Australia

Crocodiles and Rock Paintings at Kakadu National Park

Oct 15, 2017

After Litchfield, Kakadu National Park was the second park one on our visit list close to Darwin. After another 300 km of driving we reached the visitor center of the national park at around noon.

About Kakadu National Park

The lands on which the National Park lies has been the home of the indigenous people for tens of thousands of years. There is a lot of history there incl. many art sites with ancient rock paintings. The land is separated into the lowlands, which is the area that is flooded every year during the wet season, and the highlands that are located inland and are at around 200m above the lowlands. Many clans (i.e. tribes) used to retreat to these highlands whenever the lowlands got flooded.

Apart from the history, the wildlife in Kakadu National Park is also very interesting. In addition to the parrots with the same name as the park, there are large numbers of freshwater and saltwater crocodiles, giant water buffaloes, birds, fish, and the usual smaller animals.

Rock Paintings

There are many sites in Kakadu National Park where there are ancient paintings from the Aborigines. Every painting tells a story, however, only the persons who painted the symbols know the story behind them, e.g. if they caught a large fish, they would draw it on the rock in real size. Therefore over the years the meaning of many of the paintings can only be guessed, and some are completely unknown. An interesting fact is also that not all paintings are that old, as some show men with rifles, which could only have been drawn after the invasion of Australia in the 19th century.

Sunset from Nadab Lookout

On the first evening we climbed one of the rocks that stands out from the lowlands to view the sunset. At the same location there were also rock paintings. The view over the vast lowlands was impressive.

Crocodile Safari at Yellow Waters

Not cheap, but very impressive was the early morning safari at Yellow Waters, a part of the lowlands that also has water during the dry season. And as the water is very concentrated during the dry seasons, we could see plenty of wildlife. Without having counted them, I guess we saw at least 30 crocodiles on the 2h tour, some of them were hunting and we could watch them feasting on catfish. In addition, we saw many birds incl. an eagle, some wallabies, a snake, and also some of the very impressive water buffaloes that live in this region. It was definitely worth getting up at 4:40 in the morning to participate in this cruise. We were told that during the day, due to the heat most animals hide and therefore the boat tour not nearly as exciting.

Noon-Hike in Nourlangie in Baking Heat

Just like the day before, temperatures were baking hot again that day. Temperatures were at around 40°C. Not very comfortable conditions for long hikes outside, but at Nourlangie we decided to go on a 30 minute hike to see some more impressive rock shelters and paintings of the Aborigines. A hot but worthwhile experience.

Bird Swamp at Mamukala

Our last stop at Kakadu National Park was Mamukala, a swamp that was full of birds. From the observation deck it was possible to watch hundreds if not thousands of birds in the swamp, and also some curious wallabies.

An Expensive Weekend at Kakadu National Park

While admission to Litchfield was free, we got acquainted with Australia’s way of milking their tourists. Admission to the National park was around USD 35 per person (as a comparison: The much more impressive Yellowstone N.P. costs USD 30, but per vehicle, not per person). At Kakadu National Park, included in the ticket price are guided ranger tours. Unfortunately, only Monday – Friday, so we did not get any guided tour. Accommodation in the park was also quite pricey, as was the 2h boat tour on Sunday morning. In total we spent almost USD 400 for about 30 hours in the park, excluding car and fuel expenses.

Natural Pools at Litchfield National Park

Oct 13, 2017

A one hour drive away from Darwin is Litchfield National Park that is famous for its waterfalls and, in the tropical heat most importantly, many natural freshwater pools that invite for a swim under the waterfalls.

Climate at Litchfield National Park

We planned our visit to the Northern Territory in October so we would not be there during the wet season where streets may be impassable due to the high water levels. October is the last month of the dry season and also the hottest month. In Darwin at the cost there were already temperatures of up to 34°C. Inland at Litchfield National Park temperatures were even higher, but the climate was also drier.

The heat and drought were on the one hand to our advantage as all park roads were easily accessible and all the natural pools were open for swimming. Some of the natural pools are closed in wet season due to strong currents coming from the waterfalls and the risk of saltwater crocodiles entering them. On the other hand, walking around at temperatures above 35°C in the sun is very exhausting and the dried out forests and savanna-like environment is definitely less appealing than everything being green.

The waterfalls at Litchfield National Park

The first and also most beautiful waterfalls we visited were Florence Falls. Two waterfalls drop into a big natural pool, embedded in beautiful forest. As we arrived there early in the day we had the pool almost to ourselves. The water in the pool was very clear, and everything was set for our first refreshment of the day. Ilinca and I had a beautiful swim and shower under the waterfalls, and thanks to a German tourist who told me in advance to bring my goggles, I could see the pool also from the fish perspective, incl. some medium-sized fish. This was especially beautiful because the morning sunrays enter the water in a flat angle and illuminate half of the pool, while the water in the shadow side of the pool was still dark. Too bad my Sony Camera is not waterproof…

A bit upriver from Florence Falls is a place called Buley Rockhole. A sequence of small waterfalls followed by small pools, some of them several meters deep. Of course I had to explore all of these pools, given the temperatures again a pleasant refreshment.

After a short drive, we then reached Tolmer Falls. This waterfall is beautifully embedded into a gorge and also drops into a large pool, however, swimming there was not allowed to preserve the rare bats that live in the walls of the gorge there. Nevertheless, it was also beautiful to only look at the pool and enjoy the view over the flatland.

Our last refreshment we enjoyed at Wangi Falls, which seemed to be the most popular ones in the park. Due to the dry season there was unfortunately not much water coming down from the cliffs and the water in the huge natural pool below the two waterfalls was not very clear. Nevertheless, it was still a good refreshment to join the dozens of other tourists that were already swimming in the pool.

Wildlife at Litchfield National Park

In theory there is lots of wildlife in Litchfield National Park incl. freshwater and saltwater crocodiles. In reality however we did not encounter too many animals. We saw some kangaroos (or wallabies, I don’t know for sure), some pretty fish in the nature pools, and the usual such as big spiders, frogs, birds, and termites. Some of the termite mounds were really high, up to 6m. Amazing for an animal to build a structure that high while it is only 0.5 cm long.

The City of Darwin

Oct 12, 2017

We did not perform to much planning upfront when we decided that we will enter Australia in Darwin, it was simply the shortest destination from Southeast Asia and we knew that after October the weather in Australia’s Northern Territory will get wet along the coasts. The plan was to stay a few days in the city and then visit some of the National Parks in the proximity.

More of a Town than a City

Upon arrival at Darwin Airport, we realized quickly that the town must be rather small. There was not even a direct public bus or train to the city center, but only a quite overpriced airport shuttle which set us back by around USD 12 each. And also inside the city, public transport was not really useful as the line that we needed for reaching our Airbnb host only ran once per hour.

Darwin only has 137’000 inhabitants, making it even smaller than a few Swiss cities. There is a city center with a few shops and restaurants, but with even more restricted opening hours than in Switzerland. Most shops close around 17:00 during the week, only the two supermarkets are open until 22:00. But Darwin is still worth visiting. It is very relaxed in town and to me the beauty of Darwin was its location in the tropics with beaches, bays, and lots of green areas.

Our Accommodation in Darwin

For the first time on our trip we used Couchsurfing. For those who don’t know it, Couchsurfing is an Internet platform where people can offer free space in the apartment to travelers, or ‘Couchsurfers’. Accommodation is usually free, the idea is more that travelers and locals can meet each other. We stayed at Nathan’s apartment in the center of Darwin for in total three nights, and we even had a separate bedroom, so no couch to sleep on. And on one evening we all went out together which was also fun. For me it was a very positive experience, let’s see if we find more hosts along our trip

The Mindil Beach Sunset Market

Twice a week in the dry season, there is a sunset market at Mindil Beach. Dozens if not hundreds of vendors try to sell food, souvenirs, massages, or allow you to take pictures with snakes and lizards. For tourists a must, but also lots of local people visit this market regularly. The food options are very diverse, there was everything from Mexican to Southeast Asian and local food available, some French guys were even selling Raclette, a cheese-based French and Swiss dish. It showed how international Australia is. While Ilinca ate a Baked Potato and some mini-Pancakes for dessert, I followed my Mango addiction and ate 2-3 freshly cut Mangoes, a true feast to me, and a Greek wrap called Gyros.

After watching the beautiful sunset, there was a short didgeridoo concert accompanied with drums. It is hard to describe how this sounds, the short video should give you an impression however. It was a really interesting combination of the two instruments and I was deeply impressed what types of sounds one can get out of a wooden tube.

Other Things to Do in Darwin

While some things like the Crocosaurus Cove, an animal park inside one single building in the middle of the city, are ridiculously overpriced (USD 28), there is the excellent Museum and Art Gallery of Northern Territory with free admission. There are basically three topics inside: Aboriginal history and arts, animals of the region, and Cyclone Tracy which devastated Darwin in 1974. I was especially interested in the animals section as there were exhibits of basically all venomous creatures that exist in Australia: Snakes, spiders, fish, jellyfish, octopuses, insects, and so on. It was amazing to see how many dangerous creatures exist in Australia. Let’s hope the museum was the only place we encountered them on our trip.

Problems with Aborigines in Darwin

Even though Darwin is nice and mostly peaceful, it is impossible to ignore that for quite a few of the indigenous people (Aborigines) here, it is hard to adapt to the modern life in Darwin. They hang around in groups on the streets, begging for money, and especially when drunk, also yelling around and bothering other people in the streets. It is hard for me to tell if they really are that disadvantaged in society despite all the programs for helping Aborigines to be employed, or if their unemployment and alcohol problems are self-made. But Darwin would be much prettier if this problem could be addressed more effectively.