Day 131 - 134 Recovering

Friday - I was tired. Flying the red eye put me back in Melbourne at about 7:30am and for some reason I just couldn't get to sleep when I got back to Whitley. I went out to lunch with some friends to say goodbye - it was sad :0( I spent the rest of the day trying to organize. I started feeling a little under the weather. The weather in Melbourne was absolutely numb, 13 degrees C compared to the 40 in Darwin - so I must have gotten a little cold. I had an interview late so I stayed up with my friend Missi till I could make the call at a normal hour in the US. I think it went well - time shall tell.

Saturday and Sunday - Consisted of running errands and trying to buy the rest of my gifts (which I still failed at). The cold weather and my illness put my days into slow motion and I didn't accomplish nearly as much as I wanted to. I suppose the coldness will help me adjust when I get home.

Monday (today) - I felt a lot better this morning and they turned the heat back on. So I became a lot more productive. I spent the day organizing for the Tazzie trip and just trying to tie up any loose ends. We leave early tomorrow for the island!

Day 130 - Katherine Gorge

Another early start and another very hot day. My first impression of the day was once again disappointing as I realized I would no longer be with Adventure Tours but instead a much larger company called ATP (Australian Pacific Touring) - so picture one of those big coaches filled with older individuals touring the country. Fortunately it was an empty day and there were only 12 people on the whole coach. We made a lot of weird stops on the way to Katherine Gorge - for example a cemetery, a closed railway station, and crappy/expensive roadside restaurant - not sure... The guide (Lindsay) was nice but liked to talk and it sort of sounded like he might keel over and die when he spoke - he just took the most awkward breaths and pauses in his speech. Anyway we reached the visitor center for Katherine Gorge right around lunchtime. After a few minutes of exploring we helped ourselves to some cold meats and salad. Not too bad. Next we took a boat cruise up the gorges. The guide was really good and I enjoyed this part of the tour a lot. According to the brochure we were also supposed to have a chance to Kayak at this spot - but when I asked Lindsay, he just laughed and said we wouldn't have time - um. Anyway, after the boat tour we drove to Edith Falls for some swimming and ice cream. I was bummed because we only got 45 minutes to explore and there were some neat trails - just no time to walk them. Soon we were on our way back home - we took a break at the same restaurant - I was the first person dropped off in Darwin. I put my gear in the Hostel's storage unit and headed to another free dinner (the tour companies give out meal vouchers for a free buffet dinner - not the best grub ever - but it does alright). Afterwards I met up with a friend from the Kakadu tour and we had a chat until the Airport Shuttle came and picked me up. My flight didn't leave till 1:45am so it was a long wait in the airport but I managed to sleep most of the 4 hours home.


The coach

A bower!!! I know it's hard to see, but all the items are white and include bottle caps and beer tabs (built by the Bowerbird to attract a mate)

First gorge

Crocodile trap (people swim here so they put these in case a saltie should appear

big sandy beach where crocs lay their eggs

A rainforest pocket

This is the "classic" view of Katherine gorge

Me in the classic view

A face - hehe

Fairy Martin nests

Edith Falls

A silly lizard, I reckon' he's cooling off or something

The Bowerbird (female I think)

Day 129 - Litchfield National Park

Wednesday was beautiful - the complete opposite of our disaster day. We headed to Litchfield National Park bright and early. First we walked into Florence Falls and went for a swim. There were some very cute wallabies hopping around - they were so miniature and some had babies!! SO cute! Anyway next we walked up to the Buley Rockhole for some more swimming. The trail was really nice, winding along creek beds and through a variety of habitats. I saw a bunch of new skinks and some birds. After swimming for a while we headed to Wangi Falls for lunch. After lunch we spent some more time swimming and relaxing on the rocks of the falls. I was bummed because the little walking track around the area was closed. Eventually the tour guide rounded us up and we headed for home. On the way we stopped and looked at some special termite mounds. We got back a little early and had a chance to swim in the hostel pool before heading to dinner (which was free!). Just so we are all on the same page - I was supposed to be on a 4- day tour of the Top End geared for the "tropical summer" season. Basically I do 3 days with adventure tours in Kakadu and Litchfield and then join a 1-day tour to Katherine gorge. I made a stop at an internet cafe and found out the email address for lodging a complaint about our disaster day. I was exhausted after dinner so I came home to get some shut eye.

Our Campground (2 beds per hut - I had one to myself)

Florence Falls

Awwww Wallabies!! That little guy was about as tall as my water bottle

So relaxing, we swam here

and here (Buley Rockhole)

The Rockhole got pretty crowded as it warmed up. Basically, it is a series of plunge pools all connected - very refreshing

Wangi Falls - apparently there are 'freshies' here but it is safe to swim with them

Magnetic Termite ( they all build there houses exactly North-South, and they are only found in Litchfield)

size reference

The mounds are flat to control heating from the sun - the temperature is constant on the inside

Cathedral Termite mound - They build the mounds out of grass and mud. Termites are extremely social (like ants). There little critters are crucial to the environment because they are nature's number one recycler; they break down dead plant material and put nutrients back into the soil. The macropods would never be able to keep up. People just get a bad impression because some species are non-selective about which dead wood to eat - ie they may eat your house.

Day 128 - A disaster

Today was a disaster. There is no better way to put it. We woke up early in attempt to "beat the heat". The rain had moved on but it was still overcast and misty. On my way back from the shower I spotted some Dingos running through the camp. I didn't get any great pictures though cause I once again thought they were dogs... duh. Anyway we left about 20 after 6 and headed to a lookout overlooking the floodplains. It was a nice hike and a good start to the morning. However then the day got bad. Our tour guide informed us that he never takes groups to the two waterfalls advertised because they are always closed this time of year. A little weird - but he said he would take us to Maguk (Barramundi) Falls instead - which includes a hike and swimming - sounds like fun - everyone is happy. We drive over an hour to get there and the falls are closed due to flooding (it has started raining) - well you can't do anything about the weather so everyone is very understanding and we wait for our guide to come up with some type of alternative. He can't. Everywhere he tries is closed (why we have to waste time and petrol driving to all of these places is what I can't understand - why can't he just call the park office or something? Or his tour office?) Anyway people on the tour start getting very agitated since we spent 3 quarters of the day in the truck. Finally the guide decides to take us to Nourlangie and Nanguluwur, another rock art site. We go on a short hike and then the guide takes us back to the camp so we can go swimming. The group as a whole is pretty upset - since this is the slow season our tours have been combined, meaning some people only got a two day tour. It got even worse when we compared itinerary's only to discover everything we didn't do. Plus my itinerary was completely different than the 3 day and 2 day tours. Needless to say, people were upset and I expect there will be some complaints, myself included. We finished the day by dropping off our 2 day tour people and heading to our new campsite. There was a short trail loop around a patch of rainforest so while others went to the bar, I went for a hike. I found a leech on my foot and saw some birds but no luck on snakes. We had another late dinner and after a short crusade of frog hunting I went to bed.


Wild Dingo

The mountains in the mist

that little person is me! (I was afraid!)

Some clouds

Frilled Lizard - Pretty awesome critter. They run on their hind legs and puff out that frill in attempts to scare away predators. Take a look at this funny clip for proof!!
http://au.youtube.com/watch?v=rckm6mxPZIU

The flooded Barramundi Falls access (they were pulling out a car when we got there) It's good we didn't get in there early because we probably would have gotten stuck!

Bush Stone Curlew - Can you see the female in the foreground? They had a baby too, but that big one was looking a little mad so I decided to back off before he attacked me

This is Nabulwinjbulwinj. He is a dangerous spirit who eats females after striking them with a yam. His name his pronounced Nar-bull-win-bull-win. (Says the sign - so ladies look out!)
Some cool rock coloring

Apparently Crocs occasionally bask on the road when it floods - and tourist run them over. Can you imagine hitting a 5 meter (16 foot) croc with your car???

Frog in the shower

Gecko I rescued

The infamous Cane Toad

Bad news! Long story short they were brought here from South America to control a beetle that was eating the sugar cane. Problem is the toad couldn't even eat the beetle because they live so far off the ground. Since one female can produce 8,000-35,000 eggs at a time and up to two clutches per year, they are spreading - quickly. They are bad news because they are very toxic when eaten. Australia does not have any poisonous frogs naturally so the animals are not adapted to avoiding the toads. The toads have no predators and the poison is strong enough to kill a crocodile. Many species (snakes and carnivorous marsupials) are decreasing severely as a result.

Day 127 - Exploring Kakadu

The flight to Darwin (located in the Northern Territory) was long and filled with turbulence which means I didn't get very much sleep. The plane landed around 1 am ( 2.5 hour time difference from Melbourne) and I grabbed a shuttle to my hostel. I didn't get to bed till after 2 and for some unknown reason everyone in my room got up at 5 am to prepare for a tour leaving at 6:20??? Why!? Anyway our guide picked me and a few other folks up outside of the hostel at about 6:30 and after a few more stops we were on our way out of Darwin and into the wilderness. It was a full bus, 15 people and the driver. The weather was extremely hot and humid (think 90s and 85% humidity). Our guide was named Dendrum ( I think - it was hard to pronounce... ) and a native to New Zealand. Not necessarily a bad guide but almost too laid back to be interesting and not very environmentally conscientious. We stopped at a roadhouse for petrol and snacks and then made our way on to Mary River where we boarded a boat for our river cruise. The cruise was excellent and I really enjoyed the guide. I saw a ton of new birds and both species of Crocodiles (finally!). It's the beginning of the wet season in the Top End so the park was looking fresh and green. Anyway after the boat tour we grabbed some lunch (included in the tour price but consisted of one hot dog with toppings - err) and then headed to our campsite to drop off some bags. It was sweltering so we voted to swim in the pool (the campsites were a little less than roughing it) before heading on to our evening activities. After a refreshing dip we headed to Ubirr to look at some Aboriginal rock paintings and watch the sun set. It was very relaxing and there was a cool breeze on the lookout. We could see the lightening on the way home to the campsite. I also saw a billion Cane Toads crossing the road and Dendrum hit a bat ( I had the front seat). We had a pretty late dinner and I went to bed straight after in attempts to make up the sleep from the night before. A huge storm hit and the thunder and lightening were pretty amazing and the rain brought cooler weather for the night.


A White-bellied Sea Eagle


Lotus Flowers

Mary River (proposed National Park) - not part of Kakadu

Jabiru or Black-necked Stork with a Magpie Goose

"Saltie" or Salt water Croc - Can grow up to 8 meters in length (pretty huge) and kill about 1.6 people a year in Australia. This one was only about 2 meters.

Magpie Geese

A 'freshie' - Freshwater Crocodile not normally harmful to humans...

Just a little blurb on the art. The art has varied age but some is estimated to be over 20,000 years old! Aboriginals used art for many reasons but many of these pictures were used to tell stories (or pass on knowledge) to upcoming generations. It is frowned upon to 'touch up' or correct paintings so they are painted over and over again on the same areas. In Aboriginal culture, only certain members of the society are entitled to learning to the details of the story while children and outsiders are allowed to know the simple version, which is why they are described so simply on the signs.

More information can be found at http://www.environment.gov.au/parks/kakadu/culture-history/art/rock-art.html



Some rock art depicting Mimi Spirits referenced in the sign below...

If you click on the picture it should get bigger and hopefully you can read it

The Mimi spirits painting is located on this roof (about 9 meters from the ground)

Turtle! ( a food painting)

A lesson on stealing

Hand prints are the artist signature but you need special rights to use them

Water Buffalo (non-natives but apparently they at one time ran wild through the park until the Park service culled a large portion of the herd) They also apparently charged some woman and paralyzed her!

Nadab Lookout

Another View

The floodplains



I think this is a Northern Spiny-tailed Gecko


The sunset over Kakadu

Pretty

I went Gecko hunting after dark in the rain - of course they were all in the bathroom, I believe this is a Top-end Dtella but I could easily be wrong