Cruising the Kimberley: Australia's Hidden Gem
Day 1: Welcome Aboard!
Today was a start to an epic, expedition adventure on Le Jacques Cartier by Ponant. For expedition cruising, our ability to adapt already came into play from the moment of embarking to the ship. There was a strike at the port in Broome where we were due to board, but the ship couldn’t berth, so we jumped into some Zodiac’s first thing!
After boarding we were handed Champagne to toast the arrival onboard and welcomed by the crew as we headed towards our Deluxe Suite, 302.
After a lot of wows in our Suite while checking everything out we attended the Welcome speech by the Captain in the theatre in both French & English as is the Ponant way. We then did our mandatory safety drill to learn our emergency meeting points and don our fashionable lifejackets.
After this it was time for a brief wander to get our bearings before a lovely dinner. We chose Le Nemo which is positioned aft of deck 3 and has a more casual feel to it than the Le Nautilus Restaurant on deck 4. We dined on roasted duck and a barramundi fillet, followed by some French mini desserts and sorbet (all included).
After our day it was time to get comfy in our beds and dream about the official expedition starting tomorrow.
Day 2: Lacepede Islands
Our first official expedition day begins… We headed to breakfast for a buffet style meal before heading to our compulsory zodiac meeting that covered safety, as well as, going through our itinerary for the next few days and introducing us to our team of experts onboard.
Today was a bit of a rough sea day while approaching our anchoring stop.
Once we arrived at our anchored position, we are allocated a colour and that is our group for all zodiac adventures throughout our cruise.
Our Blue group headed out on zodiac to explore Lacepede Islands, known as possibly the largest breeding colony of Brown Boobies and is home to the breeding habitat for Green Turtles.
Everywhere you looked you saw birds flying or relaxing in the sun. The tide was excellent for us and was our first experience as to how fast the water direction can change, as we were told that the later zodiacs wouldn’t be able to get past a certain point in the ocean as the tide was now too low, so again, adaptability on any expedition cruise is a must.
Susan was blessed with a Brown Boobie pooping on her during the exploration of the islands.
We spotted some turtles and when we made our way back to the ship, waiting to debark our zodiac, there was a rare site of a stone fish floating atop the Ocean.
After returning to the ship, we enjoyed sighting the other zodiacs returning while watching the sunset.
We then got ready for the Welcome Cocktail party by the Captain, this is an elegant evening attire event where you are introduced to the heads of the different departments onboard and then you head to dinner. Another yummy selection of A La Carte food starting with Mushroom and Truffle soup, followed by some marinated salmon, seared scallops and some surf and turf and who could forget dessert, a mixture of different mini’s, vanilla marshmallow, chocolate truffle and chocolate soft cake.
Another meal down, we returned to our suite for a relaxing sleep.
Day 3: Freshwater Cove & Montgomery Reef
It was an earlier start than the previous day, so straight to breakfast and then into our gear for our zodiac expedition.
Today was a choice firstly for Freshwater Cove to either do a ‘long walk’ or ‘short walk’. Carolin opted for the long walk and Susan opted for the short walk; this way we could compare the differences.
Freshwater Cove is uneven terrain as you do a wet landing onto a beach with exposed rock surfaces and some sections covered in shells. We are greeted and welcomed officially by the Dambimangari and Worrorra people through a small ceremony and introduction to their culture. The short walk stuck to the beach area while the long walk went further inland to explore sacred Wandjina rock art. Short Walk had Susan visit the area for approximately 1 hour, whereas the longer walk that Carolin did was more around the 1.5 hour mark (the long walk was 30mins long in each direction).
Today’s wow sighting was a crocodile that you could easily misinterpret for a log in the water if we didn’t have our guides letting us know of the dangers and history of the area.
Once back onboard, we headed to lunch at Le Nemo to make ourselves a nice, fresh salad and of course, more mini desserts to try.
Not much time later we jumped on another zodiac to see Montgomery Reef, fortunately we were on our zodiac’s as the sun was setting which proved some gorgeous photos amongst the Reef. Montgomery Reef is full of giant tidal waterfalls cascading down into the water. We spotted a couple of turtles, but you had to be quick, as soon as their head came up, they would dive down again, but the waterfalls were a spectacular site to see.
Returning to the ship, it wasn’t long until dinner. We had pumpkin risotto and a fillet of tuna, and yes, some more dessert, but this time some delicious green apple and lemon sorbet.
Shortly after dinner we ventured to the Blue Eye Lounge which is an underwater bar area onboard. It isn’t open all day, but selective hours each day. They were having a Queen night, so we visited, listened to some tunes before heading to bed.
Day 4: Collier Bay & Talbot Bay (Horizontal Falls)
Today we headed to the famous Horizontal Falls located in the Collier Bay Region. After a room service breakfast (due to our early start), we got our gear ready and started the tour with a 2 hour Zodiac Ride around Collier Bay. We first explored the surrounding landscape which has been shaped by enormous tidal movements for which the region is renowned. David Attenborough even calls it “one of the greatest natural wonders in the world”.
During our exploration, we saw rock wallabies, different types of birds, mud crabs and a famous tree that only grows in this area, the Kimberley Rose. We then headed towards the Horizontal falls on the rising tide, where we were in for a bumpy ride while we almost got sucked in through the two rock walls!
We then went back to the ship and had lunch, followed by a “make your own bookmark” workshop in the Blue Eye lounge on deck 1.
Today we were lucky again to get out on our second Zodiac tour for sunset, heading back to the Horizontal Falls for a short half an hour adventure on the now falling tide. It was spectacular to see how the water pushed through the 2 walls forming big water movements and whirlpools - lucky nobody fell out of the Zodiac!
Upon return we did a quiz in the main bar on deck 3 hosted by the Cruise director, Johan. The night was followed by our daily recap and briefing for the following day and another lovely dinner at Le Nemo.
Day 5: Careening Bay
A more relaxing day today with only one Zodiac landing. We changed the clock forward by 1.5 hours to maximise the tidal movements. This region is currently experiencing the so called “Spring Tides”, which means that water levels can drop or raise by over 10 metres!
We started the day with a quick visit to the Bridge, which was open for guests today. It was very exciting to see the Captain and his team in action! We were even allowed to sit in the Captain’s seat for a few photos. Carolin then headed to a very interesting lecture about tides, hosted by one of the expedition guides.
After lunch, at Le Nemo, it was time to board our Zodiac for the beach landing. Careening Bay was discovered in 1820 and it was interesting to see the area where Phillip Parker King first set foot on. He had to stop here for some urgent ship repairs, and during his stay, the ship’s carpenter carved the name of the vessel (HMC Mermaid) into a now 3 metre wide Boab tree. Our landing consisted of a short walk around the beach area, where we saw hermit crabs, mangroves, a great bowerbird nest, different types of flowers and, of course, the big boab!
After the walk it was time to return to the ship, where we got ready for our daily lecture and briefing followed by our usual dinner at Le Nemo.
Day 6: Hunter River (Porosus Creek & Naturalist Island)
A very early start to our day as the sun rose over Porosus Creek, 7.25am we were out on the creek area in a zodiac looking for wildlife. The sun rising over the red cliff’s made the water sparkle and some great photos. We spotted a couple of crocodiles along the creek, and they carefully positioned themselves at the bottom of a small rush of water, just waiting on unexpected fish to swim towards them. Plenty of mudskippers about skimming along the banks of the creek and spotting some birds as we went down one side and back up the other.
Back onboard we had a late breakfast and relaxed into lunchtime, before heading back out on the water to circle Naturalist Island. A lot of scenery and diverse fauna explained to us during this zodiac cruise while Susan spotted a hidden crocodile amongst the mangroves and our zodiac driver jumped and hit the engine as it was sneakily watching us. The zodiac drivers were great at communicating with each other and sharing what wildlife they had spotted so everyone could benefit in spotting animals and getting photos.
Back onboard we did a Celebrity Quiz that we won and secured us a Ponant pen as winners.
Relaxing into the evening we had Ponant’s white night (black and white was also acceptable), where musicians were playing out on the open deck with a gorgeous sunsetting as a backdrop. More food was had before settling in for the night.
Day 7: Swift Bay
Today was a more relaxed day expedition wise. If you were booked on the helicopter ride, this was the day it was done and you could fit in both landings also if you wanted to.
Philip Parker King named Swift’s Bay after Jonathan Swift, the author of Gulliver’s travels.
The Bay is composed of heavily fractured sandstone and is home to an abundance of rock shelters. Hidden amongst these shelters are examples of Wandjina Rock art. Our expedition team took us ashore in the morning and afternoon for a guided walk to rock art galleries depicting these under rock art style.
Due to the respect given to this art we were advised that as these are not our stories to tell and can be interpreted in many ways, photos and videos can be taken but are not to be shared on social media.
In the evening some lovely food as usual and Susan watched a 20-minute show performed by the onboard dancers.
Tonight we had some lovely macrons awaiting our return to our suite. Each evening a small treat is left out by our room steward and this one was especially good.
Day 8: Vansittart Bay, Jar Island
A relatively early start to the day today, 8am and we’re out on the zodiac headed to Anjo Peninsula to see the C53 Plane Wreck. During World War II in February 1942, the aircraft was aiming for Broome, but due to a navigational error was running low on fuel, the pilot had to make an emergency landing on the remote saltpan, before sliding into the surrounding vegetation and striking a bloodwood/boab tree. The wreckage lies preserved on the Anjo Peninsula. The twin-engine fuselage remains relatively intact and is surrounded by local flora.
This was an exciting thing to see as it was vastly different to what we had been seeing throughout the trip and added a modern tale to the Kimberley region.
Back onboard for a quick room service meal since breakfast was closed while we waited for our official lunch mealtime.
After lunch, Carolin headed out to Jar Island to see the Gwion Gwion style rock art. The art is generally believed to date back as far as 15,000 years and could represent the first wave of people to colonise Australia, arriving by sea. Based on current knowledge, these paintings are considered the oldest detailed representation of human figures in the world.
This afternoon upon return to the ship, we did a Destinations Quiz before getting ready for dinner.
Another lovely meal and gorgeous sunset to end the day.
Day 9: King George’s River
Our last official expedition day (tomorrow would be a sea day before disembarking in Darwin the following day).
A relaxing morning today since we don’t head out until 10am. Enjoyed the breakfast buffet before getting ready and covered in sunscreen.
King George’s River has 80-metre-high rock/cliffs/gorge displaying varying degrees of weathering of the ancient Warton sandstone. The different colours and textures of the gorge change with the light as you travel further up the river creating continual changing scenery. The journey concludes with the climax at King George’s twin falls; the highest single drop falls in the whole of the Kimberley (80m or 260ft).
We couldn’t take enough photos/videos today, especially with it being our last day on The Kimberley Coast.
The surprise at the twin falls was one of the guides waiting with a zodiac full of champagne and other beverages to give it just a hint of ‘final act’ of our Iconic Kimberley Cruise.
Carolin braved the falls to get dunked underneath the flowing water, this is an option that only 2 people in our zodiac opted for, but a nice, fun, once-in-a-lifetime dunk, if you dare.
During the river journey we spotted lizards, crocodiles and birds, we were on the lookout for Dugong’s but on this occasion didn’t see any.
Upon return to our ship, we handed back our life vests that had been with us since our first zodiac ride in Broome, it truly marked the end of the expedition side of things.
After lunch we treated ourselves to some macrons at the ‘Teatime’ and did a National Animals Quiz, which we won, so another Ponant pen to add to our trivia wins.
This evening was a Gala Dinner to say thank you to the crew onboard, from officers, to stewards to chefs and entertainers, before we were served our gala meal in Le Nautilus restaurant.
We finished our night with a New York themed performance with the onboard dancers in the theatre and a photo with our entertaining and fun cruise director Johan.
Thanks: We would like to thank all the staff on board and off Ponant who make these unique expedition cruises safe, entertaining and educational. Thank you for giving us the opportunity to experience this majestic cruise in all its elegant glory and only made the better by its elevated, friendly staff. Thank you to our supportive team at Panache Cruises who also made this possible for us.
How is Ponant different to other ships and what pleasantly surprised us:
An intimate setting rather than a busy, big ship with lots of people, this allowed us to get to know staff better and they knew our names!
The lectures onboard are held by people that are truly passionate about their work, I mean rocks, tide movements, animals, you name it, if you were a bit of a Science/Earth fan you would love the lectures. You can dine with the expedition team or the videographer if you were so inclined as well, they accept reservations.
The Captain was also so down to Earth and he made the effort to chat with you and even leant us his binoculars and chair to “try it out”.
The care taken by the expedition team to ensure you felt safe and comfortable was fantastic too, it surprised us just how well the folks that may need a bit of extra help to walk on the rough terrain were guided so wonderfully by the staff to ensure they experienced what they could at their own pace and comfort level.
Want to give Ponant a go? Find out more here.
Interested in visiting the Kimberley and want to know more about the region? Click here.
