Wundargoodie, Kimberley WA
Colin Morgan and his family visit remote communities in the Kimberley so visitors can share a campfire and Creation stories.
A rockpool on the El Questro station in far northwest WA.
Rock art in northern WA is famed for its antiquity, some dating back 50,000 years.
Australian Traveller’s Great Australian Aboriginal Experiences takes in the Wundargoodie Aboriginal Safaris in WA’s Kimberley Region.
Wundargoodie Aboriginal Safaris
The Kimberley Region, Western Australia
“In the Kimberley it’s best to come with no expectations.” says Colin Morgan of Wundargoodie Aboriginal Safaris. “Things work in a more subtle way out here. Take each day as it comes and enjoy.”
There’s an X-factor about The Kimberley that defies explanation. Perhaps it’s something to do with the Aboriginal history dating back 50,000 years, or the remarkable landscape that stops your heart at every turn of the road. Travelling here is experiential, spiritual, without compromise. “All you have to do is bring a change of clothes. There’s no itineraries, no watches.”
Colin and his family own the safari company. “We’re Aboriginal people and no-one can tell our stories better than we can,” says Colin, passionate about his mission to introduce visitors to their culture. “Some people have never met an Aboriginal person before. After a few days they begin to ask the real questions, and I give them real answers. I don’t beat around the bush.”
Going bush with Wundargoodie is an off-road experience that treks into the most remote locations in this northwest Australian wilderness, visiting Aboriginal communities, farming outstations, El Questro, Gibb River, Windjana Tunnel and the rarely seen King George Falls where the mystical Python Pool and its Gin Gin (Bradshaw) rock art is guaranteed to astound.
“We tailor our tours to suit the desires of our guests,” says Maria Morgan, Colin’s wife. “There are no set tours. We want you to find yourself in this land.” There are few better ways to do that than lying on a swag under a blanket of stars, listening to Colin’s Creation stories – stories that are written in the skies themselves.
The entire Morgan family welcome guests warmly, embracing each person into their culture. “What gets me going every year is showing people my country and my culture,” says Colin, who is of the Weedji and Gija clans of the East Kimberley. “And watching them appreciate what they’re seeing. This is bridging the gap.”
A Wundargoodie tour can be as short as five days or as long as three weeks. You’ll swim in isolated gorges, break bread with Aboriginal people in their communities, carve boomerangs, trace footprints that date back 7000 years, and come away with a spiritual connection to the Kimberley and its people.
DETAILS // Wundargoodie Aboriginal Safaris
Located in Wyndham, Western Australia, with tours operating between April and September each year.
Phone // (+61) 8 9161 1145
Email // wundargoodie2@bigpond.com
Website // www.waitoc.com/wunan.asp
