RECAP ON THE GIBB RIVER ROAD

RECAP ON THE GIBB RIVER RD
26TH SEPTEMBER

A friend of mine was asking where Home Valley was exacly and the price of fuel so here is some info for you city slickers..........

The Gibb River Road is 647km in length starting from 50km north along the Victorian Highway out of Kununurra taking you through to Derby. Except for 62km at the western end it is unsealed gravel road. Although graded throughout the dry season the road is still very rough and badly corrugated in places. The rocks on this road can be very unkind to tyres so its recommended to carry 2 spares although I never had a puncture and only carry 1 spare my tyres are pretty shagged now. Beware of cows on the road and the dangers of travelling at night. This road is not for 2 wheel drive cars although I have seen a few on it. About 50km in on the Gibb you will find El Questro Wilderness Park and this is well worth a visit. (see previous blogs for more info) keep travelling a further 20km along the Gibb and you will come to Home Valley Station which to access you need to cross the Pentecost River which is about 10km before the station. It is a working cattle station as well as an indigenous training centre for TAFE and a tourist destination with 2 camp grounds and several other types of accommodation depending on how much money you have to burn. Its open in the dry season April through to October and in the wet the Gibb is closed as rivers including the King and the Pentecost are generally too high to cross. As you head out to the Gibb River rd from Kununurra you will see the start of the Cockburn Ranges. This impressive range is the most prominent landform viewed on the drive out and is spectacular once you reach the Pentecost River as the sandstone escarpment rises over 600metres above the surrounding plains and is cut by rivers to form the steep sided gorges. And one last thing fuel prices in Kununurra are steady at $1.60 a litre for both fuel and Deisel.