Gibb River Station to Kununurra

Day 46 (Sept 1) Gibb River Station to King Edward River camp-site.

A bit of a sleep in then pack up. Having a grass camp site it was a good chance to have a look under the car without getting completely covered in dust. All seemed good except for a bolt missing out of the sump cover and one of the others being a tad loose. I tightened the loose one and replaced the missing one. It might not last long though because I don't have any flat or split washers.

On the road by 8:30, the surface has definitely deteriorated and Kalumburu Road was even worse. Much bigger corrugations and more of them. Stopped and fuelled up at Drysdale Station, the 20km after we left there were the worst bit of road we have been on. Got to camp about 1 and set up. It's a big camp and there are only 3 other sites being used. 

Relaxed a bit then went for a walk to the falls, then had a dip in the river. 

Steak and salad for dinner. 

222.5km travelled.

Day 47 (Sept 2) King Edward River camp-site to Mitchell Falls & return.

Up at 5:30 and on the road by 6:30 after breakfast and taking a lot of the stuff out of the back of the car. The info we have read says it takes 2 hrs to travel the 75 or so km, then 3 hrs to walk into the falls so we wanted to allow plenty of time. The road lived up to its reputation, badly corrugated in parts and plenty of rocks to keep your mind on the job, it took us just under 2hrs to get to Mitchell Falls. There weren't many in the camping ground here either, a sign of it being late in the season I guess.

We'd talked about whether it would be best to fly in and walk out, or walk in and fly out but in the end the decision was made for us. When we went to book, the first flight in wasn't for another hour and a half, so we booked a flight out for 12:30. Before we set out I poked my head under the back of the car and discovered that the rear drivers side shock had gotten very hot. So hot that it had melted the air line for the air bag on that side. I had them deflated to around 10psi while we were on the rough roads so it won't make any difference to us in the short term. The shock on the passengers side had been hot as well but not as hot as the other one and the airline was still OK. I'll have to keep an eye on them though.

The walk in only took us an hour and 20mins. Not sure where the 3-4 hrs that they advertise comes from. 

 We had a swim and took lots of pics but still had over an hour to wait until our flight out. 

 It was a struggle to find some shade and we decided to give to helicopter company a ring on the Sat phone to see if we could get an earlier flight out. We were in luck............there was one in 15 minutes, only problem was we weren't at the landing pad and didn't have much idea where it was. There had been some people disappeared over the ridge behind us, so we decided to head that way after a quick pack up. Luckily for us it was the right direction and we made it there in heaps of time. There was a shade cloth set up there and also another nice pool to have a dip in. The chopper arrived and we climbed on board for our 6 minute flight back to the car park. 

 No doors on so there's great chances for pictures and videos of the falls. Not much water going over because it's so late in the season but so glad we did the flight because you wouldn't see the actual falls otherwise. 

Lunch back at the car park, then I tried to tie up the air lines away from the back shocks to try and avoid any more damage before we braved the road back to King Edward River camping ground. Not long after we left, we both spotted what looked like a bottle of dish washing liquid on the road. Coming around a corner a little later, we came across a family towing a camper stopped on the side of the road. It was a Kimberley and the door for the kitchen had came open allowing the kitchen to slide out, where it got wiped out on a tree. Another guy stopped and we helped the guy get the kitchen back into something that was near enough to normal shape to allow it to slide back in. We continued on, most roads and tracks we have travelled have seemed easier on the way back but not this one. It truly is a very bad road. We managed to get back to camp in one piece about 2:30, a check of the rear shocks showed neither had dropped their oil yet so both were operating OK. Repacked the car then had another welcome swim in the river and a VERY welcome beer. Left over spag bol for dinner. 

165.3km travelled.

Day 48 (Sept 3) King Edward River to Ellenbrae Station.

Up early and on the road by 7:15 for the trip back to Drysdale Station for fuel. Carol drove the first 30km or so which hadn't been too bad on the way in. I drove the rest and it wasn't much fun. We spotted the young couple who had been on the Horizontal Falls trip with us as we drove in so we had a chat to them while we gave the shocks a bit of a rest. They were heading up to Kalumburu for a few days and we gave them the low down on the road condition.

Waited another 20mins or so before we started out. The road was as bad as we remembered, in fact I think it was a bit worse. It might have just been the fact that we were worried about the rear shocks that made it seem worse. We stopped when we got back to the Gibb River Road, a quick look under neath the rear of the car showed that the drivers side shock had dropped its oil. Looks like we are heading to Kununurra for some repairs. We carried on to Ellenbrae Station, we'd been told that the road was pretty rough through this part and it certainly was. We booked in for a night, we had Optus service at the homestead so I asked the staff if they knew anyone in Kununurra who did suspension and they said to try Kununurra 4wd spares. I gave them a ring ring and wouldn't you know it, the guy said he had just sold the last set of shocks for a Pajero. He said he could get some flown up, they should be there in a couple of days. They couldn't fit them until the 19^th though and he said most people in town were flat out as well. They must love the Gibb! I said I'd ring him back Thursday to confirm whether or not they had come in and he also gave me the number of a guy who might be able to fit them and repair the lines to the air bags. I gave him a ring and he said he could do it Friday morning, so I booked that in as well, subject of course to the shocks coming in.

We went back to the camp and decided to walk to the water hole for a swim but it didn't look that appealing so we decided on a shower instead. There's a great amenities block, done in a very rustic manner with a donkey boiler that they fire up at 3 each day to heat the water for a shower. It was after 4 by now so the water was nice and hot. 

 Got chatting to a couple, Anne and Bob, that it turned out had been at Pender Bay at the same time as us. Carol told them about some files that Andrew had given her about the whales so they said they'd pop down in the morning to copy them. Left over red beef curry for dinner. 

258.9km travelled.

Day 49 (Sept 4) Ellenbrae Station to Home Valley Station.

Up at 6 and a leisurely breakfast and pack up. Not sure what is happening with the freezer in the car. Has been showing -3 deg and turning off and this morning the battery is flat and the readout I showing 2 deg. I swapped it over to run off the car battery and it started up OK. I'll have to have a look at it when we get to Home Valley.

Anne and Bob came down half way through and copied the files, then we finished and headed to the homestead for the famous scones. We had a mango smoothie each and shared a scone with jam and cream. It was yummy. Anne and Bob were at the next table and we spent a very pleasant half an hour or so chatting. They were headed to El Questro and then Kununurra, so we might catch up with them again.

It was only 100km to Home Valley Station and we took our time along what was at times a very rough road. The car was definitely less stable so we had to take the numerous dips and flood ways with a lot of caution. We pulled over a couple of times as well to give the remaining shock in the rear a chance to cool down. We were almost there when my phone beeped, so we pulled over and had Telstra service. Not sure where it's coming from as there's n Telstra service along the Gibb. 

It was enough to check our emails and stuff, then we drove down the hill to the Home Valley entrance. Carol had a bit of trouble with the gate, there was a horse shoe on the top and she eventually worked out that it had to be lifted.

 This place was great, we drove in and it was.....”wow” Lovely green grass to camp on and lots of shade and lots of room and a swimming pool. We checked in for 2 nights and as we were walking out of the reception Carol spied Anne and Bob having a quiet beer in the Dusty Bar. We set up and got a couple of loads of washing on and I had a bit of a play with the freezer to try and work out what the problem was. I don't think its a fridge problem, so it's either the battery or the dc/dc charger. Had a swim in the pool and then a shower and a couple of cold beers in Dusty Bar.

Moroccan chicken salad for dinner.

117.4km travelled.

Day 50 (Sept 5) Home Valley Station.

A quiet day, we had a cooked breakfast but we were a bit late because we got chatting to Anne and Bob who were moving on to El Questro. Spent most of the day working on the freezer. Definitely not a fridge problem. Had the freezer plugged in to the camper batteries all day and it's down to temp and working fine. When we move tomorrow I'll run the freezer off the car. I also fixed the vents in the dash which weren't moving properly and pulled out the pollen filter for the A/C and it was filthy !! Gave it as good as a clean as I could, might have to get a new one when we get to Alice Springs I think. Gave Glenn a ring for his birthday then had a late swim in the pool and an early dinner, chicken red curry. Sat and listened to the music from the bar while we enjoyed a red wine. 0Km travelled.

Day 51 (Sept 6) Home Valley Station to Hidden Valley caravan park Kununurra.

Up early again and after breakfast and packing up, I rang to see if the shocks had arrived. Deliveries don't happen until after lunch so we won't know until then. We decided to head into Kununurra anyway. At the end of the drive way we saw this grader looking a bit worse for wear, maybe that's why the road is so rough!

It was a slow and careful trip but the Gibb hadn't quite finished with us yet. We crossed the Pentecost River not long after leaving Home Valley. Have to say, it was a bit of a let down after all I'd heard and read about it. Quite a long crossing but not at all deep and very easy really. We stopped for a photo on the far side and Carol noticed that the stone stomper was hanging down on the passengers side. We'd lost the bolt from the shackle so I replaced it with a bolt and a nyloc nut. I hadn't checked them since we left home, have to add it to the check list! 

We reached the El Quesro turn off and the sealed road yippee!! Pulled up to air up the tires and the tails from the Anderson plug to charge the camper from the car were lying on the ground. The plug had come out and had been worn away on the road, luckily the contacts were still OK so it was just a matter of putting a new case on it.

 Even though we were now on a sealed road, we still had to take it slowly through all the dips and flood ways and we got to Kununurra about lunch time an checked in for 2 nights and set up. It was a challenging site to get onto because it had a very deep kerb and the first time we unhitched we realised that we were too far back so had to hitch up again and move forward a meter. Rang around 1:30 about the shocks, only one turned up and the second one won't be in until tomorrow sometime. Had to ring the installer and explain what had happened. Told him I'd give him a ring when I had it so we could sort out a time. These things always seem to happen on or close to the weekend ! Gave Malcolm a ring and had a nice chat to Georgia and Beau. Did some more fault finding on the battery/charger. I can't decide which it is so I'll sleep on it and have another go tomorrow. Had a dip in the pool and then sausages and sweet potato chips for dinner.

128km travelled.

Day 52 (Sept 7) Hidden Valley caravan park Kununurra.

Up early and more fault finding. Pulled the dc/dc charger apart and found all the connections inside loose. The 12v feed in had been so loose the wire had been very hot and was quite discoloured. Tightened them all up and then plugged it back in. Fault still seems to be there, in that it on then seems to lose it's connection and switch off again. Rang about the shocks at lunchtime, yes the switches second one had come I. Rang the installer and he said if we could be there by 1:30 he could do the shocks b ut not the airlines. Couldn't fit repairing the airlines in for another week. I'll have to give them a go myself I think. It was after 12 by now, so after a mad pack up of everything we went an picked up the shocks. I got some air line and some joiners as well so I'd have what I needed to repair them if I could. Dropped the car off then walked into the town centre and had some lunch and did some souvenir shopping. Went back about 4 and it was all done, even the airlines which was great. He'd just used the joiners like I was going to do but great to have it done. Only charged us $175 which I thought was more than fair. Back to town and Carol did some shopping and I got some beer. 4:30 on a Friday afternoon seems a crazy time with the drive throughs having a queue and the supermarket busy as. Not the sort of place you'd want to throw a party either. A carton of 150 lashes cost a mere $68.95! Back to the caravan park for a late swim and leftover chicken red curry for dinner. 11.3km travelled.