Many of our clients when travelling the iconic route from Darwin to Perth decide to add on a day trip or two when visiting the remote but spectacular Kimberley region. There are a range of different 4WD and/or scenic flights that are available from places like Broome, Derby or Kununurra.
If visiting the Horizontal Waterfall is on your bucket list, you’ll be doing this from Broome or Derby.
Boat ride through the horizontal falls
There are a couple of different companies that visit the falls – one company lands there and takes you on a thrilling jet boat ride through the falls – the other does a fly over and focuses more on the tidal rise and fall in Cygnet Bay. Both are great options.
For those that don’t know, the Horizontal Falls are a fast moving tidal flow through two narrow and closely aligned gorges, located in Talbot bay. The direction of the flow reverses with each tidal change and in the Kimberleys, this can reach 10m (33 ft). The best time to see this is when there is a big difference between high and low tide. Every 2 or 3 weeks, there is quite a small difference in the tide height, which is known as a NEAP tide. At this time the Horizontal Waterfalls are not spectacular, so the flights do not run/land at the falls at this time – as they are not at their best.
Horizontal Falls Kimberleys
This means a bit of planning is required when heading to Broome. If you definitely want to do this, it would be worth calling ahead to the Horizontal Waterfall Scenic Flight Operators to check the best dates, around the time you plan to be passing through. (It is better to call the operator direct than try and work out the tides yourself – some think that the tides are the same as Broome, but this is not the case.) By knowing this information and the best dates to see the falls, you could slow down or speed up your travel prior, so you are not disappointed when arriving in Broome. Some flights also go from Derby, which is usually a little cheaper, however you do not have the opportunity to fly over Cape Leveque. It is also worth booking this in as soon as you know the date you will be in Broome, as often this tour is booked out.
We’ve never had a bad report from our clients experiences when seeing the Horizontal Waterfall and it is something that you will remember in years to come – it may seem costly to do this adventure, however it is definitely one of the better ways to see the grandeur, rugged and beauty of the Kimberley region.
We have plenty more information on this and other travel routes on our site – if you can’t find what you’re looking for, please ask.
If you’d like to take the stress out of trying to book everything in advance, we also run escorted motorhome tours along this route that have you in the right place at the right time to enjoy attractions such as this. Our scenic tours of Australia are very popular – we’d love to give you some more information on these too!
-
Tags: Campervan Hire
