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Published: July 29th 2010
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Darwin
Fun at the wavepool After the recent arrival of mum and Peter for a 2-week holiday with us last week we were also treated to a visit with John and Kerry Giumelli. They had been on a holiday in Darwin and were on their way to Litchfield. It was great to share some of our stories with them over a cuppa. That afternoon we explored the Military Museum and East Point. The next day we had a ball at the Wave pool at Stokes Hill Wharf. Paul was so happy as Jack did really well and thoroughly enjoyed body boarding. After a morning of exercise paddling on our boards the next logical thing to do was eat fish and chips. The evening was bliss, as Paul and I had a night out alone. We went to the Deckchair cinema and enjoyed dinner with the bats flying overhead, while we watched a French comedy. After, we were able to drive home and sing loudly to OUR choice of music without Jack telling us to stop singing! Our caravan park was located in Howard Springs so we headed down in the morning to have a leisurely stroll through the nature reserve. There were lots of Yellowfaced and
Darwin
Catchin a wave Longnecked turtles in the dam, which Finn loved. Our evening was spent at Mindil Beach Markets where we feasted on Indian and Chinese food. The boys (young and old) enjoyed the guy juggling fire (do they have an official title). Paul bought a didgeridoo, so we look forward (not) to many hours of practise. You should be glad that we are thousands of km away. After over a week in Darwin, with mum and Peter following in their van, we headed out to Kakadu. Our first taste of the national park was of the Mamukala wetlands, with lots of magpie geese, egrets and swamp hens easily seen from the bird hide. Earlier that morning mum, Peter and I had walked the Gu-ngarre trail, along the Anggardabal Billabong. Mum was more than a little anxious about a crocodile or snake attack. Later that week a 29 year old man was found dead in a billabong after a croc attack. I guess mum is right to be scared. We took mum and peter for a spot of bush camping at a campground called Merl. It was so peaceful and only a 5-minute drive to some fantastic sights. We explored the Aboriginal rock
Darwin
The next pro surfer ? paintings at Ubirr, looked for crocs at Cahill’s crossing (the river crossing into Arnhem Land) and treated ourselves to coffee at the border store. That evening we were plagued by mossies and were inside our respective campers early. We booked to go on The Guluyambi boat cruise. The guide explained aspects of the local culture while we travelled down the East Alligator River. There were loads of crocs and some really beautiful bird life too. We had an early dinner that evening so we could climb to the lookout at Ubirr to see the sunset. The view over The Nadab floodplain was amazing, even though it was quite cloudy. We also camped at Cooinda from where we took in the rock art at Nourlangie rock. The resort pool at Cooinda was a relief from the heat and the mossies. Our time with mum and Peter was coming to an end and we were eager to share one of our favourite spots. We headed back to Edith Falls (in Katherine NP) for their last night with us. We all walked to the upper pools for a beautiful (crocodile free) swim and returned to enjoy some great wine and pizza. The following
Darwin
Finn joining in morning after a short walk to take in the lower pool we said our (sad) goodbyes to mum and peter. This also means goodbye to not cooking dinner and to that extra time in bed in the morning while the kids run to wake up Nanna. All good things must come to an end. Thanks to you both, it’s been so lovely. So P, J, F and I headed back to Katherine. We had to pick up something for the solar panel, before heading south to Alice. The drive to Alice is over 1000km so we planned to space it over a few days. We stopped at Mataranka for a night to enjoy the hot springs. We were told by Yvette that it was like a scene from the movie Cocoon. It sure was - with loads of wrinkly grey nomads floating about in the water. We added to the mix with our 2 blondies on boogie boards doing bombies off the side. We stopped for a night at Renner Springs where we camped below a massive windmill and were chased by angry geese. Wycliffe Well is known as the UFO centre of Australia. It is quite quirky with giant
Darwin
Fish and chips at Stokes Hill Wharf statues of Aliens, the Hulk and Elvis plus an endless amount of murals and UFO paraphernalia. We have ended up staying here for 2 nights as a huge amount of rain came and everything was rather wet. At the moment we are waiting to go check some pots we have put out to catch yabbies. Hopefully they will be loaded. In the morning we plan to leave for Alice Springs and to see our friends Jodi and Paul. Hope they like yabbies. Until the next blog N, P, J & F.
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Yvette
non-member comment
Gday
Hey guys great to sit back and relax and read your entry, after a busy day just great. Sounds awesome, good on you. I was only just thinking of you today and then there it was your blog! Loved the photos. Enjoy the ROCK! Frosty is off taking the boys on a father and son camping trip this weekend should be great. I am going to the Truffle festival that should be fun. Take care lots love us all xx