Tuesday 11^th August 2020: A big walk along Cable Beach this morning with the tide still going out – the width of the beach is then amazing. Coffee at The Zookeeper Store, outside under the shade sails with a little bridge over a pond with gold-fish and water lilies.

John and I are doing a pick-up tour this arvo which takes us to the Bird Sanctuary, the Crocodile Farm and we call at Matso’s Bar and Brewery. Apparently the Gage Road Brewery has recently purchased Matso’s meaning their goods are now going Australia wide. They have a new beer called ‘Hard Melon’ – actually watermelon- and we are given a sample of this, plus their mango beer and ginger beer – I must admit I didn’t like any of them, too fizzy. 

The Bird Sanctuary started in 2008 with the help of Robert Alistair McAlpine a British investor who is credited with transforming Broome from a pearling centre and remote coastal town into a modern tourism marvel. He saved the Sun Picture Theatre and built the Cable Beach Resort. Back to the birds, the Sanctuary opened in 2013 to the public and now houses over 600 birds and also has a recent addition for children of ‘The Farmyard Cuddly Animal Farm’ which has rabbits, goats, alpacas, miniature horses etc.

Next we go to the Malcolm Douglas Crocodile Park which is now 15km out of town and overseen by his widow Val who is about to turn 80. Malcolm was killed in a car accident in 2010. This a huge operation now with a very large number of crocodiles in many different pools of various sizes.  We see the Salties first which have all been reared here and there's 70 males plus a few females in this large pool, then the US alligators which are smaller and less aggressive, the freshwater crocs which are much smaller and then the rogue ones that have been brought here to save them from being destroyed because they have become a problem in their home habitat. They have their own pools, sometimes with their female. We have a very informative part indigenous guide who has a bucket of food, so we have that experience of the crocs jumping up as he drops the food above them. They can look like logs, but don’t be fooled, they can certainly move when they want to and can be aggressive towards each other. To finish off the ‘babies’ are brought out for a hold and photo shoot. They are quite soft and you can feel their little heart beating on your hand. 

Wednesday 12^th August 2020: John and I caught the bus to Chinatown today and did a day of walking and looking. Marg and Mark walked to Gantheaume Point and back – a huge walk. Another balmy night in paradise.