Kakadu is Australia’s largest national park, covering over 4 million acres, & is designated a World Heritage Area. It’s a vast place of beautiful landscapes & diverse wildlife. We set off in the early morning on the two-&-half hour drive on the Arnhem Highway eastwards out of Darwin. We reached the Jabiru area of the park by mid-morning & made a quick stop at Aurora & checked in to our cabin.
We then made our way to the small Jabiru airstrip for a scenic flight. This time of the year a flight is the only way to see two of the park’s main attractions, Jim Jim Falls & Twin Falls, because much of the park floods during the Wet season making the roads to the falls impassable. A flight is also the best way to get a full appreciation of Kakadu’s expansive landscape escarpments, ravines, & flood plains. The plane was tiny, seating only six passengers. To give us the best view possible, the pilot tried to fly as low to the ground as possible, so the plane was constantly buffeted by winds. Then, to give each passenger a view of the waterfalls, he made two corkscrew turns around each waterfall, wing tip down in alternating directions so both sides of the plane could get an equal view. Unfortunately, for the weak-stomached, like myself, this is a recipe for sickness. Amazingly, I managed to keep it together during the circling around the falls though I was sweating bullets & am sure I looked green. Despite my best efforts, I lost it about five minutes before we landed.
Even though I got sick, if I had it to do over again, I’d take the flight because there is no other way to see the waterfalls in their full strength & Wet-season swell. Even in the Dry, the falls are only accessible by four-wheel-drive & often not until June & by that time, they’ve often slowed to a trickle. However, in the Dry two magical plunge pools, perfect for swimming, remain at the base of the falls. I’m hoping I have the chance to make it back out to Kakadu in May before I return & make it to the waterfalls.
We then made our way northeast towards Ubirr. The ranger at the Visitor Center warned us that the road to Ubirr was closed to non-4WD vehicles due to flooding. However, we decided to venture out & assess the situation ourselves. About halfway there, we came to the first flooded portion of the road, which was submerged under about 20cm of floodwater across approximately 15 meters of road. We contemplated the situation for a bit & decided to brave it with our little Toyota Corolla. Luckily we made it. There was only one other flooded area a short distance further covering about the same depth & distance of road, which we also easily forged. Ubirr Rock is one of Kakadu’s famous Aboriginal art sites. There are reportedly over 5,000 art sites throughout Kakadu dating back as far as 50,000 years; however, only a few are open to visitors. We climbed about 820 ft. to the top of Ubirr Rock, which was dotted with art sites throughout the climb. We remained at the top until the spectacular sunset over the flood plains.
The second day, we woke at the crack of dawn for the Yellow Water cruise. The Yellow Water Billabong is a lake south of Jabiru near the center of the Park that is surrounded by freshwater mangroves, water lilies, & countless varieties of birds including sea eagles, magpies, kites, kingfishers, jacanas, & many more. During the Wet, the billabong floods to join with Alligator River. The cruise started at sunrise at the billabong & wound along down Alligator River. In addition to all the birds, there were several large saltwater crocodiles that swam alongside our boat.
Following the cruise, we visited the Aboriginal Cultural Center, which took us through the history & lifestyle of the Bininj Aborigines & Dreamtime creation myths. Then, we took two bushwalks ending the day at Nourlangie Rock, which is often considered the best of the Aboriginal art sites. During the walk, I came a across a wallaby! It stood about five feet away from me just looking at me. Then, it suddenly bounded away on its powerful legs.
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