Australia Entry 15 - Swept Away by Broome

Wednesday the 16th of September we again were on the road early leaving Fitzroy Crossing on our last leg westward to Broome. We covered the 400 kms in relatively short time, the road being, as usual, dead straight for most of the way, and with few other vehicles on the road we reached Broome just after noon.

We had always planned that Broome would be our next major stop on the road to Perth and we intended to stay about 10 days. We had timed our arrival so as to be here for the full moon which rises over the corrugated mud flats on the east side of the peninsula on which Broome is located, producing the famous “Staircase to the Moon” effect...a major tourist attraction and something not to be missed. And of course it was time for some serious relaxing on Broome's famous Cable Beach.

Broome was originally established in the late 19th century as a centre for pearl divers who operated in the rich oyster beds in the area. In recent years Broome's warm winter climate and beautiful beach bordering the resplendent Indian Ocean have resulted in the small city becoming a major tourist destination in the winter months. Broome has become the Mexican Baja of Western Australia (on a much smaller scale) and is a prime winter destination for sun seekers from the south. During July and August visitors from all over Australia flock here by the thousands. At the height of the season, 50 flights a day arrive and leave from the modern airport and if you haven't booked a caravan site or a hotel room well in advance, you will be out of luck. However, with the official start of spring on September 1st and the steadily climbing temperatures, the tourist rush quickly subsides and the town becomes much quieter.

We knew from our guide books that accommodation here was expensive, but we were hoping that with the end of the high season and our intent to stay 10 days, we could get a reasonable deal on an apartment or cabin. We didn't want to tent as the 35 degree temperatures made it just too hot to do so. So, our first stop was at the brand new Tourist Information Centre which also acted as a central booking agency for accommodation in Broome. We explained our requirements to a lady at the counter and she immediately asked what price range we were looking for. I replied, “Well....as little as possible I guess....”. She then said, “Something around $280 per night perhaps?”. She must have taken my blanched look to signify I was think of something less than that....much less! She then said...”Well, $250 then?”. It was quickly apparent that end of high season or not, the prices were still off the scale. She then volunteered that we might be able to get a cabin at a caravan park for less than $200/night, but added, as if it were the last thing we would want, “But you realize it is a caravan park!” Anyway, we said that would be fine as we had stayed at cabins in caravan parks before, so she phoned one of the two parks that had on-site cabins and was told there was one available for tonight but only for 6 nights for $170. I swallowed hard but she quickly said what a bargain that was and that if we wanted it we'd better book it now as it was sure to go soon. So we passed over our Visa card and payed for a six night stay.

We found our way to the park and checked in and were actually surprised to find a large, two-bedroom chalet that was well equipped and most importantly had an air conditioner in each room. So we unpacked and then headed off to the supermarket to stock up on groceries.
Our park was just across the road from Cable Beach so after our shopping expedition, we walked down to an access path through the dunes and on to the famed stretch of sand. Cable Beach is named for Australia's first international telegraph cable that was run from here to Java in Indonesia. It is a truly magnificent stretch of immaculate white sand sweeping around a huge bay and then running north for miles. As we came up over the coastal dunes, we were greeted by the magnificent sight of this beach and the dazzling turquoise of the Indian Ocean stretch before us. The golden beaches in Queensland had been wonderful but this beach, like all west coast beaches, is white sand and the water is crystal clear and the most brilliant blue The beach sloped gently down to the sea where small waves broke on the sand, leaving a sheen reflecting the azure sky as the water retreated from the almost-flat sand. At high tide the water comes right up to the coastal dunes virtually covering the beach entirely, while at low tide it is five or six hundred metres down to the water's edge. Most of the time there is ample room for thousands of sun bathers that flock to the beach in the high season, but now it seemed almost deserted as a couple of dozen shade umbrellas dotted the immediate vicinity with less than 100 people scattered around the beach.

We set down our towel and started in for our first swim in the Indian Ocean. As we stepped into the first shimmering wavelets I noticed something glistening in the sun and bent down to see a man's watch lying in half an inch of clear water. It was still working thought the broken clasp was evidence of how it came to be there. I picked it up and we wandered over to the nearby lifeguard station, and sure enough, someone had been inquiring about a lost watch not long before. The man was still around, frolicking in the waves, and the lifeguard took us over. The fellow, who was on holiday from Perth, was delighted to get his watch back and shook my hand vigorously. We stood chatting for a few minutes and then with a friendly good-bye we finally got in for our much anticipated swim.

The water was lovely and warm and we splashed about in the waves which were actually more powerful than they at first appeared...enough to sweep you off your feet if you weren't ready for the impact. After frolicking about in the waves for a while, we took a long walk north along the beach which stretched as far as we could see. The beach has a very gentle slope and the fine white sand was packed hard and flat by action of the tidal waters. The hot afternoon sun was beating down but a cooling sea breeze made our walk very comfortable. We delighted in the sight of the stunning milky blue ocean, crystal clear water and clean white sand as we strolled along, stopping now again to examine sea shells or some marine animal that had been washed up. At one point we came across groups of little perfectly round diaphanous creatures about two inches in diameter with bright blue hair-like strands extending out another inch or so all around them. We later learned from the lifeguard I'd spoken to earlier that they are a jellyfish called porpoti and are supposedly harmless. This area does get the nasty stinging jellyfish which seem to plague all of Australia's northern waters in the summer, but they don't typically appear till well into November.

On our way back we noticed a string of camels walking along the beach. Camel rides down Cable Beach are one of the main tourist “to do's” in Broome and this was hour first sight of what would become a daily afternoon occurrence. There are three different companies offering camel rides, each having a string of about a dozen camels with different colored saddle blankets. Prices for the ride vary, not depending on the company, but on the time of day. The sunset walk which begins about 5:30 just as the sun is nearing the horizon and turning the skying to a fiery orange, is the most popular and commands a higher tariff, naturally. I must say, the camels do present a fine sight as they plod along the sand in the glow of the setting sun.

The sunsets over the sea are stunning and most days we are on the beach or on the short esplanade on the dunes backing the sand to watch the sun melt into the ocean. Once, we even had a “happy hour” with our travelling companions who had arrived at the same caravan park we were in a few days after we arrived in Broome. It doesn't get much better than having a glass of wine while watching the sun dip below the horizon the end of a perfect day. We have become used to the lack to any meaningful period of twilight in the tropics over the years, but it in Broome, darkness seemed to fall like a curtain ending a play once the sun has set. In fact even before the sun has finally disappeared, if you are driving you have to turn your lights on as daylight just evaporates as quickly as a drop of sweat on hot pavement. By 6:00 the sky is dark and the stars are shining in all their glory.

The second day here we thought we'd better search out some accommodation for out last three nights. The caravan park did have another chalet though it was a little larger and cost $10 more per night. We thought we'd scout out some other options to see if we could find anything cheaper. We checked several places but no luck. At one resort nearby, we ended up chatting to the manager for half an hour. (When we walked into the office someone was talking to him making bookings for next year for his annual trek to Broome and lo and behold, it turned out to be the guy whose watch we had found the previous day! We are almost used to these kind of small world coincidences by now!) Anyway, the manager said he'd just had a cancellation and there was one room available, but at $325 per night, we said we'd keep looking! (Have I mentioned how ridiculously expensive accommodation, and just about everything, is in Broome!) But we did have a nice chat. Turns out this fellow was a town councilor and also a partner in a junior oil company operating in Western Australia. From his involvement with the town, he told us that there was a building boom going on where developers were selling strata type investments holding out the promise of a quick profit. But his view, shared by many locals, was that the supply would soon far outstrip the demand and that prices and service would fall as a result. We also chatted about the oil business here. He had been to Calgary to scout out drilling equipment and had been amazed at the drilling activity in Alberta His company was involved with an Australian E&P company called Woodside Petroleum which I was aware of as it was a partner of Shell's here in Oz and I had once spoken with the IT director (a Shell employee on assignment with Woodside) in The Hague. The fellow brought up some charts and lease maps on his computer and we spent an interesting few minutes talking about exploration in the outback of Western Australia.

And just to finish off about our accommodation, we did end up taking the larger chalet at the Palm Grove campground, though despite its added cost, we didn't like it as much as our first place. But at least we had an air conditioned roof over our heads for our last three nights!
We soon got into a pretty laid back routine in Broome, pottering around the town and lazing on the beach. There's not really much more to do here though Sue did take an excursion to the Willie Creek Pearl Farm about 30 kms north of the city. I was not all that interested, so Sue ventured out on her own for the half day tour. Here's her account of the trip.....
Pearling is a major aspect of the history of Broome, and pearls being fascinating anyway, I thought it would be worthwhile to delve into this a little more so signed up for the tour to the Willie Creek Pearl Farm. (Who knew that this part of Australia was loaded with pearls, diamonds, gold and other tempting jewels?) The drive out to the farm, in an air-conditioned 4WD bus covered some rough but interesting territory, with the driver giving a very informative commentary on the drive. Starting with the pearl divers back in the late 1800s, the oysters were taken for the mother of pearl that was used for buttons, knife handles and decorative inlays. The business was so lucrative that when an actual pearl was found it was just a little bonus. Most of the divers were Aboriginal, or from Japan or Indonesia, which made Broome a very cosmopolitan town early on. By the 1950's due to the invention of plastic, the demand for mother of pearl for buttons had plummeted, but by then a Japanese fellow was perfecting a method of growing cultured pearls, and set up a business here.

The large Pinctada maxima oyster that thrives in these waters and laid down the mother of pearl about twice as fast as elsewhere made it an ideal location. Part of the tour included a detailed technical session about how the pearls are seeded with a bead, an intricate procedure requiring the motor skills of a neurosurgeon it would seem, and an explanation of the different kinds of pearls that are cultured here. The Willie Creek Pearl Farm specializes in the larger, hopefully perfectly round pearls (9 mm and up to 18 mm which is so large as to be very rare). This is a very labour-intensive process. Once seeded, the oysters are put in frames and laid on the ocean bed, but in order to attain the round shape, the frames have to be turned every 2 days for 40 days, requiring divers. After that, the frames are hung on lines in the creek where the action of the tides provides the movement required for round pearls. The oysters have to be removed to have their shells cleaned frequently, as well as being x-rayed to ensure the pearl is progressing. Finally, with fingers crossed, the technicians examine the oysters and if all has gone according to plan, a beautiful large, lustrous, round pearl is the result.

After a very nice afternoon tea (no tour is complete without tea here, and this was the best yet, real coffee (instant is the norm) and delicious apricot damper bread), we were taken out on a boat to see the longlines where the frames are hung and have a demonstration of the cleaning, as well as a nice little boat ride around the creek. It is a very pretty area. We were given ample time to oooh and ahhh over the beautiful pearl jewellery in the showroom (very expensive so that was about as far as most of us got) and then taken home.

One morning we took the short drive down to Point Gantheame at the end of the peninsula, where there is a lighthouse. The rough rock formations there, as are all the rocks and the soil around here, are a bright rusty red. This, contrasting with the milky turquoise of the ocean made a dramatic picture, and we spend some time clambering around the rocks and admiring the varying views.

Another interesting thing here is the outdoor cinema. There are several of these in Australia and the one here in Broome, the oldest in the country, is in the middle of China Town, the main shopping area in Broome. One night we went to see a movie, The Bourne Ultimatum. The outdoor theatre was really neat. There were rows of deck chairs lined up in front of a large movie screen and we sat there under the stars watching the movie. The only distraction were a couple of large fruit bats that flew by once or twice and several aircraft landing at the nearby airport. But it was quite the hoot to watch a movie sitting in the warm evening air (“real air conditioning” as they advertised at the theatre). Another evening we went out with one of the “caravaning couples” in our happy hour group (Reg and Shirley) to an Asia buffet for dinner and had a great meal of Indonesian, Malaysian and Thai dishes. We really like these two outgoing people, though Shirley is quite the talker! She has just turned 61 and she and Reg, who's only 54, are touring around Oz in their caravan for a year or two. As mentioned before, Shirley was originally from Vancouver and has family connections to Calgary. They take periodic trips to Canada to see family, so I'm sure we'll be seeing them again at some point.

The other major attraction here, as noted above, is the Staircase to the Moon. This phenomenon happens three days a month during the winter months when the full moon is rising just after sunset. The moon rise coincides with low tide which leaves a series of dry and wet strips in the corrugated mudflats of an estuary near the town. These rivulets reflect the bright moon light in a long strip running to the horizon and the rising moon, with the striped effect of the mud flats making it appear as if the discreet bright strips are stairs. A little imagination and you have your Staircase to the Moon. We are going to see this on our last night in Broome, and as we want to post this blog entry before we leave, we'll have to update you later on what it was like.

Broome has been a much needed break in our travels ... a chance to relax and re-energize before heading off on the road again. Despite the high prices, Broome is actually a delightful place that really hasn't been spoiled by tourism. There is not a single building more than two stories and the place is very clean and quiet. And of course Cable Beach is one of the best “big” beaches we've ever seen. We have seen prettier beaches in small tropical coves ringed by palm trees, as far as a long stretch of white sand, Cable Beach ranks right up there. We are heading south along the coast road which will take us to some fantastic sites and great experiences. We debated about doing a jog inland en route to Karijini National Park near a place called Tom Price, and we have decided to make the trip east from the coastal town of Port Hedland where we will spend our first night after Broome, Friday Sept 28. The park is supposed to be spectacular, though basically a lot more gorges and rock formations. But we probably won't be passing this way again, at least any time soon, so we decided we could manage one more trip into the 45 degree heat of the interior – assuming we can find air conditioned accommodation. We got a report that the unsealed roads in the park, which covers several hundred square kilometres, are being graded this week, so we are going to chance them in our vehicle and avoid the exorbitantly-priced 4WD day tours available from Tom Price. We'll see how we go.

That's all for this chapter in our travel adventure. The next while we are going to be in some sparsely populated areas again, so may not get a chance to blog again for some time. So, till then, Bye from Broome.

The outdoor theatre

Robb and Sue at sunset

This is the Japanese grave yard where over 900 Japanese are buried, most of whom lost their lives in pearl diving accidents. Most grave stones are a pieced of stone from the beach.

Our arrival in Broome with the lovely Indian Ocean and a young Boab tree. Some pictures of fabulous Cable Beach

There were lot of these Porpoti jellyfish washed up at intervals along the beach. We were assured by the lifeguard that they don't sting. The real stingers arrive in November.

Our car on a deserted stretch of Cable beach taken from a distance with a closer picture following.
Taking a camel ride down the beach is one of the famous attractions here

Sunset is the best time to take a camel ride along the beach.

There were some great rock formations at the south end of Cable Beach.

You can drive along the beach for miles. Here we are at the south end of Cable Beach near the lighthouse and rock formations.

The earth around Broome is a stunning burnt red color as evidenced by this road construction area.

Broome is a place where outback meets cosmopolitan civilization. Everyone drives a 4WD with a large roo bar on the front, but you can also get a latte at a street side cafe in the shae of the palms.

Rob and friend...a statue of a pearl diver from years past

Sue took a trip to see the modern pearl farm in operation. It was 4WD access so she joined a tour which took her north of Broome for a tour of the pearl operations, including a boat trip out to the oyster beds. This shoes one of the opened oysters which are larger than a hand.

The oysters are "seeded" then placed in these special racks for submersion. They need to be cleaned every two weeks....a tough, dirty job mainly taken on by backpackers looking for some quick money.

The road north to the pearl farm shows a typical dirt road in the Broome region.

There were spectacular sunsets on the beach each night...here are a few pics...