Back to Broome, Western Australia

By Glen Bruels
This is part of a series called Oceania 2025
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Our last stop before starting our cruise was in Broome, WA. The temperature was at least 20 degrees warmer and the humidity also ticked up a bit, but it felt good after feeling cold for the past week! We had been to Broome before (back in 2008), so we pretty much knew what to expect, although like much of Western Australia, Broome is growing. Broome is a beach resort town in WA’s Kimberley region. Two things stand out about Broome: first is the over 13-mile Cable Beach on the Indian Ocean. The other standout is the stark red color of the soil and rocks, especially against the turquoise color of the water. Broome’s red rocks and soil originate from the Pindan soils, which are wind-blown red earthy sands developed over ancient dune sandstone. The distinct red color comes from natural ochre found in these soils and the red sandstone cliffs. It’s almost otherworldly. Because Broome is pretty spread out, we decided to rent a car. It had been quite a while since I had driven on the left but other than occasionally scuffing the left tires going around the interminable number of roundabouts, I did pretty well. Our first stop was at a local crafts fair where Deb found a few outfits. From there, we headed out into the bush on dirt tracks to visit the The Broome Bird Observatory. It was established in 1988 by scientists who recognized the immense value of Roebuck Bay as a migratory shorebird area. It’s a research and education facility, dedicated to promoting knowledge and understanding of the amazing birdlife of this region. We saw quite a few birds but, sadly, Deb’s Merlin bird call app was woefully inadequate for Australian birds. Then it was time to visit the red rocks and there is no better place in the area than Gantheaume Point where there are weather worn outcrops of Broome Sandstone, nearly 130 million years old! There are many dinosaur prints and plant fossils here, but for the second time in a row, we missed them as they can only be seen at a very low tide. Ah well, next time. The most dangerous (and expensive) part of the day involved visiting two Aboriginal Art galleries in town. And yes, we added to our collection with a piece by Ned Grant from the Spinifex region of Australia. We are now off on our cruise!

Visiting the Broome Farmers/Craft Market. Luckily, it was only around 3 blocks from the rental car place so it gave me a safe way to test out my driving skills. Deb ended up buying a few outfits there.
This was the first time on this trip that we saw a Baobob (or as the Australians call it — Boab) Tree. They really are quite amazing and it appears that they migrated here from Africa.
Here I am driving to the Bird Sanctuary. I would say I was driving on the wrong side of the road…
… but that would require it to be a road, instead of a dirt track. I’m sure glad we have 4-wheel drive because some of this dirt was pretty thick and we had to travel 12 miles each way to get there.
While focused on finding birds, we first spotted a common blue-tongued lizard. He had just finished mating and seemed pretty relaxed…
The color contrasts between the land, sea, and sky were stunning. Given that the tide was out, bird watching was a bit limited.
We did see quite a few Australasian Darters — very majestic.
There were lots of other species that we couldn’t initially identify. This is the Great Bowerbird. Thanks, iNaturalist!
From there we drove to Gantheaume Point, also known as Minyirr by the Aboriginal people. It is a sacred and healing place for them. For us, it’s an iconic spot in Broome. Once again, the contrast between the red cliffs, the aquamarine water, and the blue sky is so stark. If you look carefully, you will see some people. They are next to a natural pool that forms twice a day after the tide lowers sufficiently. Sadly, we didn’t have time to swim.
And yet you can find even more contrasting colors with the flowers that grow here, like this Fairy Fan-Flower.
The formations here are truly stunning and, while we once again didn’t see the dinosaur prints, we love coming out here!
The Point also provides stunning views of Cable Beach.
But, as we suspected we would, we ended up at Short St. Gallery — first at the small shop in Chinatown, but then at the Bungalow, tucked away at town beach. We had bought from there before, but at the Bungalow we were literally surround by art — hundreds of paintings. So much art, so little time!
Our piece from Ned Grant, one of the early painters from the Spinifex country of the Victoria Desert. Amazingly, he is still painting even though he is in his mid-80s. We love it!
This entry was posted in Australia, Cruising, Travel, West Australia
Glen Bruels

I am a traveler and sometimes clay sculptor, following a long career working in consulting. My work allowed me to travel the world extensively and I was hooked. Today, I travel with my wife/best friend to explore new places, meet new people, and learn new things.

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