The National Geographic Orion pulled alongside the wharf in Wyndham in the early hours of the morning, and everyone enjoyed breakfast early in anticipation of a big day. Three options were being offered, with flights over the Bungle Bungles, a more wildlife-oriented cruise along the Ord River, and tours of the bustling metropolis of Wyndham being on offer.
Those on the Ord River cruise boarded a bus and we headed towards Kununurra, trailing through the arid countryside of the Kimberley Coast. There was plenty to see on the way, with boabs, various eucalypts, and a lot of birds being visible. A very obliging pair of brolgas crossed the road right in front of us at one stage also.
Boarding the boat on the Ord River, we started to head upstream towards the dam wall at Lake Argyle. It is the flow from this huge water scheme, and the dam at Kununurra that have created this incredible wetland on which we were to spend much of the day. It didn’t take long and we were amongst wildlife in abundance. A massive colony of little red flying foxes was visible in the trees right beside the river, and we saw them hanging and flying as kites and a white-bellied sea eagle flew around looking to take advantage of the bats. As we headed further upstream we saw our first freshwater crocodiles, the smaller and non-threatening cousins of the big saltwater or estuarine crocodiles we had been seeing in other parts of the Kimberley. We had great views of ‘freshies’ of various sizes, from tiny little 6 inch long individuals through to 6-7 foot long individuals basking in the sun up on the river banks.
There was also an abundance of birds, with Australian darters being common, along with great, intermediate and cattle egrets, pied herons, Australian pelicans, and lots of whistling and black kites. We even had fantastic views of several white-browed crakes, normally very secretive birds, and a male jacana incubating ‘his’ eggs on a flimsy nest in the middle of the river.
At midday we pulled into a small camp area, and Grant our guide set up a splendid buffet lunch with cold cuts, salads and cheeses. All in beautiful surroundings on the side of the Ord River. After lunch we continued our 50km journey up the Ord River. Sharp eyes spotted a wallaroo on the bank of the river and we turned to boat around to find two dingos as well. The wallaroo bounced off up through the rocky terrain, and the dingos headed off in the opposite direction, giving excellent views. It seems we had possibly just caused the dingos to miss out on a meal, as they were almost certainly hunting the wallaroo.
The last part of the river was narrow and we powered upstream at high speed, twisting and turning as we went. At the wall of the dam we reboarded our coach and headed up to the top of the dam wall lookout, looking out over Lake Argyle. We then made a quick stop at Durack House, an old colonial homestead, where we were able to visit inside, whilst some of us crouched by a great bowerbirds bower in the garden, hoping to catch a view of the male tending to his display arena.
We then headed back towards the ship, with a two hour drive ahead of us, most took the opportunity to have a little snooze, watching the dry landscape whiz past. As the ship sailed away from Wyndham at sunset we enjoyed drinks up on the sundeck, and chatted with other guests who had taken part in the other activities of the day. It seems everyone had had a great day!
