March 3rd saw WA open its borders to allow much greater travel options. Hooray!!!! We in WA can now leave the state to visit family and friends without fear of being refused re-entry. At the same time, the rest of Australia can now head on over and visit this amazing state.  And what better time to pop up to the Kimberley for your chance to adventure during the last several weeks of the Wet Season.

The creeks and falls are still flowing, even though we are hoping for a lot more rain. It's such a shame the 'rain bombs' over East weren't dropping on us instead. Nevertheless, we have had our share of road closures and flooding, plus covid has finally appeared in the East Kimberley. HOT Tours are running most days and bookings for Dry Season tours are filling fast.
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Waterfalls are raging throughout the East Kimberley at the moment. At times the roads are cut and we have to rejig the itinerary, but there is always somewhere to swim and something awesome to photograph or experience. Whether it be our big gatekeeper saltwater crocodile guarding the Ord River below the Diversion Dam, or the sea of green with Wet Season flowers blooming alongside every road or track we take. It truely is the most exciting time of year to visit Kununurra, so why not escape the heat in Perth and jump on a 3h flight north for a minibreak adventure.

January 2022 and the Wet Season has really kicked in now. We are getting plenty of rain which means the rivers and creeks are filling and the waterfalls are flowing. It also brings a much needed reprieve from the those scorching 40-45 degree days we had to endure during the 'build-up' in December. In Kununurra, our daytime temps are often below 30 degrees, so it's a good time to escape the Perth summer to have a Wet Season adventure in the East Kimberley.

Tours are in full swing for 2022, despite the covid border changes. We are hoping for another bumper year of showing visitors (and those that are new to town) the sights and highlights (off the beaten track of course) in Kununurra and surrounding areas.

Who cares? When you can enjoy the airconditioned comfort of the HOT Tours Troopy on an afternoon tour and finish the day with a sunset like this! Not to mention this delicious gourmet platter and a few cold drinks.
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The Kununurra Sunset Circuit is certainly a favourite at this time of year. If it's not the storm clouds building up, it might very well be the smoke haze from a bushfire that gives the sky it's awesome orange hue.

Clouds, glorious clouds.....in September?
A bit early for the Wet Season buildup but very exciting to see all the same. Temperatures this month are warming up but still fluctuating back down overnight in the mid teens. Just lovely.

HOT Tours is as busy as ever with plenty of tourists and travellers coming through the East Kimberley to Kununurra. We did however, manage to squeeze in a mini break ourselves to support our Tourism counterparts in the West Kimberley. The Horizontal Falls half day trip out of Derby was fantastic, followed by a few days fishing at Cape Leveque (Kooljamin).

From the head waters of the Ord River below the dam wall at Lake Argyle, to endless fields of cotton being harvested some 50 to 80km downstream, the Ord irrigation scheme sure is in full swing. The cornfields might be next to be harvested followed soon after by mango picking (and everything else in between) as we start to leave our glorious Dry Season weather behind. You'll get a glimpse of the agricultural areas on most of our tours and a Dam to Dam tour will allow you to see all aspects of the river and irrigation system. 

The Ord Valley Muster and Kimberley Moon Experience attracted thousands of travellers, tourists and TV crews alike to Kununurra this month.

The East Kimberley has certainly been placed in the limelight with consecutive double page spreads in the West Australian’s weekend travel lift-outs and featured on a 30 min episode of Channel 9’s ‘Destination WA’ recently.

​HOT Tours was very fortunate to be able to show the media teams around our unique backyard and gain some exposure at the same time.
‘We have never been so busy’ with tours booking out nearly every day this month, leaving just a few days off here and there to enjoy the beautiful Dry Season camping weather or to give the HOT Troopie a little TLC. We are expecting continued bumper bookings throughout June, July and August which is heartening to see after so many stops and starts over the last 12-18 months.

As a single operator with a single vehicle its hard but rewarding work, and “I always look forward to meeting new and interesting people from all over Australia”. Keep on coming.

Wyndham Bakery - get your Croc Pies here.

4WD in the Wilderness. Many of us dream of a four-wheel drive adventure when visiting a place like Kununurra but it can be an unforgiving place if you don’t know what you are doing. A knowledgable local guide who knows all the spots and a comfortable go-anywhere vehicle can add so much extra value to a day out in the bush.
Ian Harvey, from HOT Tours, runs a range of day and half-day tours around Kununurra. Although he runs tours all year round, Ian reckons the wet season is the best time to visit Kununurra. And being a one-man band means he is very adaptable and can change his tour to suit whatever the conditions are at any given time.
“No tour is ever the same because weather conditions can change from day to day and it’s the best time to see nature in its grandeur. The waterfalls are pumping, the landscape is green and the animal life is prolific,” he says.
Ian picks me up in his specially modified seven-seat Toyota LandCruiser Troop Carrier. We begin the tour with a visit to Kelly’s Knob lookout, where Ian gives me an overview of the town and where we will be heading.
We are going to explore the area around the Ngamoowalem Conservation Park on the western side of the Ord River, where there are some nice waterfalls flowing at the moment.
Ian’s commentary and knowledge about the country is second only to his knowledge about four-wheel driving. Water crossings, tricky ascents and descents are negotiated with ease and confidence. There are many highlights and thrills along the way.
Among them, a hike to the top of Middle Springs, where we cool off in one of the pools and watch the water cascade down the mountain. Another is a visit to Black Rock Falls, which featured in the ABC drama, Mystery Road. Oh, I nearly forgot to mention the spectacular lunch we enjoyed at Middle Springs.
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Mogens Johansen was a guest of Tourism Western Australia on a HOT Tour late in the Wet Season 2021.  

Copy link below to watch video: ​
​https://thewest.com.au/travel/wa/scenic-routes-excite-the-senses-ng-b881839284z