The hot springs were just a 500m walk away from our campground at Bitter Springs so we walked down in the morning for a swim. Bitter Springs is a flowing creek of warm water (approx 33 degrees) and you can swim safely in a particular spot, floating down the creek for about 250m before exiting the water and walking back to the entry point to start again. The current was not particularly strong so you could swim back if you wished. A lot of people hired noodles to float around with.

The water was crystal clear and the banks were lined with reeds and waterlilies….gorgeous scenery. Even though crocodiles can inhabit the area it did not feel creepy swimming there….and there was a lot of people young and old going in for a dip.

We grabbed our snorkel and goggles and snorkelled the full length of the springs..amazing clarity in the water…lots of fish and different aquatic plants as well as beautiful waterlilies and palms lining the waters edge.

Trev tried some laps but swimming creating a splash spoilt the ambience somewhat 😄

After lunch we drove around to Mataranka Thermal Pool at the Mataranka Homestead. There was a lot of people swimming in the pool, which had a concreted rock edge so was not as “natural” looking as Bitter Springs but still great for a swim all the same

Mataranka is famous as the site of the Elsey Homestead from the book “We of the Never Never” and a replica of the old Homestead used in the film was on the grounds of Mataranka Homestead.

Tomorrow we are planning to visit Daly Waters Pub on our way to a free camp called Attack Creek but we may have time for one last swim in the spring before we leave!😉

As we had not seen Gunlom Infinity Pools we planned to leave Cooinda today and trek in to Gunlom on our way to our next destination at Mataranka.

We left the Kakadu Highway and turned off to Gunlom – 37 kms of dirt road to get in…the road was not too bad but it had a couple of small river crossings and was fairly corrugated most of the way. We met a couple in at Gunlom who had left their van at the info centre just south of the turnoff to make the journey in…if we had know we may have done that as the trip in would have been quicker…and less of the punish for the van 😆

Gunlom is a campground that caravans can go to so it was ok bringing the van in – we parked in the day use area, got changed into our cossies and started the 1 km vertical trek up to the top of the Gunlom Falls where the Infinity Pools are. The track was rocky and steep up the side of the cliff but once at the top the view was breathtaking down to the large pool at the base of the waterfall and across Kakadu….. the infinity pools at the top were amazing….better than any pools we have seen so far and it made the long journey in and strenuous climb seem definately worth it…we were so glad we had made the effort!

 

We swam and soaked for ages….and finally tore ourselves away as we had a long drive to Mataranka. We walked down to the bottom and checked out the large plunge pool at the base of the falls which was also beautiful.

After a quick lunch we headed back out along the dusty dirt road and rejoined the highway…..we made Mataranka just before the sun went down and set up at Bitter Springs Campground.

We were up before dawn to go on the Yellow Waters Sunrise Cruise which left the Cooinda jetty at 0630. Our guide was Reuben, a middle aged aboriginal (whose mum was a white English woman so he told us – in his words he had the best of both worlds!). Reuben was hilarious and very knowledgeable and so kept us entertained for the whole 2 hr cruise.

We watched the sun rise over the East Alligator River…

Saw lots of birdlife in the monsoonal waterways and swamp area…

Saw saltwater crocs in the water and on the banks….

Learnt about the amazing plant and animal life in the area and saw so many beautiful sights…..

We returned to Cooinda Lodge and after a great all you can eat buffet breakfast which was included as part of the cruise, we spent the rest of the day exploring more of Kakadu. Starting out at the Warradjan Cultural Centre we learnt more about the culture of the various aboriginal clans that inhabit Kakadu. It was interesting to see how they defined the seasons as depicted on a rock painting at the centre.

We did the lookout and art gallery walk at Nourlangie and saw some really interesting examples of primitive rock art.

The rock formations were huge boulders that were ideal for sheltering in during the wet season and you could imagine the aboriginal clan living in the area quite easily.

The view from the lookout extended across Kakadu over to Arnhem Land and consisted of large rocky outcrops, mountain ranges with huge cliff faces, and expansive areas of bushland.

From Nourlangie we went to Anbangbang Billabong which was alive with bird life and carpeted in waterlilies…beautiful but definately a crocs paradise!

After lunch back at camp, we drove south to Maguk and walked in over the monsoonal swampland and up the creek to a plunge pool at the base of a waterfall. Again another gorgeous natural pool though we did swim cautiously as crocs have been found there – there had been other people swimming there before we arrived so we figured that if a saltie was there it would have chomped someone earlier!

From Darwin we drove to Kakadu intending to stay at Cooinda campground as it is fairly central. The road into Kakadu became increasingly swampy – it really felt like croc country but no sightings along the way!

After stopping to buy our park passes, and a quick look at the info centre to get some maps etc, we arrived at Cooinda and set up…..Trev discovered it was State of Origin night tonight…and they had it on the big screen at the bistro so our evening was planned 😉

We spent the afternoon driving out to Jabiru and then Ubirr to look at the rock art. The road along the way alternated between swampy areas and unusual rocky outcrops.

The rock art was interesting to see…

and see the sunset from Ubirr rock. The view was awesome from the top of the rock…everything was so lush and green…..and despite the number of people there it was serene and peaceful as the sun went down.

We then hightailed it back to camp and arrived at the bistro in time to order dinner before the game started…..and much to Trev’s delight NSW won!

We continued on to Litchfield and discovered that quite a few sections of the park were still closed due to the big wet…and you could not swim at Wangi Falls due to the strong current and potential salties still present.

We started out at the Magnetic Termite  mounds – these amazing type of termite build their mounds north/south using the earth’s magnetic field as a guide as they are blind. This building strategy helps keep the mounds cool – these termites are not found anywhere else in the world. We also looked at the huge Cathedral termite mounds.

On to Buley Rockholes… a great place for a swim….

Florence falls….down a flight  of 143 stairs to the huge pool at the base of the falls for a swim…..spectacular….then did the Shady Creek walk back to the car. We ate lunch at Buley Rockholes and had another swim..

Next stop Tolmer Falls Lookout….

Then on to Wangi Falls…very beautiful and full but closed for swimming…a croc trap was evident but no crocs were on show that day.

We left Litchfield and returned to Darwin the other way along an unsealed road..we must have had withdrawals from red dust!! It was strange not having the convoy behind us and the CB banter along the way. We travelled over a really narrow bridge over the Finness River which had only just recently been reopened after the wet….looked like croc country for sure! Rosie would have wanted to stop and take a look for crocs in the wild!!

A grocery and diesel (got it right Gordie) stop and then back to the camp to get organised to leave tomorrow for Kakadu!

We farewelled Gordon and Kerry as we were leaving to spend the day in Litchfield National Park, and they were driving to Mataranka on the start of their journey home. Branch thought momentarily about hitching a ride with them as a bonnet decoration for the Ram….but bailed at the last minute as he was keen to continue on to Uluru.

It was hard farewelling the Hunters after spending the last 8 weeks together…so many fun memories with them and the Wellzys 😃

Gordie had on the t-shirt he had bought at Mindil Markets the day before…..not sure what he was thinking when he got it as it was not at all descriptive of the wearer (NOT!!!)

We drove off and had not got very far when we had a call from Rosie who was at the threeways…..they had had a great stopoff at Mataranka and Daly Waters Pub before spending the night at Banka Banka. Trev pulled over to speak to her and lo and behold in front of us was a ute with a number plate meant for Gordie….his favourite phrase when describing who he had been chatting to…..😃

We continued on to Litchfield and discovered that quite a few sections of the park were still closed due to the big wet…and you could not swim at Wangi Falls due to the strong current and potential salties still present.

We started out at the Magnetic Termite  mounds – these amazing type of termite build their mounds north/south using the earth’s magnetic field as a guide as they are blind. This building strategy helps keep the mounds cool – these termites are not found anywhere else in the world. We also looked at the huge Cathedral termite mounds.

On to Buley Rockholes… a great place for a swim….

Florence falls….down a flight  of 143 stairs to the huge pool at the base of the falls for a swim…..spectacular….then did the Shady Creek walk back to the car. We ate lunch at Buley Rockholes and had another swim..

Next stop Tolmer Falls Lookout….

Then on to Wangi Falls…very beautiful and full but closed for swimming…a croc trap was evident but no crocs were on show that day.

We left Litchfield and returned to Darwin the other way along an unsealed road..we must have had withdrawals from red dust!! It was strange not having the convoy behind us and the CB banter along the way. We travelled over a really narrow bridge over the Finness River which had only just recently been reopened after the wet….looked like croc country for sure! Rosie would have wanted to stop and take a look for crocs in the wild!!

A grocery and diesel (got it right Gordie) stop and then back to the camp to get organised to leave tomorrow for Kakadu!

Today we decided to tour Darwin on pushbike so after a slow start to the morning we ventured into the city and hired 2 bikes for Kerry and I as Gordon and Trev had theirs with them.

We had a great time seeing the sights of Darwin on the bikes and stopped for lunch at the Cornucopia Cafe at the museum.

Later that afternoon Trev and I went to visit our niece Amy, her husband Ben and their 2 gorgeous girls Charlotte and Maddison. We had a great night catching up for dinner and then back to the camp for a last cuppa with Kerry and Gordon who were leaving for Mataranka in the morning 😣. We were staying on to see Litchfield and Kakadu – places they had already been to. Gordie was heading to QLD after that to go home via Brisbane and get some work done on the Ram!!

Rosie was keen to see Darwin CBD and pick up some souvenirs so they headed off, planning to meet up with us for lunch and a visit to the Darwin Art Gallery and Museum.

We drove out to Charles Darwin National Park. The park was originally part of the Darwin military bases and has 11 bunkers built into it for storage of ammunition. The bunkers were cleverly camouflaged as hills.

Darwin was a key area for defense of Australia an WWII and was bombed severly by the Japanese a number of times…in the first day of bombing 13 ships in Darwin Harbour were sunk and many more damaged. Hundreds were killed or injured – it was worse than Pearl Harbour. In one of the bunkers there was a display that outlined Darwin’s role in WWII – very interesting!

We all caught up for lunch at the boat trailer club at Vestey’s Beach….Rose and Trev went looking for crocodiles on the beach and Trev dipped his toes in as bait….no crocs to be seen….

On to the Art Gallery and Museum where there was a very interesting display on the 1974 Cyclone Tracey which devastated Darwin.

The famous crocodile “Sweetheart ” was on display …

As well as great exhibits of marine life, fossils, native art etc….

The Mindil Beach Sunset Markets were on so we went for a browse and grabbed some dinner at the many takeway stalls….all sorts of foods and unique articles to buy!

Trev found the stall with the cure for his cracked feet…and had a great head and neck massage as his neck had been giving him grief.

Gordie bought a crocodile skin band for his Akubra…now he really looks part of the Outback!

We farewelled Rose and Dave that night..they were leaving us at 530 tomorrow morning to start their trek home….we were all sad that the group part of the trip was coming to an end as we had had such a great time of fellowship and laughs!!

Before we left Shady Lane Caravan Park, Trev took the opportunity to use up our excess water and give the Black Pearl a rinse off….much to Dave’s surprise…and envy?

Our destination was Darwin today..as we drove out of Katherine and crossed the bridge over the Katherine River we noticed the flood markers on the bridge which put into perspective the flood of  ’94 where the river peaked at 21m….and the whole town was under water!

A quick stop at Adelaide River for coffee at an unusual coffee shop…..

We followed the Ghan railway for a while then reached Darwin and set up at Hidden Valley Resort.

That afternoon we drove in to Darwin and looked around Darwin Harbour and Waterfront. There was a huge French naval supply ship in dock.

Darwin Waterfront was a great place for families with a safe swimming beach, wave pool and grassy park, with lots of cafes and restaurants surrounding it.

Trev and Gordie contemplated the wave pool…it had been a long time between surfs!

We walked across the skyway to the centre of the city and saw some of the older buildings, or remains of those devastated in Cyclone Tracey.

 

 

 

The dawn cruise on Katherine Gorge left at 0700 so we had to leave the caravan park at 0615 to get to the jetty in the National Park to check in and get our light breakfast. The sun was just rising as we arrived and thousands of bats were flying around the carpark…the noise and stench was incredible! We found out later that there were 2 colonies of bats that lived there – one with approx 500 black fruitbats and the other around 2000 red flying foxes!!

We boarded the boat and Jason our indigenous guide was very friendly and informative. Katherine Gorge was spectacular in the early morning light, and we saw crocodiles, snakes, turtles and other wildlife.

There was a good example of ancient rock art at the first rapids we had to walk over to join the second boat to cruise up the next part of the gorge.

The Jayowyn people own the land around Nitmiluk gorge and manage it with the National Parks service.

After the cruise we arrived back at the campground where Gordon and Kerry were just finishing breakfast….having had a sleep in..they had been to Nitmiluk before.

We went in to Katherine- first place to visit was the museum which had some really interesting WWII displays and info about the history of the district including the disastrous Katherine Flood in 1998. Trev checked out the ancient fire fighting appliance….and Rose and Dave were fascinating by the old fashioned laundry!

After a late lunch in town we drove to Katherine hot springs – beautiful clear warm water flowing out of the rock down a chain of deep pools – we stayed and soaked for quite a while.

We went back to the shops to get some groceries and home for bbq dinner.