2023.07 - Coral Bay to Tunnel Creek
Xander and Leanne begin their Kimberly adventure with a gruelling 28 hour road trip.
This is my first post about our adventures in the Kimberley, to see more subscribe below.
After four months busy with camps Leanne and I were ready for a break! We loved our our new life in Coral Bay, but it was time for a change of scenery.
With the car packed and alarms set for 4 am we turned in for one last sleep in our own bed.
Setting Out
We had a smooth start to our travels. I woke up first and used some leftover cake to coax Leanne, wrapped in blankets, into the passenger seat of the car.
As we slipped out of the confines of Coral Bay her sleepy demeanour melted away, and we spent the first two hours of the journey excitedly discussing the adventures ahead.
Marathon
As we watched the Pilbara pass by the lively conversation slowly gave way to a routine of driver swaps and podcasts, which carried us through the rest of the daylight hours.
Night had fallen by the time we had reached the Kimberley but we chose to press on to the Nillibubbica Rest Area. Soon thereafter Leanne had to dodge a drunk driver coming down the wrong side of the road. Then, a little rattled, we arrived at our destination.
Rest
It was past 08:00 in the evening when we left the highway, but before 09:00 when we were in bed, having set up, eaten, and packed away again. We spent the whole time congratulating our own efficiency and grateful to be adventuring free of responsibilities.
Arrival
Having completed the last few hours of our journey in the dark, we hadn’t noticed the scenery changing around us. So when we set out again the next morning we were excited to discover ourselves surrounded by trees! Four months in the arid landscape of Coral Bay, and travelling through the entire Pilbara the day before, made this a truly special experience.
We took the first opportunity we could to stop and admire a boab tree. Before leaving the highway behind and heading for Tunnel Creek!
Reflections
It was great only using one day of our leave to cover so much ground, but very exhausting. The experience gave us a real appreciation for the size of Western Australia. We realised we could have flown to just about anywhere in the world in the same time-frame. Someone else would have been doing the driving too!
Trail Tips
This was a crazy amount of driving to do in a little more than a day. A few things that helped were:
Starting early - we were much more alert diving in the dark at 4am than at 8pm after going all day.
Swapping drivers often - around every 2 hours.
Allowing ourselves to buy food and coffees guilt free at every opportunity.
Links
https://rac.com.au/car-motoring/info/long-distance-driving-safety-tips
Next post: Monday 2023.12.11
Find out what all that driving was for, as our Kimberley Adventures really get started! I'll be writing about our visit to Tunnel Creek.
