Day 127 - Jumping Crocodiles!

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Crocodiles are a very big drawcard in the NT. None more so than the famous Jumping Crocodiles tour on the Adelaide River (on the way to Kakadu). There are imitations folks, so be aware. Don't bother getting off the highway looking for "the original" or "the best". The original Jumping Crocs tour is right on the highway next to the bridge that crosses the Adelaide River.

After a brief stop at "Window on the Wetlands", (an aboriginal themed interpretation centre that provides info on the history, and wildlife of the area), we headed to the Jumping Crocs tour, making sure that we arrived just before 1pm. The 1pm tour uses the larger "Adelaide River Queen", a two storey boat which allows you to photograph the jumping crocs easier.

After feeding the crocs, we head up a tributary of the Adelaide River looking for Agro. For those of you who know Sweetheart (the stuffed 5.5 metre croc in the museum at Darwin), Agro is about a metre longer! We head up Agro's creek and find a smaller croc that is about 3.5 metres.... probably a female according to the tour guide, possibly Agro's girlfriend. After a while there is no sign of Agro and it's time to head back down the river. The driver reverses the boat and who was hiding underneath? You guessed it, the biggest baddest croc of them all...Agro!

We marvel at the size of the beast and compare it to the "baby" 3.5 metre croc alongside. Agro is huge and weighs as much as an ordinary car. Remember that line from Jaws... "We're gonna need a bigger boat..."

Next on the agenda is feeding of the Whistling Kites. These are local raptors that are able to catch meat scraps and other things on the wing. They are impressive flyers and skip past the boat almost hitting the outstretched hands of passengers.

Soon we are back at the dock and we have coffee at the croc cafe. We see a Variety Bash car posing for photos with the Jumping Crocs sign and grab a picture.

This is a must do for anyone visiting the NT and is on the way to Kakadu (from Darwin). That's our next stop.

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Photos

Adelaide River Queen
The top deck becomes pretty crowded (even before we cast off)

Agro and girlfriend
The croc you can barely see (the skinny blonde one) is approximately 3.5 metres. Agro is the big bruiser next to the boat. 6.5 metres and 1000 kilos. You really have to see it to believe it. HUGE!

Do crocs eat buses?
It's OK. It's just the Jumping Crocs sign.