El Questro Station

Probably the most famous destination on the Gibb River Road, probably because it is now so accessible with bitumen the whole way from Kununurra to the turn off & then only 16km of dirt road to the station. You hear many things about El Questro, that it's fantastic, amazing or on the other hand it's not that great & what is all the fuss about? We were keen to make up our own minds, Mat has been there before as a kid & has very fond memories of camping on the river & catching a Barra! So on the tiny bit of phone reception we had at the lookout at Home Valley we called to book a private river campsite. Luckily they had one left, one of the furtherest from the station itself, which suited us completely. It was only a short run from Home Valley, but we had to get some photos of the famous Penetcost a River crossing, but even so we arrived just before 10am at the station store to check in, the staff we're friendly & helpful & we had been booked into the site Kite (they are all named after birds) on the other side of the Penetecost River, excellent. We found a smallish sized camp site with lots of shade, not great for the solar panels, but right on the river on a decent sized waterhole. We positioned the trailer as best we could to suit the solar panels, but we knew we would struggle with power & that might mean we couldn't stay for as long, we would see how we went.

The famous Pentecost river crossing

Kite campsite

Our private waterhole

 The afternoon was spent soaking up our surroundings & trying to catch the elusive barramundi. We were getting lots of bites but no hook ups, so I switched to a smaller hook to see what was taking our bait & it turns out it was small Sooty Grunter, no Barra, oh well we would keep trying over the next few days. 

Day two at El Questro saw us looking to go to Zebede springs the most famous attraction at El Questro. It is only open for half a day, each day as it is then used for the homestead guests. We drove into the car park at about 9am & it was packed, so we drove straight back out with the intention of coming back later to see if it was less busy. We then decided to go to the Saddleback Ridge lookout near the station, it was a great little drive up some very very steep hills, the view at the top was amazing. We came back down & ventured back to Zebede, it was a bit quieter but still heaps of people. The springs themselves are just beautiful, warm water pools in amongst the rocks & palm trees. It was packed with people & we could only find a spot to sit in two tiny pools were you could only just sit down & weren't covered in much water. We soon left as it was just crap, people were everywhere, definitely not enjoyable. Mats quote was "it's like having a bath with 50 other people you don't know & you get the plug hole end!" It cracked me up because it was so true. 

Saddleback ridge lookout

Zebede springs one quick photo I snapped, it felt strange taking photos of people in their swimmers so I have no decent photos. 

It made us feel a bit flat & disappointed so we decided to cheer ourselves up with a couple of beers & lunch at the steakhouse. Mats prawn baguette was awesome, my barramundi tacos were very average, so again I left disappointed. Back home to camp for some more fishing, relaxing & yet another night sitting around the campfire under the stars.

The next morning we were super excited to check out the hopefully not so busy parts of El Questro. We went down to the Chamberlain gorge for a look, it was beautiful, they run river cruises along here & one was just leaving & you can also hire a boat which we were thinking of doing. 

Chamberlain Gorge

The Homestead

After a look at the gorge & a drive by the elusive El Questro homestead itself (it really does have a spectular view) we headed out towards Explosion Gorge which was just beautiful but they had the track down to the waterhole closed, so we made our way the few kms further to Sandwich waterhole, again just lovely & we thought it would be a great spot for a fish. 

Explosion Gorge, named for the fishing techniques they used to use 

Sandwich waterhole

Despite the very fishy looking waterhole, we barely even got a bite, but it was lovely to spend a couple of hours there & all to ourselves, not another soul around. As we couldn't tempt a Barra we finally gave up & made our way back to Brancos lookout. Again a very steep drive but so worth it, the best lookout at El Questro, you definitely have to go up there. You can see forever & you get views of the Chamberlain & Pentecost rivers & the homestead. 

The view from Bramcos lookout above & below

We could also see below us Brancos waterhole, so we made our way down there for some lunch, another great spot. After lunch we thought we would throw the lines in to try our luck again, but we both got broken off on a snag in the first 5 minutes, that was the end of fishing for the day, so it was back to camp for us. On the way back to camp we passed 3 vehicles, the only cars we had seen all day, just heaven. 

Brancos waterhole

Day four at El Questro & we made the short drive to Emma Gorge. They have a separate restaurant & accommodation at Emma gorge, but it's all part of El Questro. The walk was about 3.2km return & it was very busy. The walk itself was okay, lots of rock climbing & creek crossings to be done & only 1 steep hill to climb just before the waterfall itself. You walk your way along the creek itself, criss crossing as you go, just before the hill is the bluest little waterhole. From there you can hear people shouting & having fun just up the track so we knew we were close. When you finally get to the end it just takes your breath away. Emma gorge waterfall is my favourite so far. It's a large waterhole & with a really high waterfall, there are ferns growing off the walls everywhere & droplets of water raining down. The shouting we thought we heard wasn't shouting but just the noise echoing around the gorge. There were heaps of people at the waterfall but not that many swimming, so we jumped in to take advantage. Oh my god, it was freezing, it made you feel numb it was so cold. We swam over to the right side of the waterhole & there is a hot spring that falls down that side so if you go under the rocks it's like being in a warm shower, heaven. We swam under the waterfall as well, but it was freezing. I just couldn't stop saying WOW, it is one of the most beautiful things I have ever seen. Unfortunately I didn't get many photos as there were so many people & by the time we got out from our swim the sun was in a really bad spot & I couldn't get any more shots. Oh well I will never forget the place, very special. We trecked our way back out & decide to splurge on lunch at the restaurant. Again a mistake, not great food again & we walked away disappointed after lunch. 

Emma gorge walk in

Waterhole just before the waterfall

Emma gorge above & below

Biggest Praying Mantis I have ever seen

The next day we planned to do El Questro gorge itself & also Moonshine gorge. We decided on El Questro gorge first & set off. This walk again took us up the gorge itself, meandering along the creek & the gorge walls were pretty close together. There was an amazing amount of ferns growing on the walls & it must be were they got the idea of a vertical garden from!! We made it to what they call halfway pool. A huge boulder blocks the gorge & has created a waterhole. You can go on further if you climb over the boulder, but we decided this was enough for us. It was a cool day & Mat didn't want to swim, but I was keen & went in, he soon followed complaining how cold it was! It's only a small pool but it's surprisingly deep near the waterfall & was a great swimming spot. We eventually decided we should head back, heaps of other tourists were turning up, so it was time for us to go. The walk back seemed uneventful until Mat stumbled a bit on the flattest piece of ground we had been on, the whole walk is over rocks, I laughed but shouldn't have as karma soon struck back. I stepped on a palm leaf that made me slip & shoved my foot between two rocks, my other foot hot stuck too & down I went. A very loud swear word came out as I was worried about my camera. I skinned/grazed both knees/shins & hurt one hand, but it wasn't to bad. My camera somehow survived, but my lens cap flew off & we couldn't find it anywhere. I limped my way back to the car, with Mat telling me I shouldn't of laughed at him!! Unfortunately that was the end of our days walk though & we didn't get to do Moonshine gorge. 

Halfway waterhole above & below

I rallied myself & was still able to go out for dinner that night though! It was Friday night & we went to the Swinging Arms bar to watch the live music (played by Chris Matthews, who put on a great show) & to have dinner. Again the food was really terrible, if they can't even get the potato bake right, then there is trouble, this time we complained & got our drinks for free, but were still disappointed. Back to the bar for a couple more drinks & more music. It was finally time to call it a night, so before we left we bought Chris's CDs & turned them on in the car on the drive home. It was a really greet night apart from the food. 

The next day was our last full day at El Questro & we spent it relaxing around the campsite & trying one last fishing attempt with no luck. The next day we were heading into Kununurra for 3 nights to resupply. It had been 5 weeks on the Gibb River Road so we needed everything & also needed to do a big clean up of the car & trailer. El Questro was a really great stop for us & we stayed 6 nights total. There really is heaps to do, from exploring on your own or tours. We still have heaps to see including Moonshine gorge, Champagne springs & Pidgeon Hole lookout. We will definitely be back. Camping in the private campsite cost us $22.40 each per night (we got a 20% discount for staying 4 nights or more) & you also have to pay a $20 wilderness park permit fed as well. So it's not cheap but we thought it was worth it because there is so much to do. We also have to come back to try & catch a damned Barra!!

Camp