Day 148. Broome to Derby

Now that's a Buddha

Today we left Broome! It feels like we have been here forever, and as beautiful as it is, it's time to move on; we are getting itchy feet. We were in no hurry today as we only had 220km's to travel to Derby, and we will be there for four days so there will be plenty of time to see everything.

Before we left, we took off into the shops for a couple of last minute things. I grabbed some beads from the 'Broome Bead Shop' for some shell art I will be undertaking over the next few weeks. And we had a couple of last minute gifts to grab from the Pearl Shop. There was also this amazing Crystal Buddha I was keen to visit.

At the 'Buddha Sanctuary' there is a 3.5 metre high crystal Buddha, that has been hand-carved from Philippines crystal. It's believed to be one of the largest crystal Buddha statues in the world. The Buddha’s position has been chosen to promote health and healing, and is situated in a serene garden surrounded by millions of crystals layed out at it's base. 

We finally pulled out at about 11am, the latest exit of a caravan park for us yet! The drive was uneventful, but the scenery was beautiful. The boabs are getting so huge, I'm hoping to get good photo's of some in Derby. The roads were also lined with an amazing display of wattle everywhere, oh and the odd cow on the side of the road, we are still passing through huge stations without fences. We also crossed the Fitzroy River today for the fist time.

Huge Boab Tree

We stopped for lunch at a roadhouse; making salad rolls and a cuppa in the van. It was into Derby not long after, and we found our site to be very spacious and shady. I think we will be quite comfortable here for a few days.

Derby Jetty

After dinner we went down to the Derby jetty as it was at low tide, the tides here are the biggest in the southern hemisphere. Also if you are lucky, it's the best vantage spot for seeing crocodiles. It was a very mild evening, and there were fisherman, tourists, and locals everywhere just enjoying the atmosphere. The tide was down at least 9mtrs from the top of the jetty, and without fencing on one side it was a little daunting. We held Scarlett's hand the whole way. We were lucky enough to see some fisherman pull in their crab pots, and they had a couple of mud crabs in each. I think in all they had pulled in

12 good sized ones this evening alone.

The sunset again was magic, I missed photographing most of it, just catching the last glimpse. Tomorrow evening I will be better prepared, I even have a special tip for a magic spot in which to photograph it.

Derby Jetty sunset