Back to Broome we went

Now where were we before last leaving you? Ah yes, Darwin. That's it. Well, we left Darwin on 3 September bound for Broome in a voyage that ended 10 days later. In that time, we became seasoned mariners (or marinated seamen) and experienced the extraordinary beauty of the Kimberley coast. It is an absolutely unique experience to be in the ship's wheelhouse on watch from 0200 - 0500 sliding through a silvery sea under a full moon with speckles of silver cascading over the surface in a light you could read a book by. By contrast, every hour you descend into a marine hell that is the engine room as part of your watch to check on the bilge, gauges, pumps etc amid noise, heat and a generally hostile mechanical interface so as to be able to report back on the ship's log "Engine room check ok". In between these experiences, we were able to have a go at some fishing (no luck), play poker with some of the crew (limited success), win a few rounds of Smart Ass (a board game!), manage to catch a bbq and the Argentina v England world cup rugby match (curse you J Wilkinson!) on board one of the Paspaley accommodation vessels, see lots of wonderful sea life including whales, dolphins, turtles, sea snakes (yellowy orange with a toxin far worse than their terrestrial cousins), sharks, you name it. We also managed to check out Kuri Bay which is one of the last land-based (accommodation that is!) pearl farms and hear of the plans to turn it into an up-market fishing/eco resort. And finally, marvelling at the most spectacular scenery along the way as we hope the photos will show. We are now preparing to leave the MV Christine tomorrow to resume our southward trek down the west coast to Perth and will be in touch again along the way. Stay tuned!