After spending the last two days at sea then docking in Wyndham, it was great to hit the Kimberley coast. It was an early start for some of us who mustered up the courage to do the hike up to the top of King George Falls. But for the rest of the ship it was time to enjoy another sumptuous breakfast, and enjoy the scenic wonders of the rusty red ranges of Koolama Bay.
The early starters headed off on their six-hour tour towards the King George River, a spectacular 14-kilometer gorge cut into a 100-meter high sandstone plateau. Up above our heads a large sea eagle with a fish in its talons flew by us as we marveled at the amazing rock formations and erosional patterns in the almost two-billion-year-old layers of sedimentary rock, painted orange by eons of oxidation due to the high content of iron in the rock. We then made our way to the 80-meter-high falls and started our hike to the top of the falls. Once at the top we were able to enjoy the scenic beauty of the lookout and watch the Zodiacs down below navigating their way to the falls.
It was then time to head back down to our awaiting Zodiacs so we could explore the bottom of the falls and see how close we could get to them without getting soaking wet. Some of the Zodiacs actually went under the falls and screams of delight could be heard echoing around the canyon walls.
As we headed back to the ship for lunch we spotted a blue umbrella, and after further investigation found the hotel department had set up a bar with croissants and champagne to enjoy as we soaked up the ambiance of our surroundings. What a great way to finish of a spectacular day.
