I decided that during our recent cruise of the Kimberley coastline I’d aim for a limerick a day, in a different approach to keeping a diary. Well this kind of blew out to ‘a few limericks a day’. When one of the passengers on board found out what I was doing she dobbed me in for a daily reading, and thus “Kimberley Cruisin’, in limericks” was born. Here’s a selection and I’ve included a few photos that try and capture the moment.

The anticipation was high,
As we headed up north in the sky,
‘Twas the trip that for most,
Round the Kimberley Coast,
For ten days on a cruise we’d get by.

The morning in Darwin was bright,
The wind had died off over night,
“What a great day to sail”,
The crew members did hail,
As we boarded our cruise with delight.

The sea on day one was quite rough,
Some people on board found it tough,
Apply named on the chart,
The gulf called “Blown Apart”,
By the crossing we’d all had enough.

The crew they had worked here a while,
And clearly had jokes all on file,
Especially that Dave,
Who said how to behave,
When encountering a crocodile.

Kristy’s talk introduced all,
To the sites of the great Mitchell Fall,
Her accent was rich,
From straight over the ditch,
Lacking typical Australian drawl.

Nathan was captain aboard,
His stories, not to be ignored,
He told of his fate,
When he last crossed Bass Strait,
And not one at the table was bored.

As we pulled into Koolama Bay,
We knew we’d be treated this day,
As the gorges were long,
And we saw some dugong!
Under King George Falls we then did play.

The Gwion was known as Bradshaw,
Of the age, no one can be sure,
Echidnas and fish,
And a wombat…I wish,
Are depicted on all the rock walls.

The food on the Coral was great,
We ate, and we ate, and we ate,
If we kept up the feed,
At such a great speed,
I’m not sure we’d fit through the gate!

The engine room way down below,
Has all things to make this ship go,
But ladies beware,
As you head down the stair,
Or you’ll give us the Marilyn Monroe

A chopper was the way to go,
For what was up next in the show,
The flight that for most,
Took us over the coast,
Right up on to the Mitchell Plateau.

Shae did much more than the dishes,
Just give her a handline, she fishes,
On cast number two,
Her dreams they came true,
A whopping great queenfish, delicious!

With BBQ feast underway,
And five different meats on display,
With steak, lamb and roo,
And buffalo too,
And the queenfish we’d caught just that day.

On Bigge Island we did some cavin’
As we’d heard that this place was a haven,
His tracks were about,
But he failed to come out,
The monjon, lets hope they can save ‘im.

As King brought his ship to careen,
His crew, no doubt far less than keen,
He asked them to stab,
In that big old boab,
“Mermaid”, and it still can be seen.

Up the Prince Regent we flew,
Excitement, like King’s men, it grew,
With the sound that it made,
That iconic cascade,
Oh what a spectacular view!

The morning began at pre-dawn,
Out looking for crocs with a yawn,
Their eyes shone out bright,
As they glared at the light,
And their teeth on display to adorn.

It’s a secretive bird in this tale,
That is tough for a twitcher to nail,
A long yellow bill,
And a trumpeting shrill,
In the mangroves, the large Chestnut Rail.

The sunsets were much to behold,
I’m not sure the views could get old,
For the cliffs to our right,
Changing colour with light,
The Kimberley, I reckon I’m sold!

The hike up the rocks of Raft Point,
For rock art, worth the odd sore joint,
Some customs seemed odd,
Like a split through the rod,
The elders pathway to annoint.

The coral reef talk was a squeal,
As the listeners digested their meal,
For as Kristy talked spores,
The room echoed with snores,
And it sounded like snorkelling, for real.

There’s a reef off the Kimberley Coast,
When you visit is sure to play host,
To turtles that ride,
Down a six metre tide,
Montgomery, lets all raise a toast.

These falls aren’t upright, they lie down,
I can see the odd curious frown,
With the huge tidal flush,
And an almighty rush,
Makes the most unique falls in this town.

The rocky cliff faces we saw,
Were shaped back in times long before,
The layers were moulded,
They were pushed up and folded,
It’s safe to say all were in awe!

Jo was in charge of Explorer,
Instructions, no one would ignore ‘er,
She knew all this land,
Like the back of her hand,
And for this we all had to adore her.

‘Bout the crew on board we all do rave,
They all know the way to behave,
But as shifts almost closed,
Odd behaviours exposed,
Especially that host of ours, Dave

They call them the labs of the sea,
They’re as placid as placid can be,
On the back deck this beast,
Gets a fresh hand fed feast,
Those Tawneys, they’re something to see.

On this cruising game we are newbies,
Unlike some onboard with their rubies,
But on Lacipedes,
All will satify needs,
As the cruise will be swarmed by Brown Boobies.

Broome must be next port of call,
Ten days, kinda seemed rather small,
I hope that my prose,
Will be one day…. who knows,
A Kimberley tale for you all.