Bryans Big Trip

Today's update is going to be fairly short as I've had a bit of a down day. At Katherine I'd already visited the places that interested me, so I had a nice slow day. I took the opportunity to do some planning for the rest of the trip, and in doing so spotted a mistake that I'd made here in Katherine on both stays that I've been able to correct. Awake at 06:00 as usual, and as I swung my legs out of bed cramp hit my left calf. If I'd not already been wide awake, that would have definitely done the trick! Showered and into breakfast at just after 07:00, and then back to the cabin. I'm aware that you've probably not got a mental picture when I talk about the cabin, so here it is; the building in the background to the right is my bathroom and toilet. I did have a look to see if there was anything to interest me for today, but that drew a blank, so I had a couple of games of Sudoku before starting to look at my plans for what's left of the trip. The first...

Today I wanted an early getaway as I had a 09:00 cruise at Yellow Water, which is 45 minutes down the road from Jabiru, so up with the alarm at 06:00, packed away and ready for loading before heading for breakfast at 06:30. I waited at the restaurant door, and got the signal that they weren't opening until 07:00 (despite it saying 06:30 in their resort guide), so I returned to the room and loaded the car before returning at 07:00 for my cooked breakfast.  Checked out and away at 07:45, I had an uneventful run down to Cooinda Lodge on empty roads, where I picked up the transfer to the Yellow Water boat; the road down to the jetty was closed to the public due to the water being immediately adjacent to the road and therefore a crocodile risk. We disembarked the coach, and took a boardwalk protected by a steel mesh on either side to the boat jetty, and then we were off. First we sailed down Yellow Water inlet, and then out into the South Alligator river. The flood plains are still all ...

I'm going to start with an apology. Last weeks video has been a little late in releasing; I decided to upload it once I arrived here in Kakadu and the internet speeds are so slow that what usually takes 10 to 15 minutes to load took over 8 hours overnight. Still, it's live now and can be found here . The plan for today was to do a couple of walks, so I was up, breakfasted and away early to make the most of the cooler early morning temperatures. I arrived at the first spot at just before 08:00; a site called Burrungkuy (pronounced Boo-rong-goy); I was the only one here at this early hour. This is a rock outcrop where the aboriginal people have made rock paintings to communicate stories. There are a couple of loops to complete. First I took the loop that climbed up to the Kunwarddewardde Lookout (also spelt Gunwarredhwarredh on some signs, so I've included both), which provided some fantastic views of the nearly rock outcrops and the plains beyond. As I stood alone on the loo...

Back on the road again today, so up early to pack my bags before breakfast. All loaded and checked out, I was on the road just before 09:00 and on the way to Kakadu National Park. Out of Darwin, and a left turn onto the Arnhem Highway. I had some ideas for some stops from the information office the other day, so thought I'd put them into action. First stop was at Fogg Dam Conservation Reserve in the coastal wetlands. The dam was a low earth bank, and signage said that there was no pedestrian access to the dam as Saltwater Crocodiles had been sighted in the area. I crossed the dam in the car which bought me to a raised viewing platform that provided a great view over the flatness of the wetlands. Then back across the dam to a trailhead car park, but given the crocodile warnings I decided that wandering down by the waterside to see the water lillies in full bloom may be a little foolhardy, so back into the car and onto the next location. Next on the list was the Wetland View Top Cent...

Another city day, and it's become increasingly apparent as this trip has progressed that the city days have been those I've looked forward to the least.  I was in no hurry this morning, so I rose at 07:00 and into a really nice breakfast. Then laundry duty called, so I did a load of washing that should keep me going for a while. I left the hotel at 10:25 to catch the 10:35 'Hop on Hop off' bus to explore the city. There are 12 stops throughout the city, and I boarded at stop 11. The commentary on the bus was very informative as we drove around. Darwin is a small city with a population in the region of 140,000; the population of the whole of the Northern Territory is less than 250,000, which makes this one of the least populated places on the planet. The first stop was at the cruise ship jetty, but there are no cruise ships in today so it's as quiet as a quiet thing. On the way we passed the World War 2 oil storage tunnels that I marked for a visit later as they are ...

This morning I was in no hurry; I had only just over an hour to drive to my next hotel in Darwin, so had a leisurely start to the day. Everything was packed and loaded into the car by 08:00, then I had  breakfast before returning to the room, having a couple of games of Sudoku and checking out at 10:00. The hotel had a filling station attached, and fuel was less then $2 per litre, so I topped up before leaving. There wasn't anything that I'd found as a stop on the way today, so I pulled over about a half hour from Darwin to contact the hotel to find out when I could check in. My room was ready, so I could check in whenever I wanted. I therefore rejoined the Stuart Highway for the last few kilometres before leaving it to make my way to the hotel in Darwin's waterfront. I was all checked in at 11:30. When I checked in I was given a city map, and I noticed that the information office wasn't far away, so I wandered out to see what I could organise. For tomorrow I've boo...

One month left on my big trip; 24th May is the day that I fly from Perth back home. This barely seems possible, but I still have a month left to make more memories .... starting with today.  Awake with the alarm this morning, and an early getaway into Litchfield National Park in an attempt to beat the worst of the forecast high temperatures. The first stop was 45 minutes from the motel, and was a viewing area for termite mounds. The first one viewed was the Cathedral Termite mound, which towered above me. I could see the termites leaving and entering through entry holes a few feet above ground level. I find it quite remarkable that a community of such small individuals can build something on this scale. Across the car park from the Cathedral Termite mound was the path to the viewing area for the Magnetic Termite mounds. I know from photos and videos I've seen that the fields are full of these mounds, shaped like gravestones and aligned to minimise the amount of heat that's capt...

Awake early as usual, showered and into breakfast before 07:00; once again I just beat the rush! All packed up and away from the site at 08:30, and on the road aiming for Edith Falls 45 minutes down the road. As I drove up to the falls there were plenty of signs warning of crocodiles and saying that the lower pools were closed for bathing because of this. I parked up, donned my hiking shoes and a technical wicking shirt and made my way towards the lower falls viewpoint. All of the entrances to the water were roped off with crocodile warnings, but I was able to get a distant shot of the lower falls from where I could reach. I then found the pathway to the Leliyn Loop which would take me to the upper falls and pool where folks could swim as there was no way a croc could get up there. The path crossed a bridge, and then started climbing, once again with the inevitable steps. It was a warm day, so I had regular stops as I set out on the 2.6 kilometre loop for water. The first stop was at t...