TURBO PLUS
Our time here in Kununurra has been exceptionally pleasant this year and for more reasons than the warm weather and barramundi action. Of course, there is always a lead up to every story, so here it is. It all started when we were having Xmas drinks one afternoon at Gracetown with a friend, Caroline De Mori, at her newly built Gracetown home. Caroline has been a long time friend and we first crossed paths when she assisted me in my role as spokesperson for the Save Gracetown campaign years ago. Caroline was then directing a public relations company, assisted me with a protest rally against a proposed tourist development alongside the Gracetown oval and provided me with valuable advice and strategies, especially in regard to handling the media. I soon realised that Caroline was ‘directing’ lots of organisations and one of these was the EON Foundation, who, in their own words on their website, ‘build edible gardens in remote Indigenous schools and communities for a secure supply of fresh food, and partner with them to deliver a hands-on practical gardening, nutrition education, cooking and hygiene program’. Great results are being achieved here, in often remote and difficult circumstances.
So, during her travels throughout the Kimberley coordinating these programs, we would occasionally meet up in Broome or Kununurra. One of Caroline’s Kununurra connections, Ann Ward, was at her Gracetown house the day we were having drinks and the conversation turned to the north west, fishing, hiking and adventure stories. It soon became obvious I was way out of my league here, as Ann’s ‘resume’ was mind boggling. Briefly, she has completed nine Antarctic seasons, is a team member with Aurora Expeditions, has worked in the Arctic and Himalaya, both as a doctor and trek leader to remote areas, was expedition doctor for a successful trip to Mt Everest and has been a practising doctor for over 25 years, most of this time spent working in remote communities. The Xmas chat was our first meeting and when I mentioned that we would be in Kununurra around July and August, Ann asked if we would be interested in house minding her place, as this period would coincide with her next Arctic Expedition. After three months in caravan parks, we were certainly keen and so plans were put in place. When we arrived in Kununurra, Ann was just returning from a gruelling five day bush trek in the Carboyd Ranges, all self sufficient with back packs, food, etc and had less than 48 hours turnaround before flying out for the Arctic trip. I nickname some of my RST clients ‘turbo’ when they rush things a little in the boat, but Ann was turbo plus, full of energy and a wealth of knowledge, with less than two days for me to extract as much as possible from her. Better still, her place is situated on 5 acres out of town, complete with native gardens, vege patch brimming with produce, bird and wild life everywhere, eight chooks and the final treat is a lap pool. Yep, you heard me, for six weeks we have had our own lap pool. So there you have it, exceptionally pleasant to say the least! The attached photo shows a wild peacock roaming around the gardens today!
To answer last week’s question, when fishing for barramundi you are only permitted to use one rod or handline. This week’s question is from a sailing mate, “Why would a sailor tack into a harbor, rather than sail straight in?”
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