Woke at our now normal time, dawn, and decided we could sleep in as the drive to Kooljaman Resort at Cape Leveque was only a short one and check-in wasn’t before 11am. We watched the tide roll out one more time, emptying Pender Bay while we ate our breakfast. Even at this leisurely pace we were back on the road (actually a single lane sandy track, interspersed with miniature lagoons of ochre-coloured muddy water, a reminder of the 188mm of rain that fell this way a week ago when we were crossing the Tanami). Our Prado and Tvan are now sporting a multi coloured finish of light tan Tanami mud, overlayed with the ochre sand and mud of the Dampier Peninsula, with just a hint of white beach sand mixed in for good measure (but more about that shortly).
The main road up the middle of the Dampier Peninsula starts out as an average dirt track “suitable for 4WD vehicles only” according to the signage at the turnoff just outside Broome. What is surprising is that the sandy, corrugated and occasionally muddy track turns into a well formed two-lane sealed road for the last two-thirds of the trip to Cape Leveque. Of course, all the sidetracks remain unsealed and are all 4WD drive only, largely due to their sandy nature. We eventually returned to the sealed road from our camp site at Pender Bay and motored along at a leisurely pace north-west to our destination. An approaching intersection had a side track that headed down to the Lombadina aboriginal settlement – we followed that side track.
Lombadina is one of many indigenous settlements dotted across the peninsula – they have a school, church, cemetery, bakery (that bakes every alternate day), a general store, workshop and fuel, and an office / visitor centre. Apart from this infrastructure, there are a number of residences scattered in and around the well-treed picnic area that forms the central focal point for the community. We checked in at the visitor centre, paid our entry fee of $10 to visit the settlement and were off to the bakery. Unfortunately it was an alternate day and yesterday’s bread was available at the general store next door. A crusty, high tin loaf with a crust on top that had obviously been only seconds away from bursting into flame before being removed from the oven was purchased and enjoyed for lunch.
Beach access was possible by following one of the tracks through town. We knew we were on the right track when we reached a sign that said “tyre pressures to be dropped to 18 PSI on all beach tracks from this point”. We complied with the request and with Tvan in tow, headed off across the dunes towards the beach on what we knew to be an incoming tide. We bounced and swayed from side to side through the softer sand before breaking through to the firmer sand below the high water mark on a pristine beach we had all to ourselves. We journeyed along the beach for about a kilometre before remembering it was an incoming tide and turning back, just in case our return was potentially blocked before we realised it!
We stopped and went for a paddle in the very warm and clear waters of this idyllic bay. Next we retraced our tracks along the beach, taking a run up at a steep dune that stood between us and our way back to Lombadina and our return to the main sealed road. With a few bumps and bounces we were clear of the dune and on our way, stopping to pump the tyres up to normal pressure before the final run into Kooljaman Resort.
We have a wonderful site under what looks like an old mango tree, giving us plenty of shade from the heat of the day. So far we have walked to the swimming beach where we have been reliably informed “there have been no problems ever with stingers and crocs”, returned to the restaurant area to try out the local iced mocha and cafe latte (both are highly commended), then returned to the swimming beach for a swim. The ocean is only marginally cooler than the ambient temperature, clear and most enjoyable.
Being at the end of a 4WD-only track (even though most of the road is sealed) attracts a different clientele to the caravan parks at places like Broome or Fitzroy Crossing. No caravaners with their satellite dishes pointing to the heavens and breaking the silence with banal programs that are best avoided; and no air conditioners humming away all day and night regardless of whether they need to be on or not. As an aside, it was interesting to note that we were charged a lower daily rate in Broome for a powered site because we didn’t have an air conditioner!
People are gathering at the sunset deck in front of the restaurant to celebrate the setting of the sun. We will probably join them even though we can see much of it from our campsite.