Journal Journeys: King George Falls, in the Kimberley
Sep 22nd, 2010 by wwftravel
Courtesy Orion Expedition Cruises
Travel writer Bill Altaffer shared a portion of his travelogue on touring The Kimberley region in Australia with us. In this installment, he describes a marquis attraction in The Kimberley: the waterfalls of the King George River.
In the morning, we arrived at the mouth of the King George River. Some travelers choose to take an optional helicopter ride to the falls, while others chose from one of two activities for the day.
Both options started with a Zodiac excursion to the river’s double waterfalls, a trip that took a good hour each way, including side trips up canyons for the scenery, wildlife and birds. The hardier group disembarked their Zodiacs a distance below the falls to scramble up the nearly vertical wall in what was a difficult climb over tumbled boulders and through vegetation.
At the top, a walk of about half a mile brought these intrepid people to the top of the first of the two falls. There was time for exploring and swimming in the pools there. Most people crossed the first river then made their way across the broken landscape so they could also enjoy the view from the top of the second, much larger, waterfall.
After about an hour, the group clambered back down the steep climb to the waiting Zodiacs. Both the climbing and non-climbing travelers then headed towards the falls. When we were near the falls, we rounded an outcropping of rock.
There, hidden from our approach, we found Orion staff in a zodiac under their blue umbrella with a tray of champagne flutes half-filled with orange juice. At our arrival, they popped open a bottle of champagne with great ceremony, finished filling the flutes and handed them to us along with delicious ham and cheese croissants.
This was completely unexpected, instantly changing the mood from mere pleasure to festive gaiety! As we ate and drank, we cruised around close to the falls, enjoying the sheer beauty and majesty of the location.
We were then instructed to gather up our life jackets and all other items that needed to stay dry. Those were handed off to another Zodiac so that we could zip under the smaller of the falls! The squeals and laughter from each Zodiac under the blast of cold water only added to the festivity. Finally, we retrieved our dry items and returned down the river, again enthralled by the unspoiled, majestic beauty of the gorge.
Join WWF on a cruise through The Kimberley, August 4-14, 2011.
Reprinted with permission.
I am a 14 year old male living in apex,NC, hoping to get some hands on expierience that would look good on a resume. I have had expierience previously and I am very familiar with wildlife. I hope to earn my masters in marine biology and go to UNCW.