20May. After a four-hour flight from Melbourne on Jetstar, it was nice to have Jayshree, mum's colleague from university days in Fiji to meet us. It was a quick drive to her home where we met Peter. The high ceilings and open planning of their home was typical of tropical villas promoting natural airflow and circulation. The large shaded deck and swimming pool were an oasis from the heat and humidity.
We packed a picnic basket and drove to Mindil Beach Sunset Market for the bi-weekly event. However the afternoon's heavy rain had knocked out the temporary power to the stalls, forcing an early closure. Undeterred, we picked a bit of dryish grass, set up our table and chairs and joined the multitude of people enjoying the stunning sunset. The Mindil market is a Darwin institution, attracting over 10,000 visitors, and is a snapshot of Darwin's multicultural fabric with over 40 different cultures creating a mulitutde of colours and culinary delights.
Day 2. The next morning over a poolside breakfast of French toast, scrambled eggs with salmon with some potent PNG coffee, we convince Peter to join us on our day trip to Litchfield National Park. So we pack the Ford 4WD and set off to to visit the termite hills and waterfalls. Being well travelled and having called Darwin home for quite some time, he was the perfect companion.
We pass roadside WWII airstrips, a reminder of Darwin's role and that it was the only Australian city bombed by the Japanese. Several road trains, which are massive three carriage trailers moving everything from cattle to iron ore, rumble by. An idea of their size is
that you would need about 1km to overtake them on the highway. We didn't stop in Noonamah town which according to our intrepid guide was famous for its topless bars, crocodile farm and feral subculture. Unfortunately we didn't get to see the famed wedge-tailed eagle, Australia's largest bird of prey. Litchfield national park covers over 1500 km2 and one of the attractions is the magnetic and the cathedral termite mounds. The magnetic mounds are like enormous magnetic compasses, with their thin edges pointing north south and broad side facing east west minimising their exposure to the sun, thus keeping the mounds cool for the termites inside. It's quite amazing to see a field full of all these identically aligned mounds all created by a virtually blind insect!
Waterfalls are always a wonderful experience. The wet season has just ended and the receding flood plains means crocodile clearing from the major swimming holes is under way. Florence Falls was spectacular with a high viewing platform offering sensational views of the twin falls and plunge pool. Tolmar falls and Wangi falls were all impressive. However we had miscalculated having planned to swim in Wangi which was unfortunately closed. So we had to be content with a swim in the home pool.
Aboriginal rock
art at Ubirr has some amazing overhanging rocks where the art reflects the abundant food that the Aboriginals would have found in the nearby flood plains and rivers. The art in Nourlangie seemed to focus more on the spirits of the land and myths of creation. This storytelling through this art form has almost died out. We completed the circular walk though several Aboriginal shelters and art sites. Gunwarddehwardde lookout provides impressive views of Kakadu surronding, it was a great time of the year as the end of the wet season meant there was lush green folliage providing a rich contrast to the red iron rich earth. We camped close to Nourlangie and boy was it an experience. We set up our tents and started a camp fire to cook our kangaroo steaks. It was an idyllic setting and then the mosquitos arrived! It was a concentrated attack making it impossible to keep still, insect repellant only serving to incite them further. Very quickly we were compelled to retreat to the safety of our tents abandoning our game of campfire charades. Itching had set in. The stillness of the bush night only amplified the constant drone of mosquitoes as they settled on our tents waiting for us to emerge. Despite this, I lay in my tent gazing up at the beautiful night sky ablaze with glittering stars and the occasional shooting star and was soon asleep.
Day 5. I emerged cautiously in an attempt to not awaken the sleeping mosquitos and not surprisingly found my tent covered. Some of the girls had given up on finding the one or two mosquitos that had made it inside their tent and bore new reminders of their potent bite. However there was work to be done and we packed up and headed off. Our first stop was Warradjan Aboriginal Cultural Centre where the Aboriginal traditional landowners (Bininj) shared the story of their culture and interaction with the land and seasons. We got to play the
digiridoo which has essentially been naturally hollowed by termites. Incidently there are over 40 aboriginal names for this instrument and didgeridoo is not one of them. This culminated with some spear throwing at dummy targets and with our accuracy we would have gone hungry in the bush for days. We camped beside a waterfall that night for a long awaited swim, with a mindful eye open for crocodiles. The steep walk up to the plunge pools at the top of the water falls give us an infinity pool type vista of the flood plains. A real million dollar view which we soaked up, lying on the shallow ledge being massaged by the cool water as it flowed and cascaded off the edge. The camp site that night was a much more pleasant experience.
Day 6. Several mosquitos had been trapped inside my tent and i emerged bearing new marks of their wrath. We were on the homeward leg and a couple of walks and three refreshing swims later we on our way back to Darwin arriving around 6pm. As we had such a great day fishing, two of us headed out night fishing. It was tricky getting out of the harbour during low tide and after some tricky maneourving we were out pulling in some snapper and coral trout. It is incredibly peaceful sitting on a gently bobbing boat in Beagle Gulf watching shooting stars blaze overhead. I couldnt think of a better way to say goodbye to the top end.
We packed a picnic basket and drove to Mindil Beach Sunset Market for the bi-weekly event. However the afternoon's heavy rain had knocked out the temporary power to the stalls, forcing an early closure. Undeterred, we picked a bit of dryish grass, set up our table and chairs and joined the multitude of people enjoying the stunning sunset. The Mindil market is a Darwin institution, attracting over 10,000 visitors, and is a snapshot of Darwin's multicultural fabric with over 40 different cultures creating a mulitutde of colours and culinary delights.Day 2. The next morning over a poolside breakfast of French toast, scrambled eggs with salmon with some potent PNG coffee, we convince Peter to join us on our day trip to Litchfield National Park. So we pack the Ford 4WD and set off to to visit the termite hills and waterfalls. Being well travelled and having called Darwin home for quite some time, he was the perfect companion.
We pass roadside WWII airstrips, a reminder of Darwin's role and that it was the only Australian city bombed by the Japanese. Several road trains, which are massive three carriage trailers moving everything from cattle to iron ore, rumble by. An idea of their size is
that you would need about 1km to overtake them on the highway. We didn't stop in Noonamah town which according to our intrepid guide was famous for its topless bars, crocodile farm and feral subculture. Unfortunately we didn't get to see the famed wedge-tailed eagle, Australia's largest bird of prey. Litchfield national park covers over 1500 km2 and one of the attractions is the magnetic and the cathedral termite mounds. The magnetic mounds are like enormous magnetic compasses, with their thin edges pointing north south and broad side facing east west minimising their exposure to the sun, thus keeping the mounds cool for the termites inside. It's quite amazing to see a field full of all these identically aligned mounds all created by a virtually blind insect!Waterfalls are always a wonderful experience. The wet season has just ended and the receding flood plains means crocodile clearing from the major swimming holes is under way. Florence Falls was spectacular with a high viewing platform offering sensational views of the twin falls and plunge pool. Tolmar falls and Wangi falls were all impressive. However we had miscalculated having planned to swim in Wangi which was unfortunately closed. So we had to be content with a swim in the home pool.
Darwin Sailing Club is a great place for sun downers and dinner and we were treated to another sensational Darwin sunset. As we nourished a few chilled beers and dinned on fresh calamari, prawns and local barramundi, the sky kept us in awe as the high level clouds reflected the rays long after the sun had set.
Day 3. It was the first of two 6am for me the next morning, the first for a fishing trip with Master, also from Fiji. We headed off to his favourite spots around 90mins from Darwin for some reef fishing. GPS is marvellous. It was a productive day on the water apart from the several school sharks which we released with fins intact. The cooler was well stocked with coral trout, red and golden snapper, parrot fish. jewies and stripies and several of the larger specimens were earmarked for the pot that night. It was a huge weekend in Darwin with the two big aussie rules teams visiting from Victoria and the annual Bass in the Grass music festival and so after dinner we headed out to sample the Darwin nightlife. We got home around 5am just in time to pack and head out at 6am for a three-day camping trip to the famed Kakadu National Park.
Day 4. I had been looking forward to the next few days for some time. Three days trav
elling in Kakadu National Park, bush walking and camping with eight other people. At 7am we spread out in a converted truck, comfortable in the air conditioning. A few hours later, as the sun was heating up the day we arrived for our billabong cruise. It was a good time to set out on the cool freshwater in our canopied boat. We were treated to an amazing wildlife display, soaring eagles effortless riding the thermals, kites and even a croc or two lazing in the sun.
Day 3. It was the first of two 6am for me the next morning, the first for a fishing trip with Master, also from Fiji. We headed off to his favourite spots around 90mins from Darwin for some reef fishing. GPS is marvellous. It was a productive day on the water apart from the several school sharks which we released with fins intact. The cooler was well stocked with coral trout, red and golden snapper, parrot fish. jewies and stripies and several of the larger specimens were earmarked for the pot that night. It was a huge weekend in Darwin with the two big aussie rules teams visiting from Victoria and the annual Bass in the Grass music festival and so after dinner we headed out to sample the Darwin nightlife. We got home around 5am just in time to pack and head out at 6am for a three-day camping trip to the famed Kakadu National Park.Day 4. I had been looking forward to the next few days for some time. Three days trav
elling in Kakadu National Park, bush walking and camping with eight other people. At 7am we spread out in a converted truck, comfortable in the air conditioning. A few hours later, as the sun was heating up the day we arrived for our billabong cruise. It was a good time to set out on the cool freshwater in our canopied boat. We were treated to an amazing wildlife display, soaring eagles effortless riding the thermals, kites and even a croc or two lazing in the sun. Aboriginal rock
art at Ubirr has some amazing overhanging rocks where the art reflects the abundant food that the Aboriginals would have found in the nearby flood plains and rivers. The art in Nourlangie seemed to focus more on the spirits of the land and myths of creation. This storytelling through this art form has almost died out. We completed the circular walk though several Aboriginal shelters and art sites. Gunwarddehwardde lookout provides impressive views of Kakadu surronding, it was a great time of the year as the end of the wet season meant there was lush green folliage providing a rich contrast to the red iron rich earth. We camped close to Nourlangie and boy was it an experience. We set up our tents and started a camp fire to cook our kangaroo steaks. It was an idyllic setting and then the mosquitos arrived! It was a concentrated attack making it impossible to keep still, insect repellant only serving to incite them further. Very quickly we were compelled to retreat to the safety of our tents abandoning our game of campfire charades. Itching had set in. The stillness of the bush night only amplified the constant drone of mosquitoes as they settled on our tents waiting for us to emerge. Despite this, I lay in my tent gazing up at the beautiful night sky ablaze with glittering stars and the occasional shooting star and was soon asleep.Day 5. I emerged cautiously in an attempt to not awaken the sleeping mosquitos and not surprisingly found my tent covered. Some of the girls had given up on finding the one or two mosquitos that had made it inside their tent and bore new reminders of their potent bite. However there was work to be done and we packed up and headed off. Our first stop was Warradjan Aboriginal Cultural Centre where the Aboriginal traditional landowners (Bininj) shared the story of their culture and interaction with the land and seasons. We got to play the
digiridoo which has essentially been naturally hollowed by termites. Incidently there are over 40 aboriginal names for this instrument and didgeridoo is not one of them. This culminated with some spear throwing at dummy targets and with our accuracy we would have gone hungry in the bush for days. We camped beside a waterfall that night for a long awaited swim, with a mindful eye open for crocodiles. The steep walk up to the plunge pools at the top of the water falls give us an infinity pool type vista of the flood plains. A real million dollar view which we soaked up, lying on the shallow ledge being massaged by the cool water as it flowed and cascaded off the edge. The camp site that night was a much more pleasant experience.Day 6. Several mosquitos had been trapped inside my tent and i emerged bearing new marks of their wrath. We were on the homeward leg and a couple of walks and three refreshing swims later we on our way back to Darwin arriving around 6pm. As we had such a great day fishing, two of us headed out night fishing. It was tricky getting out of the harbour during low tide and after some tricky maneourving we were out pulling in some snapper and coral trout. It is incredibly peaceful sitting on a gently bobbing boat in Beagle Gulf watching shooting stars blaze overhead. I couldnt think of a better way to say goodbye to the top end.
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