How to get to the Bungle Bungles

 Not many of us have been to the Bungle Bungles. There is a reason for that ... it's bloody hard to get there.

It's in the middle of the other nowhere, Uluru being the original middle of nowhere. Did you know it wasn't discovered by white man until the early 1980's? That's just mind boggling, it's not like it's a little place that if you blink you will miss it, the place is massive .... huge even but there you have it. 

We knew nothing about the place except pictures we have seen. I was married with my first child before it was discovered so it wasn't covered in Geography classes. But we are adventurers, we want to see what so many of us haven't.  In case you dont know the Bungles is a low mountain range that used to be an inland sea, when the water receded it left beautiful ringed formations that just take your breath away. 

The most amazing thing is even with it's isolation it has an awesome information centre. Air conditioned and everything. 

There is only one road in and out, 53 klms to the info centre where you need to register. 53 klms. Just 53 klms off the main highway. Fifty. Three. Kilometres. 

TWO HOURS later we arrived. That's 26.5 klms per hour. The speed limit was 90 kph, what a joke. It's a narrow dirt and sandy track with hairpin bends, dip and rises, water crossings, low hanging trees, trees on the track and boulders on the track. For example you get to the top of a rise then a sharp descend hairpin bend with a water crossing at the bottom which is hidden by trees until you are in it. It was the funniest track we have ever been on. 

We stayed 2 nights at the Bungles, our first full day was spent at Echidna Chasm. What a magical place. We had it all to ourselves. 200ft straight walls on both sides of the walking track that became narrower and narrower then opening up to a natural amphitheatre.  

We absolutely loved it... and we saw something that I thought I would never see. A Bower Bird nest. 

A beautiful ground structure decorated in the birds colour of choice to entice a female. The hours it must take to build and maintain. Our guy chose white so the bower was decorated with bottle tops, tissues, white stones, toilet paper and other assorted bits and pieces.  This sight did really make our day. 

The following day we set off to see Cathedral Gorge, a 4 klm walk. It started off as a beautiful lazy walk, views were spectacular.  The going was a little rough, loose stones, gravel and soft dry sand.  You know what it's like walking through soft sand, it's very tiring however we were enjoying the walk so much it wasn't really bothering us until the snake. 

I was in the lead walking thru a narrow path when I looked down to see a snake laying across the full width of the path about 6 inches from me. I was in mid step and just about to step on him when both snake and I froze. I let out a squeak, the snake raised it's head about a foot from the ground, stared me down then jumped sideways in the opposite direction. 

Didn't know snakes could jump sideways but I'm sure glad they can. I yelled "snake!" Martin pulled me behind him, people scattered, the snake disappeared and we all continued our journey like nothing had happened, except me. I was pretending I was fine but I was FREAKING OUT silently. I couldn't stop shaking and sweating, I knew I had to pass that same spot on our way out and that had me shaking even more. 

We made it to Catherdal Gorge and I'm sure it is a wonderful sight but I had lost interest. I took a couple of photos but I didn't want to be there, Martin could see my anxiety level was through the roof so we headed back to the car.

Now I think it was the shock of a near death experience (in my head it was) but with about 1.5 klms to go I was exhausted. Exhaustion like I have never known. Panting, shoulders slumped, head down, shuffling, headache and dizzy. My nose was dripping like a tap and I didn't care. My head was so hot I thought it would explode so I took my hat off, a really great thing to do in blazing heat. I was beyond thinking reasonably. The Captain is like "look at this! ", "take a photo of that" and all I could mutter was "no".  I couldn't muster the energy, what energy I had left was spent putting one foot infront of the other. Martin ended up having to constantly double back to encourage me to walk.

With 500 mts to go we had drank all our water and I had lost the will to live. Just let me lay on this hot sandy ground and let me sleep. We could see our car yet I doubted I would make it. While I was busy losing the will to live Martin was losing the will to save me, he could see the car too and with all his doubling back he had walked twice as far as me. 

Just when I was about to give up completely and Mart was looking a little worse for wear a young couple came up from behind us, power walking with smiles on their faces  "good morning" with all the cheeriness of 6 yr old girls at a birthday party. 

Now add embarrassment to my symptoms.

We made it back, obviously,  and after drinking several lts of water we were driving again.

We got the hell out of the Bungles.

Very slowly....

***** We have no idea what type of snake it was, may have been poisonous,  probably wasn't.  A kid around 10 yrs old said it was a Death Adder, others said a harmless Green Tree Snake. Back in Kununurra that night, eating dinner at the local pub I was a approached by a gentleman asking if I was the snake lady. It seems news travels faster than we do.