Palm Lake – Kununurra

Wednesday 30/7/08
Day 51
Palm Lake – Kununurra
Arrived in Kununurra late in the day after travelling through Warmun. Its really hot and dry. Roads are atrocious as we found out after getting hit by a rock by a 4WD and caravan going the other direction, resulting in a broken windscreen. The edges are missing and all the bridges are single lanes (and there are many of them).

You may have seen or heard about the Boab Tree that was a gift from the traditional owners of Warmun to the people of Perth that recently arrived in Perth after a 6 day trip on the back of a truck. This was removed from part of the road works in order to make way for the upgraded roads.

The government is just starting the $92 million upgrade of hopefully all the roads, and a couple of the worst creek bed crossings (low dips into the creek that have been concreted, but bits wash away every year during the wet season, leaving them pitted and falling apart.

We were listening to a great story about it on the radio as we were driving through it. The contractor is paying mining company comparable rates, and has built brand new dongas at Mabel Downs Station and is offering foxtel and high speed internet as further incentives’ to get workers out to this remote location to work.

See pics etc and the whole story at http://www.abc.net.au/rural/content/2008/s2316400.htm