The Kimberley coast between Broome and Wyndham is 1,000 miles of rock, mangrove, waterfall and tide, with almost no roads, no marinas, few settlements and a tidal range that reaches 10 m at Broome and 11 m at Derby. Streams of 8 to 10 knots run through passages between islands; the Horizontal Falls are tidal waterfalls; anchorages must be chosen for the range and the reversing stream; and saltwater crocodiles rule the water. Broome's Roebuck Bay has moorings and a town; Derby's jetty stands high and dry at low water; the cruising season is the dry, May to October, between the cyclones. Expedition charter vessels and a handful of private yachts sail the coast each year, and the skippers who bring them through have the most refined tidal judgement in Australia. It is not a place to learn; it is a place a Yachtmaster earns the right to go.
The waters
Broome and Roebuck Bay
A shallow bay with moorings off the town, a port at the wharf and a 10 m range that empties the bay to mud for miles. Gantheaume Point and Cable Beach face the ocean.
King Sound and Derby
A vast funnel with the largest tides in Australia, streams that run like rivers and the Buccaneer Archipelago at its mouth, where the Horizontal Falls are.
The Buccaneer and Bonaparte archipelagos
Hundreds of islands, tidal passages, waterfalls and anchorages that change character with every tide; Yampi Sound, Talbot Bay, Cape Leveque.
The north Kimberley and Wyndham
The Prince Regent River, the Mitchell River, the Berkeley River and the Cambridge Gulf to Wyndham: as remote as Australia gets.
Training here
No formal cruising-scheme training centres operate here; skills are gained on expedition charter vessels and private yachts. Yachtmasters working on Kimberley expedition vessels hold AMSA certificates and learn the coast under experienced masters.
What an exam here looks like
Passages for the logbook
| Passage | Miles | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Broome to Cape Leveque | 120 | North along the Dampier Peninsula; timed on the tide. |
| Cape Leveque to Yampi Sound | 60 | Into the Buccaneer Archipelago; 8-knot streams. |
| Broome to Darwin | 800 | The full Kimberley coast; two to three weeks with anchorages. |
| Broome to Bali | 900 | An Indian Ocean departure. |
Conditions
| Tides | Semi-diurnal, range 9 to 10 m at Broome and up to 11 m at Derby. Streams of 6 to 10 knots in the passages; slack water lasts minutes. |
|---|---|
| Weather | Dry season (May to October): south-easterly trades, clear skies, cool nights. Wet season (November to April): monsoon, storms and cyclones; the coast is closed to most vessels. |
| Facilities and rescue | Broome Port and the moorings in Roebuck Bay; Derby’s jetty; no marinas on the Kimberley coast; Volunteer Sea Rescue at Broome. |
Boat licence
Questions about Broome and the Kimberley
Can a private yacht cruise the Kimberley?
Yes, with experience, self-sufficiency, careful tidal planning, permits for Aboriginal land where required and a healthy respect for crocodiles. Many cruising yachts do it between Darwin and Broome in the dry season.