Broome:

What is a beautiful place Broome is!! Normally it’s sunny and 30 degrees but when we arrived it was pouring with rain and quite cool- very unseasonal for this part of the world. It is also very hard to get a caravan site in any of the 6 caravan parks here and if you do its very expensive. We were very lucky to find one a little way out of town which is on a small farm, was very reasonable as long as you don’t mind the chooks roaming around, geese cackling and the rooster waking you at 2.30 in morning- we love it!!
My cousin Geoff and Heather, who we travelled with from Dubbo to Broken Hill, had an accident with their van outside Broome so they were waiting for repairs to be done. We were glad to be moral support for them and to catch up with them and hear all about their woes. We had planned on only spending a few days in Broome as we have been here before but because of the rain we decided to stay longer. (Our next stops are beachside one so we could see no point in moving on if it’s raining)
On Tuesday it was very cloudy but at least not raining so we went into Broome to see Geoff and Heather and get some shopping done. After morning tea, we all went to the Port where you can view the turquoise sea and see the long jetty where the boats stop to unload. As Broome is on a peninsula,
wherever you go in you are surrounded by sea which is the most amazing amazing colour. The rocks in the area are red, the sea brilliant blue and the sand white so it is very picturesque.


Then we went around to another area called Gantheaume Point. Here are most unusual rock formations that you can climb all over and get some great photos with the vivid sea in the background.

Next we went onto Cable Beach which is a very popular swimming beach with a large sweep of fine powder soft sand, turquoise sea and a background of red rocks. This is the area where people gather to see the sun setting over the Indian Ocean and watch the camels walking along the sand with their cargo of fascinated tourists. As you see them in a train one behind the other you are reminded of their important contribution to the development of the outback before the advent of the motor car and trucks. They were responsible for carting supplies, goods for building etc through the harsh arid outback areas.
We had some delicious fish and chips for lunch and it turned out to be sunny and pleasant. We then all did some grocery shopping and went back to G and H’s van for some dinner and listen to some country music put on by some great singers who are travelling around Australia.
The next day was breezy with some occasional sun which was great for getting the washing done. The rain had cleared up so we went on a bit of an adventure to a place called Quondong Point which is north of Broome on a very red dirt road.
Because of all the rain the road was full of large puddles as well as muddy bits. It was a bit of a challenge negotiating this road especially as we didn’t quite know if we were in the right place and it’s fairly isolated.

I was pretty scared as we were dodging from one side of the road to the other to miss the deep boggy grooves and trying to negotiate the water hazards as well as keeping up the speed to avoid all the corrugations but Brian loved it. We finally came out at the coast which was quite rocky as it was low tide. The sea wasn’t as blue as it would be normally as it was overcast. There were a few isolated campers here who had been brave enough to take their caravans out there. While we were having our lunch a man came up and offered us some large steaks of Spanish mackerel which he had caught an hour ago so we took it back to Geoff and Heather’s and we all enjoyed some delicious fish – even me who is not a great fish eater.
It was raining the next morning when we woke –to the rooster’s crowing- so we decided to stay. Geoff and Heather had some very bad news – Heather’s elderly mother passed away overnight so we wanted to be available if they needed us. They were busy with phone calls and arrangements so we went for some sightseeing to Roebuck Bay. This is where the pearling luggers used to come in the old pearling days. Broome is famous for its exquisite pearls. We looked at more beautiful hues of blue from the glistening sea.
It was quite hot by now so we went around to Cable Beach for a swim. The white sand was dotted by bright umbrellas which you can hire. The sea was beautiful with just some gentle waves. You really don’t get huge waves here. The sand is very soft between your toes and is brilliantly white.I really enjoyed the swim – not bad for July!! Then we drove along the beach, away from the swimming area, which is a very popular thing to do especially to watch the sunset.

There are lots of four wheel drives lined up along the beach with people sitting out on their table and chairs

We then went to Chinatown where there are lots of up market shops and restaurants as well as an outdoor picture theatre – no good in the rain. Broome has a very relaxed feel about it although there are lot of tourists.
We went back to Geoff and Heather’s for some afternoon tea and then back to our little retreat.