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Published: September 11th 2006
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Wow, had the most amazing 4 days in some of the Northern Territories best National Parks 😊 (You guys must be getting a bit bored of me contantly writing words like wow and amazing but i just can't help it, sorry!)
This entry is going to be quite brief and will add photos later because internet is quite expensive here in Broome and I want to save my dollars for other things!
Day one started bright and early; we were picked up by our guide, Mick, at 6.30am and we on the road just as the sun was coming up. Our fisrt stop was on a beach on the outskirts of Darwin. We met some aboriginal locals who taught us how to play a didgeridoo(really couldn't get the hang of the circular breathing thing), throw a spear (i wasn't too bad and even managed to hit the polystyrene kangaroo!), make fire and make jewellery with dried vines and shells.
Then it was back on the road and off to Litchfield NP. We stopped at Wangi Falls for a swim and lunch. Lauren and I were a bit cautious about getting in the water because there was the possibility of
Its harder than it looks!
Us trying our hand at didgeridoo playing. fresh water crocs being in there with us (apparently they are not man eaters and nothing to worry about and will swim away before even seen!) but after seeing how many other people were in there, decided it must be ok!
Then it was on to Upper Tolmer Falls which which had special access to- this meant we got to swim in these amazing secluded plunge pools at the top of the falls which have an archway at the end which overlooks the entire area (incl. the viewing platform for the falls!)
The final swim of the day was at Florence Falls which was quite busy but beautiful all the same. Also saw a short-eared rock wallaby on the way down to the falls - v.cute. By this stage it was heading towards sunset and we were miles from our campground so we set off without delay. On the way, we stopped to watch the sunset over a huge field of Magnetic termite mounds (they are large, flat and rectangular and look a lot like tombstones) which was quite eerie cos it looked like a huge cemetary!
Then we headed for a wwII airstrip which was going to be our
Magnetic Termite Mounds
They looked spookily like tombstones home for the night. On the way, a v.stupid wallaby jumped out in front of the car 😞 we couldn't avoid it but luckily killed it outright so Mick decided we were all going to sample wallaby for dinner!Also saw some bush fires burning in the dark which were pretty impressive. Finally got to camp and set up all our cooking stuff, made a fire and got our swags out. After a delicious dinner of bbq fish, mash and salad (with a bit of wallaby thigh to try - v.nice and a bit like gamey beef!), we washed up, unrolled our swags and climbed into our sleeping bags for a fantastic nights sleep.
We were up with the sun on the 2nd morning and on the road after a quick breakfast, teeth clean and getting dressed in the bush 😊 We drove to Katherine Gorge (Nitmulik NP) where we spent 2 hours canoeing down the first gorge. Whilst canoeing we saw a freshwater croc sitting by the bank sunning itself. Sandro - my canoe buddy was determined he wanted a close up pic of him and so we drifted over, unfortunately he couldn't get his camera out of the
A gigantic cathedral termite mound
This pic was taken minutes before the 'incident' with my camera! waterproof barrel and by the time we were only about 2ft away, the croc was clearly not happy so I made the executive decision to paddle away (much to Sandro's annoyance)!After picnic lunch at the gorge, it was back in the car and a long drive to Kakadu NP.
Just after entering Kakadu we stopped at a little waterhole to cool off and relax; we had been told of the possibility (although extremely unlikely) of both 'freshies' and 'salties' (crocs) in the water in Kakadu and whilst in the water, i nearly screamed the place down when some weed brushed against my leg!!
We then drove on to Barramundi Falls campground where we quickly set up camp and then hiked to the falls for a pre-sunset swim. There were a series of deep plunge pools all connected by big slippery boulders so there was much hilarity as we all tried to scramble/skate over the rocks into the next pool 😊 After a bit of a scary walk back to the campground in the dark through the forest(lots of rustling in the bushes next to the path) we prepared and cooked dinner - Wallaby tail soup for starters (tasted just like
Jim Jim Falls
The view from the top of the falls ox tail!) with tuna pasta for main and tea and custard creams for pud. Then it was off to bed in preparation for a v.busy day.
We were woken by the dingos and kookaburras at sunrise- much better than an alarm clock 😊 After breakfast, me and Lauren went to check out some gigantic termite mounds not far from our camp. The two Italians joined us after a bit and Sandro offered to take a pic of the two of us next to the mounds but unfortunately managed to drop and break my camera in the process (as you can imagine, i was not a happy bunny).
We headed for the Jim Jim Falls campground and before long we were setting up camp again - by now we were pros and we done in mins. Then we stocked up on water, slapped on tons of suncream and grabbed our hats before driving along a v.v.v.bumpy 4wd track to Twin Falls. After an hour on the track, Sebastiano was looking decidely green but soon recovered once we'd stopped. We were trekking to the top of the Falls where Mick had told us there would be amazing views and fantastic swimming.It
The top end gang
(l-r)Lauren, me, Sandro, Sebastiano, Mick, Chris and Diane was a boiling hot day (already about 35 and only 11am) and the first part of the trek was a v.steep climb up a stony escarpment - i was struggling and by the time we reached the top of the escarpment, i resembled a v.sweaty beetroot!!The rest of the climb was a bit easier but by the time we reached the top i was more than ready for a dip. Mick hadn't been lying about the great pools or the amazing views and it made all the hard work worth it. After a long soak in the pools and some drying off time, we headed back down and then went on a cruise along the creek which leads to the bottom of the Falls. After a short walk from the boat, we arrived at a big sandy beach at the bottom of the Falls - because it is dry season there wasn't a lot of water coming down but the sheer size and scenery was spectacular in itself.
We headed back along the 4wd track and turned off to Jim Jim Falls where we had a 1km walk/scramble over huge boulders with even bigger crevices to fall down if you
Twin Falls
The falls plus token stranger who'd just got out the watering hole!! misjudged things. We had arrived at the Falls quite late in the afternoon so just had a quick swim here before heading back to the car before it got dark. Then we drove the short distance back to the campsite seeing a dingo on the way back. This campsite had flushing toilets AND showers which was bliss after our long, hot sweaty day so we all headed off for a quick shower before cooking and eating dinner with some well-deserved cool beers. We were all exhausted and so headed to bed early after we soon fast asleep.
By our final day our bodies had fully adjusted and we were all wide awake when the sun started to rise, so managed to have breakfast and pack up in record time.Then we headed to Ubirr to see some aborigtinal rock art and learn some more about their culture. It was amazing to think that some of the art work had been there for 20,000years or more.
The final part of our trip was a cruise down the Corrobee Billabong where we saw HUGE saltwater crocs, Jabirus, Pelicans, Wallabies, White-bellied sea eagles...It was a great end to an absolutely unforgettable trip.
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Gill
non-member comment
Yes indeed sounds amazing
It definately sounds wicked at Kakadu et al, really glad you enjoyed it, I think it was the high point of my trip last year :) Good news about seeing all the wildlife, can't wait to see your photos of the area. Look after yourself twinks, Love Gill