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In 1990 Chris Nisbet towed his boat from Melbourne to Broome to compete in the Broome's Billfish Classic which this year (2018) is celebrating its 30th anniversary. Would you travel 5,200kms to go fishing? Chris Nisbet did and here's his story.
For 39 years Mike "Swindle" Windle has enjoyed the ups and downs of his profession as a bookmaker.
It was 1977, I was just back from a year overseas and ....
All of the elements of the show seem to weave together to create a tapestry which is quintessentially 'Broome'.
Jack & Vicki Burton came to the Kimberley in the mid 80s.
I thought it was about time I went back to being a vet. I caught up with Dave Morrell, the local veterinarian to see if he had some work and though he had nothing at the time he asked where I was staying.
Last year I went to the Mud and Saltwater Film Festival held in Broome. I was fascinated by the images I saw of our Wet Season storms. Most people visit during the Dry and miss out on the electrifying storms of the Wet Season. Richard Young was the photographer and I was curious to find out more about his unusual passion.
Broome should be entered into the Guinness Book of Records for the number of roundabouts in such a small area. Often I drive a couple of times around the roundabout to see the different plants, trees and the design. The other day I noticed a new roundabout being finished off and it really looked interesting. I just had to stop and see what was happening.
For 22 years Rini has been doing the night shift in Broome. She settles her little van on the tarmac near Wings Chinese Restaurant in Napier Terrace and waits for the night owls to appear. Year round, from Thursday to Saturday, she will be there - the only time she stays home is if it's raining or if there's a cyclone brewing.
Find out about the Bardi Jawi Rangers and their work up the Dampier Peninsula.
I know nothing about football (yes I am an Aussie) so I thought my education was lacking as I know the footy season in Broome is very popular.
Everyone needs to read this story about Pat Duxbury, an amazing woman who grew up in Broome in the 1930s. Pat was sent away to boarding school in 1942, just before the WWII bombing of Broome. Broome, at the time, was a male-dominated society and the few white women in town were mainly school teachers, nurses, waitresses and hotel workers. It was depression time and Pat's mother, Lila, and her friend had come up from down south to work.
n 1981, Roebuck Bay and its vast numbers of migratory shorebirds were discovered by researchers. Annual expeditions by the Australasian Wader Study Group were launched in order to learn more about these birds.
The race course is in an excellent location, surrounded by the Indian Ocean
I'm almost half way through a two week tour of Beijing, China as part of a massage study...
The Broome Ukulele Band started in January 2012 and swelled to over 20 players
Maurice (Mo) Gower was the Assistant Wharfinger and in 1970 was sent to Perth to do a fire training course. At the end of the course Mo asked the instructor who they should call if they ever had a fire at the wharf in Broome. The instructor told him that they should call the local fire brigade.
Wasamaba has become a regular favourite amongst Broome locals, they are colourful, fun, loud and a joyful community group performing at events during the year. Under the guidance of their musical directory Dan Bowtell, they are a group of drummers and percussionists in creative costumers who brighten up our lives.
Julie & Geoff Weguelin moved to Broome in 2003.
Gwen Jones is a FIFO midwife in the Kimberley and beyond. She has retired but keeps getting pulled back to work.
The Kimberley is famous for its rodeo circuit (pronounced rowdeeoh) that runs from Kununurra, Halls Creek, Fitzroy Crossing to Derby and Broome (which is lucky to have the Broome Rodeo and the Saltwater Rhythm & Ride Rodeo). What I did not know until recently is that they have these amazing campdrafting competitions where the horse is the hero. If you are not into the bulls and bucking horses, go watch the campdrafting. It is truly a genuine Australian sport because nowhere else in the world will you see campdrafting.
In 1992 a handful of people with a passion for Opera thought it would be wonderful to bring Opera to Broome.
Yindi Newman lives in a house in Broome that was inspired by the houses on Cockatoo Island. It was on Cockatoo where she met her husband Pedro who had already built that house. This is not a love story about two people; it's a story about flying
In 2008 the Sailmaker's Shed - an old, decrepit shack - received a demolition order .....
This group of Indigenous women are crazy about textiles and textile design.
The Big Issue magazine is a fortnightly, independent magazine that is sold on the streets by homeless, marginalised and disadvantage people.
Adam Morrow is a modern day pearl diver in Broome. Find out about his working day.
Milliner Felicity Brown is an unassuming fashion queen.
The most beautiful lady of the Australian seas has to be mother Dugong. She has a large buxom figure, tipping the scales at 450kg of pure curvy softness. Add to this exquisite feminine form a pair of large juicy lips and sultry eyes and we have a lady irresistible to men and male Dugong alike.
'I was always going to the Writers Festival in Perth, I loved it, hearing people talk about their work, it was kind of my nerdy English Lit desire coming to the fore. I was the Chairperson of Backroom Press, in 2012 a small volunteer run publishing house in Broome and it was the International Year of Reading, so it seemed having a writers festival in Broome that year felt like the perfect storm idea. It was just going to be for the one year, we had no funding and thought just a writers dinner would do, invite Peter Docker an actor and writer who lived in Broome, and the one event grew into the writer's festival,' says Sudha
When our dog, Banu departed this world, we vacuumed up all the dog hair, donated the doggy beds, and bits and pieces to SAFE (Saving Animals from Euthanasia), and thought that is it! Our house was empty, lonely, quiet, and clean! No more trusted friend greeting us at the front door, walks in the morning and evening, and no more hugs.
In 2012 Broome artist Claire Beausein decided to branch out and further develop her skills
Imagine the huge sense of relief you would feel, if in trouble at sea, as a rescue boat approaches to give you a hand. Broome Sea Rescue receives over 60 calls for help each year from people who are in trouble on the water. Problems range from a small fuel issue to fatal accidents, and everything in between. It is all run by volunteers.
We take our holidays during the Tropical Wet Season when the garden turns into a jungle and before you know it, the weeds are monsters, the menacing cyclones linger off the coast, and the thunderhead clouds are the first sign of trouble. It is comforting to know that you have someone who can batten down the hatches against the strong winds and rain and look after your home and possessions.
To me, there is nothing more iconically Australian than a Surf Life Saver.
Incredible Edible is a community initiative that aims to increase access to locally grown food, share knowledge and skills and bring people together.
Having lived in Broome for over 20 years you begin to gain a growing appreciation....
Sue and Jack are a Mother / Son duo that are following a family dream of bringing artisanal food products to Broome. They both saw a gap in the market and have ventured from their previous occupations to follow this dream and have been excited by the response they received running a pop-up style operation for two days a week during 2021.
If you visit the Courthouse Markets on a Saturday you will see the stall of Kimberley Wildlife. Usually there are a few joeys in their bags and they sell merchandise to fundraise so these joeys can be rehabilitated back to the wild
Just south of Broome is an area that is open for to the tourist for exploration. Check it out.
Nagula Jarndu is famous for their distinctive hand-crafted textiles, incorporating their saltwater heritage and natural environment. I was having a chat with Eunice Yu about how they coped through COVID and what transpired.
'Imagine having a wedding where your witness is the sand, sea and sky and the only focus is sharing your feelings with your partner - we wouldn't have had it any other way'. This is how Shaina and PJ, who eloped in Broome recently, described their experience and it sums an elopement up perfectly.
Do you ever wonder what makes those squiggles in the sand, what is under that raised lump or inside that shell laying casually on the beach?
Jen Hall went on the walk in 2016 and tells us of her experience on this journey along the Lurajarri Trail.
Female curiosity got the better of me so I dropped into the Broome Men's Shed to see what they actually get up
Jason Fowler writes about the mating habits of a mud crab. They apparently are very romantic.
Broome has had the wettest year on record in 2018, with four significant low-pressure systems providing 1,567 mm of rain at time of writing. Broome's annual average is 615 mm. How has the wildlife been coping with this wettest of wets?
Robyn Siedel is a bus driver with the Town Bus Service in Broome. She has worked with them for over 14 years.
In the late 1980's remote communities around Australia were granted their own Community Radio and Television licences. In 1996 Broome Aboriginal Media Association recruited Neil Turner from the Pitjantjatjara Lands in Central Australia to co-ordinate an equipment upgrade rollout and ongoing support services for 13 communities in the Pilbara and Kimberley regions.
Rusty Dredge grows Jack-o-lanten pumpkins for the Halloween Festival for the Australian market.
Buying local produce ensures you're getting the freshest possible. Much of what we eat in Broome has travelled thousands of kilometres to reach our table. David Appleby is passionate, enthusiastic and he learned a new skill later in life. He invited me to visit his hives on Roebuck Station and learn more about bees and honey.
The RFDS have opened up a facility in Broome. The first regional one in 50 years to be built!
SAFE (Saving Animals from Euthanasia) Broome rehomes dogs, cats, puppies and kittens
The dark, muddy bottom of King Sound is a fearsome place, swirling with raging tides and shadowed by Bull Sharks and Crocodiles. Sawfish love this dangerous habitat wielding their deadly medieval-looking saw with all the finesse of a Jedi Knight.
Persine is a friend, and we call her the 'Pocket Rocket'. We see her rarely as she bounces all over the place and we do not need to wonder why. Since moving to Broome, Persine has volunteered for many organisations. She has housesat mansions, lived in dongas, loves a good spicy curry and fits under my armpit. As they say, "Give a busy person a job and they will get it done!" She has taken the word 'community' and embraced it with her whole being. She's single, tiny, female, dark-skinned and is comfortable working in male dominated roles.
The Gibb Challenge is a socially competitive 700-kilometre team relay event raising community awareness and money for charity. In 2016 their Principal Beneficiary is Sirens of Silence - supporting our triple zero heroes.
I was 12 when I stared competing in Albany. My dad was into cars and motorbikes and it was a natural progression to go into Speedway. It was great for the social aspect and at that age there was not a lot to do in Albany so you really looked forward to the weekend. Working with the old man in the shed, getting the car ready, learning the mechanics, and being part of an extended family. Also at that age you were driving a vehicle and going fast (though not as fast as you thought).
Last year I went to the Leading Edge Computers Cable Beach Triathlon as an observer only! I am always interested when something new is happening in Broome.
Four girls got together and created the Team Allure and fished the Broome Billfish Competition in July 2015.
Bilbies are a well-known, peculiar and charismatic-looking Australian marsupial. In the Kimberley we are lucky to still have them around, even right on the outskirts of Broome. But don't let this fool you; they are a threatened species. The Kimberley, Great Sandy Desert and Tanami Desert are the last healthy refuges in the wild.
If one fish is the heart and soul of Broome it has to be the Bluebone. They are so charismatic and abundant, the Pigram brothers even sing about Bluebone coming on the bite!
If you want to know anything about anything, especially gardens, pests, ducks, chooks and the universe, Wendy Albert is your go-to person. She lives in Derby on a property she purchased in 2003 and has created a wonderful oasis.
No road too long, No mud too thick, No dust too dense, No bum too numb!!!!
With the introduction of indentured Asian Labour to Broome in the early 20th century, so too came the foods and recipes
It was not until I contracted Ross River Virus in 2020 that I was alerted to the Sentinel Chicken Program or even interested in the role they played in our Community. I did not know that the unassuming Chicken was really a soldier standing on guard to protect humans from mosquito-borne disease.
Meet George, a very handsome, intelligent and well-mannered Black Headed Python. He's a movie star from Bran Nue Dae, only 10 years old and a friend of Chris Mitchell, known in Broome as the "snake man".
Albert Einstein's General Theory of Relativity— a theory that offered radical new concepts of time and space, including the existence of black holes and the concept of dark matter — was proven beyond doubt on an expedition to the Kimberley in September 1922. Photographic images taken at Wallal (300 kms south of Broome) during a total eclipse of the sun confirmed that light from the stars was following a curvature through space that was caused by the gravitational field of the sun.
I recently visited Chelonia Broome which is a voluntary backyard facility that cares for sick turltes,
This year I noticed a "Dry Season Vege Garden Course" and as my back garden is meant to be all food, I thought a bit of expert advice might be of help for my dismal efforts at growing veges. Tuesdays became the highlight of my week. I met a tribe of people from all professions who just wanted to grow veges, and interested in anything that grew.
Each year, I do a course at TAFE, often for a semester or two. I usually gravitate towards the art department and, over the years, I have had wonderful teachers for printing, pottery, papermaking, weaving, silk painting, shibori and batik. I have enjoyed many end-of-year exhibitions. This year, I noticed a 'Dry Season Vege Garden' course. As my back garden is meant to be all food, I thought a bit of expert advice might help my dismal efforts at growing veges.
I hear about people who walk the Bibbulmun Track or the Cape to Cape walk down south, but Ian Obern walks the Kimberley where there are no tracks. Each year, Ian goes on at least one trek to this remote part of the world with a group of like-minded people who are armed with maps, compasses and GPS technology. Ian got hooked 25 years ago and has a wealth of experience and knowledge.
Trish Pepper is the type of person who makes you feel you should stop procrastinating and just do it! Her enthusiasm is contagious and she might just inspire you to have a go.
After many years working in beef cattle production, I was looking for an opportunity to move into a role that focused on sustainable agriculture, but I wanted to remain in the Kimberley. I went back to study and completed a Graduate Certificate in Animal Science. It was by pure chance that I came across Black Soldier Fly (BSF) farming. Its ability to provide a solution to food waste whilst providing sustainable feed ingredients instantly struck a chord with me.
This is a very brief story of a woman that has created all forms of art and ended up welding amazing sculptures.
Broome school girl Sahvannah Brandis took the initiative of entering in the Kimberley Girl programme this year (2017). During the two weeks she received lots of information to help in her future. Her confidence increased, especially in public speaking and she forged lasting friendships with girls from other parts of the Kimberley.
I first met Dave Dureau in 2002 when I had flown into Freshwater Cove in the seaplane....
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