Broomerang

Arrival in Broome was a fantastic experience due to the bright blue skies and holiday feel. Although being on the road is a great experience, it can be a dusty, hot and tiring time and the beaches of Broome seemed a great choice. We both needed some R&R to relieve the tension of being cooped up in the van and the pressures of spending 24hrs a day with each other. Since the Bungle Bungles, it had started to feel as though we’d been going through the motions of visiting national parks and other natural features without really enjoying them. Unfortunately there’s not a great deal to do apart from that in this part of the world!

Broome is the first destination where it’s really felt like being on holiday.

Palm Grove Caravan Park, smack bang on Cable Beach was going to be home for 4 days to allow us to take in the famous sights and sounds although at $38pn powered was a little pricey. Its a popular spot for Australians to visit and many campers were paying for their holiday here next year already! It’s also the kind of place where campers spend many months of the year, normally those from the southern cities and Eastern states during the winter who benefit from the glorious weather.

A friendly face welcomed us at the Wicked centre – our old van from the Red Centre – in for a service too after coming up the middle to Darwin and along to Broome. Stan had his joints massaged to stop bouncing us around and had an all over scrub tightening handles, a good drink, had his shoelaces tied back up and had a big plaster put on his side to stop the flipper window coming off. It’s amazing what you can do with a tube of silicon!

Sad times also found us in Broome early on that threatened our enjoyment of the little town. The strain of being in the van for so long over the last few weeks built up and we decided to have some time apart for a while. This unfortunately meant that Amber’s adventure around WA and South Australia had come to end, flying to Sydney to spend time with her Uncle Joe in Berry, NSW. It was a difficult few days with tears and lots of sadness but will hopefully work out for us both. For the avid reader, you should now hear of two adventures and to avoid confusion have added Amber’s whereabouts on the map!

To get over this sad time, a Cable Beach camel ride was booked. It definitely help lift the mood. Almost before we set off Tim almost managed to get eaten by one feisty camel whose mouth came awfully close to Tim’s leg as the camel took off. $60pp was a little pricey but the sunset ride was definitely worth it. A big thanks to the guys at Broome Camel Safaris who made the adventure one neither of us will forget – Amber’s post on this will follow :)

Broome’s history is a varied one that would take a while to explain but it’s the pearling industry that has made it what it is today. From the early pearl luggers after the shells to the cultured South Sea Pearls available today, every aspect of Broome’s culture has been impacted by the industry. The 1860s started the trend with European companies using local Aboriginal divers to trawl for the pearl shells. Unregulated and being so remote from the early settlements in the South led to an element of lawlessness taking over with no concern for the health and welfare of divers.

Legislation and regulations slowly led to other nations being involved heavily including the Japanese who up until WW2 had a wide involvement. Since the war no Japanese involvement has been allowed. As time progressed and the requirement for pearl buttons decreased, efforts were made to utilise cultured pearls. At first this was strongly opposed but now accounts for the majority of the pearl industry in Broome equalling and exceeding the economic benefits of the early pearling.

A free visit to the Willie Creek Pearl Farm thanks to a friend of our Palm Grove neighbours Jon and Kay, allowed us an insight into this new cultured pearl industry. Pearling tips about how they are created and harvested both on land and on a boat trip and afternoon tea included too :)

 

 

Amber even tried on a necklace worth $60,000!

  

A drive round Broome found the glorious Town Beach with playgrounds, water parks and picnic areas,

the Wharf that transformed Broome into a major economic hub of Australia by having the capacity to import and export goods using deeper draft vessels and

Gantheaume Point, home to 120million year old dinosaur footprints visible at low tide, or via a plaster cast any time :) The point is protected by a lighthouse due to the incredible coastal rock scenery formed by the huge waves of the Indian Ocean, that would be treacherous to passing vessels.

   

Our visit coincided with the closure of the Shinju Matsuri, or festival of the pearl, that celebrates the multicultural involvement with Broome’s pearling industry. Fireworks on Cable Beach closed the festival following 10days of events around the town. A live music stage had been entertaining the crowds all evening whilst market stalls provided the culinary delights from the countries involved. A very exotic steak sandwich was our dinner followed by many cans of XXXX. It was here where the Isle of Wighters, Jon and Kay met a fellow Wighter, Natalie who organised our tour.

The morning before Amber’s flight saw us flock to Cable Beach to see what all the fuss was about. It truely is one of the world’s greatest beaches stretching for kms and full of squelchy white sand. The water was beautiful and very refreshing for an early morning frolick. It’d be a shame not to be able to stay here for the many months the grey nomads manage to achieve. It was a fitting end to Broome.