Broome, Australia
Day 61 Broome, Australia
On Google Earth, you’ll see that it is a straight shot across the Indian Ocean from Bali to the NW coast of Australia to the small-ish town of Broome, population of almost 15,000. Believe it or not, Broome
shares a history with Muscatine, IA: making buttons from shells. Beginning in the 1880s, the town
gained fame by sending helmeted people into ocean depths, tethered only by a hose for oxygen and a
rope for signaling when oxygen is needed. Nobody knew about “the bends” back then nor how to
decompress, so there are existing cemeteries in Broome for the many Japanese and Chinese who gave
their lives for the industry. Pearls were a side-effect until it was discovered that they, too, could be
On Google Earth, you’ll see that it is a straight shot across the Indian Ocean from Bali to the NW coast of Australia to the small-ish town of Broome, population of almost 15,000. Believe it or not, Broome
shares a history with Muscatine, IA: making buttons from shells. Beginning in the 1880s, the town
gained fame by sending helmeted people into ocean depths, tethered only by a hose for oxygen and a
rope for signaling when oxygen is needed. Nobody knew about “the bends” back then nor how to
decompress, so there are existing cemeteries in Broome for the many Japanese and Chinese who gave
their lives for the industry. Pearls were a side-effect until it was discovered that they, too, could be
lucrative. Now there is a thriving cultured pearl industry here.
Yes, there is a tourist emphasis here but not just pearls. Cable Beach is well known by serious beach
enthusiasts. Named for an undersea telegraph cable laid between Australia and Indonesia in 1889, the
beach has two added features besides the stunning topography: wild camels who come out at dawn and
sunset (much smarter than humans) and dinosaur footprints dating back millions of years. Jerry’s fun
shirt will highlight the camels’ presence even though we didn’t see them ourselves. In fact, the temps
were in upper 80s with severe sun and we couldn’t fathom a beach day. Instead, we went shopping and
discovering for ourselves today.
beach has two added features besides the stunning topography: wild camels who come out at dawn and
sunset (much smarter than humans) and dinosaur footprints dating back millions of years. Jerry’s fun
shirt will highlight the camels’ presence even though we didn’t see them ourselves. In fact, the temps
were in upper 80s with severe sun and we couldn’t fathom a beach day. Instead, we went shopping and
discovering for ourselves today.
We spent 4 weeks driving around eastern Australia and the interior highlights about 20 years ago.
Seeing the bright red (Colorado) rocks on the coastline reminded us of the stunning colors of this unique country. Our cruise stops all along the western coast of Australia, and therefore completing most of our circumference of this large continent. Enjoy the photos. There are more to come in these next three weeks.
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