Kimberley Cattle Drive Itinerary
Day 1
Arrival, introduction and overnight accommodation and hospitality at Home Valley Station Homestead
Guests are welcomed at their selected Kununurra hotel or at the Kununurra airport prior to a 4WD road transfer to Home Valley Station.
Upon arrival at the Homestead, guests are greeted and assisted with check-in and porter service to their Guesthouse Room. Guests are then provided with an overview of the Homestead and the Station’s facilities and are encouraged to cool down with a swim, or explore the grounds of the Homestead.
6.00pm – Pre-dinner drinks are provided at the Dusty Bar & Grill along with a special welcome address by the Manager – Daniel Lukritz, followed by an Itinerary Briefing (cattle drive preparation).
7.00pm – Dinner tonight will be served at the Dusty Bar & Grill. Live entertainment is provided both on stage and by the campfire featuring Dave Birch from local Indigenous band Rodeworx or solo artist Peter Brandy along with Mick Tippo on didgeridoo.
Day 2
Starting point of the Kimberley Heritage Cattle Drive
7.00am – In readiness for the epic adventure ahead, guests are invited to tuck into a hearty breakfast at the Dusty Bar & Grill. Guests will be transferred by 4WD along the famous Gibb River Road to the starting point of the Kimberley Heritage Cattle Drive. Over the course of the morning all guests will undergo a horsemanship tuition session with John Rodney “JR” and be formally introduced to the team of Drovers, Wagon Drivers and Farriers who will accompany the guests on the cattle drive through New York Valley.
JR will also explain the objective of this pastoral-based activity whereby the team of drovers and guests will coacher muster the mob through wild Shorthorn cattle country in an attempt to clear-up New York Valley’s feral cattle numbers. After a freshly made lunch at the stockyards it is time to get stuck into the real action on horseback.
All guests take part in the handover and counting of the cattle marking the beginning of the cattle drive. Allocated their positions around the mob of cattle, it’s time to get rolling as the drive descends into the picturesque New York Valley. Home Valley’s experienced drovers will accompany each guest at the point, flank and tail of the herd as the mob is moved deeper into the valley, following the old Barclay stock route. It is here guests will begin to appreciate the grandeur of the rugged landforms of the valley with its towering escarpments dotted with ancient boabs.
The herd will travel the shortest leg of the drive today. Well before daylight starts to fade the drovers and guests must yard the cattle for the evening. With the cattle secured at water, as the dust settles and the sun sets, guests are invited to set up camp for the evening. All will enjoy a well earned dinner and drinks around a roaring campfire, with live entertainment. After dinner and at leisure, guests can retire to their swag and while listening to the night time calls of the surrounding wildlife, drift off into a peaceful sleep under a blanket of Kimberley stars.
Day 3
Full Day Cattle Drive
On day three guests will awake to the pure beauty of first light offered up in the outback and the sweet smell of spinifex warming in the sun, not to forget the pleasure of a breakfast being cooked over the campfire. Following breakfast, the team will pack up camp and embark on the first full day of droving cattle. Today the team of drovers and guests will begin to move the mob of cattle, up to 15km per day, for the next three days.
Smoko will be provided in saddle bags for guests to graze on throughout the morning while continuing on until stopping for a well earned rest and lunch. Today the group will encounter some of the more difficult terrain – including rocky rises, steep embankments and sandy creek beds – putting your cattle driving skills to the test
The trail will take the drovers, guests and their cattle along the exact same journey of the Kimberley pioneers who walked cattle through this country decades before. Arrival at the second camp will be accomplished by 4pm, with the cattle yarded and watered for the night once again. Gourmet outback dinner fare with cold drinks and live entertainment accompanied by a host of new stories will be shared around the campfire prior to another night in a comfy swag under the stars.
Day 4
Full Day Cattle Drive
With the experience of another glorious sunrise in the Kimberley outback, an early morning breakfast is served to all drovers and guests prior to the second full day of the cattle drive. Once again, today is all about putting what has been learnt into practice to guide the mob through a breathtaking section of New York Valley – featuring an amazing gully of ancient boabs. This tricky section will require all of the guests’ newly acquired horsemanship and droving skills to maintain the mob on course to reach tonight’s camp.
At each stage of the cattle drive local Indigenous Drovers will provide guests with an insight into the meaning of their country that the cattle drive passes through, and the link between the “old-time” pastoralists that impacted greatly on their families lives, today holding great pride in what it is like to be known as a Kimberley Stockman. This evening’s dinner and entertainment enjoys a cultural theme including a combination of traditional and modern “Bush Tucker” cuisine followed by a variety of Indigenous performances and storytelling.
Day 5
Completion point of the Kimberley Heritage Cattle Drive, return to the Home Valley Station Homestead
This morning the team will enjoy a hearty breakfast before embarking on the final day of the cattle drive. With the objective of the cattle drive complete, guests involved with this stage of the coacher muster pastoral-based tourism activity hand over their mount to their new found Drover friends and are escorted by 4WD back to the Home Valley Station Homestead. Morning tea and lunch will be provided throughout the day.
The final night of the cattle drive is a huge celebration, with dinner and drinks at the Dusty Bar & Grill and live entertainment both on stage and by the nearby campfire. We cannot give away the surprises in store to mark the end of the cattle drive – but it’s an event not to be missed! Accommodation tonight is in the Homestead Guesthouse Rooms.
Day 6
Departure, transfer to Kununurra
After breakfast at leisure at the Dusty Bar & Grill guests are transferred by 4WD to Kununurra – airport or next accommodation. Guests are welcome to stay on at Home Valley Station for extra nights (at additional cost) and enjoy other activities provided at the property. Pre and post itineraries are available on application and include Barramundi Fishing, trips to the Bungle Bungle Range, Argyle Diamond Mine and Lake Argyle, Ord Valley highlights, Kalumburu and Mitchell Plateau – please add your additional requests on the Booking Form provided.
Please note: *Special Dietary Requirements – please let us know if we must cater for any special dietary requirements. **Upgrading your accommodation to a Grass Castle Suite is possible upon request at an additional cost, subject to availability.
*** Please note, the itinerary provided is a guide only and is subject to change without notice. Please contact Home Valley Station – thank you!