Day 4 dawns on us , the weather forecast is for some wind , not ideal , but we have to live with it .
As well as the sun , we had some dolphins come & say hello .
Today we are cruising to Dugong Bay via Koolan Island - to dodge some wind , then on to Talbot Bay .
The wind was much calmer on the northern side of Koolan Island , so it was reasonably pleasant outside . Koolan Island has another iron ore mine as well .
The northern cliffs glowed in the sun .
The mine was hidden , but we could see the multicoloured spoil mounds as we went past .
More layered rock was visible , and is a big feature up here .
Mainland and islands are all part of the rolling & folding of the earth .
Some catamarans were sailing along , providing a stark contrast to the landscape behind them .
Views are abundant and continual , not mattering where you look , making you wonder what’s coming up next .
Anchoring up in Dugong Bay , a yacht cruised by , we will catch up with it later on our scenic .
We headed out into the bay making our way up to Turtle Falls , more evidence of the upheaval of the earth many , many years ago .
Tucked in behind a large expanse of rock was a little inlet , and in the wet season would be awesome to see - water would be cascading off the rocks .
And this is the falls - approx 150 m high .
Back to the yacht from earlier , there were 10 people dropped off and they were climbing up the ridge about 200m from Turtle Falls - very very keen !! The lead climber also wore a pink tutu - must have lost a bet !!
Back to our scenic , the bay is surrounded by high ridges and varying vegetation .
We went over to the yacht and had a chat with the skipper , the photo shows the ridge the people were climbing , just above the front of the yacht .
Crossing the bay , we went into some mangroves , and found a hidden treasure - we went for a short walk over the rocks and found this .
After that , it was back to the boat for lunch - we seem to be doing a lot of sitting & eating , but I guess that’s why they call it a cruise !!
Next stop was Talbot Bay and another scenic up Cyclone Creek . This might ring bells for some readers , as we’d been here before in 2015 . Of course it’s also the home of Horizontal Falls !!
We’d no sooner anchored up for the day when the locals came for a visit .
It’s a Tawny Nurse Shark , and also had a few friends , they all visited later when it was dark . Fortunately , they have 2 flood lights at the back of the boat which attracts quite a few sharks etc , so we get a snapshot of nature in action . I could watch it all for hours , sharks coming & going , bait fish getting chased and eaten .
A scenic up Cyclone Creek was next , so away we went again , it felt very familiar . Called Cyclone Creek because it gives great protection in cyclones - big high ridges surround the creek and is a safe haven for boats in rough weather . It also has some amazing geology .
Before too much longer we were back out to the boat , this is our view of the Horizontal Falls operation . You can see 4 very powerful boats and also 3 seaplanes on the far side of the pontoon. People came and went , then flew back to Derby or Broome after their experience .
We were due to do it at 10:30 this morning , but got changed to 4:30 this afternoon .
This is part of Talbot Bay - it’s pretty much the water runway for the seaplanes .
Had a visit from some Snubfin Dolphins as well .
Time had come for our ride through the falls - it was an optional extra that we had to pay for , but we figured it was well worth the $85 each seeing we were here .
As luck would have it , we caught it with the tide going out - opposite to the last time we were here .
Briefing had , life jackets on , we roared off to the falls , the first one was a little bumpy , we expected to stop & have a look at the 2nd falls , but no , he just powered into it and bounced us through it at good speed - also catching a lot of water from the front of the boat that gave everyone a little cool down as it sprayed over the top of us - some got wet , some very wet , but if you were quick enough to duck it wasn’t so bad .
They then reversed us into the falls , he couldn't help mentioning that the water flows through at about 55klms per hour , but the boats top speed is 50klms per hour - I think it's the other way round - either way it's lots of water and we managed to drive out of there safely .
It is deceiving in photos from this side , not showing the actual drop of 1.5m very well .
The height difference between 1 & 2 was 1.5 m - right on their safety margin . Every minute the water level drops 1 inch , so with no time to waste we headed down and through , we drove off the wave and dropped down to the lower level with a thud , roaring through the turbulence and whirlpools that were about 1m deep and 3m across , then spun around and went back to it again for everyone to get a photo etc .
Then it was time for some fun , racing through the 1st falls and back down again several times , before delivering us back to the boat for a beer & and hear everyones enjoyment of the ride .
Then we sat & watched the sun set on another glorious day .
Here's our track log for today
No comments:
Post a Comment