Category: Australia (Page 1 of 5)

Leaving Lake Argyle we were quickly across the border into the Northern Territory. After a convenient overnight free camp by the road we were on our way through Katherine to Nitmiluk National Park – specifically Edith Falls on the north side of the park. We had stopped here on the way south but it was closed due to excess water, excess crocs, or excess something.

We spent the night at the camp site at the falls, and were pretty excited to do the walk to a waterhole called “Sweetwater Pools” the following day. The walk was only a couple of hours so we enjoyed a leisurely breakfast, before heading off to enjoy the hottest hours of the day. Fresh buffalo (or massive cow) poop on the track indicated possible excitement although we didn’t find one to play with. After reaching Sweetwater Pools, we had a beautiful swim, and decided that we would swim in every other waterhole we had passed on the way up. We managed 3 freshwater dips in crystal clear water on the walk back from Sweetwater Pools, managing to stay wet for the entire trip back despite the best efforts of the midday sun.

With the number of days available to us dwindling, we had some unfinished business to attend to – Kakadu.

We had run away from Kakadu during the first week of our trip due to excess swarming masses of bugs, excess mosquitos the size of pterodactyls, and excess things being closed. The bugs and mosquitos hadn’t changed apparently, but most of the park was open now.

Our first stop in Kakadu was Maguk campsite conveniently located near another water fall. This sign is amusingly placed just before the path crosses the creek and heads up to the swimming hole.

We assumed yummier people had already passed this way so we would not become lunch today. The waterhole was reasonably easily accessed and we had a beautiful reintroduction to Kakadu in the warmest freshwater pool we had been in the whole trip. We could see the bottom many metres below us, and watched the fish check us out.

We had a few days planned here, and the lure of collecting and cooking bush tucker with a local guide was enough for us to sign up for the “Animal Tracks” tour located deeper within the park. Its been going for 20 years and still uses the same windowless troop carrier and dishevelled tour guide… We knew we were onto a winner. We picked up Patsy who had lived here all her life, and with her guidance we made baskets, dug for tubers, avoided buffalo, ate green ants (they taste lemon-y and are used as medicine), and turned leaves into string.

As the sun set over the wetlands, we cooked our dinner on the hot coals in a paperbark and eucalyptus oven. On the menu was fresh tubers we had foraged, wild buffalo, wild pig, and wild freshwater barramundi. Patsy warmed up to all of us and was delightful to spend time with. We watched the sun set, and the pterodactyls rise, and skedaddled off back to our camp, swerving to miss the 2m long olive pythons that like to warm up on the road at night soaking up the last warmth of the sun from the tarmac.

Our final night in this wild park was spent on a river cruise at Yellow water near our campsite. The pterodactyls don’t come out until after the sun has set (unlike in other places where they come out at dusk, or just stay all day) and so we felt safe to be out and about at this time. The cruise took us through the wetlands, and is primarily used to educate tourists on the fragility of the environment, and the uniqueness and importance of this park. It was wonderful to see the wetlands from this vantage point, and we were fortunate to see a lot of crocodiles! These are esturine (or salt water) crocodiles and are definitely a danger to humans, so we stayed safely within the boat.

A couple of days later, while relaxing by the pool at our hotel in Darwin, we were reminded of this magic sunset cruise. A tall, daringly tanned, rotund gentleman explained to his friends, rather too loudly, that Kakadu was not the place to see wildlife. We recalled the sunset cruise, and the moment we were surrounded by half a dozen salt water crocodiles a few metres away snapping at passing fish, jabirus (AKA black necked storks) sorting out squabbling geese whilst other wading birds watched on, sea eagles returning to their nest as wild pigs and buffalo crossed the wetlands. Hmm, no wildlife.

After 13000 km our outback trip was fading into another fiery Kakadu sunset. The rumble of the swag carrying V8 Land Cruisers had been diluted by the hum of soft roaders. The 4WD outback buses full of adventure seeking back packers had been replaced by luxury coaches spewing clean, perfumed, white shirts and sun hats on day trips from Darwin. Attentive tour guides rushed wheelchairs to those overcome by the few hundred metres stroll to todays instagramable shot.

After our fun at Windjana and Tunnel Creek, we were keen to do some more walking and Purnululu promised some highly rated tracks.  We traversed the 53km of dirt road to our campsite within the park in the late afternoon with the rock faces turning red under the setting sun. 

Echidna Gorge was a perfect option for our first day in the park, as it had been recommended as a ‘must do’ and more importantly needed to be started later in the morning to get the best light. The vertical sides of the gorge only a few meters apart made a truely etherial place where one could wonder at the forces and time that made such place. It was easy to understand the signs asking for respect as if it was a cathedral. The inevitable child calling ‘coo-EEE’  was stunned into silence when Fi warned him he might wake the sleeping baby micro bats just ahead – perhaps the only respite the parents got that day.

Later, we entertained ourselves at the ‘Fawlty Towers’ visitor centre. When they returned from lunch they explained how the internet, which had not yet reached the centre, was the only way to book the nearby campsite. There was a guest wifi which was private and a pay phone that no longer made calls so they recommended the 4 hour return trip to the highway to get reception to make a booking. 

The next day we were treated to more spectacular gorge walks at the northern end of the park. It was becoming clear that the walks were a small taste of the the park and we were being carefully guided around much of the more interesting and presumably sensitive terrain. The only way to see most of the park would be from the air.

I had overheard a tour guide talk about dawn at the southern and eastern side of the park where the famous bee hive rock formations are. We made the risky choice to drive, pre-coffee, to the southern end of the park where we enjoyed the early morning light whilst making breakfast.

After a good breakfast, we walked along the river bed a few km to Whip Snake Gorge which was largely deserted and tranquil. A large number of cane toads rotted alongside the path, Appian Way style, although we didn’t discover how they met their demise. On our return trip from Whip Snake Gorge, we met the tour groups thronging into the popular Cathedral Gorge, which was accessed via a small detour at the end of our much larger walk . It was indeed reminiscent of any European cathedral, full of a hundred well dressed quietly spoken camera snapping visitors. Not really our thing, we exited quietly and returned to the car park. Interestingly, we found out, Cathedral Gorge was used in the famous Qantas advertisement where they put the kids dressed in cleanly pressed white robes into famous landmarks to sing “Still call Australia home”. Apt. 

Next stop was the airfield for our aerial adventure. Fi had experienced the helicopter flight some 20 years earlier, and that was enough of an excuse for me to get the front seat.  As we had suspected, the vast majority of the park is off limits to the public. There looks to be some fantastic walking for the more adventurous with great access into the gorges along dry creek beds. However; I suspect if I was responsible for a land full of ancient paintings, tranquil gorges and sacred burial sites I would keep the coo-eee’s, the generators and the 4WDs to their own little corner.

Our longest stopover came to an end and we headed north for civilisation, vaccines, provisioning and a dose of nostalgia. 

As it turned out the mighty Gibb is a veritable highway of well graded dirt conveying a procession of caravan towing nomads and frustrated 4WD enthusiasts. Our first stop for the night was Mount Hart some 50km from the main road with creek crossings full enough to justify low range and kindle feelings of remote outback adventure. We knew we were in the real outback when the the camp host complained of a snake under her chair and a group of 4WD campers cut firewood at breakfast with a chainsaw. A short drive from the camp site a small gorge provided a cooling swim, an array of bird life, our favourite red dragonflies and the back half of a slithery friend.

From Mt Hart we headed to Manning Gorge, described as the highlight of the Gibb, by our fellow Apollo snail travellers. The walk to the gorge requires a short swim across a freezing croc infested river before trekking through fields of vibrant wild flowers and finally descending into the gorge. Nothing could have prepared us for the huge volume of water surging over the black rocks and into the large swimming holes. A small ledge behind the waterfall provided a welcome rest after the excitement of swimming through the cascading water. All walks in this region should be modelled on this one with a refreshing river crossing to finish.

The next morning, we realised that we hadn’t changed plan for several days. Having completed the ‘highlight’ of the Gibb experience we decided to change plan and turn back. Behind us was Mornington (wildlife refuge far enough off the highway to deter many), Tunnel Creek and Windjana Gorge. After discovering Mornington was closed we headed to Windjana Gorge camp ground and walked up the gorge the next morning. Here you are allowed to get your selfies with the crocs but not swim in their river.

Tunnel Creek is one of those rare adventures still allowed on the modern tourist track. We followed the hot rocky path to a fissure in the cliff where the creek disappeared into the cool darkness. Wading gave way to swimming through freezing water under the watchful eye of the resident croc (we didn’t spot him but someone pointed him out on the return trip). After 750m the creek emerges into a delightful tree lined pool and aboriginal paintings.

Refreshed we headed south towards tarmac and Fitzroy Crossing collecting a Boab nut on the way. The red mountain ranges of Gibb gave way to horizon to horizon flatness so vast that we could see the flatness of the earth. Mimbi Caves was our next stop. Mimbi, meaning caves in local language, had a delightful campsite with great sunsets. The ‘Caves Caves’ tour the next day took us through the passages inside the local hills, past some local art and described how the locals had lived here for 50 000 years.

Next stop was Purnululu national park (Bungle Bungle’s).