As retirees enjoying travel in the East Kimberley, we were definitely not going to miss out on visiting El Questro Wilderness Park. El Questro is privately owned and, in our view, has top notch tourism marketing. We have heard so much about El Questro. And often we have seen images on TV. We couldn’t imagine visiting the Kimberley and not going to El Questro.
Access to El Questro Home Station is via a 4WD, on a dirt road. When we visited in May there were still a couple of water crossings on the road. This influenced our decision to not camp at El Questro. Rather than drive our caravan through the water crossings we decided to leave our caravan in Kununurra. We decided on a self drive day trip to El Questro.
About El Questro
E; Questro is located in the East Kimberley. It is about 100 km from Kununurra. Derby is 624 km from the El Questro Station turn off. From both towns travel is via the Gibb River Road.
El Questro is a 700,000 acre wilderness park with sandstone ranges, gorges, permanent waterfalls, thermal springs and even a small amount of rainforest. This huge area is all about tourism. There are multiple El Questro tours and activities available. Indeed, El Questro is famous as a Kimberley holiday destination.
El Questro Day Trip
On our self drive day trip to El Questro we visited Emma Gorge, Zebedee Springs, Home Station, and Chamberlain Gorge. We knew we had a big day ahead of us. So we left Kununurra at 6.30am, as we wanted to see as much as we could. Plus, it was going to be a hot day. An early start was to our advantage.
Emma Gorge
Emma Gorge was the first section of the El Questro Wilderness Park we visited. We travelled out on the sealed section of the Gibb River Road. We only needed to drive a few kilometers on a gravel road before arriving at the Emma Gorge Resort. Here we found a restaurant, swimming pool, and safari style tent accommodation (with en-suites).
We arrived at Emma Gorge Resort by 7.30am, to begin our walk along Emma Gorge. This walk is basically flat. The degree of difficulty increased with the need to continually walk over large rocks all along the river bed. Towards the end, the walk became even a little more difficult.
We did not pass anyone as we walked along. When we arrived at the Emma Gorge waterfall we found another couple. Fortunately, they left soon after we arrived. We were lucky to have the waterfall all to ourselves. We then enjoyed a quick swim.
On the return walk we passed about fifty people walking towards the waterfall. We were so pleased we decided to start our walk early.
Zebedee Springs
We drove on from Emma Gorge to Zebedee Springs, which took us just under ½ an hour.
Zebedee Springs is again in the El Questro Wilderness Park.
Zebedee Springs are an easy 10 minute walk from the car park. We found lush vegetation surrounding the thermal pools. It’s like a little oasis in the surrounding arid landscape.
At Zebedee Springs we found a series of small, natural thermal pools. The water in Zebedee Springs remains between 28 – 32 degrees all year. Initially, the water felt rather hot. But once we settled into the water, we adjusted to the temperature. We enjoyed relaxing in the thermal pool and talking to other retirees travelling around Australia.
El Questro strives to conserve the natural beauty of the area by limiting access to the thermal springs. Zebedee Springs is closed to the public by 12md every day.
El Questro Home Station
After leaving Zebedee Springs we drove on to El Questro Home Station. The road was better than we expected. The water crossings were no real problem. Yet, we agreed, the last water crossing was a little too deep to take our caravan across. So, in the end, we were pleased we did not bring our caravan out to El Questro.
We found Home Station to be a hive of activity. There were far more people at El Questro than we expected. Staff were busy booking various El Questro tours. Many people were camping, others were eating at the cafe. We happily checked out the El Questro Home Station facilities:
- The Station Store
- Swinging Arm Bar
- Swimming Hole
- Steakhouse Restaurant
El Questro Steakhouse Restaurant
We chose to eat lunch at Steakhouse Restaurant. But, have a guess what? We didn’t eat steak.
It was a hot day, and sitting on the open verandah was lovely. Everyone in the restaurant seemed to be in holiday mode. People were swimming and sun bathing at the swimming hole below the restaurant. The food was great and we really enjoyed our leisurely lunch.
Chamberlain Gorge Cruise
After lunch we went on a Chamberlain Gorge Cruise. This 3km cruise (each way) was lovely and relaxing. Passengers enjoyed sparkling wine and fresh fruit while taking in the scenery.
People really enjoyed feeding fish. We saw a variety of fish, including a couple of Barramundi and numerous Seven Spotted Archer Fish. These small fish spat water at people when they were feeding them. They certainly were a hit with passengers on the cruise.
But the real highlight of the cruise is the towering cliffs along the gorge.
We have been on many gorge cruises in recent times. While we would say the Gorge is pretty, we found it to be the least spectacular of all the gorges we have seen. Even so, we must say we enjoyed the cruise.
As we said previously, our visit to El Questro was only for one day. There is a much wider variety of activities to be enjoyed at El Questro:
- Bush walking
- Guided gorge walks
- Self guided 4WD tracks
- Lookout points
- swimming holes
- Horse riding
- Bird watching
- Scenic helicopter flights
- Fishing tours
- River cruises
- Boat Hire
El Questro Accommodation options:
The Homestead – (Luxury)
Main Station – Lodge style bungalows on the Pentacost River.
Camp ground – general and private camp-sites
Emma Gorge – Lodge style accommodation, tented cabins
We were expecting to see the Homestead at El Questro. We were a little disappointed, as we only gained a glimpse from the cruise boat. Yet, we guess if you were paying the luxury prices to stay at the Homestead, you wouldn’t want hoards of tourists checking out where you are staying.
Our impression of El Questro
For retirees enjoying travel, El Questro is not cheap. Firstly, everyone entering El Questro must pay a $12.00 day pass. Then, add camp or accommodation fees, plus any tours, and the cost can certainly add up.
Like many other areas in the Kimberley, El Questro has wonderful scenery. For us, Emma Gorge and Zebedee Springs were the highlights.
We wouldn’t say El Questro is the highlight of our Kimberley visit. It’s true to say we didn’t see all El Questro has to offer. Yet, we have seen other areas in the Kimberley we believe to be more stunning than what we saw at El Questro.
El Questro is so well known, it has a reputation and aura about it. If we missed visiting El Questro, I am certain we would have regretted not visiting. We were really glad we went on our day trip. And we must say we enjoyed a really great day.
If you are unable to drive, consider booking on an El Questro Day Tour at the Kununurra Visitor Centre.
If you visit the Kimberley we have no hesitation in recommending a visit to El Questro. We only gained a glimpse of El Questro and we would have liked to have seen more.
Have you visited El Questro. If so, what was your experience? We’d love to hear your thoughts?
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Happy and safe travels
From Estelle and Greg – Retirees Enjoying Travel