Caravan around Australia

 Windjana Gorge is about 130 km east of here along the Gibb River Road for 110 km, then turning off to the Leopold Downs Rd for the last 20 km. Unbelievably, the full 110 km of the Gibb River Rd is bitumen, and only the Leopold Downs Rd is corrugated dirt. Compared to the Bungle Bungles, the dirt road, whilst heavily corrugated was a dream. This time I got a better balance with tyre pressure and speed. We were at the park entrance by 10.30 am. Near the carpark there were information boards outlining the walks available. We ended up doing both of the available walks. Two busloads of tourists also arrived at the same time as us, so it seems this is a popular spot. There were also a number of carloads of independent tourists. The view is imposing as soon as you leave the carpark. Sheer limestone walls form the sides of the gorge The 1.9 km walk is graded as difficult, but other than a few tight passages and rocky trails, it was mostly sand and not too steep. Edging our way through thi...

 Today we are exploring Derby and surrounds. Birdwood Station is about 17 km out of Derby on the Gibb River Road, so we head back towards the highway to Derby, but our first priority is to see the famous prison tree, which is a few km in the other direction towards Broome. In the early days of the pearling industry, aboriginals were "blackbirded", captured to be used as divers for the industry and on their way to the coast may have been imprisoned in this tree to stop them fleeing. Prisoners from as far away as Fitzroy Crossing were marched on foot to Derby to face imprisonment, were apparently also held in the prison tree. The interior of the trunk is hollow and is rumoured to be used to imprison aboriginals  After visiting the tree we headed back to the township of Derby, in search of a cup of coffee, a cafe called Jila Gallery Cafe is strongly recommended, so thats where we go. It is a mix of a cafe, a museum for motor enthusiasts, and art gallery and an Italian restaurant...