“Broome – Beautiful Broome!”

I’ve been waking up every day since early July and saying these words. I feel like a traitor to my state of Queensland because I want to say “Beautiful one day, perfect the next”, but that’s exactly what Broome is like.

My first few days I was at the Pistol Club, which is an overflow camping ground on the way to the port and a fair way out of town. It was also ‘dog friendly’ and as I was still travelling with Nev and his little dog Cindy we couldn’t stay anywhere in town. Nev, Margaret and I got out and about thanks to Nev unhitching the 5th wheeler. One of our first visits was to the Pearl Luggers – after all, that’s what Broome and it’s pearling history is all about.

With Nev Cox

Restored Pearl Lugger, Sam Male

The Sam Male, restored Pearl Lugger

About the Japanese Divers for Broome pearls

Old Divers Helmet, known as a Hard Hat, Broome

Diving suits were introduced in 1884.

Old Whale bones

Bill Devine playing the fool – as usual.

Nev also took us out to the Port, Gantheaume Point and the lighthouse.

And sunset at Cable Beach is obligatory when in Broome! We enjoyed lovely take-away fish and chips with Geoff Phillips out the front of Zanders Restaurant as we watched the sun disappear into the sea.

A few dusty days at the Pistol Club and then Nev and Margaret decided to continue their southerly journey….but not me! I thought there had to be more to Broome than what we had experienced, so I moved into the Roebuck Bay Caravan Park at Town Beach, set up camp in a great spot overlooking the beach and booked in for 3 nights. That was on the 15th July and it’s now the 31st! I don’t want to leave!!

I can catch the bus anywhere I want to go, there’s a coffee shop right in front of my camp, there’s some great fellow campers around me and a few Solo Travellers have turned up too. Not only that, my lovely step-sister Juanita, and her husband Barrie, are staying at Cable Beach Caravan Park so we have really enjoyed catching up for coffees, a Cable Beach BBQ and a camel ride.

Juanita and I decided to do one of the sunset camel rides after admiring them on the beach. There are three companies that offer the camel rides, the Blue Camels, the Red Camels and the Yellow Camels. We booked on the Yellow ones as Steve, the owner, followed my enquiry up so I figured he deserved the business!  It was great fun and I have loads of photos to share with you here. The cameleers took our phones and cameras and took pictures throughout the ride, and some of them are really fantastic.

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Tomorrow night is Staircase to the Moon and there’s a crowd of us going to the Mangrove Bar, where we will sip exotic cocktails as the didgeridoo plays and the moon rises slowly over the mudflats to create Broome’s famous ‘staircase’.

Broome – It just keeps getting better!