Our Kimberley Tours

WHY A GUIDED KIMBERLEY TOUR?

THE KIMBERLEYS IS AN EXTREMELY REMOTE AND LOGISTICALLY CHALLENGING DESTINATION. COMPARABLE IN SIZE WITH SPAIN AND RICH IN HISTORY, ANCIENT CULTURE AND INCREDIBLE NATURAL DIVERSITY, THIS IS AN ICONIC AND EPIC JOURNEY!

To fully connect with all the different aspects of the entire region requires deep local knowledge.  Charter North create immersive experiences through a long relationship with country and extremely meticulous planning. All our expeditions are led by some of the most experienced and seasoned guides available. Our tours are available as private and small group tours and include the Gibb River Road, Lake Argyle, the Bungle Bungles, Elquestro, Mitchell Falls, Bell Gorge, Windjana Gorge, Tunnel Creek and more. We showcase the diverse features of the region while hiking, swimming, camping and exploring this maze of ancient landscapes. With our highly experienced and passionate guides, you will discover Indigenous culture, rock art, billions of years old geology, spectacular waterfalls and gorges, all while travelling in the comfort of a fully air conditioned luxury 4WD. Choose between our 9 or 10 day adventures or let us customise a personalised itinerary for your private group.

Bookings for our 2021 Kimberley tours are now available

The Kimberleys Tour Highlights include:

Lake Argyle

Lake Argyle is also one of the East Kimberley’s major attractions. Recognised as the largest man made fresh water reserve in the Southern Hemisphere, measuring several times larger than Sydney Harbour! The Ord River was dammed to form Lake Argyle as part of the Ord River Irrigation project. Charter North provides the best opportunity to appreciate Lake Argyle for its size, grandeur and history by embarking on a boat cruise with the lake’s most reputable and experienced cruise operator. A Lake Argyle cruise provides the opportunity to witness this spectacular landscape and spot local wildlife including freshwater crocodiles, birds, fish & rock wallabies. On our private camping tours, we also have the privilege to be able to include an overnight stay on one of the lake’s islands- it doesn’t get more secluded than this!

The Bungle Bungles

From Kununurra we travel by road to the famous Bungle Bungles (Purnululu National Park). This area lays within the arid zone of the region, bordering the Tanami Desert. We explore this amazing area at ground level while hiking among the famous beehive formations and gorges of the Bungle Bungle Range and recommend a helicopter flight for a greater perspective of this incredible landscape. Aside from the grandeur of the Bungle Bungle Range and other features of the park, the drive into and around the park is one of the most picturesque in the surrounding land. It won’t take you very long to understand and appreciate why this geological masterpiece has become one of the most acclaimed icons.

Gibb River Road, Gorges, Mitchell Falls

After exploring the South East Kimberley, we head towards the Central Plateau regions, with Mitchell Falls in the far tropical North, along with ElQuestro and other stations along the Gibb River Road. The Central Plateau area is renowned for holding some of the most stunning natural and cultural attractions in the area. Swim, hike or canoe along ancient watercourses and encounter endless gorges and waterfalls that have existed unexplored for millennia. Emma Gorge, Manning Gorge, Galvan’s Gorge and Bell Gorge are all waiting to be explored, while the Mitchell Plateau and Falls area, managed by the local Wunambal Gaambera aboriginal corporation, is the perfect destination for travellers interested in ancient indigenous culture and rock art.

Windjana Gorge & Tunnel Creek

Further west of the King Leopold Ranges the central plateau area gives way to the open plains; Aboriginal people call this “Pindan Country”. Not only will you experience a dramatic change of scenery, you have now also entered a completely different geological and cultural landscape. Reefs from the Devonian period rise sharply from the surrounding plains giving testament to the changing sea levels over the last 375 million years. The Leonard River has cut its path through the ancient reef system to form Windjana Gorge. At Windjana Gorge you can respectfully admire freshwater crocodiles bathing in the shallow pools or sun baking on the sandbars. Further south in the Devonian reef, we can set off on an adventure and explore nature at its most powerful in the dark depths of Tunnel Creek. The Pindan country and its stunning natural features are not only of global geological significance, but hold important history and heritage of the local Aboriginal Clans.

Broome

The pearling capital of Broome in the far West is a coastal playground and the gateway to one of the world’s most rugged and isolated coastal marine environments. Broome is a mix of modern commerce and old world charm; with its tropical feel and laid back character, it is acknowledged for its world class pearls and affectionately referred to as the “Pearl of the North”. Broome is perfect for just relaxing and taking in the tropical environs, with Broome’s Cable Beach rated as one of the best beaches in the world. Broome’s culture and economy were born from pearling with its multi-cultural history dating back to the early nineteenth century when pearls were discovered in the surrounding shallow tropical waters. Of course indigenous groups have called the area home tens of thousands of years prior. Many Australian Aboriginals and immigrants of Malay origin worked in the pioneering industry, some found their fortune, many not. Broome is also the stepping stone to the Dampier Peninsula which is home to several aboriginal coastal communities welcoming visitors to their homelands and sharing their culture and lifestyles.

The Dampier Peninsula

Located north of Broome along the peninsula on the magnificent Cygnet Bay is the oldest surviving Australian owned pearl farm “Cygnet Bay Pearls”. Not only is this a brilliant opportunity to learn about the pioneering of this industry, but to be able to visit a working pearl farm and see the farming process is a very rare experience indeed. If you have a passion for pearls, this is your chance to purchase some of the world’s best, and directly from the producer! The pearl farm also offers stylish safari tent accommodation on the beach. Cygnet Bay Pearls is another example of how some local enterprises are diversifying and embracing tourism. The pearl farm sits right on the picturesque Cygnet Bay and is the gateway to the Buccaneer Archipelago, a mass of around 1000 islands directly to the North. From Cygnet Bay Pearls we can explore the archipelago by sea or air and witness the spectacular horizontal waterfall phenomenon. When travelling the Dampier Peninsula, Cygnet Bay Pearls is a must and they warmly welcome us as day or overnight visitors.

At Cape Leveque, the northernmost point of the Dampier Peninsula, is the award winning “Kooljaman Resort”. This Aboriginal owned and operated resort is situated on what many would regard as the most stunning coastal real estate possible. This is a tasteful low key resort in suit with the natural environment and again welcomes Charter North as day or overnight visitors. The resort can be reached by road or air and offers land, air and sea adventures, including a chance to swim and cool off in the northern waters of the area.

The vast region truly is a World Class Destination that is now attracting a huge amount of global attention and interest. The above is just a selection of what is possible. Please contact us for more information about our tours. At Charter North 4WD Safaris, we are eager and waiting to share the secrets of the Kimberley wilderness with you!

EXPERIENCING THIS VAST KIMBERLEY WILDERNESS

Charter North 4WD Safaris have an intimate understanding of this unique region of Western Australia through a personal and professional relationship spanning more than two decades. This connection allows us to create and be part of your unforgettable expedition.

With at least 50,000 years of human history and comprising many different periods of exploration, visiting the area is an experience like no other. At a size of over 400 000 square kilometres, this region showcases a variety of landscapes from spectacular gorges and waterfalls to mountain ranges formed hundreds of millions of years ago. On our tours, you will have the opportunity to:

• Travel the Gibb River Road in either direction from Broome or Kununurra and meet the people who live and operate some of Australia’s largest and most remote cattle stations
• Penetrate the region’s more remote wilderness areas and delve deeper into the prehistoric landscapes
• Discover thousands of years of ancient human lifestyles and survival, evidenced through some of the World’s most intricate and artistic rock art and some of Australia’s oldest occupational sites
• Witness geological formations that occurred hundreds of millions of years ago through shifting and uplifting of the earth’s plates, and continue to evolve and shape through constant erosion
• Explore ancient reef systems showing evidence of pre- historic life forms

A deep sense of history

This is one of the earliest settled regions of Australia with a long, rich history just waiting to be explored.

It all began more than 50,000 years ago when the First People arrived from what is now Indonesia, seeking new land to explore and settle. The region has an absolute treasure trove of rock paintings, artistic drawings and carvings dating right back to that time – there is literally a historic discovery around every turn.

Alexander Forrest was the first European to discover the region in 1879, naming many of the famous landmarks you will explore on our tours. This etched further history into the region, with cattle farming, gold rushes and even the discovery of pearls all recorded over the ensuing years.

While it is a popular tourist attraction today, the great beauty lies in the fact that it remains untouched. You can explore the sweeping mountain ranges, the gorges, the cascading waterfalls and the Indigenous history and art in its natural state. And it is accessible and easy to navigate with the right assistance, meaning people of all abilities and of all ages can explore this great wilderness.

Please visit our FAQs for more practical information.