Week 5 – Litchfield National Park to Kununurra…farewell NT, hullo WA.

This week saw us finish our bit up the middle of the country and head over in to the northern part of WA where I find myself sitting in Kununurra where we have spent a couple of days getting ready to leave civilization as we know it (ie coverage for phones and internet) and head in to the Kimberleys proper for the next 15 days.

But first to bring you up to date on the last week…

Litchfield has by far had the best swimming spots .  After a nervous start by both boys in Florence Falls where they were a bit freaked by the falls, the deep water, the rocky bottom and the fish eating the dead skin off my feet we all settled in for one of the days of the trip at Wangi Falls the next day. This was magnificent…two waterfalls cascading over the rock face in to a large pool below.  We swam out to the rockface and clambered up it a couple of metres where there was a little rock pool perched beside one of the falls, room enough just for about 8 people and warm from the sun with its own little waterfall trickling in to it.  It was deep so we held the sides and looked back out across the larger pool below.  Alex and Bronnie swam over and under the bigger waterfall while I took Lachie back to the shallower edge on the other side.

A 1.8km walk up and around the top of the falls gave us views out across Litchfield National Park above the tree canopy and then back down for another swim made for an awesome day.

On our way back to camp we stopped at the Bulley Rockholes, another swimming spot we had run out of time the day before.  This was meant to be a take a look cos we are there stop…an hour later we had swum in each of the 5 rock holes, climbed down the small waterfalls between each rock hole and enjoyed some of the cleanest and freshest water I reckon I have ever been in.

If I compare Kakadu and Litchield…Kakadu was amazing for its floodplains, wildlife and vastness, but you were well and truly a spectator, unable to swim and truly jump in and enjoy the best parts (although in fairness all the 4wd tracks to the falls and gorges were still closed due to the wet season).  Litchfield on the other we got to play and in 30 plus degree temperatures these days were brilliant.  Not sure why the crocs don’t go to Litchfield to cool off, no one could tell us but sshhhh, lets hope they never figure out that across the highway is a whole bunch of tourists swimming that I am sure would provide for a tasty!

From Litchfield to Katherine for a few nights.  Here we did the usual stuff…cruise on Katherine Gorge, bushwalk up to one of the lookouts (all of which was spectacular) but much of Katherine was spent riding the bikes on the bike paths (even if Bronnie and Lachie got lost and rode 5 kms out of town heading back to Darwin) and swimming in the springs down the hill from the back gate of the caravan park. 

The highlight of Katherine though was a morning spent at Top Didge, a cultural experience where we were lucky enough to be the only ones there for the morning.  Manuel, an Aboriginal bloke of  maybe mid to late 40’s was our host for the morning, telling us of stories of his childhood, some of the Aboriginal customs and more sadly how he had 6 children, one had died, two were in foster care after being taken away from him following issues on the drink and the others grown up.  He had been dry for about 4 years now and hoped to get his kids back…a stark reminder to where cultures have not mixed with the best results.  Manuel told us how he loved to pick up fresh roadkill as wallaby was his favourite food and it saved him from hunting, he  showed us how to do the painting style of his people, the Dalabon people.  We each did our own postcard sized paining, through spears (Bronnie got the closest to the cardboard kangaroo) and made fire.  The boys were enthralled and it was great for them to see that life in the big city is not the only type of life there is.

And so we drove to Kununurra on Monday, crossing the WA border.  A town of 6 thousand people, swelling to 20,000 this time of year as tourist season starts and the muster on the weekend featuring Kasey Chambers, Paul Kelly and Black Sorrows (we were a day too late!) starts to fill the caravan parks with people keen to explore the region.

Which is where we are at now.  Bron and Alex in doing the shopping to make sure we have food for the next 15 days, Lachie and I charging all our batteries so we have power for cameras, the fridge etc, water in the water tanks and jerry cans, spare fuel in the other jerry cans (must make sure I don’t get tehm mixed up!) and I think we are just about ready to go.

We head to the Bungle Bungles tomorrow before coming back up to the Gibb River Road.  All things going well we should be in Broome on the 24^th June so until then let the adventure continue….

Photos...Kakadu to Katherine

One of the crocs we saw on the Yellow Waters Cruise...saw about 6 plus another one just cruising down the East Alligator River on our way out of Kakadu.

Our camp site in the Kakadu...don't worry about the sign, the water had receded we were assured!

Nice to see the ocean again...Mindil Beach, Darwin

Out on stokes Wharf, Darwin....131 crocs caught in the harbour so far in 2012. 

Wangi Falls, Litchfield National Park...the photo doesn't show the whole story of the two waterfalls, rock pool up next to one of them and a big pool below that the two falls fell in to and we swum in.

Bulley Rock Holes, Litchfield National Park...a series of 5 cascading waterfalls with a deep rock hole to sam in between each one. 

A view of the Katherine River from high above the first gorge (there are 13 in total).

The thermal spring in Katherine...out the back gate of our caravan park.  This pool was at the end of about a 70m stream you swum down.

Alex's Diary - Week 5 (first 3 days, rest to come...)

Day 29 – Wednesday – 30/5/2012 – Darwin to Litchfield National Park

I woke up and got dressed. I had breaky and then we packed up. It took a long time. We eventually hit the road to see nothing at all. We arrived and went to a caravan park with a mean owner who said “You drove past a stop sign and we too often have kids who run amuck so I won’t have you!” We went to the one down the road and they let us stay. We set up while getting drenched by the sprinklers! We drove down to Florance Falls and did a 1 kilometre walk down to them. They were beautiful. There was one dud fall and one beautiful one.  Dad took Lachie out a bit and then Lachie got out. I got guided over the rocks by Dad and then we swam into the middle of my first ever rock pool. I swam out further with Dad and Mum took photos! We swam out further and found a ledge on the side of the waterfalls! It was incredible! Mum took more photos and then we swam under the waterfall. It was so amazing! We swam back backwards and for the first bit it looked amazing. We could see the water gushing down the jagged rocks and it looked like it was going to fall on top of us! It was the best experience ever! We got back to the shore and took the 400m walk plus 135 steps upwards. We got in the car and drove back. I read for a bit. We had a dinner of hot dogs and watched photos of our trip. I had a go of the yo-yo and went to bed.

FACT: It is cooler inside a rainforest canopy than outside it. For example it was 30° C outside and 25°C inside.

Day 30 – Thursday 31/5/2012 – Litchfield National Park

I woke up and had breaky. We drove down to a lookout over Tolmer Falls. It was up so high that I looked down on the canopy! Tolmer Falls is home to colonies of rare and protected bats. The water would have been lovely to swim in but you couldn’t swim in it because of the bats.

We drove to Wangi Falls and walked down to them. There were 2 massive waterfalls falling into a big rock pool. I got in my cosies and we all got in. Mum not at first. We swam over to a rocky cliff face. We started climbing up it and jumped into the tiny rock pool filtered by a tiny trickle of waterfall that came down the rock face. I got our and swam around with Mum to the main waterfalls. I had to swim around to the side of it because the power of the waterfall was too strong to swim against.  We clung to rocky ledges and Dad took photos. I kicked off into the waterfall and its power pushed us a third of the way back! We swam back and got out. We walked back to the car and got into our sandshoes. We walked back to the pool and began a 1.2km hike. It was very board walk like and flat but when it got rocky it got very steep. Being up the top gave us a beautiful view over the country side, canopy and waterfalls. Going along the second boardwalk we got a spectacular view of the waterfall before it goes over the cliff. It even runs through a log! As we were going down Mum spotted a black snake! We finished the walk and jumped in the plunge pool again. I swam straight over to the rock pool side, climbed the ledge and jumped in. After a while I got out and climbed down. I jumped in and swam around to the other side to hop out. We got into the car and drove to Bulley rock holes. It is a bunch of rock holes connected by waterfalls. You could wade or swim. We chose to swim. We clambered up to the top and then went down to the bottom going through every pool and waterfall. We got dry and got back in the car and drove to the termite mounds. We saw the Cathedral Termite Mound which is over 5 metres tall and over 50 years old. Those termites have been pooping for a long time! We also saw the Magnetic Termite Mounds. They are very skinny and all face the same direction, north to south to minimize exposure to the sun and control temperature.

We came back, had dinner and went to bed.

FACT:  We saw two wild buffalo on our way back to camp.  Buffalo were introduced to the Northern Territory for farming however today they roam wild with not many proper buffalo farms.

Day 31 – Friday 1/6/2012 – Litchfield to Katherine

I woke up and had breaky. We packed up in the heat of a 34°C day. We hit the road to find the tiniest town in the Northern Territory with a population of about 3 people, 2 dogs and a snake! We arrived in Katherine and set up. I now have a new part time job of hammering in the pegs! I rode around the caravan park with Lachie for a bit. We decided to go to the hot springs. We rode down to them going down a 30° angle hill! I got into the spring and found it hot. I swam around to a waterfall where I dived in. I kept getting out and jumping in again. It felt weird swimming against the current. I was swimming heaps, heaps slower than normal because it kept pushing me back. We got out and rode back. It was fun riding down the hill but hard riding up it! I had a shower, dinner and went to bed.

FACT: Bachelor won the neatest and tidiest town 2 years in a row! They won it in 1995 and 1996. I think they only won it because there is nobody there to drop papers. 

Alex's Diary - Week 4

Day 22 – Wednesday – 23/5/2012 - Mataranka Springs Day 2

I woke up and read Harry again. It’s really all I do. We went for a swim. We timed how fast each of us were swimming 15 metres. Mum = 16 seconds, Lachie 28 seconds, Dad = 22 seconds and I took 22 seconds. We came back and had the left over pancakes from yesterday and apricot on toast. I read 100 pages of Harry and then it was lunch time. We had a holiday lunch, I read my book some more and then we went to the pool to join up to a walking track that went to the Waterhouse River, then Stevies Hole and finally Rainbow Springs. We finished and then came back for a swim. I played with my friends and played shoulder wars. I was the judge. When we came back we had dinner. We watched Queensland beat the blues and went to bed.

FACT: In the early morning steam comes off the water because the water is warm but the outside is cold.

Day 23 – Thursday – 24/5/2012  - Mataranka to Gagudju (Kakadu)

We woke up and packed up. Once I actually woke up, there had been a couple of very loud noises. We finished up and had 1 final swim to say goodbye to Mataranka. We had breaky when we hit the road. When we got to Katherine we did a big shop and got our lunch from Brumbies. Lachie posted some postcards and we were off again. We arrived and set up. It was stinky hot, about 31,32 degrees! We had a swim in the main pool and spa. It was very refreshing. I had a shower, ate dinner and went to bed.

FACT: Did you know that Katherine is the birth place of Cadel Evans, the Tour de France winner of 2011!

Day 24 – Friday – 25/5/2012 – Gagudju (Kakadu)

Today we woke up and got dressed at 6.00 in order to get on to the first tour which departed at 6.45am. It took place on the East Alligator River and surrounding floodplains. I learnt:

·      Crocs can hold their breath for 2 hours!

·      A male croc grows all its life.

·      The survival rate of a croc is 1 percent.

·      Crocs can jump 3-4 metres out of the water!

·      Crocs are on their own from day 1.

·      Crocs are probably the biggest predator of their own species.

·      Even barramundi will eat a small croc!

And I saw:

·      A white bellied sea eagle which is the 2^nd largest raptor (A raptor is a bird that holds its prey with its claws).

·      Lilys that water can’t penetrate! They were used for carrying water and would make a good umbrella.

·      The buffalo grass looks like normal grass but heaps of crocs hide in it. Its roots are 3-4 metres long and needs water underneath it or it will die off.

Once we got back it was 9.00 and we had a hotel breakfast. I had toast, fruit, bacon, a sausage and hash browns. We went for a play at the playground and Mum set me an obstacle course. We went back to the tent and drove to Nourlangie where we did a 1.5km walk going to a lookout, then Anbangbang Shelter, Incline Gallery, the Anbangbang Gallery and finally the Gunwarddehuarde Lookout. We saw the lightning man. He makes the thunder and his children make the lightening. Anbangbang Shelter featured beautiful rock art as well as two spots with shelters. We went to Ubirr rock and did a 1 kilometre round walk. We saw the rainbow serpant where a ranger talked about the aboriginal relationships between each other. They have complex relationships such as the Husband can’t talk to the mother in law and brothers and sisters are not allowed to talk to each other when they reach twelve.

Another ranger talked at the main art gallery under a shelter which featured x-ray vision of their illustrated menu. They paint with different rocks. They grind them up and add water and then use sticks as their paintbrushes. They showed us x-ray vision and the best parts to eat on things like barramundi and turtles! They’re good artists!

We walked to the top where we had nibblies and a soft drink. We walked back to the car, drove back and went to bed.

FACT: The Kakadu has 6 seasons, Yegge, Banggereng, Gudjewg, Wurrgeng, Gurrung and Gunumeleng. Yegge is cool weather time and the wetlands are covered with water lilies. Banggereng is harvest time and most plants are fruiting. Gudjewg brings monsoons and spear grass grows up to 2 metres tall! Wurrgeng is the early dry season where most creeks stop flowing! Gurrung is the hot dry season and brings hunting time for file snakes and long neck turtles. Gunumeleng is the pre monsoon where streams begin to run. Yegge = May to June, Banggereng = April , Gudjewg = December to March, Wurreng = Jue to August, Gurrung = August to October and Gunumeleng = October to December. We cam in Yegge which makes it obvious why it its cold today!

Day 25 – Saturday – 26/5/2012 – Gagudju (Kakadu) Day 2

We woke up, me quite late. I had a late breaky after reading the 4^th Harry Potter for a while. We went to the cultural centre. I learnt:

·      Aboriginals used string to communicate to help kids to understand their stories. They made special shapes to represent different things and animals.

·      They used string to make baskets that normally take 3 hours to weave.

·      When ever they hunted there was a person up in the tree to warn of any danger.

·      That spear grass can grow up to 2 metres tall.

·      The same blood type cannot marry each other.

·      There was mining done in the Kakadu and aboriginals had different views on it. Some didn’t like it because they worked really hard and got nothing out of it but others loved it and got high income. I don’t like it because it wrecks the environment.

We went into the souvenier shop where I got a T-shirt with aboriginal art on it and Grandma an oven mit and a pot mit both with aboriginal art on them. We rode back and rode around the caravan park. Once we finished we had lunch and a candy cane. We went for a swim where I did some obstacle courses with most taking 2 to 3½ minutes. We finished that, had a shower, I read my book and went to bed.

Day 26 – Sunday 27/5/2012 – Gagudju (Kakadu) to Darwin

I woke up and got dressed. We had a quick breakfast. We packed up and got on the road at 10.00. While we were crossing the South Aligater River we was a crocodile floating underneath us. We walked across the bridge and saw it close up. I would have been 3 metres at least! We got back in the car and headed off again. We arrived and set up very quickly. We had a quick swim and me and Lachie played “seahorse duels”. I even got knocked off my horse once! We jumped in the car and went to Mindle Markets. We strolled around the stalls for a bit and saw the different stalls. We went to a massive blow up slide. We paid 5 bucks and had a go on it. It was fantastic and it was a down bump type of thing. I took 5 seconds to get down to the bottom! It was really fun! We went back and bought what we had for dinner and Dad went back and got the picnic rug. I had 2 calamari rings,  half a potato spiral and some chips. I went and got a single scoop of rainbow ice-cream in a waffle cone for dessert. Mum got an adult slushie and we all had some of that. It had ice, condense milk and coconut milk on the top along with raspberry and pineapple syrups! On the bottom there is jelly and different fruits and beans. It was a delicious Malaysian dessert. We went back with full bellies and went to bed.

FACT: 131 crocodiles have been caught in the Darwin harbor so far this year!

Day  27 – Monday 28/5/2012 – Darwin Day 1

We woke up and I had a lie in after a sleep in! I had an extra late breaky. I played action figures and cars for Lachie. We went for today’s outing and bought lunch from a bakery. We went to the East Point to eat it. It had a spectacular view over the harbor and buildings surrounding. I loved eating my sausage roll, cheese and bacon roll and my sausage looking out at the harbor. I got back in the car and drove to the Military Museum. It had a gigantic weight to weigh down the net that stopped submarines coming into Darwin Harbour as well as movie screens showing stories of people who survived the bombing! There was an interactive touch screen that showed the different stages of the war and where and when Japan extended and were forced back! It was really good because you choose what you wanted to see! There was a massive interactive screen that  really helped capture the war for me. You selected different stories from someone and it shows you their version of the war! I loved it and spent a lot of time on it! We went to the cinema room that had a siren over the top of it. There were glass cabinets that held artefacts of the war…and suddenly burst into a movie! It had the light on the top on to make it seem more like the real thing! That was what gave me the perfect understanding of the war. I think aircraft dropping bombs was the main thing of the war in Darwin and the main vessel the aircraft carriers. I walked around afterwards and saw all the artefacts in the cabinets. We watched part of a movie and went to the things like the tanker and a gunners position under the plane outside. We also went to a big gun with a lookout above it. It was used to sink ships in the harbor. I am still worried and sad about the war. It would have been scary and dangerous living in Darwin at that time! I would have hated it and am glad I’m not in the army!

We went back down and got in the car and went to BCF where we got a cupboard. We then went to Telstra while Lach and Mum went to the doctor. We came back and me and Lachie had a battle on noodles in the pool! We came back, had dinner and went to bed.

FACT:  In WW2 Germany broke their peace treaty which they signed after WW1. Japan fought with the Allies in WW1 but changed sides to fight with Germany in WW2.

Day 28 – Tuesday - 29/5/2012 – Darwin Day 2

We woke up and had breaky. I played cars for Lachie and we went for the days outing. We drove to the starting point and began to walk the heritage trail. I saw the ruin of the Town Hall after cyclone Tracy badly damaged it. It was a ruined ruin and the walls were about my height. However the back wall was still standing strong.  I’m amazed that cyclones can be that bad as the building was made of cement and stone. We saw the thinking tree with fourteen brass bells. We tapped each one with Dad’s car keys and they all made different sounds. One was actually bigger than Lachie! We walked along the waterfront to Stones Wharf. The water looks beautiful and it must be frustrating not being able to swim in it. The water was so clear we saw 2 box jellyfish and their stingers! We saw tugboats that came from Singapore. We made a joke that Dad came from Singapore because he sing-a –pore song! We walked back to the wave pool and Dad set us some strategic challenges. We got back to the car and drove home. We had lunch and got into my cosies. We drove to the wave pool and jumped into it. When the waves were on it was warm and fun however there was nothing to do. I went in a ring with Lachie and Dada and floated over the massive waves getting toppled over several times! Lachie got out and me and Dad swam out to the back. We swam against the waves and with them for the first lot. When I swam I got to the top and did a stroke in mid air. It was really fun! I found it difficult to body surf in though. On the second lot we found the highest peak in the waves and floated up and down them. Mum took photos of me punching the air. We walked through the shopping Mall and played “step on every circle”. We went to “Tim’s” for dinner and I tried crocodile! I hate it. I had nuggets and chips. We drove back and went to bed.

FACT: Cyclone Tracy swept through Darwin in 1974 flattening a lot of the city. A lot of Darwin has been rebuilt. 

Week 4 – Mataranka to Litchfield National Park…with Kakadu and Darwin inbetween….

So we pulled ourselves together after the Blues Origin 1 loss and packed ourselves up ready to head up in to the Kakadu..  The great thing about staying so close to the thermal springs was that once packed up it was just a short walk to one last farewell swim at what to date had been perhaps the most relaxing few days of the trip this far.

So ever onward and northward we went, stopping to stock up in Katherine before arriving at our campground for the next 3 nights at Gagidju in Cooinda, Kakadu National Park.  Now we had been a smidgeon nervous about the whole camping with crocs thing.  Dan had advised me just make sure the fire stays burning but we didn’t have a fire.  We checked in and proceeded to the unpowered tent sites slightly curious given the guy at the desk had answered my very touristy question of how far away are the crocs with an answer of “it should be ok now, the water has receded quite a bit in the last few weeks”.   The things we noticed on arrival were lots of grass (hadn’t seen it since Sydney), lots of sprinklers (either keeping the grass green or maybe crocs don’t like sprinklers), lots of mossies and midgies and of course a Crocodile Warning Sign right at the edge of the camping area.  So we camped as close to the edge as we could and when nightfall came went to sleep with absolutely no idea how far the river was from our tent.

 

Anyway, we survived!  The closest to a croc we got was on the Yellow Waters Cruise, which coincidentally left not far from the campground and did have crocs about.  Lachie saw 11 crocs there and back, which really means there were about 6 that we saw twice, thousands of birds of all sorts and a lot of water acorss the floodplains that we cruised around.  Lookouts at Ubirr Rock at sunset and the cruise at sunrise and as luck would have it this was the only day so far the sun has not been shining.  Luckily for us it was naturally spectacular without the lighting of the sun. 

Alex we found out is an information reader.  We went to an Aboriginal Cultural Centre and he read every single word written in the joint to the point where the rest of us waited for him for about an hour.  The most amazing thing is that now if we have an aboriginal question, Alex recalls it all from where we went, to who can marry who and the fact that men are not allowed by Aboriginal custom to talk to their mother in laws!  I shall make no comment…I love my Mother In Law (especially when she makes little cakes with icing….we will be home end of August hint hint).

We left Kakadu and drove to Darwin, but not before spotting a croc on the Alligator River as we drove over the bridge.  Now the cruise was good to see the crocs, but to see one unexpectedly and watch it swim down the middle of the river was awesome and a nice reminder that they literally can be anywhere.

A few hours later we arrived in Darwin, set up and then off to Mindil Beach Sunset Markets and a look at the ocean for the first time in nearly a month.  A beautiful blue spoilt only by the fact that 131 crocs have been pulled out of Darwin Harbour so far in 2012…oh and it is still stinger season so if the crocs don’t get you the Box Jelly Fish will.  Nevertheless, it was somehow cleansing (still getting rid of red dust) to see and breathe in the salt air and sitting for a few hours eating market food on the grass was a nice welcome to Darwin. 

A day of getting our battery charger in the trailer fixed and taking in the role of Darwin in WW2 through the Military Museum and an interactive exhibit on the Defence of Darwin saw the end of day 1 in Darwin.  This exhibit was quite brilliant with touchscreens and messages of people who were there and a big theatre where the glass cabinets frosted over in to a movie screen and we watched the events of the bombing of Darwin complete with surround sound and flashing lights in the ceiling as the bombs dropped….unfortuneatly Lachie at the ripe old age of 4 turned out to be a bit young and after the first bombs landed he spent the rest of the time crying and scared.  Not quite what we wanted, and had we known we would not have taken the kids, but Alex got it and Lachie spent the next two days asking why and whether the planes we saw taking off  from the airport had bombs on them.

 Day 2 was spent walking the city to show Lachie that the city was alright again, swimming in the “wave pool”, a massive pool with a big wave machine to simulate the ocean (minus the crocs and stingers) so the kids could have some kid time instead of thinking they were still at war and dinner out at Tim’s Steak, Seafood and Croc where we all duly sampled some crocodile before eating our mains.

Next stop Litchfield National Park, a short hour and a half away….