Darwin

Darwin was a bit of a whirlwind stop. It kind of had to be cos it was so darned expensive!! I will never complain about Sydney prices again! Darwin’s got a pretty interesting history, and is full of WWII relics, references and memorabilia. Being up there really showed how WWII was on our shores. The government kept a lot of it under wraps at the time to minimise the fear amongst Australians of how in danger we really were. It struck me as an incredibly resilient city – every time it gets ‘knocked down’ eg war damage, cyclones etc, it just seems to shrug its shoulders and get on with putting it back together, only better than before. The architecture up there is mostly modern with some fantastic buildings. It feels like a real boomtown with so much building going on. It’s a Mecca for architects, construction workers and tradies. Darwinians are rightly proud of being from Darwin, and their resilience and pride gives the city a real vibrant buzz, sense of optimism, freshness and confidence that’s quite infectious. We liked it a lot, but the cost of living there would certainly play a large part in veto-ing it! I don’t understand why it’s so expensive, as it’s the closest to the rest of the world out of any city in Australia, so surely importing stuff, and freight, would be less expensive. I dunno! Anyway, I didn’t take many pictures of Darwin, but on our last night there, when we were at Mindil Beach markets, the sunset was one of my most memorable. Absolutely stunning watching the sea turn from cobalt blue/grey to violet. And it felt great to dip our feet in the very warm sea and take it all in. 

Getting a little more purple

A little out of focus, but the sea is ‘Cadbury’s purple’! Delicious and delectable!!

Jumping Croc Cruise – Adelaide River

We did this on our way to Kakadu, and it ignited Elliot’s fascination for crocs! We’d seen our first two wild ones, quite by accident, in the Roper River, whilst at Mataranka. But we were well and truly deep in croc country now, and heading towards an area (Kakadu and Arnhem Land) where they are not removed by Parks and Wildlife to suit the influx of visitors. On this boat tour, we must have seen about 30 crocs in the river, most of them around 3 metres long, but a couple of whoppers at about 6 metres. We learnt a lot about them, including breeding and hunting patterns, and how their numbers are more than healthy now due to them being hunted to endangered levels a few decades ago, and all hunting banned from then. That’s why the majority of crocs you see are around 3 metres, because they’re about the age when croc hunting was banned. There’s not many of the big fellas left. I suppose that means that in 30 or so years, most of the crocs will be about 6-7 metres long! A scary thought! Despite them being scary and just a tad dangerous, on learning about them, I found them to be fascinating, incredible creatures and I have a lot of respect for them. They are, after all, true living dinosaurs. Anyway, the boat tour – there were two young women who would dangle bits of meat off hooks attached to a pole. The crocs would jump up out of the water to get it. That’s natural behaviour – they spot their prey, dive underwater, then power up vertically to grab their prey in their jaws, then go into a death roll to drown it. They have very small stomachs, so don’t need much food. And it’s not true that they need their meat to be rotting to soften it before eating it. They like it fresh. So if they grab prey that’s way too big for them, they eat what they want, then jam the rest of the carcass into logs/driftwood/rocks in a river, where crustaceans and small fish fed off it, and in turn attract larger fish which becomes the croc’s next meal. Kind of like stocking up your larder, or even farming ‘croc style’. Although they can go without food for a year, they are opportunists, and eat whenever there’s something there. They also have an inbuilt GPS type system located around the two bones running along the top of their heads. When they see their prey, for example, standing on the river bank, they lock that into their GPS, so they know exactly where to pop up and grab it after they’ve dived down. Aboriginal people taught white man to never collect water, or enter the water from the same place twice, because the croc will learn this after the first time it’s spotted you and ‘locked you in’ to its tracking system. I guess that’s why popular and easily accessible drinking spots for animals are a favourite hunting spot for crocs. Like taking a lolly from a baby! OK, here are some shots:

Beautiful symmetrical patters of their scales running down their back. They love murky water to help them in their stealth hunting mode. 

You can see the two bones that look like ridges running down either side of their head behind their eyes. This is where their ‘GPS’ system is. 

One taking a leap. The netted platform hanging over the side of the boat is where the staff would stand to dangle the meat from. 

This is a photo back in the tour’s office. A sight that would have been quite common when trophy croc hunting was a free for all and considered ‘fun’. This beast would have been well over 100 years old.

We also saw lots of other birds and wildlife on the tour…

A huge Sea Eagle

A Waterbuffalo. These are considered very dangerous, as they’re territorial, short tempered, fast, powerful and very heavy! A big croc does not hesitate to bring one of these down though, if given the chance. What a handsome face this one has! I actually had the urge to jump out of the car and go up to it to grasp it’s jowls between my fists and give them a bit of a shake – like you might do with a cute chubby baby (except toned down a lot of course for the baby!!). Not surprisingly, that was a fleeting thought, but it brought a smile to my face anyway! Waterbuffalo are one of the many feral animals in Australia that are wrecking the land. You can imagine how much damage these fellas would do eh?

Litchfield National Park

About 100kms south of Darwin, you’ll find Litchfield NP. Things were starting to get a lot greener now, and Litchfield offered easy access to multiple waterfalls and waterholes where you could swim safely, away from the threat of salt water crocs. It was so pretty, and after checking out Walker Creek in particular, where most tourists don’t bother to go, it became another spot Elliot and I wanted to return to with more time up our sleeves. So basically, for us, Litchfield was all about waterfalls and waterholes!

But before we get into those, here’s a bit about the mighty termite! Now, I’d never spent much time pondering what I’d previously believed to be ‘pesky little creatures’, but after seeing their mounds, and reading a little about them, I was quite flabbergasted about how amazing they are. And even worse, I left the site where we stopped and read about them, with more questions than answers about termites! Particularly about the ant/termite warfare that goes on! I left the site wondering why I was wondering about them so much!! Anyway, if you couldn’t care less about termites, skip this next section! For the curious among you, get this…

Not far inside Litchfield NP, there was a site with mounds from both Magnetic termites, and Cathedral termites; apparently quite rare to find these two in the same vicinity. Both design their mounds with the weather/climate/conditions in mind, to regulate the internal temperature of their home. First, the Magnetic Termite: Their mounds are relatively ‘flat’ looking, and they always build on seasonally flooded black soil plains. Now, most termites burrow underground, but due to the seasonal flooding, these little guys can’t. So they’re faced with a number of problems – how to keep food storage areas well ventilated and free of bacteria and fungi;, how to keep above the water table in the wet; and how to escape extreme temperatures of soaring heat in the day, and very cold at night. What they need is a mound that regulates temperature. So, their mounds are always aligned north-south, which means one side will always be in the shade, and therefore there’s always somewhere in the mound that’s ‘just right’. Scientists experimented by changing the alignment of mounds, and found the temperature rose significantly. They also artificially changed the direction of the magnetic field using magnets, and found the termites built repairs to their mounds in accordance with the artificial magnetic field, and not to the Earth’s magnetic field. It is suspected then, particularly as they are blind and cannot use the sun to orientate, that they have an internal compass (and hence, their ‘Magnetic’ name). Clever little buggers eh? (the termites I mean!). Well, I guess there has been thousands of years’ of adaptation going on, so not that awesome really…(NOT!!)

Their mounds were everywhere, for much of our drive through the NT. Seeing so many here, I thought they looked a bit like headstones. Quite eerie!

And here’s a Magnetic Termite mound.

Now, the Cathedral Termites. Their mounds are incredibly tall, often over 5 metres. Quite a feat of engineering for a 5mm grass eating insect! They build on well drained soil, unlike the Magnetic bunch. This one is believed to be about 50 years old!

And these tall ones were the ones where the daily battle between ants and termites was really apparent. Ants are vicious, and termites quite defenceless. It’s just their sheer numbers that keep them going I think! I actually felt sorry for them! What was happening to me??! But, there’s more!! There’s a point in their lifecycle, where they take to the wing in massive numbers. Most of them are eaten by birds, reptiles, fish and mammals, and in the morning, all that’s left are their wings, blowing in the breeze. What scientists have worked out is that the whole ecosystem has been waiting for this event, and many native animals launch their own reproductive processes to coincide with it. The humble termite is believed to be critical to the survival of the tropical ecosystem. Who woulda thought eh? Oh, and lastly, their mounds are used as a safe haven for many animals, such as quolls, snakes, goannas and rats during fires. Beat that, ‘clever humans’!!!

Ok, now the watery stuff. I haven’t got any amazing scientific facts to share here, but we snorkelled in about 5 of the various waterholes and pools over the course of the day, and were in awe of the micro underwater worlds we saw. Types of fish only found in these rivers, feisty little freshwater prawns who’d have a go at your finder, despite being the size of your fingernail, and weed that was so bright green it looked fake. Kind of like emerald green fairy floss! The water was so clean, clear and warm, it was quite magic. The walk up Walker Creek had 8 waterfalls and waterholes as you ascended, and each one had a bush campsite right next to it. This is where Elliot and I wished we’d had more time – we’d have loved to spend one night camped in the tent under the stars, right next to a bubbling waterfall. Oh well, next time! 

Elliot snorkelling

One waterfall emptying into a beautiful pool, then tumbling into another shortly after. 

Litchfield NP was the first time I can remember being in tropical rain forest – I was so excited!!

These rock shelves are totally covered with torrents of water in the wet season. 

This is a ‘Turkey Bush’ in bloom. Such a pretty colour. (Tjaynera Falls in the background). 

Perfect pools for swimming. Just gorgeous. And no people around!

Buley Rock Holes – a heap of waterfalls and waterholes strung together. Elliot loved it, as there were so many to explore. Heaps of people though. It’s closed in Wet season due to crocs being around. 

Twin Falls.

We visited heaps more water falls, but I reckon that’ll do for the pics on them!

Mataranka and Katherine

I’d been really looking forward to these places, and they did not disappoint. Both of them interesting and special in their own ways. We were sad to leave them.

Just quickly though, and worth a photo, we stopped here on the way…

Mataranka

Some of you may have heard of the novel and movie ‘We of the Never Never’ – the story of Jeannie Gunn. She went as a newly-wed, from Melbourne, in 1902 or so, with her husband to Elsey Station, near Mataranka. It was rough ‘n’ tough back then, and a man’s world where women were not welcome. Anyway, she fell in love with the place, despite the hardship and isolation, kept a diary, from which she developed a book. And the movie was made many years later. She said it was ‘Never Never land’ because once it got its hooks into you, you’d never never want to leave. Anyway, Mataranka is known as the heart of Never Never land, and it has lots of references to Jeannie’s story throughout the town. Elliot and I loved it – it did feel kind of special.

Whilst there, we enjoyed two of the thermal springs. We also saw our first wild crocs in the Roper River – they were the first of many to come as we headed further north. I think the 3 hours we spent at Bitter Springs was one of our highlights of the trip so far. The colour of the water was like all colours (except red/orange) of a blue opal, and crystal clear too. The water bubbles up at about 30.5 million litres per day and is a consistent 34°C. It was completely natural. We were surrounded by water lilies and reeds, and floated for about 10 minutes with the current along with the fish and turtles. Having snorkels with us gave us a glimpse of the underwater world. We were blown away by this magic.

We were lucky to meet a lovely family, whose daughter took some underwater shots of us. The rest are the ones we took out of the water.  

The main pool of Bitter Springs, leading off to the creek whose current you could drift along with.

Where you climbed out, to walk back and do it all over again!

Happy days!!

There were water lilies in bloom everywhere.

Katherine

We packed a lot into a couple of days here. Bushwalking, kayaking, an Aboriginal cultural experience, and a Stockman’s dinner. The last three mentioned here, we did all in the same day! It was a biggie, and a very memorable day. Awesome again!

Nitmiluk National Park and Gorge (formerly know as Katherine Gorge and NP) is a large area. One big gorge, with lots of smaller ones joining it. It was stinking hot when Elliot and I did a bushwalk to Butterfly Gorge, down to Nitmiluk Gorge. To be honest, we weren’t majorly impressed by the walk, probably because the ones we’d done at Kata Tjuta, Uluru, Kings Canyon and the MacDonnell Ranges had been incredible. Oh to be spoilt eh?! We only splashed about in the gorge for a few minutes, as we were still a bit scared about the possibility crocs would be present, despite the waters having been declared safe for swimming. The day we took a dip in the gorge was the first day it had been opened!

However, the next day was one of my favourites so far, and very memorable. That was where we did kayaking in the morning, followed by an Aboriginal Cultural experience, then the Stockman’s dinner at night.

Kayaking:

We went with the same family we’d met at Bitter Springs, and it was great company for both of us. It was so nice to see Nitmiluk Gorge from water level, as mostly you see gorges from lookouts, or you’re clambering over rocks along dry river beds. I felt much more at ease about the crocs now, and enjoyed a couple of swims too. The huge croc traps and baits along the river bank were untouched, and I’d seen some kayakers come back safe before us, so at least I knew we weren’t the ‘test run’!

Relaxed and happy – who me?!

One of the many lovely beaches along Nitmiluk Gorge. The crocs get the best spots…(crocs had been removed by the way, but their nesting areas remain protected)

Elliot taking a break from kayaking. Gee, he looks pretty vulnerable in the middle of the Katherine River on his own doesn’t he?

A shallow tributary – so peaceful.

Cultural Experience:

Next, we headed towards Katherine town to do the ‘Cultural Experience’, and it was awesome!! Our Aboriginal guide was Manuel, who first told us a brief story of his life, where he was born in a ‘humpy’ in the bush, surrounded by the traditional customary ways of life, and didn’t see his first white man til he was about 7 years old (he was terrified of him by the way – thought he was a ‘spirit’ come to get him). Manuel is a very traditional Aboriginal man, and carries his traditions, stories and cultural ways with him. He doesn’t know his birthday, and can only guess at his age. Anyway, after a bit of storytelling, in that beautiful engaging way Aboriginal people do, he played a bit of didgeridoo, then took us of to show us how to light a fire with sticks. Then he showed us how to creep up on prey, and how to throw a spear. Then, he taught us how to do a painting in the style of people from the north/Kakadu/Arnhem Land, using traditional grasses and tools. We learnt that the most important thing for a painting done by someone in his tribe (Dalabon) is to have four white lines repeated at intervals when filling in the middle of the design. Any more or any less than 4 would symbolise another tribe. Traditionally only men would paint, but now women do it too. He said that when he was learning to paint in early adolescence (part of the rite of passage), if you did something wrong in your painting, particularly the 4 white lines bit, your punishment would be a spear through the leg. I asked other Aboriginal men about this punishment in subsequent tours, and they did exactly the same thing. Similar punishment would also be dished out for swearing. ‘Where did we go wrong in Western Culture?’, I asked myself??! But seriously, they have an incredibly strong kinship system and strict laws of how to live (as determined by Dreamtime), which they enforce without mercy. Anyway, we got through our paintings without punishment, and reluctantly left Manuel. He’d been fantastic – so patient, engaging, humerous, interesting and friendly. He made a great impression on us both. 

A taste of the Aboriginal kinship system. This example is only the tip of the iceberg – wait til you hear of who you’re allowed to marry because of your skin name, and that you can actually be your own grandson or something! I got totally lost, despite hearing about this over and over through the following weeks! Mind boggling! And all to do with keeping blood lines clean and to stop inbreeding. Aboriginal people has it right tens of thousands of years ago, like so many other things in their culture.

Me attempting to make embers through friction, to then throw onto the dried grass in front of Manuel. It was hard work, and took about 4 of us tourists to have a go before we succeeded! 

Manuel with fire sticks and a Woomera (multi purpose tool). The fire sticks are from the Kurrajong tree, as it’s soft, and easily made into embers. The Woomera is made of Ironbark – a very hard wood, and therefore won’t catch fire easily. It’s used to catch the embers which are then tossed onto the grass. The other highly significant tree Aboriginal people use is Paperbark. They use it to wrap things up, like food, their newborns, their dead, to build canoes out of…the list goes on. The fire sticks are kept, as each burn hole is a prompt for a story eg, the 5^th hole from the left is when so and so did such and such, or when someone was born or died etc. 

Manuel teaching Elliot how to throw a spear. Again, the Woomera appears, as extra leverage for spear throwing. 

Manuel is also an artist. This was his ‘step by step’ drawing board of how to do a painting. Step 5 is the crucial one – the one where you need to put in your 4 white lines symbolising the ‘Dalabon’ tribe. This was the ‘spear through the leg’ moment if you got it wrong!!

Me at stage 3. Elliot (above me in pic) is on stage 4.

Elliot’s finished painting. 

And mine! Can’t wait to hang this above my desk at work.

Elliot was really taken with ‘Maddie’ – an Agile Wallaby orphan joey. She was so cute!!!

The Stockman’s Dinner

Couldn’t have chosen a better night for this after all the activity we’d done! Marksie, the storyteller and chef, had his traditional camp kitchen set up in the grounds of the ‘Outback History’ museum, and it looked beautiful.

And between Marksie’s tales, this is what he served up, all of it cooked over a campfire!! Takes him about 8 hours every time he holds one of his dinners…

Entrée:

·      Crocodile and beef sausage roll with 4 vegetables and a bush tomato

seasoning topped with a desert quandong sauce.

·      Camel sausage with a mountain pepper seasoning and a bird's eye sweet chilli

sauce

·      Wild Barramundi in a lemon myrtle and rainforest spice, served with a fresh

mango salsa

·      Roast wattleseed cheese topped damper

Mains:

·      Roast Lamb in a wild rosemary and a 5 spice stemgrass

·      Roast Beef in a native pepperberry sauce

·      Roast Potato,   Roast local pumpkin,  Tomato and Onion Bread crumb topped

pie (with grandma's secret "bomb")

·      Peas in Native Mint.

Desert:

·      Gem scones with native jam and fresh cream

·      Gum leaf billy tea

·      Non- alcoholic native jungle juice (native mint, forestberry herb, native

lime juice, pineapple & water'

Quite astonishing, and absolutely sensational! Marksie has spent 12 years perfecting his recipes and cooking techniques, over such a variable heat source. The other thing he did was infiltrate ‘women’s business’, as with the vast majority of his ingredients being bush tucker, and seasonal, he had to earn the trust and respect of the local Aboriginal ladies to learnt from them. Now, he adapts their knowledge, and develops his own combos, tests it out on the skeptical lades, who invariably absolutely love what he’s done. Quite a special bloke (now well in his 60’s I think), and a wonderful partnership he’s built up with them.

Returned back to camp, exhausted, but fully satiated, and smiling. What a day!!

Heading North – The Devil’s Marbles

The Devil’s Marbles was a welcome break from a long, straight drive, that was pretty much through flat scrub land with masses of termite mounds. There were a few bridges that crossed the railway line that offered a little elevation to allow you to see just how vast this landscape is. Quite incredible. Here’s me pointing the way!

Anyway, we set up camp just in time to head off to ‘The Marbles’ for sunset. And boy, was I surprised! I thought it was only a fairly small collection of boulders, but they were everywhere! Elliot and I estimated they covered an area of about 15-20 football fields. And resting in the most precarious positions. Another magic moment on our trip! Here are some shots…

I like this shot as it shows the dying rays of the sun, and the first two bright stars of the night.

With arriving so late, or at least in time for sunset, that also meant we could get up early the next morning and see them at sunrise – so we did! (By the way, if you haven’t already worked it out, I love rocks!!)

…like eggs split in two.

Reminded me of a big croissant. Well, it was time for breakfast!

About The Devil’s Marbles

Firstly, this site, ‘Karlwekarlwe’ in Aboriginal language, is rich in Dreaming stories and events for the four Aboriginal groups who have connections to this place. They believe that the Rainbow Serpent scattered its eggs around here. It is a sacred site that holds their stories, and also where, traditionally, they hunted and could find fresh water. Most of their stories are kept secret, and only passed onto each other at significant times in their lifespans. But here’s one they opted to share with tourists:

‘Aboriginal people believe that people from the Dreaming live here at Karlwekarlwe in the caves under the rocks.

They’re real people, like us. You can see them. A long time ago, I went with my billycan down to the creek here to get some water. One of these secret people came out and started playing with me. I couldn’t go away.

My mother came and got me, saved me. After that, we never camped at this place again, never. They’re kind, these secret people, but they can make you mad. They can change you into one of them. They can say ‘follow me’ and you can’t go back.

It happened like that with my cousin. He disappeared. The old people made a big ceremony, singing the ground and the rocks to make them let my cousin come back. We’ve lost that song now. We’ve got no song to bring children back’ – Senior Traditional Owner.

And scientist outline the Western point of view of how they formed…