Kakadu

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Oops again. (A senior moment) I will include the croc pic this time (John and Dennis were trolling on the electric motor in Corroboree Billabong about ten feet from the bank, a bit close to this one).
Since the last post we have managed to catch up with Adam who was in Darwin for a kart meeting, and John spent some time at the kart track with him. We then had Monday lunch with Adam and Sarah at Stokes Wharf, a bit of sightseeing then to the airport. Before we left Darwin we went to Charles Darwin Park to see a couple of wartime bunkers and then went to the Fanny Bay Museum to see Sweetheart, who is a very large croc that was captured and preserved and now resides at the museum. We were reluctant toleave Darwin aswereally enjoyed the laid back lifestyle that the Darwinians enjoy.We spent far more time there than originally intended.
On the way to Kakadu we go through Humpty Doo which is just a little place on the highway but the name has captivated John. The first place we stop is the Window on the Wetlands and you can imagine from the pictures what this must be like in the wet.
We stopped at the Adelaide River which is famous for its jumping crocodile tours. We weren't keen on this idea as we don't really like the possibility of them jumping when we are out in our boat (prefer to see them on the bank resting -which we have seen many times since.)
We stopped at the South Alligator river but it didn't look too apppealing for fishing so we headed to Jabiru. We then headed to the magnificant Rock Art site at Ubirr. There was some amazing rock art and after a climb up the rockface we were treated to a magnificent view of some of the wetlands and escarpments around the area. We stopped at the East Alligator River which looked a lot more appealing for fishing and decided to come back at a laterday for a spot of fishing.
The next day we headed to Jim Jim Falls which were about 100 kms away including 60kms of gravel road, the last ten of which were 4wd tracks. Getting to the falls involved a 1km walk/climb over lots of very large rocks and boulders but it was so worthwhile as they were magnificent (I don't think the pictures do them justice). Now it was time to put the boat in the water so we headed back to East Alligator river and spent an afternoon fishing. It is certainly a beautiful spot and we saw quite a few crocs. We put the boat in at Cahills Crossing, which is a notorious crocodile location, even featuring on a David Attenborough segment (http://thecrocspot.blogspot.com/2009/04/croc-bait.html, you can google Cahills Crossing for other videos). The crossing is the boundary between the salt water on the lower side and the fresh water on the upper side, the crossing stops the tide from going any further up the river. The crossing itself is a favourite barra spot on a rising tide and is quite heavily fished, and it is quite surprising that there has only been one death due to a croc attack. Unfortunately with 7 metre tides on the day we could not put the boat in on the lower side so had to content with the fishing the fresh side.

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Photos

Barra boat
There is a good reason the fishing guides use big boats with high sides up here. This one is taller than a landcruiser.

Croc at the Billabong
Yep, bit close before we saw this one.

Nightcliff Beach at Darwin
Boat ramp at Nightcliff, unfortunately most ramps need a tide above 3 metres, since tides drop to 0.2 metres (highs of 8 metres), you have to wait for the neap tides.

WWII Bunker
Charles Darwin Park. It is a shame that most of Darwins involvement in the war was suppressed by the Government of the day as there are many stories to be told.

Sweetheart
Isn't she though, this is one huge croc.

Humpty Doo
Humpty Doo, love the name, how would you like this as your address

AdelaideRiver
Fishermen do not like the idea of encouraging crocs to jump, but gives the grey nomads a thrill

Thylacine
This depicts a thylacine (Tasmanian Tiger), see the stripes on the rear. Thylacines have been extinct on the mainland for over 4,000 years, it is claimed this drawing is over 5,000 years old.