***What's Happening In The Kimberley?***

A (hopelessly) irregular e-letter with news, site updates and travel tips.
By Birgit Bradtke
Subscribe at https://www.kimberleyaustralia.com/

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Jan 18, 2008, Issue #003
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In this issue:

** Update: Fly into Derby
** Kimberley Travel: Climate Change in the Kimberley
** What's New? The Kimberley on Video: Gibb River Road

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Update: Fly into Derby
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A welcome to all new subscribers and thanks for joining us. I hope you did grab your your free guide. If not, here's the download page again:

https://www.kimberleyaustralia.com/pocket-guide.html

Work on the full guide is progressing at a steady pace. So far it looks as if at least the writing will be finished on schedule. As I was working on it I stumbled across a little known service that I did not include in the pocket guide:

OzJet offer direct flights between Perth and Derby.

If for any reason you don't feel the need to stop in Broome, or maybe you just don't want to stop there twice during a trip, then OzJet may be worth looking into.

I don't expect too many overseas tourists to use this service, but Australian visitors might be interested. Freecall the Derby Visitor Centre on 1800 621426 to find out more. http://www.derbytourism.com.au/

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Kimberley Travel: Climate Change in the Kimberley
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We are in the middle of the wet season now. So far we have not had any extended downpours or floods. (Katherine did, as always ...) The last cyclone that threatened to come our way changed its mind and headed towards the east coast instead, though only after flattening scores of trees and disrupting the power supply for large areas in Darwin.

Right now all the dirt roads are of course closed, and the creeks and rivers are rising. The big question for many Kimberley travellers is, "When will things dry up again? When can I be sure that the Gibb River Road will be open?"

If you read through the pocket guide then you know that we can't exactly predict that. Most tourism businesses target May 1 as the starting date for the season. The last few drops of rain fall generally in April or May, and after that it's a matter of waiting for the rivers and creeks to drop and the roads to dry out.

Sometimes people can get through in April, sometimes it's June before you can make it up to the Mitchell Plateau. (The King Edward River is always the last to drop low enough for cars to cross.)

Can we guarantee that it won't rain in June? We thought we could. Until June 2007 happened. (See the link below to find out more.)

You may belong to the people who don't believe in climate change, or you may doubt that it's man made. Read the page below to find out how the Kimberley is affected, and watch the video on this page to find out why none of the arguments matter, and what you, yes you, can do, to help stop global warming.

https://www.kimberleyaustralia.com/kimberley-climate-change.html

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What's New? The Kimberley on Video: Gibb River Road
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I prefer to finish this with a more upbeat video ... Planning to do the Gibb River Road this year? A bit nervous about it all?

If the guys in this video could do it on their bikes, surely you'll have no problems in a decent car! (I particularly enjoyed the crossing of the Pentecost River. I know from many fishing and camping trips just how many saltwater crocodiles live there ...)

https://www.kimberleyaustralia.com/gibb-river-road-kimberleys.html

Enjoy!

I accidentally came across those videos, and it made me realise just how long it's been since I last checked for new Kimberley videos on YouTube. I was impressed. People are getting better and better at making videos, so expect to see more of them appearing on the site soon.

And if you have a good one or plan to make one, and you'd like to show it off on the site, do let me know about your video!

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More from the Kimberley soon!

B. (Birgit)

Feedback: https://www.kimberleyaustralia.com/contact.html

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