The Final Chapter

---

Wednesday 8th July: Wow a Bucket Billabong Barra - 57cm long. Not too bad for starters. Managed a legal barra each day at this billabong. Visit from the National Park Ranger again. He didn’t have time for a cuppa but stayed for 1.5 hours???
Back to Darwin for the mail and some food. Stayed at PK & Kim’s shed. Purchased a Next G phone and external antenna to improve our contact with the working souls in society-(that’s you guys). Headed east to Hardies Lagoon-Wow, no one else there. Fished our little arms off without much luck. It seems like the resident crock (5 metres long) has eaten all the barra.
Friday 18th July: Lets move on to 2 Mile Hole. Some very friendly crocks cruising around this billabong. Caught a couple of Barra but had a ball catching Saratoga and Archer fish. The reliable Johnson outboard motor started to play-up today.
Sunday 27th: Off to 4 Mile Hole AGAIN. Caught a 69cm Barra plus a couple of undersize ones. Wild donkeys wandering through camp. Caught 3 more Barra the next day but only kept 1. There is nothing a tasty as a Barra fillet drizzled with olive oil, garlic, sweet potato, potato, tomatoes and cooked in Alfoil on the BBQ plate.
Friday 1st August: Off to Jim Jim Billabong in the east of Kakadu. Met some nice people (Zelda & Nev).
Not much luck with the fishin’. Tried our luck on Yellow Water Billabong, a bit disappointing. I am constantly amazed by the German tourists in their Britz Rentals that have to camp right next to you when there is a mile of space.
Tuesday 5th August: Off into Arnhem Land to try our luck at Sandy Creek. $40 per night to stay. One trip up the creek and our lovely Johnson outboard motor died. Looks like its fatal. Fished off the beach and caught mud crabs, sharks, Trevally, Cobia and Flathead and more sharks. Lotz-a sandflies and midges. Found a beaut freshwater spring only 2 km inland.
Sunday 10th August: Off to Jim Jim Falls and Twin Falls. Wow, a really nice area except for the hoards of tourists on tour busses. Found a family of French tourists BOGGED in the soft sand and trying to dig their car out with their dinner bowls. Organised a service for our truck back in Darwin. Lets detour via 2 Mile Hole and try our luck again.
Thursday 14th Aug: Bad news from the outboard mechanic - the motor is DEAD! Off to get a new one. With the truck now serviced, the new outboard stowed and the groceries topped-up its back to Kakadu. The road into 4 Mile Hole is getting worse by the day, very slow going over the corrugations. Fished and ran the new outboard in. Relaxed and fished some more. Managed to find where the Barra were hiding.
Sun 24th, its of to Maguk to check out the waterfalls. This is the best waterfall in Kakadu. Not too high but very pretty, a lovely plunge pool at the bottom and no saltwater crocs.
Tues 26th its time to leave Kakadu after a total of 9 weeks and head south to Katherine. The headwind and rain picked up and the fuel economy suffered. Stopped in a large canyon near Barrow Creek for a couple of days. Diesel fuel $2.35 per litre. Thank heavens we fitted the long range tank. We can go 1600km before needing to fill up.
Sat 30th Aug: South to Alice Springs for the Todd River Regatta. What a great days entertainment. Fabulous community involvement and fund raising. Fuelled-up and headed north east into the Harts Range for some gem fossicking. Zircons at Mudtank Bore and Garnets near Mount Palmer. Climbed to the top of Mount Palmer (1139m). Dug, washed, dug and washed some more. Gem fossicking is hard work. Met some nice people doing what we were doing, digging, washing and digging some more. Stayed at the deserted Rex Mica Mine. Took the rugged Cattlewater Pass 4WD Track back towards Alice. Nearly got bogged, but thank goodness we had a great driver. Wed 10th Aug: Southward to Cooper Pedy , what an environmental disaster. Millions of 900mm diameter sample holes dug all around the countryside. The miners dig the holes find nothing and just walk away and leave these deep holes open??? Stopped off at Mt Remarkable National Park for a couple of days and then headed into Adelaide.
This is the last of the Work Experience Boys Travelblog, for the time being. When we hit-the-road again, I’ll start another. So, get out of your shell and get out there and do something. There is a million exciting adventures to be had in Australia’s Outback.

---