We left Home Valley Station the next morning and set off for El Questro Wilderness Park. As well as chatting to the couple from Greystanes we also had met a lovely young couple from the Hills District and they also knew some friends of Ian's from rugby and school association. This of course meant that our departure was somewhat delayed (quite a common occurrence along the track) but we only had a very short distance to cover and this included crossing the Pentecost River, which was wide but shallow and we had no problems with the car or camper.
The last few hundred kilometers of The Gibb River Road was rougher than the earlier parts but not as bad as we thought it may have been.
We arrived at El Questro and found a lovely campsite on the banks of the Pentecost River. We spent the afternoon wandering around the area and sussed out some activities for our next few days and collected some firewood for a campfire with our new neighbors.
We woke the next morning and set off for Zebedee Thermal Springs. We had a short walk in and the vegetation reminded us of our rainforest area at home. When we arrived at the springs we both plunged in and spent quite a while enjoying the water which was between 28 -31 degrees.
We arrived back at camp to find the young couple from The Hills were camped quite near us so they decided to come over to sit by the campfire and listen to the State of Origin on the ABC. There was no tv coverage at the camping ground. The coverage was a little broken but we accepted the final outcome and had a very enjoyable night.
The next morning we were up bright and early ready to set off for a walk into Emma Gorge. First we had to drive about 27 klms to the Emma Gorge Resort and from there it was a walk, which was mostly climbing over rocks, with some creek crossings and hard climbs up to the Gorge. It took us about 1 hour and 20 minutes to get to the Gorge but once there the scenery was spectacular. Many who walk it choose to stay and have a swim and relax but we caught our breath, took some photos and started back. We were both pretty tired and our knees and joints were a little stiff but we were glad we did it. After a quick lunch back at the campsite we set off again. This time it was a more leisurely cruise down Chamberlain Gorge. Yes it was another gorge but they are all different and everyone we saw was quite unique.
It was our last night at El Questro so we opted to go to the restaurant for dinner and both enjoyed a lovely meal of local barramundi.
Once again it was time to pack up and set off again. We were heading for Kununurra and the end of The Gibb River Road. I must say at this point that I was over the dirt and dust but the experiences were great as were most of the people we met.
We made the other end of the road with no major disasters or problems.