05 Aug 2023

Savouring the ancient Wandjina & Gwion Gwion art styles at Swift Bay

It was a beautifully calm morning for today's visit to Swift Bay where we marvelled at the incredible Indigenous Australian rock art of both Wandjina and Gwion Gwion styles. Our guides announced our presence to these sacred sites, calling out to the spirits and elders in a show of respect, and shared the history and story of the land. 

Guests who considered themselves in the aptly-named 'Olympic athletes' group were taken to a less accessible site to view a great wall of Gwion Gwion art adjacent to a cave, discovering a Green Tree Snake among the rocks, while learning about the art from our guides.

After lunch and a short repositioning of Heritage Adventurer to the west side of the bay, we made our way across the sandstone terrain to what had looked like a gigantic pile of sandstone rubble from the ship which turned into an incredible rock art gallery featuring countless pieces of Wandjina art. It was a fabulous expanse to explore with plenty of room to roam, various conversation pieces to gather around, as well as small trails through the spinifex for those to explore and look for birds and other wildlife. All agreed that it was a very special location indeed.

Back on board we had a pre-cap during our usual recap and briefing timeslot, all about the mangroves that we'll be seeing tomorrow during what many guides have described as their favourite expedition day - as if things could get any better on this voyage, each day seems to top the previous, and it is all truly spectacular.

Image (c) Heritage Expeditions