DESCRIPTION
This adventure-packed day showcases the Punamii-unpuu Trail, spectacular ancient rock paintings and the iconic Mitchell Falls. Departing Kununurra, you track to the Cockburn Ranges, along the Pentecost River and onwards to the Mitchell Plateau for an 8am landing.
Meet your local Aboriginal guide as you disembark the plane and head off in our 4WDs down an eye-catching bush track surrounded by jurrasic Livistona Estonii palms, to the Mertens campground: the start of the 4.5-kilometre Punamii-unpuu Hiking Trail.
We check in to ours heli’s before enjoying a tea, coffee, damper and pastries, your local Kingfisher guide will help you onto the helicopters and fly with you up to the top of the falls as you take an exhilarating helicopter ride over the Falls, looping in a figure of 8 to get a view of both Big Mertens and the Mitchell Falls before landing at the top.
Your guide will take you to 2 spectacular vantage points to watch the magnificent Mitchell Falls in flow. We will then head off across the Mitchell River toward Big Mertens Falls with a stop at Dungalilly (a lily lagoon) along the way. At Big Mertens Falls we can get right up close to the edge but be careful, its an 80m drop. Your guide will show you the best vantage point to see the falls with a view into the gorge below.
Continuing on the trail we head for a swimming and snack stop across from the rock art called the Battle Scene. This spectacular gallery depicts a momentous occasion for local people to the area and your Aboriginal guide will share this story with you, and other interpretations of this ancient art.
We continue the trek to Little Mertens Falls. Be inspired and humbled by the mysterious, ancient rock art found beneath the falls, featuring the mythical Gwion Gwion spirit figures, again to be with an Aboriginal guide from the North East Kimberley will give you such a depth of perspective on the art and its purpose. There is also a beautiful swimming hole to enjoy your lunch, relax and swim.
We climb to the top of the Little Merten falls with a view back out along the country we’ve just traversed before following the creek bed and heading into campgrounds. We then drive back to the airfield for a well-earned cold beer, wine or juice and local WA cheese board at the international lounge, before the homeward flight. Your guide will farewell you – friendships will have been made.
On the flight back you track over the Port Wanderer bay then track across country via the Cambridge Gulf, Wyndham along the Lower Ord into the Ord Stage Two area and over Ivanhoe crossing before landing at the airstrip as the sun is setting.
We can arrange pick-ups and drop-offs from El Questro/ Emma Gorge/Home Valley/Ellenbrae/Wyndham.
Please bring wet shoes or a spare pair of socks to cross the Mitchell river and not slip, please wear sensible walking shoes or boots. Bring hat towel sunscreen and bathers . We provide a backpack with trail snacks, lunch and a frozen fruitbox + 1 litre of cold water for you to carry on the trail. Our guides carry another 10 litres on them with their first aide gear.
