Aaron & Lib's Australian Adventure

Humpty Doo Hotel NT

Lunch @ Humpty Doo Hotel NT

Campsite @ Aurora Resort, Sth Alligator, Kakadu NP NT

08/08/2016 Day 73 (Mo). Saturday was a lazy morning in camp followed by lunch at the Humpty Doo Hotel. It was a very iconic NT pub with a variated menu. Their burgers included camel, buffalo, Barra, crocodile and beef. Mum had the Barra burger and I had the Croc burger. They were delicious and huge. Afterwards Lib and I dropped the dogs at the kennels and then we all went to the supermarket to stock up, ready for our foray into the Kakadu NP.

Visitor Centre Seating, Bowali Visitors Centre, Kakadu NT

Woven Mat, Bowali Visitor Centre, Kakadu NT

Yesterday we were on the road by 0730 and drove out the Arnhem Highway to Kakadu. The drive out was very smoky. We read somewhere that 50% of the NT was burnt during the dry. We had a near miss with a wallaby on the drive out who decided to try and run the gauntlet. He very nearly went under the rear wheels of Bess, skidded over and then went straight across in front of Herbie (the nickname we’ve given to Mum’s rental camper). We arrived at South Alligator and checked into the Aurora Resort at around 10 am.

Mamukala Billabong Walk, Kakadu NT

After setting up camp and with Lib not feeling well, Mum and I went for a drive to the Bowali visitor centre near Jabiru. It was very impressive with a big display of the native wildlife in the region, the information desk, a café and a gift shop that also sold local aboriginal art. It was a big place. One piece we saw was a large woven mat for $1200. Then we headed into Jabiru for a look see. It is a tiny village and not much was open on a Sunday except the bakery and the servo.

Weaving, Merl Campground, Kakadu NT

On our return to camp we drove by the Mamukala Bird Hide. It looks out over the wetlands and was very beautiful and peaceful. We saw thousands of birds including Magpie Geese, Great Egret, Black Kite, a Rainbow Bee Eater, Straw Necked Ibis, Crimson Finch, Comb Crested Jacana and many others. As well as the Hide there is also a 3 km walk along the edge of the wetlands that we decided to tackle. It is an easy, flat walk along a well-worn trail that starts off through the scrub, under and in between the Pandanus trees. It took us approx. 2 hrs. It was a very warm walk being late in the day but it was well worth it. At the end we stopped for a breather at the Hide and then returned to camp.

Weaving, Merl Campground, Kakadu NT

Ubirr Rock Art, Kakadu NT

Today we had a lazy morning and at around 11 am we drove out to Ubirr. We had lunch on the bank of the East Alligator River at Cahill’s Crossing where we spotted plenty of crocs. Cahill’s Crossing is the road over the river that leads into Arnhem Land. After lunch we went to one of the many campgrounds in Kakadu called Merl to try our hand at traditional Aboriginal weaving. It was run by three ladies. One was a NP Ranger (Annie), and Anne and Heather (two Aboriginal women). We were shown how they delaminated leaves from the Pandanus palm to use in their weaving. It is a process of peeling the two layers of the leaves apart, one side to be used as the string and the other for the stuffing. We spent the first hour blundering through this technique. It was frustrating and difficult at first but by watching the ladies and asking questions of them, soon the large group was getting the hang of it. Heather and Anne made it look so easy but then they did have years of experience. I got the hang of it fairly quickly although I was still butchering more than I kept and soon I was showing other people the method. Annie was quite impressed with the pile that was growing at my feet. They showed us the roots they used and the method by which they dyed the leaves to colour them. The colours they were using today were brown, yellow and green. They used a green dye as the Pandanus leaf quickly goes a whitish colour as it dries.

Ubirr Rock Art, Kakadu NT

Ubirr Lookout, Kakadu NT

The second hour was spent weaving bracelets. Using the stuffing to make the base the coloured leaves are then knotted around using a series of half hitches. As the leaves dry fairly quickly in the heat we had to keep wetting our hands and the leaves to keep them supple to stop them from snapping. It was a great introduction into Aboriginal weaving and certainly gives one an appreciation for how much time and effort goes into making mats and baskets and other items.

Ubirr Lookout, Kakadu NT

After our master class we drove out to the Ubirr Rock Art site. It was very impressive. Following the walking track leads you past many well preserved walls with heaps of paintings. We saw fish, turtles, goannas, crocodiles, man and many others. We climbed up the short steep track to the lookout point. The view was incredible. It looked out over the wetlands to the north and the scrubby sandstone rock country to the south. It was an amazing 360 degree vista. It was one site that was used in the filming of Crocodile Dundee. One impressive part of the area were the railings that they had used throughout. They had used very long branches that have been well polished by the hands of the millions of visitors to the area. It was a great day!

Ubirr Lookout, Kakadu NT

09/08/2016 Day 74 (Tu). Today was a very lazy day. After a late and relaxing start we did the local walk around the camp site called Gungarre Monsoon Forrest Walk. It went through ever changing types of bushland and we ended up walking alongside the Gungarre Billabong. The billabong was mostly dry. On the walk we saw plenty of differing types of butterflies and many birds.

On our return we had a refreshing repast followed by a tranquil dip in the resort pool.

Kakadu NT

At around 1730 we drove out to the Mamukala Bird Hide to show Lib and to watch over the wetlands during sunset. It was very loud with heaps of activity as the many different types of birds were either flying off to find their night roost or settling into the nearby trees for the night. We are seeing new birds every day and it is fun to pore over Mum’s bird book to work out which ones we have seen. Having a decent camera is making it easier as we can blow the shots up to get a bird’s eye view.

Straw Necked Ibis, Kakadu NT

Flutterby, Kakadu NT

11/08/2016 Day 76 (Th). Wednesday was a great day. We got up early in the morning and travelled down to Anbangbang Gallery where we met Ranger Christian who took us for an for a snap shot of an interesting journey of 20,000 years of Aboriginal culture and history. He was a very passionate man who loved his job and it was evident in how he presented his informative talks. We started at the carpark at 9am. We then walked up to a lookout point where he gave his first talk on the changing of the seasons and how different signals in the bush told the Aboriginals what time of year it was and where they could then expect to find different types of food at the different times of year. When to burn the bush, when not to burn.

Native Bees, Kakadu NT

Then we trekked down to the main gallery where he gave a talk on the family structure of the Aboriginals. Who could marry who, who could talk to who, who could hunt where, who was responsible for who (teaching) and many other interactions. It is described as the most complex social system anywhere.

Kakadu Sunset NT

After that we walked down to Anbangbang Shelter where Christian talked about an archaeological dig conducted in 1981-82 which uncovered 20,000 years of Aboriginal culture on one site. How with the change in the environment from the ice age onwards the people of the land were spending longer and longer living in the shelter, from one month every couple of years, to two months a year and then to six months of every year. As the centuries flowed on they needed to range less and less to find an abundance of food.

We learnt a small part of a huge story that is the Aboriginal culture. It was mind blowing!

Stone Country Kakadu NT

Next we went and found our camp for the night down near Yellow Water Billabong where we set up and had lunch. In the afternoon we checked out the Warradjan Aboriginal Cultural Centre. It was a great visual display which described Aboriginal culture from their point of view. From their early beginnings through to meeting the white fella. Very moving.

Anbangbang Gallery, Kakadu NT

After that we went to Cooinda to meet the boat for our sunset cruise on Yellow Water and the Sth Alligator River. Our guide (Don), was very informative and had eagle eyes as he could spot the different types of wild life from a long way off. We saw crocs, barramundi, large and little egrets, an Azure Kingfisher, bee eaters, Sea Eagles, turtles, cows, horses, Night Herons, Magpie Geese, cormorants, Jabiru and Brolga’s to name a few. It was a great day and ticked many of the boxes of things we wanted to see and do in Kakadu. It was beautiful being out on the water in the dry (and believe me it’s dry up here now), out amongst nature.

Anbangbang Shelter Kakadu NT

Yellow Water Sunset Cruise Kakadu NT

Today we left Kakadu for Litchfield NP. As we were driving out of the park I also saw my first buffalo. We headed down to Pine Creek to refuel. On the way there we were flagged down by a couple with a 4WD and caravan. They had made an extra detour on their Kakadu adventure and had run out of fuel 22 km’s from the next roadhouse. So we let the man jump in with us with his jerry and drove him down and back. As he put it we were filling up our karma bank. Not long after that Bess started playing up a bit and we realised we were out of petrol. When we tried switching it over to gas it was a no go at first but after jiggling a few wires to make better connections, she fired up and we were on our way again. When we were sitting on the side of the road the bloke we helped out drove straight by without so much as a wave. Where’s his karma bank? WTF?

Yellow Water Sunset Cruise Kakadu NT

We pulled up for a pie and a drink for lunch at Adelaide River and then headed to the Litchfield Tourist Park where we are spending the next two nights. By the time we set up camp it was 3 pm and we’d been on the road for 8 hrs. It was a long day followed by a swim and a few drinks in a nice quiet bush setting.

Yellow Water Sunset Cruise Kakadu NT

13/08/16 Day 78 (Sa). Yesterday was awesome (in Mum’s words). We spent the whole day in Litchfield NP. First we stopped at the Magnetic Termite Mounds. After snapping off a few photos and reading the signage we drove out to Buley Rockhole where we spent a couple of hours relaxing in the pools. We slowly made our way down stream, pool by pool. It was nice to chill out in the heat of the day. After walking out we drove to Florence Falls which was an amazing vista. It was still an awesome sight in the dry but not nearly as much water as when we were there in the wet season 10 years ago. We found a nice spot by the water above the falls to have lunch with our feet in the water where we were greeted by a friendly water monitor.

Forrest Kingfisher Kakadu NT

When we had finished lunch we drove out to Wangi Falls. It is an awesome place to cool off in the afternoon. It is probably the most easily accessible waterhole in the park with the path leading stright from the carpark down to stairs into the water. We all had a swim and at around 4 pm we drove back to LTP for the evening.

Kakadu NT

This morning we drove back up to Darwin. After setting up camp in the Coolalinga CP and getting the clothes washing on the line, we went to Woollies to stock up on all our goodies.

This was followed by lunch and a swim in the pool before we went and picked up the puppies from the kennels. Yay! It was nice to have a short break but I’m glad they are back with us again.

Crimson Finch Kakadu NT

In the evening an old army buddy came for beers and a feed. It was great catching up with Robbo who I hadn’t seen for 7 years. We sat around and told heaps of old and new stories. We drank and talked through til after midnight. A fantastic time was had by all. Thanks for the memories mate!

Ubirr Lookout Kakadu NT

Mamukala Billabong Kakadu NT

15/08/16 Day 80 (Mo). Tired, bleary eyed and probably still a little drunk we left Darwin at about 730 am and decided we were going to try and drive 300 km’s south to Katherine in one day. We got 40 km’s from Coolalinga when Bess started making strange banging and knocking noises in the engine bay. We quickly pulled over but could not find anything apparent. The noise seemed like it was coming from under the rocker cover but not being a mechanic I had no idea. I’ve learnt a few things about Bess over the last 7 years but some things are still beyond my knowledge. We rang roadside assistance and while we were waiting to take my mind off things Mum and I sat down and worked on her Woman's Weekly crossword.

Comb Crested Jacana Kakadu NT

Rainbow Bee Eater Kakadu NT

Kakadu NT

Jabiru Kakadu NT

The mechanic came and went and told us that basically that without strip

Kakadu NT

Azure Kingfisher Kakadu NT

ping the engine down, which we don’t really have time for, that it was virtually impossible to work out the cause. Her advice was either to put it on a truck and get the engine rebuilt or make the decision to keep the oil up to it and see how it goes. We made the latter choice and drove on. Bess made a few noises in the next 20 km’s and then after that didn’t skip a beat. We ran out of day and pulled up for the afternoon at Pine Creek and stayed at the Lazy Lizard CP. After getting only 4 and a half hrs sleep the night before I had a nanna nap followed by a dip in the pool where I found my mother talking to a lady travelling on her own.This morning we got off to a late start and drove the remaining 90 km’s into Katherine. Bess handled really well. She had no funny noises and didn’t over heat, even when we pulled up at road works. We drove straight to a vet because Charlie has conjunctivitis in one eye which he picked up in the boarding kennel. The vet reckons though that he hasn’t contracted it from another dog and that it’s more likely that he has scratched his eye or gotten a grass seed in there which has caused the irritation and infection. After paying the vet an arm and a leg we booked into North Bank CP for two nights. We had lunch and then drove to the Information Centre and booked a trip up the Katherine Gorge for tomorrow which we are all keen for.