Cape Leveque in Western Australia: a remote peninsula in the far north of the Kimberley, where the traditional owners of the land operate an amazing eco resort in the most stunning location you ever visited. A luxury resort for shoestring budget travellers, bush camp for luxury travellers, and some of the most beautiful and most deserted beaches of the world...
Cape Leveque lies at the end of arguably one of the roughest roads in the Kimberley, on the very tip of the Dampier Peninsula north of Broome, in one of the remotest corners of the world. The corrugations are deep enough to lie down in them. No matter how well you pack your car, it will be thoroughly rearranged by the time you arrive at Cape Leveque. Yes, it's a rough road, but you will forget about it the moment you arrive. This place at the far end of the Kimberley is worth it.
The Beaches Of Cape Leveque
The Broome area is famous for its beaches, but the beaches at Cape Leveque beat all the others hands down. But few people have heard of this magical place. At Cape Leveque you can watch the sun rising out of the ocean, from your bed if you like! And on the other side you can watch the sun melt back into the ocean at night.. Go for a beach walk in the morning. Kilometres and kilometres of powdery white sand, interspersed with rocky sections, and dotted with treasures the tide left behind. Swim in crocodile and jellyfish free, clear, turquoise waters. If you know anything about the Kimberley you know how rare that is. No, not the clear water. The fact that there aren't any crocodiles or stingers! Contrary to what is written on your website, the swimming beach at Cape Leveque is NOT crocodile-free. While staying in a beach shelter at the Kooljaman Resort there in May, a 2 metre salty swam past us at the beach at lunch time.The people in the water got out pretty quickly and the temporary signs were hastily put up to warn tourists of the croc as the resort proclaimed this to be a safe swimming beach, free from crocs.While the beach is probably safe most of the time, a well-known croc habitat does exist in the creek about 6km from Cape Leveque. Crocs do venture out into these waters occasionally.
If you are a bit adventurous and like exploring go down to Hunter Creek. But beware of crocodiles at the creek. And don't get bogged here, the sand is very soft.. Then you can camp right on the beach and have a fire at night to cook the day's catch. They even supply the fire wood. And you can gaze at a squillion stars, admire the ocean view in the moonlight, and listen to the waves as you fall asleep. When you've had enough of beach life for a while go for a stroll along the board walk that leads over the top of the hills, past the lighthouse, from one side of Cape Leveque to the other. Learn a bit about the ecology, the plants and animals of the peninsula, and about how the Aboriginals use them.
Kooljaman at Cape Leveque is often described as a luxury resort, and sometimes as a wilderness camp. It might sound like a contradiction but the Cape Leveque retreat is both. Apart from being one of the most isolated places in the world it's also one of the most beautiful, no ifs and buts. It's good to see that the resort does the place justice, rather than spoil it like the tourism industry so often does. Kooljaman resort is jointly owned by the Cape Leveque Aboriginal communities One Arm Point and Djarindjin. Every member of the community is a shareholder in the resort and all the profits go back into those Aboriginal communities. They have a lot of conservation projects going on, like tree planting or building board walks to protect the dunes. The construction of the camp itself also followed low impact environmental guidelines.
At the luxury end there are the safari tents, which of course aren't tents. They are sophisticated structures built into the steep hillside, so the verandas are on high stilts and overlook the deserted beaches and the ocean. They are serviced and have a little kitchen and and ensuite, all pretty flash. What's available at the other end of the scale: a palm frond thatched beach shelter.There is other accommodation available at Cape Leveque: units, log cabins and a normal camp ground. If camping is all you can afford, but you don't have any camping equipment, you can rent one of their dome tents. These are pretty big, solid structures and have a little wooden veranda. The only drawback is that, because they are powered, they are all pretty close together. If you bring your own tent (or at least a swag or a sleeping bag) you can rent a beach shelter and have the illusion that you are the only person at Cape Leveque. But you still have the convenience of serviced accommodation, if that's what you prefer. And there is a basic store and even a restaurant that also offers take-aways. (Just in case you didn't catch anything...)
The drive from Broome takes about three hours. The turn-off to the Cape Leveque road is only a few kilometres out of town, and only the first half is really rough. Once you reach the Aboriginal owned country further north the roads are actually excellent. Parts are even sealed. There is also a back road from Derby, which is supposed to be in better condition, but I haven't travelled that one myself. Please realise that you will be travelling across Aboriginal land. Respect the culture and privacy of the people that live here. That means observe the no entry signs on private roads! They protect law grounds, burial sites and other areas of traditional significance.
One more thing: even during peak season Cape Leveque is never crowded. Booked out, yes, months in advance. But never crowded, because there are a limited number of tents, shelters etc. available, and they're all well spread out. So book ahead or you will miss out. If you make your way to this far corner of Western Australia (the Broome area that is) you'd be crazy to miss Cape Leveque.