Located about 100km from Kununurra in East Kimberley, EL Questro is a popular destination for anyone travelling on the Gibb River Road, as well as for many more tourists entering from the east of Western Australia. This 700,000 acre private property is home to some amazing gorges, thermal springs, adventurous drives, hiking trails and dramatic lookouts. We spent 3 nights there which was not enough to see everything this amazing place has to offer. Below are the places we have visited (and we’ll be back in the future to see and experience the rest!).
Branko’s Lookout
Branko’s Lookout is 10km from El Questro Station. Somewhat moderate to difficult 4WD only track crosses Chamberlain River, which is wide and very rocky. It takes a few minutes just to cross the river itself. Going slow, with the right tyre pressure and gear selection, it is a challenging but actually very fun drive.
The scenery on both sides, as you go through the crossing, is quite beautiful. Branko’s Lookout is the highest lookout on El Questro property. The climb to the summit is steep and the track is narrow (there are pockets to go to, if there is an oncoming traffic).
If the drive to the Lookout is fun, the view from the Lookout is spectacular beyond words. Visiting this place just before sunset is the best. Then you can see sun casting its rays onto the Cockburn Range with the S-curve of the Pentecost River below.
The river, and Branko’s Lookout in particular, is a popular place to spot salt water crocodiles. Sure enough, we did see a few of them there.
Pigeon Hole Lookout
Pigeon Hole Lookout is 5,5km drive from El Questro station and is less challenging than Branko’s Lookout. There is a small river crossing on the way to the lookout. After that, it is quite an easy drive all the way up, with the steep ascent at the very end of the track.
The time when the sun goes down is quite magical.
This is when the sun, just behind the horizon line, casts an array of colours onto the sky, which get reflected on the surface. The colours change rapidly from blue, to orange, to red, pink, making it one of the best times to take scenic photos.
When there are a lot of vehicles driving through the place on a dirt road, the dust stays up in the air for a while. In the dusk it creates a spooky feeling of being in a fairy tale.
Amalia Gorge
Amalia Gorge is a 3,4km return, hiking trail in El Questro. It is one of the less popular gorges, probably, due to the fact that the water is not flowing in dry season.
We found the track challenging due to a couple of rock-climbing places (“squeeze and climb”). One of them has now a chain installed to help you balance. While the other is still pretty much an exercise in aerobics where you have to coordinate where you put your feet and hands. It could be tricky for elderly people or if you are carrying a backpack which tends to pull you backwards 😊. We remembered that trail as a challenge to overcome.
Still we had a very enjoyable experience. The half way pool was pretty and the whole trail was quite picturesque.
Zebedee Springs
Zebedee Springs is a true oasis on the Gibb River Road. Located within El Questro, it is the easiest and shortest hiking trail on their property (only 600m return) to a series of rocky thermal pools. The thermal spring comes from a permanent supply of water deep within the earth. The water temperature is -28-32 degrees C all year round, which makes it a very pleasant and relaxing place to be, whether the weather is hot or cold. What is interesting about the trail itself is that during such a short distance, the vegetation changes from Savannah Woodland forest to Livistona Palms forest.
Zebedee Springs is only open to public from 7am to 12pm. We expected this to a super busy place during the school holidays in July. However, there are a number of rock pools and there might be one empty just for you (or for us, in our experience), especially if you climb higher.
Emma Gorge
Emma Gorge is the most spectacular of all gorges we visited. As it is on the Gibb River Road itself, there is a separate post about it, which you can read here.
