Broome

Alexander's alarm was set to 5:30AM and we got up before 6AM, packed up and left just as the sun was rising above the horizon to greet the new day.

The track out of Barnhill Station is a bit slow with some badly corrugated areas, speed humps and 3 gates. After the 10km track we were back on the bitumen highway heading for Broome - the last destination on our journey before we turn around to come home.

Listening to the radio on the way we heard that this week is the busiest week of the whole year in Broome.

Three factors are responsible for this scenario:

1) best time of year, dry and warm but not too hot.

2) middle of school holidays in W.A. and N.T.

3) Staircase to the Moon visible Sat, Sun and Mon.

All caravan parks are fully booked for weeks so we went to Broome Caravan park on the outskirts of town which had been recommended to us by other travellers. The has a number of sites which can be booked but others which they don't book at all.

We lobbed up at the park just after 8AM and were second in line. As other people packed up and left they those sites became available to us. It didn't take very long and they showed us a site where other people were just pulling out. By 9AM we were parked and as luck would have it Alan and Judy got the site next to us.

We set up a great little camp with a communal area between out two vans. Although the site is not directly shaded, it does have shade from nearby trees in the afternoon. The park has a great swimming pool - kids are very very happy.

The first job in Broome was to visit Kimberley Camping (shop), then the jetty and then Woolies and Brumbys. It was mid afternoon before we got back to the caravan. After a bit of a rest we were off to see the Dinosaur footprints at Gantheaum point which are only exposed at low tide.

On the way there we picked up Caitlin (here for 12mth) and her sister Melissa (visiting for 1 week), both from Kiewa, as they don't have their own transport.

Gantheaum point was busier than Burke street - it seemed everyone in Broome was out there watching the sunset. We walked out to the footprints and admired the sunset then drove to the jetty and walked out to the end chatting with the fishermen (and woman).

Back at the caravan we had a quick, late dinner and then joined a friendly group of neighbours playing guitar and singing until late in the evening.