I Witnessed the Kimberley Wet Season From Land, Sea, and Sky

From Broome in Western Australia’s vast North West, Explorer Carmen delved into the Kimberley wet season from all angles.

As one of the planet’s most remote and ancient landscapes, the Kimberley sprawls 422,000m² in Western Australia’s vast northwest. The region boasts some of the country’s most unique natural phenomena, including Staircase to the Moon, Horizontal Falls, Waterfall Reef, the Bungle Bungle Range, and the iconic Cable Beach.

The short flight to Broome from Perth lures me back regularly, and yet, each trip is vastly different depending on the time of year. I recently returned during the Kimberley wet season, where the landscape was painted in a vibrant pindan (the name given to the red soil of the Kimberley) colour palette, as the red soil and cliffs popped against an ocean that defines the colour turquoise.

Whether you’re visiting the Kimberley during the tropical wet season (November to April) or dry season (May to October), nature and the weather play a big role. Most notable are the biggest tides in the southern hemisphere, where the difference between the high and low tides is around ten metres and surges every six hours.

Combined with the unique tidal system and terrain, if the only activity you did was to spend six hours on the iconic Cable Beach or at Entrance Point, you’d witness the landscape morph with the tidal changes. As tempting as the beaches are, there are many ways to delve into the Kimberley’s land, sea, and sky.

Read more: 8 Lessons I Learnt Solo Travelling Around the Kimberley

First, let’s see the Kimberley from land

On Land

As the sun begins its descent into the Indian Ocean, the camel I’m riding, Burke, plods along Cable Beach, obediently trailing behind his colleagues. Our procession of camels emerges like a golden mirage to onlookers snapping away on their phones.

I try taking a selfie mid-ride, hoping to catch the camel behind me cheekily peering over my shoulder – you know what they say about working with animals or kids. This isn’t my first camel ride on Cable Beach at sunset, yet it never loses its charm.

Cheeeeeese!

This evening, the stretch of powdery sand is clear of the 4WDs that usually line the strip, as it’s turtle-hatching season from October to March. Minus the vehicles, the long stretch of beach is even more idyllic, and it’s easy to understand why it’s regularly voted as one of the best beaches in Western Australia.

At the same time, it’s almost impossible to believe that 130 million years ago, dinosaurs once roamed in place of today’s camels, tourists, locals, and the odd crocodile. Along the Dinosaur Coast, over 100km of dinosaur trackways trail along the Dampier Peninsula coastline, including Roebuck Bay and around Broome.

These are best explored with a guide such as Broome and Around, but can also be seen independently at Gantheaume Point at low tide near the walkway.

The natural environment is entrenched in the community’s culture, and local tour guide and musician, Bart Pigram, passionately shares tales through his tour company Narlijia Experiences Broome. During his mangrove tours in the dry season, you’ll get down and dirty in the mudflats and mangroves.

As I’ve visited during the Kimberley wet season, I’m treated to a town tour with Bart, offering insight into the Yawuru community, including the pearl shell carving artists unique to the Kimberley.

The Staircase to the Moon happens 2-3 days a month between March and October. One of the best spots to witness the full moon rising over the exposed tidal flats in Roebuck Bay is at Moonlight Bay Suites, especially from the balcony of my two-bedroom Bay View Suite.

Even if you haven’t timed your visit with the Staircase to the Moon, the dramatic views over Roebuck Bay present a milky blue bay against a lilac sky and beach sprinkled with red ochre, painting the sand in a shade of pink that seems almost too surreal to be real.

I can lie down and watch the Staircase to the Moon from the Bay View suite

From my self-contained apartment, I often hear rustling in the mangroves in front as birds flutter away. Although the heads of local foragers occasionally pop up through the foliage, I’m advised it’s not wise to venture into the mangroves or water due to the presence of crocs.

I’d rather see these prehistoric creatures from a safe distance at the Malcolm Douglas Crocodile Park. Instead, I enjoy the show as thousands of bats command my undivided attention at twilight as they emerge from the mangroves on the hunt for pollen, nectar, and fruit, pollinating around a million trees in the process.

Read more: I Spent 10 Days Bikepacking the Duncan Road in East Kimberley

On Water

A multi-day expedition cruise in the Kimberley still remains on my list, where the appeal lies in reaching far-flung corners from the luxury of a small cruise ship.

In the meantime, I was content with a sea safari, compliments of Cygnet Bay Pearls, about 220km north of Broome, reached with Air Kimberley or by driving the Cape Leveque Road. During one of the pearl company’s cruises, I witnessed Waterfall Reef, where the large tide reveals a reef, creating a natural waterfall of around four metres in the ocean. We briefly moored at Shell Beach, made up of millions of tiny shells, during golden hour in the prelude to sunset.

They call it Shell Beach for a reason

One of the best ways to see more dinosaur footprints is on a cruise with Broome Adventure Cruises in style with beachside tapas and cocktails. Before the pandemic, I joined a hovercraft tour for a thrilling whirl around Roebuck Bay along the dinosaur trail, and although the hovercrafts are no longer running, all their tours are just as epic, including the World War II Plane Wreck Tour and dinosaur cruises.

The insightful tour of the Willie Creek Pearl Farm showcases the pearls’ journey from shell to jewellery and includes a cruise on Willie Creek featuring an oyster long-line.

The beautiful Willie Creek

Jumping barramundis and Saltwater crocodiles lounging on the mangrove-lined banks might make an exciting appearance, but if not, the bone-rattling drive to Willie Creek (known as the ‘Kimberley massage’) is pretty thrilling among kangaroos and wild brumby horses.

Read more: Ord River Canoe Trip: A Guide to 3 Days of Paddling in the Kimberley

From the Sky

Located in the Buccaneer Archipelago, the Horizontal Falls (affectionately known as ‘The Horries’) is formed from seawater rushing through two narrow gorges in the McLarty Range. As water builds up on one side of the gap faster and higher than the other, a four-metre waterfall forms that David Attenborough has declared as, ‘One of the greatest wonders of the natural world’.

Aerial view of the Horizontal Falls, Talbot Bay | Tourism WA

You don’t gain a sense of how unusual the Horizontal Falls are until you witness them from above. Air Kimberley is one of the most experienced operators in the region, offering scenic flights over the Buccaneer Archipelago, home to over 1,000 islands, the Horizontal Falls, Cape Leveque, the Dampier Peninsula, Willie Creek, and Cable Beach.

On my next visit to the region, I’d love to join a flight and guided trek with Air Kimberley to the Bungle Bungle Range. Even if a scenic flight isn’t within the budget, you’ll be treated to aerial views on the approach into Broome with flights on Virgin Australia Airlines from Perth and the East Coast. A visit to this stunning region is always worth the trip, especially when you get to witness the intense beauty of a Kimberley wet season.

FAQs Kimberley Wet Season

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