Adventures in Kakadu

6.00am - Another early morning, not quite so bad as last week, and we were once again in the back seat of another tour bus on our way to a 3 day adventure in Kakadu. First stop was The Bark Hut Inn, just past Humpty Doo, for breakfast - Lyn, our driver, said the Bacon & Egg sangers were good and she was right. Once on the road again we had a couple of hours driving, on good roads, till our adventure started for real. As we passeded through the Kakadu border we started to see wildlife & birds from the bus. We did stop for photo's of a Jabiru but it was pretty far away. Crossing over the East Aligator River at low tide gave us our first chance of crocodile spotting. We saw just 2 sunning themselves in the mud.

Next stop was at Ubirr Rock where we got up close and personal with lots of Aboriginal Rock Art. Most of it hundreds of years old. The first two viewing platforms were within easy walking and climbing distance but the 3rd site was about 250 metres up a cliff. I decided that after my climb last week that I should sit this one out - yes, boring I know but this was only our first stop and I wanted to see more. Bill climbed and from their vantage point high on the cliff they could see right over the wetlands to the Arnhem Land Escarpment far in the distance. And of course more Rock Art. Back on the bus and and then off to Jabiru for lunch in the park. It was just like driving into suburbia as we turned off the highway into Jabiru. A real surprise, not sure what I expected, but it wasn't a very tidy town right in the middle of nowhere. The park where we had lunch had a big lake in the middle (no water shortage up here) with picnic tables and a kids playground next to it. And of course right next to that was the 'Crocodiles have been sighted in this area' signs. A comforting thought to eat our lunch with. Needless to say I didn't go near the edge.

After lunch we went Bowali Visitor Centre Park HQ for a quick visit and then we were off to Cooinda for a cruise at Yellow Waters. This was the hightlight of the day for me. Flat bottom barges take you on a 1 1/2 hr cruise through the Yellow Water Billabong and out onto the South Aligator River. All the while you are watching an abundance of birdlife, waterbirds & of course the real star - Mr Crocodile. We saw about 4 or 5, with one very large one just laying on the bank not taking a bit of notice as we came almost within touching distance of him - nobody volunteered to pat him. I'm sure he was fully aware we were there though. We saw all sorts of ducks, magpie geese, a young Jabiru, a magnificent eagle and lots of egrets. Also a herd of wild horses and some cattle just wandering along the shores.

Once the cruise was over we had just a short bus ride to the Cooinda Yellow Waters Camp sight which was to be our home for the next 2 nights. Some of the people stayed in the hotel but we stayed in the permanent tents again. Just like last time with single beds, matresses and this time sheets & blankets. Very civilized camping. The camp sight/Resort is self contained with beautiful swimming pools, restaurant & bistro all 5 mins walk from our tent. What more could you want? The Barramundi burger was excellent and the bottle of red finished the day off just right.

A spider in the tent on our arrival back was not a welcome sight but Bill came to the rescue and saved me from it's horrible clutches - yes he killed it - and then off to the land of nod wondering what we would see tomorrow.

I'll let you know soon......

Next stop - Darwin

We arrived in Darwin to a rainy Thursday night. Well showers, really but they persisted through the next day. Where was the sun we were meant to see? We had a suitcase full of summer clothes and here we were in the rain again. An unseasonal cold spell the weather forecasters told us. All returned to normal on Saturday morning with the hot sunny weather returning and yes we came home with a nice brown glow.

Darwin is a great place to spend a few days if you are wanting to escape the southern winter chills. It sure has grown in the last 12 years and with the average age of the residents being about 30 years old, coupled with a huge influx of backpackers it is party central. There is also a large number of grey nomads that arrive to stay & play for a while in the sun along with the many overnight tourists that arrive by the coach load each day. So it has a real friendly, happy feel to the place no matter what time you are wandering around.

We had a great time exploring Darwin. We hitched a ride on the Tour Tub and saw the highlights on a get on, get off tour one day. We also checked out the Museum, Art Gallery, The WW2 Tunnels, The Wharf, Parliment House (pictured), The Smith St Mall & all the shops in Darwin. We wandered along the Esplanade parklands and took in the beautiful views of the harbour and Govt House. Had lunch at Cullum Bay one day, dinner on the wharf with friends one night, a wonderful Champagne Sunset cruise on the harbour and the best fun wandering around and watching the sunset (on the beach) at Mindil Beach Markets.

Of course the best bit about holidays is catching up with friends and it was great to be able to have dinner with Peter Miller and meet Alison & John, also visiting from Victoria. Peter was unable to join Marg & Peter O in the snow this year as well but we had some fun reliving our memories of last years adventure over a glass or three of bubbles. We met again for breakfast at Fannie Bay on our last morning, the Cool Spot, just the place for a final fling brekkie in Darwin.

Our stay in Darwin was actually in two parts with a trip to Kakadu in the middle so I'll leave you now with the promise of our Kakadu memories to come in a day or so.

Until next time .........