east to the west. Then there was a second and a third blow from the same whale.
Perhaps having watched humpbacks over the years, I’ve learned to anticipate some of their reactions. We weren’t on a collision course, but it would hear us coming and I thought that it was likely to dive. And that’s what it did – no breach, just a deep breath (I imagined) followed by a deep dive that showed off its tail in the early morning light.
The sun created a golden sky, and the land was a muted golden-brown that contrasted with the blue ocean. Water falling from the whale’s tail reflected the colours beautifully.
There was no need for more photos - this was a beautiful end to this visit to Australia’s Kimberley.
I went inside and packed my camera away so that it would be ready for the next adventure in a couple of days.
We arrived at the port in Broome right on time. Of course it was the “peak” of low tide, and the pier was way above Reef Prince’s top deck. This is a working pier for big ships, and our time here was limited. Apparently our bus was waiting for us up there.
After final farewells with the amazing crew, it was time to walk out the starboard door onto the rear deck and find out how they planned to get us off. I could see steps on the pier that reminded me of those that go up inside cranes. But first I had to step from Reef Prince onto the ramp to the steps.
Simon straddled the side of Reef Prince, and Leo (wonderfully, strong Leo), was standing on the dock. I think he was tied on – I hoped he was tied on – ‘cos he put his hand out and helped me step a good meter across a gap with nothing but air and water below.
Clearly I made it! And before long all of us were up on the pier, and in the waiting bus. As we left the pier, the driver showed us a huge osprey nest that had been re-located by the dock workers. The osprey parents had built it way up high on a lamp-post and the dock workers worried that it was at risk in a strong wind. So they waited for the adults to fly off then moved it with its 3 eggs, down and safely out of the way of the wind - the parents watching and flying around them, clearly alarmed.
Once it was in its new place, the mother was back on the nest, and one day after the move, the first of the chicks hatched.
An unusual finish to a wonderful 10 days through Australia’s Kimberley coast.