Immersed in Martuwarra
IN FLOOD, MARTUWARRA (known also as the Fitzroy River) becomes one of the planet’s highest volume rivers. Together with its tributaries, it drains much of Western Australia’s Kimberley region as it winds through steepsided gorges and across savannah floodplains before reaching its delta. From there, as a maze of crocodile-infested tidal mangroves at King Sound, it meets the Indian Ocean.
Heritage-listed nationally because of its extensive cultural and environmental values, Martuwarra, at 735km long, is also WA’s largest listed Aboriginal cultural heritage site. The River and its 20 tributaries flow over the lands of at least nine Indigenous nations, crossing Ngarinyin, Worla, Bunuba, Gooniyandi, Kija, Walmajarri, Mangala, Warrwa and Nyikina countries.
Culture is strong in these parts and Martuwarra is central to identity, law and legend. It is revered as a living ancestral being.
It’s also a volatile watershed that can be reduced to little more than a trickle in places during the Dry, with species that rely on it for survival being restricted to remnant pools. At other times, the entire system floods with monsoonal rains, carrying enormous volumes of water across the landscape.
I’VE EXPERIENCED THIS raging river system firsthand multiple times since my first descent of it in 2010. And I’ve led many whitewater rafting and kayaking expeditions on Martuwarra, mostly with friends but sometimes alone.
To reconnect with this truly wild landscape, I’m embarking on a two-week, 400km expedition with a team of fellow adventurers. Our goal is to follow Martuwarra in a 16ft (4.9m) inflatable raft, from the system’s upper reaches to Fitzroy Crossing, about 355km east of Broome. From that point, the threat of saltwater crocodiles becomes too great.
Our team of seven includes Martuwarra rafting veteran and Bunuba man AJ Aiken, his son CJ Aiken, renowned Nyikina artist Mark Coles Smith, photographer Jackson Gallagher and myself, a seasoned whitewater rafter. Also
