Driving from Kununurra to Darwin late March 09

Thank you for a wonderful website. I plan to buy your book Destination Kimberley and I have read all through the free Kimberley guide which I downloaded this morning. It is very descriptive.

I just am not sure whether the four of us can drive safely to Darwin (or Broome for that matter) during the end of the wet season. We are doing the True North trip from Broome to Wyndham, arriving in Kununurra 24th March 09. We thought then another 5 or so days to drive somewhere before flying back to Sydney would be great.

But I see the parks are not open until May and El Questro not till April. I look forward to your comments if you have the time.
Many thanks,
Carolyn Mercer

Comments for
Driving from Kununurra to Darwin late March 09

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No guarantees
by: Birgit

Hi Carolyn,
That should be enough time to get to either Broome or Darwin, but there are no guarantees. It is theoretically possible that you arrive in the wake of a cyclone and that the highway is cut off.

More and more new bridges are built and we get cut off less often, and for shorter periods. I would not expect it, but there is always a small risk.

If you drive, I think you would be better off driving towards Darwin, because the attractions along that way are more accessible. (They have more sealed roads over that way.)

There really won't be all that much to do in the Broome direction and it's a longer drive.

In the Darwin direction you have Katherine and the gorge, Kakadu, Litchfield, and they should be open. (Though the road to Katherine Gorge also floods occasionally.)

But even there you could run into a really big flood. It's unlikely and it doesn't happen every year, but as I said above, there are no guarantees about the weather, ever.

Maybe you can leave the direction open? In case one side is cut off, so you can travel in the other direction? That would reduce the risk of getting stuck somewhat.

Hm, another thought. Can you even get a one way car hire from Kununurra? I've never come across the need for that so I am not sure if that option exists... Check with the visitor centre on that.

Well, that are my thoughts. I would consider flying to either Darwin or Broome, and then hiring a car there for the remaining days to do some driving around.

Honeymoon
by: Anonymous

Hello there,
We're hoping to travel to Broome and onward to Cape Leveque from 23rd March in a campervan for our honeymoon. Also thinking we'll have a look at the Kimberley. I know this is at the end of the wet season and I just wondered if you thought it would be ok? Will the roads be open?
Thanks!

Only St. Peter knows...
by: Birgit

It depends WHERE you are travelling from and WHICH roads you are talking about. We have many, many roads and tracks...

If you come up the west coast, everything I already said applies. The northern half of our west coast is the most cyclone prone coast in the world.

The Cape Leveque road may be open, unless it rains a lot in which case it turns into a creek. And I can't predict if it will rain while you are there. The Gibb River Road will be closed, the Bungles too.

"Having a look at the Kimberley" could mean anything.

I suggest you download the free guide to get an idea about this area, the size of it, the climate, the roads etc.

Read the chapter about the wet season carefully.
You will find it answers those questions, as much as they can be answered.

It gives you an idea about what's likely to be accessible during the wet season. I can't predict how much it will rain in March and when exactly it will stop, and that means I can't predict which roads will be open and which won't.

Gibb River Road at early March
by: Ligia

First, congratulations for this website, it is very helpful. We are planning to travel between Broome and Darwin through The Gibb River Road at the end of February beginning of March next year. We would like to know if it is feasible, due the wet season. And, can you tell us how long it take, we have a week. Thanks

Gibb River Road in March
by: Birgit

Thanks, Ligia.

Have you downloaded the free guide yet? It has detailed information about our climate.

Also see the comments above and the original question. Even late March the Gibb River Road is closed.

It will therefore most definitely be closed in Feb/early March. That is the wettest time of our wet season.

Even travelling from Broome to Darwin along the highway can sometimes be an adventure that time of the year :-)

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