Here we are in Broome, about to board the good ship "Diversity III" for a 14-day cruise around the Kimberley Coast from Broome to Wyndham. I say ship, but in reality, I would never be seen aboard a cruise ship with hundreds or even thousands of passengers. Diversity III is a 12-passenger catamaran that can get into bays, inlets and other places big ships can't. With off-boat activities every day, this is more my type of cruise.

That said, I was even reluctant to do this, pointing out to the fair Nello that we could go cruising when we get old. She rather unkindly took my hand and lead me to the mirror to demonstrate that the time had perhaps come. So, here I am at 74, about to head off on a cruise.

Colours of the Broome coast

We arrived in Broome three days ago, after a long flight from Canberra-Sydney-to Broome and a big shift in temperature from 9°C to 33°C, a bit of a thermal shock. This early arrival gave us a few days to acclimatise and also to explore a bit of the Broome area. We had been here 15 years on on our epic Darwin-Perth campervan roadtrip, but no doubt things have changed. So, on arrival, we picked up our little Suzuki Jimmy 4WD, drove to our pleasant accommodation, had a swim in their resort-style pool and fell asleep.

Minyirr is the indigenous name for the peninsula that lies to the south of Broome township, between Cable Beach and Roebuck Bay. This is where we were staying and we wanted to do a coast walk in the area starting and ending at our Habitat Resort accommodation. Actually, there is no formal walk here, so we invented our own, which would cross the dry tropical scrub of the peninsula interior, and return via the cliffs and beaches that comprise this dramatic coastline, with its 9m tidal range. Minyirr seemed a good name for the walk.

After experiencing the mid-day heat yesterday, we decided to leave early and also decided to reverse the direction of our walk. Thus by 7am, we were walking along a series of sandy tracks through dry tropical vegetation on the way to Cable Beach. It was pleasant walking through this landscape in the relative cool of the early morning, observing the many tracks in the sand of the creatures that lived here - from kangaroos to small marsupials, birds, lizards and beetles. It would have been stifling later in the day when temperatures reached 34°C and the air was still.

On reaching the southern end of Cable Beach, it became obvious that the tide was way out - its broad strip of exposed sand stretching northwards for kilometres. To the south lay a jumble of curiously shaped sandstone domes backed by red Pindan clay cliffs. These circled around a lower region of grey muddy sand and flattish rocks towards the lighthouse tower of Gantheaume Point. This area is underwater at high tide, but now we were able to cross it, admiring the artwork of the myriad crabs that called it home.

Finding a gap where we could cross the jumble of multi-coloured sandstone rocks and climb the red Pindan cliffs, we emerged onto the point and wandered down a well-formed path to its end. Here, we could explore another amazing landscape of eroded and sculpted sandstone, layered in pink, cream and brown. With a cooling breeze, it was pleasant walking.

Down below, the almost waveless sea washed across a jumble of greyer rocks. Here there be fossilised dinosaur footprints, though only visible at the lowest of tides. Already, the turquoise Indian Ocean waters would have covered them.

Leaving the point, we headed eastwards, following a meandering cliff-top path along perhaps the most amazing rockscapes of the day - jagged edges, arches, sinkholes and blowholes, and curious pancake stacks of sandstone backed by the intense blue of the ocean. Ahead, we could see the red-line of cliffs backing Reddell Beach - our route for the next section.

Eventually, we reached a point where the cliff edge walk stopped and a stretch of sandy path took us to the start of Reddell Beach. We descended to the beach. The tide was still well out, leaving a broad strip of sand to walk on, following the red Pindan cliffs and their welcome shade, occasionally picking our way around clusters of sculpted sandstone intrusions.

It was a long stroll to the end of Reddell Beach, but we finally reached a point where we could head inland up a narrow gully in the cliff line. This brought us out next to the giant tanks of the Broome fuel terminal, but it avoided a longer walk around the port area. We passed quickly through this industrialised region to cross the port area and reach Roebuck Bay. We were now in the lee of the breeze and, for the first time, I felt a trickle of sweat.

The walk, however, was almost over - all that remained was a stroll along the shore of Roebuck Bay, lined with pink sand, shrub-covered dunes on one side and low-growing mangroves on the other. The turquoise tide was now rushing in, engulfing the mangroves and narrowing the beach.

After a longish beach walk, we spotted the gap in the dunes marking the entry of the track back to our accommodation. It was a short, but steep and back-sliding climb up the loose sand of the dune to reach its crest and meander back along the sandy path through the dune vegetation to reach the shady oasis of Habitat Resort.

We had finished the walk before 12, which was our aim. Being neither English nor mad dogs, we didn't want to be caught out in the mid-day sun. Instead, a dip in the pool was a the reward for a very enjoyable walk along the Minyirr Coastline.

That evening, we drove back to the southern end of Cable Beach and on to its firm sand, to join the hundreds of others who had done the same and were setting up chairs and eskies to watch the sun set over the Indian Ocean - an almost compulsory ritual for tourists visitng Broome. It was a golden-hued delight.

On arrival we drove down through a gap in the red Pindan cliffs beyond the point to park on the firm beach sand and do a short walk back around the red cliffs of Walmadany. It was close to midday and the 30+°C temperatures stopped any longer exploration. The images show the intense colours of this place.

On the way back, we stopped in at Quondong Point and drove down a narrow sandy track to Willie Creek, home to a cultured pearl farm, to get a feeling for the variation in landscapes. It was a good day out, as I hope the images here will show.