Kaka – who? Kakadu

 

We’re currently in Mataranka along with half the population of Australia.

 

As promised we headed back to Kakadu and went up to Ubirr where we had planned to stay for 2 nights. The viscous mosquitos changed our minds. A heavy cloud cover came in in the afternoon bring humidity and mozzies with it. We had mosquito coils, citronella candles, thermacell – the whole shebang but that didn’t faze these mozzies. Generally I boast that they don’t bite me but these NT mozzies thought I was the best thing since hairspray in a can.

 

The next morning the sheet was covered in blood smears and dead insects. YUK.

 

We went to see the rock art – which is truly amazing. One of the few places where they have so-called x-ray art. The skeletons of the animals are visible. There’s even a Thylacine which were believed to have been wiped out around 4000 years ago by the dingoes.

 

Next up Cooinda campsite in North Kakadu with its excellent facilities. We did the sunrise cruise on the Yellow Waters billabong and river system. Lots of Jabiru, Sea Eagles, grumpy looking Nankeen Night Heron, thousands of Whistling Ducks, Egrets of every description, Darters, Jacana, White necked and pied Heron and more that I can’t remember. 

Cold beer after a swim on a hot hot day in Kakadu

 

 

Whistling ducks

Darter

Jacana 

 

It was pretty hot and the mozzies were doing our heads in, so we only stayed 2 nights, rather than the 3 we’d booked.

A lot of Kakadu was closed due to the recent heavy rain with many sites and waterfalls inaccessible. 

 

Did an overnighter at Bark Hut Roadhouse and campsite. What a great find, much nicer than Corroboree Park. Next night at Humpty Doo – an experience that doesn’t need to be repeated.

 

So now we are in Mataranka. I may be exaggerating but it seems like there is 1000 vehicles here of all shapes and sizes. We parked out in the Boonies, but were surrounded in no time, so moved a spot where we couldn’t be out manoeuvred. Very anti-social behaviour, but hey, we like our privacy.

 

The source of the spring

Swimming hole

The thermal springs themselves are simply stunning but of course very crowded. We went down early this morning to beat the crowd and there was just a few old fogies like us there. The water is astonishingly clear and sits at about 34 degrees. What a great way to start your day. We followed up with a bacon and egg muffin.

 

We’ll hang around here for another day or 2 and the head to QLD. We have no real agenda now and plan to tackle the Savannah Way depending the state of roads.

 

Never Smile At A Crocodile

 

 

I last left you in Broome where we had 120mms of rain – most unseasonal. This meant that the road into the Bungle Bungle was closed. We’d been hesitating about doing it as we knew the road would be chopped up, but the decision was made for us. Shame.

 

First stop was Wilare roadhouse overnight, followed by Larrawa Station then arriving in Kununurra for a few days. We caught up with our Kiwi mates, Joanna and Bob and did some walking. We even managed to feed them a decent dinner of Risotto with Porcini.

 

We stayed in Kununurra as Lawrence needed to renew his Driver’s Licence, which can only be done 6 months before expiry – June 1^st. But we forgot about the public holiday – a result of being retirees. We rocked up at 8.15 sharp on the Tuesday only to find out that they had decided to have another day off… groan. We’ll figure out the licence thing another time as we had a booking at Edith Falls and didn’t want to miss a day as it’s our favourite spot. 

 

We crossed from WA into the NT and noticed a marked deterioration in the condition of the road surface. We’re so lucky in WA with our wide, straight, well maintained roads. Driving through the Victoria River area is stunning and we stayed overnight at the lovely Victoria River Roadhouse.            

 

Well I have to admit it’s now several days later. I’ve been distracted.

 

Our next stop was the wonderful Edith Falls. We’ve been here several times before and it’s one of our favourite spots in the NT. Sadly, the main swimming hole was closed due the incredible amount of rain they’d had – 200mm overnight. The upside of this is that the falls were pumping and the top pools had so much water in them that they were great for a good dip. Last time they were just rockpools. It also involved a decent amount of exercise as we had to climb the 1km uphill to get there.

 

 

 

From there we headed to Corroborree Billabong (how Australian can you get!) and stayed overnight at the Tavern campsite. We’d booked the sunrise cruise on the billabong but as we were the only ones mad enough to want to get out of bed at 5.30, the cruise didn’t run. We did sunset instead. The birdlife is amazing and also saw a couple of decent sized crocs.

 

 

 

Next stop  - Berry springs area (via a visit to Darwin for shopping etc) and we are staying on the wonderful Tumbling Waters Holiday park. It’s tropical paradise and mercifully the weather is wonderful. Mild warm days and cool nights – a contrast to the last time we were in the NT.

 

Yesterday we did the Territory Wildlife Park. What an amazing place, so much to see and do but our favourite section was the Monsoon Rainforest with its walk-through aviary and of course the spectacular bird show. The aquarium was also incredible interesting, mimicking the different stages of the waters from origin to ocean.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Today we did the actual Berry Springs. What a pretty spot, but of course incredibly popular and heaving with tourists and locals. The water is tepid so even I could go straight in without a fuss. Lawrence had to get out as the fish starting nibbling at his toe wound – Nurse Kate bathed it in Betadine. 

 

 

 

From here we’ll be heading backwards and we’ve decided to go the one part of Kakadu again (Yellow Waters) and Ubirr for the rock art.

 

I’ll try not to leave it so long next time – promise!