Out here in the wet season, the intense humidity and the tropical cyclones can lead to sudden thunderstorms. If you want to have a campfire for the night, you’ve got to collect some tinder now while it’s dry. A lot of the bushes round here are these kapok bushes. Look and tell that just from these leaves. They are soft. They are furry. And they are kind of shaped like a maple leaf as well. But what I’m after is the seed pods that gown on them.

 

Here you go. Look. Pull this down. You see these ones here? Pull this off. And just inside is like this cotton wool. But this stuff is great for tinder for making a fire. So I can just collect a few of these and that will really help me. The kapok shells not only protect the seeds but also help keep that cotton-world tinder dry. The north of Australia is one of the most lightning-prone areas on earth. Some storms have produced over 1,500 lightning flashes in just a few hours. You can see those dark clouds and over here the blue stuff that has just moved. And that’s all heading my way. 

 

If the weather closes in like this, you’ll need some sort of shelter. 

 

You know I need to get off this rock now and make camp. 

 

With storms come rain. And in the Kimberley almost three foot of rain has be known to fall in only nine hours. And that could lead to treacherous flash floods. I can feel that wind blowing straight towards me. And yeah, there’s really a sudden pour now.