Kakadu

Leaving the comfortable accommodation in Katherine we headed north to Kakadu, stopping for the standard photo shoot.

Exhibit 1, tourist in town After a quick stop at the Info centre where we found most things were closed as there was a couple of inches of rain in Oct and this was all the excuse that the rangers needed to have an early Christmas break, some of the major attractions were closed in the first week of Oct and since then there has not been any rain......what a scam

We headed for one of the few places that was still open, Gagudju Lodge Cooinda 9Just next to Yellow Waters, where we set up camp and Tom managed to locate a tool of trade for the following days activities.

The night was interesting, the mossies were thicker than anywhere else we have been, may have been the swamp we were camp on but who would know. Good to see that there was a good supply of cane toads around to eat them.....
Middle of the night the camp ground was invaded by a mob of wild brumbies that decided the grass was better here than in the rest of Kakadu....then of course just to put Cindy as ease there was the stray dingo that came wandering through.

Early rise and off on the cruise we booked the night before, Yellow River where we managed to spot a large number of the local bird life and Cindy came face to face with her first wild Croc.

Was a close call but all survived and now Cindy will not get in a boat again let alone go for a swim.
After breaking camp we headed north towards Jabiru stopping at every little spot we could find that was not closed for the wet season (when it comes) such as Bowali Visitor Centre and Nourlangie Rock Art sites. Also drove in to a few billabongs that are normally open for camping but have been closed.
Arriving to Jabiru and working out nothing happens on a Sunday we did a quick lap of town and decided that the best way to see the rest of the park was by air. So off to the airport for a scenic flight over the northern end of the NP and a bit over Arnhem Land and some of the wetlands. There was no point in flight over the classic areas such as Jim Jim & Twin Falls as these were not flowing......even though they were closed due to rain that had fallen 2 months earlier....hope the rangers got sunburn lying on the beach in Bali or where ever they went. Below are photos of the flight, including The Archway, East Alligator River, Majellan Falls, Wetlands and the passengers

 The last things we managed to spot was the elusive buffalo, managed to get a quick snap and for the trained eye they can be spotted under the tree.

Trev did manage to let us down a little, having to drive back to Darwin in 45+ temp as the air con belt was gone again. Stopped at the classic Humpty Doo Pub for a beer and the decision was that an air conditioned motel would be just what we needed for the night.

Good to have a sleep in and fix Trev in the morning