September 2010

After leaving Litchfield NP we spent another night at Katherine and this time stayed at a 'Rolls Royce' of caravan parks. Beautiful shady trees and even mango trees, huge bathrooms and shady swimming pool. The only downside was the amount of cane toads they have. We're surprised they don't have cane toad hunts. They could send them up to Darwin markets for purses and such things.

This blog has to be dedicated to 3 family members who are all special and have a birthday this month. Annie our sister-in-law, Nicholas our nephew and Jean - Mum. For other people we know, forgive us if we have forgotten your birthday but our Dutch (perennial) toilet calendar is in storage (Brisbane)!! We already have a hard time remembering the day and date each day.

The temperatures are a blistering 36-39 during the day and about 25 at night (yuk). I never would have believed that I would say that the temp. is cool when it is 34/35 but it's true. We have seen a few people getting around Australia in varying forms of transport. Mad I say but their idea of adventure is different I guess.

going around Australia?

bikie nomads

another nomad on the road

We had a long drive to WA. Along the way we saw amazing rock formations and again the red rock and soil. The colours/hues. It would be an artist's or photographer's dream. We are now officially 2 hours behind you in time and probably now in the same time zone as Dean in Hong Kong. So if you get a call at a weird time from us it's because we have forgotten that we are in the western time zone.

the border NT to WA

pioneer?

grasses suited to dry/hot conditions

I will put in a map of this part our journey here because I am sure like ourselves you will be wondering about the areas we are talking about (unless you have been there). We have already done about 11,000 kms in total.

Darwin to Broome map

Also boab trees started to appear in all sorts of shapes and sizes. They are 'characterful' trees. They have no leaves and appear to be dead but during 'the wet' they come to life with lots of leaves. They are pretty impressive and can live up to 1500 years or more. Artists love to create pictures of them.

boab tree 1

boab tree 2

boab 3

boab 4

boab art 1

boab art 2

At the border we had to throw out any fruit and veg. we had because of fruit fly and they check every vehicle coming through. Even our cane toads are unwelcome! They are supposedly not in WA but are fast approaching. Kununurra already has some but they are trying very hard to eradicate them. Unfortunately there are no shops over the border to buy new stuff fruit/veg. We had heard from one nomad that there is a guy living in a shanty on the border who gets to live off the fruit and veg. we throw out. Clever guy.

Our caravan park (Lake Argyle caravan park) was overlooking Lake Argyle. What a view. Even better was the 'waterhole' there. The water was really cold and beautiful. Geoff thought it was freezing. During the day it was perfect for both of us. Check it out.

Geoff in infinity!

Nicky in infinity - lake Argyle in background

catching up with nomads

The Ord river was dammed which created lake Argyle. Unfortunately (or fortunately for all the farmers) the Durack family who lived there, had to move their station called Argyle Downs further up. They owned millions of acres of land for cattle. I'm sure they made a fortune from it.

the dam wall and lake Argyle

Ord river up to the dam wall

boats on lake Argyle

The benefits for the whole area meant that the soils were really, really rich for crops such as fruit and veg. Now they produce most of the supplies for WA. It is a huge area and growing and benefits everyone here. You would do very well if you were a crop farmer here.

crop irrigation channels

irrigation canals

farmer Jones

This last photo was for you Murray!

We decided against cruising lake Argyle and opted to take a cruise on the Ord river (such decisions to make). So we went to our next destination which was Kununurra. There we took a 5 hour cruise on the Ord River. Spectacular.

a river somewhere - Ord River

a dead fresh water croc probably killed by a cane toad

years of erosion to create these layers

can you see the fresh water croc?

check out the bats

more red rocks

so many domes - Bungle Bungles maybe?

seeing double!

can you see the rock wallaby?

elephant rock

The Ord from behind our boat

ho hum another sunset!

sunset from our boat

There are so many beautiful photos I can't put them all in the blog but you can check out the photos on the right hand side which will show others. By the way we can't see the fresh water croc or the rock wallaby in the photos either.

We also checked out Kununurra lookout at sunset. Yes, we too have become worshippers of sunsets around here. Here's what we saw.

Geoff worshipping sunset

the thinker

sunset at Kununurra lookout

sunset at lookout Kununurra

Kununurra sunset

Geoff wanted to buy me an argyle diamond (pink) but nearly gagged when he saw the price of a spec. It was smaller than a pin prick and they wanted $380. You could hardly see it. Of course I would want something more substantial than that and the prices went up to the millions for 'earring size' diamonds. The only way now to see the argyle diamond mine is to fly there and not liking those little aircraft we opted not to. So not wanting to disappoint his wife he took me to a place on the Ord river where they sell zebra rocks. We had a lovely devonshire tea there, fed the fish - the photo of Geoff fish feeding is for you Murray. Geoff then purchased me some zebra rock. A huge rock at that which was big enough (and only good enough) to be used as a paper weight. The rocks are from a quarry and that is how they look once they have been cut and polished. Clever people then create art on them.

fish feeding on the Ord river

greedy fish of the Ord river

zebra rocks

artwork on zebra rock

birds painted on zebra rocks

We also had to take a photo of those adventurous people who 4wd across waters such as this landmark. Everyone takes a photo of this crossing. We would like to think our motorhome could handle some water but didn't want to risk it!! Sir Ivanhoe himself?

crossing Ivanhoe?

Ivanhoe crossing

Ivanhoe crossing

We left Kununurra saddened that we couldn't complete a Bungle Bungles trip. Not being a big fan of the small planes that are on offer to see a bird's eye view of them, the only other option was to take a 4wd trip to see them. It is expensive and a long drive to get into the Purnululu National Park and so hot, that taking the walks that are 'must see', was way too hot. It is a good excuse to come back in a cooler time. The hot weather has come too early and they are expecting a long, hot and wet summer. If we had left a month earlier we would probably have encountered a cooler temperature.

Heading for Broome was about 1000kms so we had to break the journey and stay at Fitzroy Crossing. Again very hot but a lovely caravan park so we spent time in the swimming pool. The following day we did yet another cruise on the Fitzroy River and saw Geike gorge. We did the early cruise at 8am and it was beautiful. The boat had no roof so after 1 hour that was enough sun for the day!

plenty of ochres here

Geike gorge

part of the devonian reef at Geike gorge

what colouring

fresh water croc on Fitzroy river

dragonfly

Next stop Broome but along the way we saw some brolgas and an interesting road sign that we are seeing around the top end. Haven't seen any frilly lizards yet (dead or alive) thankfully. We have also seen so many termite mounds of differing shapes and sizes. You would never build a wood house again!

brolgas

Mmmmm yummy???

termite city

That brings us up to date right now, we arrived in Broome yesterday.

We finally made it to Darwin and boy is it hot. Everyone here looks like they have got the measles on their legs and arms! They have had an early and unseasonal early summer! Great just what we needed! The temperatures have been around 34 to 36 degrees most days. This means that the mossies and midgees were about as well. When I arrived here I thought we would just do a quick look at the main landmarks, shop and get out. Luckily our neighbours put things into perspective for me and said just to take on one thing a day and then spend the rest of the day in the pool. We ended up staying 8 days and filled them in quite nicely. Either the temperatures went down or I acclimatised.

The first thing to tick off on our bucket list was the Mindil Beach night markets. We had arrived on Wed and they were on a Thurs. Great, I could spend the whole day in the pool or near it and then we would head off to these markets to see what that was all about.

the markets

They were fun and there was even a breeze coming from the beach which made it pleasant. Firstly the ritual is to sit on the beach and watch the sun go down.

sunset ritual at Mindil Beach night markets

sunset at Mindil Beach

sunset at Mindil Beach

Then it was into the markets. There was of course plenty of food and mostly Asian at that. I managed to find some roast and veg in a stall which was really delicious. Some of the more unusual food items on offer was this one.

some cuisine at markets

Other things we saw were live reptiles which Geoff had to photograph.

a biggish lizard - Geoff's mate

some more strange creatures from the territory

snake hat - Mindil Markets

Then I saw a stall with cane toads (stuffed) which is how they should all be. Check out the bottom row and see if you can see what they did with those cane toads. You may have to click on the photo to see it.

stuffed cane toads at markets

They also had Aboriginal didgeridoo player and dancers as part of the Darwin Festival which was closing this week.

didge player and dancers on Mindil Beach

Geoff and I were given a picnic rug each as part of the Darwin festival closing which we gratefully accepted. The highlight for me was the didge player and drummer in one tent. They were awesome. He had 4 didgeridoos and was playing them all at once. Even the locals were dancing to his music and they were really, really good. What an atmosphere. Wish I could bottle that.

didge player at Mindil Beach markets

Locals enjoying the didge music

There were also Aboriginal people doing their artwork and one of them had a stall painting and carving on the outside of the didges. Couldn't take a photo of that due to sensitivities. Did you know that the genuine didge is eucalyptus tree eaten out by termites. I have bought one and sent it home with the intention of learning to play like the guy at the markets!! Apparently, I was told that only men normally are allowed to play the didge but it was okay for infertile women (old, I think that means) to play.

The next day we went to Parliament House for morning tea and a look around the place.

talks on the grass outside Parliament House

the view from Parliament House

We were invited to have morning tea with the Speaker of the House - Jane Aargaard. She has a Dutch surname and I think that is why we were so generously invited (Geoff and Nicky van Dam). She recognises class!

the Speaker cutting cake at Parliament House

let them eat cake

let them eat cake 2

Later that day we went to Government house where we were invited for dinner. We couldn't believe our luck. Tom Pauling is the Chief Administrator of Darwin and his wife is named Tessa. Check out the beautiful tropical house. It was eaten by termites a while back which is not surprising but they have done it up since then. I could easily live in a place like this.

dinner at Government house

one of the dinner guests

Govt house

I even had some 'high tea'.

high tea at Govt house

After watching the sun go down over the harbour we had to select our spot at the dinner table! Sausage sizzle was on the menu!

sunset from Govt house

Geoff looking for his spot at the table

Then one evening we went to the deck chair cinema under the stars and had dinner on our laps. Watched a terrific arthouse movie.

under the stars deck chair cinema

I wanted to do a sunset cruise on Darwin harbour so Geoff said he would take me to a lovely spot by day called Mandorah. The catch was that it was by ferry for 30 mins. No sunset but I would get to see the sea. Check out the height of the jetty at Mandorah. This is how high the tides are there. We arrived in low tide and had to climb all those stairs to get to the top.

Darwin harbour from Cullen Bay

ferry to Mandorah

jetty at Mandorah

view of Darwin from Mandorah

There was only really a pub there but we had a lovely lunch and went back. Swimming in the ocean is also fraught with danger. Crocs are everywhere! We swam in their pool.
Then one day we went to see the fish feeding which is also tidal. The fish come all the way from the Phillipines to eat the Darwin bread at high tide only. We were too late for the high tide to feed them ourselves but watched the end of the feeding. They also had some beautiful statues there. One of them is my favourite.

fish feeding

3 wise monkeys at fish feeding

We had also been to the NT Art Gallery and Museum. Saw some fascinating stuff and I was particularly interested in the Cyclone Tracy displays as I was part of the evacuation process when I worked with Ansett. I remember seeing a whole car in the pool at the Darwin Travelodge. Darwin was of course much smaller then.
Then one day we thought it would be good to learn more about the war in Darwin and so we went off the see the Military museum. On the way we saw something else that was very appealing and so we never made it to the war museum.

wave pool at Darwin wharf precinct

Finally if any of the gym friends are still reading my blogs, we have found the perfect spot to join a gym overlooking the turquoise waters of Darwin.

our new gym overlooking Darwin harbour

Not wanting to feel left out we left with the measled look as well.

We left Darwin with our measled legs and arms and headed straight for the first waterhole. Everyone had recommended calling in to Berry Springs because it was so beautiful and it was a lovely swimming place. I did this with much trepidation because of the crocs. I don't care if they are fresh or salt water. They both look rather mean and I don't want a brush with either of them. Luckily I could see the bottom and I felt safe near the waterfalls.

Berry Springs waterholes

Berry Springs waterhole

where's Geoff?

there's Geoff

Believe it or not I did swim there even though we don't have the photos to prove it.

After that it was on to Litchfield National Park. A lot of nomads had been telling us to forget about Kakadu NP and go to Litchfield NP which is much nicer. Well we can now say that it's like comparing apples and oranges.

We called into a town called Batchelor on the way, where Geoff had to clean the cartridge. Guess what we saw there.

our taxes at work

where the economic stimulus goes

stimulating stuff!!

Had to hunt for a caravan park with lots of shade and a good pool and found a beautiful one called Litchfield Tourist and Caravan Park. We even had a carport to park under with lots of trees for shade. Fantastic. Beautiful amenities and the pool was one of my favourite waterholes.

Next we headed out to the NP. Firstly there were the magnetic termite mounds. These ants are unbelievable and plentiful. They even have different mounds depending on the weather and conditions they live in. The magnetic ones have thin edges facing north and south. The east and west faces are flat and larger because they like dry and warmth. So when it is morning they stay on the western side and move on to the eastern side as the day progresses. During night they stay in the middle. These mounds are not underground because they are built on swamp area.

clever termites - magnetic mound

magnetic termite mounds - looks like a cemetery

The cathedral mounds are much taller but what we see is only a third of it. Two thirds are underground because they are built on the dry land. These mounds provide shelter for snakes, lizards and other such nasties when there is fire. They are that well made they don't burn down. However, during the rains the ants go underground because the mounds can collapse.

cathedral termite mound with Minister termite

We have also enjoyed the Wicked camper slogans. Don't know how they get away with some of them but this was another one.

Wicked camper slogan

Wicked camper slogan

Our first port of call was Buleys rockhole. Beautiful and so clear. There were deep pools to enjoy all the way down the rock face.

Buleys waterhole at Litchfield NP

I loved sitting near the falls.

croc free

Next was Florence Falls. We had to walk down 135 stairs so that was our gym session for the day because we also had to go up again. It looked so nice and clear in parts again. Plenty of fish there called grunters. The fish seemed to like my mossie bites on my legs because they were nipping me all the time. Didn't like that waterhole at all but Geoff did!

Florence Falls at Litchfield NP

swimming at Florence Falls

On the way up the stairs we saw this cute little rock wallaby sleeping on the rocks. Don't they blend in well with their environment. He/she looked really human the way it sat.

a sleepy rock wallaby

The final waterhole was Wangi Falls. For you kiwis it is pronounced 'Won guy' falls. These signs were a little ominous.

signage at Wangi Falls waterhole

another sign at Wangi Falls swimming hole

Again it wasn't always clear waters so I headed straight for the sandy see-through bit and stayed there with fellow swimmers. Geoff was brave and swam up to the falls.

Wangi Falls waterhole

We were finally watered-out but had to call in to our favourite rockhole for a final swim. That was Buleys rockhole. On the way home we saw this fellow.

Crocodile Dundee buffalo

It really is a beautiful place with amazing natural beauty. We definitely love apples and oranges and recommend you experience both.