Dampier’s gully monster protection push, election scriptures in a long drop and Kimberley Hemsworth mania

Hi, welcome to Gone Troppo, your weekly dose of the news and rumours which make the North West the best place to live.

Got a hot tip? Flick us a message on social media, write it in a large message on your nearest salt or mud flat, or find your friendly neighbourhood journo down at the local watering hole.

Prime habitat

Dampier’s foreshore is looking beaut these days, and by the looks of the council’s proposed town masterplan, there is plenty more to come.

To link up the shopping precinct and foreshore could help grow a great little dining and retail scene.

But as is always the case, development comes with concerns, and one concern highlighted by the Dampier Community Association recently really jumped out.

“With all the discussions on the future development of Dampier there has been little consideration for the native fauna and in particular the protection of the endangered species and its habitat ... the gully monster,” the post read.

“This endemic species to the Pilbara has already seen its habitat disrupted in Karratha, with new developments failing to provide sufficient gully space for the monsters.”

Gully monsters are one of our most hated and loved residents, but with the advent of footbridges, their food — inebriated people stumbling home from the pub, — is becoming scarce.

As a long-standing champion of gully monster preservation, Gone Troppo firmly believes these misunderstood creatures deserve their home among us.

Smelly statement

The State election may be over, but remnants of the campaign remain.

Gone Troppo stumbled upon one such remnant on a drive from the big smoke to Karratha recently at the Robe River Rest Stop’s swanky new long-drops.

Written in a rudimentary cursive font on the back of the very clean throne room’s door was the following:

“WA Labor Gov’t should be providing Royalties for Regions funding to Main Roads to upgrade facilities like these so people can wash their hands after use,” it started.

“MOST ROYALTIES COME FROM THE PILBARA!” it finished in caps.

Sure, that would be nice, but let’s be thankful we just have clean long-drops these days. It’s not too hard to carry a bottle of water.

Love and Thunder

Nothing quite gets the heart racing like news our favourite bros, the Hemsworths, are in town.

That’s what happened last week when Kununurra folk spotted a luxury jet sitting on the tarmac at the airport.

The slick plane, rumoured to belong to Hemsworth buddy Matt Damon, stood out against the prop-jet fleet at our airport.

Chris Hemsworth in 2019 described the Kimberley as his favourite fishing destination and he may have been out here to wet a line again.

The Thor star was rumoured to have visited Berkeley River Lodge and the jet was spotted touching down at Broome Airport after leaving Kununurra.

Several people reported Chris sightings in Broome on social media. But on Monday afternoon, pictures surfaced of Chris’ brother, Liam, getting picked up at Derby airport by the jet after stepping off a Horizontal Falls seaplane.

To the barramundi that ended up on the end of a Hemsworth line, you are one lucky fish.