Saturday, May 26, 2012

Broome

Having the weekend off from teaching I headed for Broome and took some of the tourist tours.

Willie Creek Tours have a bus that takes people out to the pearl farm and shop about 40kms from Broome.

IMGP7536  IMG_0516  IMGP7493  IMGP7579

I am very interested in the pearling industry as i use pearls with my silver to make jewellery. The guide showed us from the seeding of an oyster to the harvesting and grading of a pearl and we viewed the extensive display of jewellery in the showroom.

The following day I visited Beagle Bay, Cape Leveque and the Horizontal Falls.

Beagle Bay is a small indigenous community that was founded in 1890 by French Trappist monks. The catholic church was finished in 1918 the first church was a rough shed of iron, which blew away in a cyclone. The Aboriginal community gathered vast amounts of shell from the beaches to help make the bricks and mother of pearl shells were use to decorate the altar.

IMG_0012 (2)    IMG_0003 (2)

Next stop was Cape Leveque, 240kms north of Broome. The colours of red-rock cliffs and bone-white sand meeting clear turquoise water was absolutely breathtaking.

IMG_0054  IMG_0059 IMG_0055

From One Arm point I flew over the Buccaneer Archipelago to the Horizontal falls. This excerpt from the Kimberley website describes the falls very well.

“One of the most amazing natural features of the Kimberley region is the tidal waterfalls located deep within Talbot Bay in the Buccaneer Archipelago, but unlike any other waterfall, the water passes horizontally. Although they are called waterfalls, this natural phenomenon actually consists of intense tidal currents hurtling through two narrow coastal gorges. Massive tidal movements create a waterfall effect as water banks up against one side of the narrow cliff passage, to be repeated again on the turning tide.

The twin gaps are part of the McLarty Ranges, which have two ridges running parallel approximately 300 metres apart. The first and most seaward gap is about 20 metres wide and the second, most spectacular, gap is about 10 metres wide.

It is possible to drive boats through the two gaps to the bay behind. The tides in this area have a 10 metre variation which occurs over six and a half hours from low tide to high tide and vice versa. The effect of the waterfalls is created by the tide building up in front of the gaps faster than it can flow through them and there can be a four metre high waterfall between the bays.

The waterfall phenomena has been described by David Attenborough as "one of the greatest natural wonders of the world".

 IMGP7763    IMGP7782IMGP7802    IMGP7834

Wednesday, May 23, 2012

Djugerari Day Three

The journey from Yakanarra to Djugerari each day was fascinating. I felt  very privileged to be able to see such beautiful country.
IMG_0077  IMG_0087
IMGP7374  IMGP7372
IMGP7385  IMGP7391
The women in my workshops were enthusiastic about working with metal clay and had great plans to make jewellery with the skills that I taught them.
IMG_0172     IMG_0197     IMG_0203
IMG_0221    IMG_0257    IMG_0268
IMG_0267  IMG_0270  IMG_0290

Monday, May 21, 2012

Silver Metal Clay Reaches Yakanarra and Djugerari Communities

After a cold night the sun came up over the St George Ranges at Yakanarra.IMG_0057   IMG_0060
We collected some of the women who were participating in the workshops and set off for the one and half hour journey over tracks to the community of Djugerari where I was giving the workshops.
This is taken from Wikipedia “ Djugerari was established as a permanent Aboriginal community in the early 1980s by Walmajarri people moving from Cherrabun Pastoral Station where many of the men had previously worked as stockmen. The community became incorporated in 1983. Most of the people from Djugerari are part of the Walmajarri language group from the northern Great Sandy Desert Region of Western Australia.”
IMG_0092  IMG_0106  IMG_0096
IMG_0115     IMG_0196    IMGP7345

Sunday, May 20, 2012

Broome – Fitzroy Crossing – Yakanarra

After a short look around Broome I set off on the 400km drive to Fitzroy Crossing. The road was straight, over flat country and not very interesting, apart for the boab trees.
IMGP7319   IMG_0397  IMG_0391
I met up with the Marra Worra Worra Aboriginal Corporation representative, Alia and went with her in a 4WD, leaving my hire car in Fitzroy. We set off on the journey to Yakanarra.
The aboriginal community of Yakanarra is nestled in the magnificent landscape of the Kimberley’s St Georges Ranges, 140 km south of Fitzroy Crossing. It takes approximately three to 4hrs drive depending on the state of the road. For the first part of the journey, the gravel road is good and well maintained and graded as it primarily goes to a homestead. After the turn off to Yakinarra it deteriorates quickly into a track and the road is not graded. A snake that was over a meter in length slithered across the road. I manage to get a pic of him as he went into the grass.
IMG_0041    IMG_0040    IMG_0045  IMGP7323  IMG_0042  IMG_0050
It was late afternoon when we arrived in Yakanarra. The sun was beginning to set over the ranges and it was a most magnificent sight.

Saturday, May 19, 2012

Broome, WA

Ruth & Bren took me to the airport and I was off on my flight to Broome. It was a good flight, I sat next to a lady, Carol and we chatted all the way. I did managed to take a photo of the coastline as we came into Broome over Cable Beach.
IMG_0007      IMG_0011  
I met my friend Shelley, who was on holiday in Broome. We watched the sunset at cable Beach and had dinner at a Thai restaurant.
IMG_0025   IMG_0021  IMG_0031