We’ll wake up this day at Kakadu National Park to
complete
our visits in this park until we’re delivered at our hotel in Darwin by
the evening.
The spots marked at map, which we may visit, are:
1- Mamukala
2- Ubirr
3- Camping Center
4- Jim Jim Falls
5- Nourlangerie art site
After
The daylight is not here when the live starts at
our encampment. This is a chain reaction as, with all the tents
uncovered, we’re sensitive to any movement or noise. As there are
toilets and showers facilities here and Dale has set the breakfast
table. I pay attention to a black paste called Vegemite and I’m told is
a very Aussie thing. As I like more these salty things than the sweets
I get a toast with this strange taste.
The daylight is all around when we leave the camp.
Our guide’s strategy is being the first ones at Jim Jim Falls to be
able of enjoying the place before the horde of visitors arrive. The
road is rough and in some parts even worse than yesterday’s.
Once out of the car we’re ready for taking the path leading
to Jim Jim Falls. It’s around one kilometer long. This way goes along
the river made by the falls which we’re advised may be crocodiles in
it. It’s a pity as the water looks pristine.
The first part of the way is easy, like walking by a forest,
with some rock or fallen trunk here and there. Somehow, in the last
part one has to make his way through big piled rocks. The picture below
at right shows one of these areas.
The reward is at the end, under tall rock walls that block
any chance of going further. There is a white sand beach and pools of
still water. The only missing here is precisely the running water:
there is no fall. The landscape is breathtaking and your imagination
can add the missing vertical white line in the place where it should
be. Our guide explains it’s difficult to see this place with the water
fall as in the wet months when the water is falling, the park is
isolated by the floods he commented yesterday while coming here.
This “detail” is not an obstacle to enjoy this beautiful
environment and when Dale tells us crocodiles are not reaching this
place and it’s safe to swim here we are in the water in no time.
This time worth totally the early waking up. We’re
feeling privileged when enjoying this place alone. We’re more aware of
this when we’re coming back to the car park and see all the people is
going to there in our way. This visit has taken around three hours in
total.
We’re back in the rough road when we can see a regular car
that hasn’t cared about this road labeled as 4WD only and is stuck in
the sand. We leave the campsite behind and get a ride like the one
yesterday until the blessed tarmac.
We stop by a sort of lake full of birds for
lunching. We use the rest of the same ingredients than yesterday for
our fajitas. We can eat enjoying the landscape, and the come and go of
the flocks.
We then go to our last visit in Kakadu Park: Nourlangerie.
This area is full of Aboriginal paintings over the rocks and termite
mounds. The visit takes about one hour.
Once back to the car park, Dale takes one of ant’s nests in
the trees, made by some leaves put together, to show us the golden ants
with green bottom I’ve being seen around this country. He explains if
we suck this green part of the ant it tastes like lemon, and encourage
us to do it. I don’t think we’ve done this entire long trip to
Australia to end it by sucking an ant’s bottom, but I taste the water
full of these ants to check that it takes some soft lemon taste from
them.
It’s time to come back, but before leaving the park, our guide
makes a stop in a resort where we can use the swimming pool. We don’t
go to swim as we’ve already changed our clothes after swimming in the
Jim Jim Falls. We go to the store for drinks and souvenirs instead.
Today is market day in Darwin and Dale leaves in the market
whoever wants to go there and only we and the French family are
delivered to the hotel.
At evening we go to look for the restaurant advised by Dale for
dinner but, as we cannot find it, we finally take a taxi to Nando’s,
where we already were the first day in Darwin, as it was good and cheap.
