More from El Questro

Last night

The International Space Station went past at 6.30 pm. We were alerted by Wally, a retired American pilot who has an alarm set on his phone to remind him every day. The night sky is very visible out here with no light pollution.

We enjoyed another gourmet dinner cooked by Gools: Moroccan chicken w. blackcurrants in the sauce (ie actual fruits not dried currants). It was cooked in foil in camp ovens over an open fire:

Gools had seen this type of oven in India and ordered them specially.

Chamberlain Gorge Cruise

The Chamberlain flows into the Pentecost River. We had a 1.5 hour cruise through the gorge, with towering cliffs on both sides. We went upstream for half an hour, then stopped for a while before turning round. At the break, we had a great time feeding the Archer Fish with pellets. Archer Fish spit at you as a form of hunting. They have a terrific aim and can produce 4 spits in quick succession. They are hoping to dislodge insects which they can eat: a strange form of hunting! We enjoyed some Bucks Fizz and a platter of fresh fruit. The Archer Fish were brilliant at hitting the empty plastic cups and pieces of watermelon when we were leaning over the side. There was much hilarity as people got sprayed with water. Some Black Bream joined in the feeding frenzy, as well as some big ugly catfish and the odd Barramundi who were not interested in the pellets.

The Archer Fish are very pretty swimming close to the boat. The sun is sparkling on the spit coming out of their mouth.

Here the other fish are getting in on the act.

Towering cliffs with the odd rock wallaby peering out from the crevices.

Another croc hiding from us behind the trees. He seems to be resting his head on a rock.

This is the only view we got of the exclusive accommodation. We could see it in the distance as we returned from the Chamberlain Gorge cruise.

Emma Gorge

In the afternoon our bus transported us to Emma Gorge Resort. When I discovered that there was a swimming pool, I decided that this was a better option that a hot truck up the gorge, no matter how spectacular it was. These gorge walks are better attempted early in the day. The fact that we had to do the trip in reverse order has really messed up our schedule. There were a number of optional extras on the tour, such as horse riding, birdwatching and helicopter flights which all had to be fitted in at different times.

After a swim, it’s about time for an ice cream!




Ladies of leisure!