Although Kununurra was quite nice we decided not to stay another night. There wasnt a whole lot to do and we would rather get over to the west coast as quick as we can so we can spend some time there. I cant wait to see a beach again and Craig cant wait to start surfing and fishing.
We drove to where we thought we were going to spend our night (a free camp) but there was absolutely nothing there. The second option was even worse so we continued on towards Halls Creek. We had been warned not to stay here but seeing it was nearing 3pm we had no other choice. The caravan park itself was awful, by far the most awful park we have stayed. The reception office of the park was out of this world. Craig booked us in and then told me I should go and check it out. It had one tiny grilled door but on the inside it was enormous, an emporium. You could get pretty much anything you wanted here. It was like a supermarket/toy shop/ chemist/newsagent/auto supplier/hardware/fishing and camping, we laughed and laughed about it...who would have thought it even existed.
We were both pretty nervous here, we even drove around with our doors locked. The whole town was boarded up, none of the shops had windows. You have to pay for petrol before you fill up. There were groups of people wandering around aimlessly, most of them drunk. At night you hear people fighting and screaming, dogs barking and the occasional road train screaming past. This is not like Australia its more like a 3rd world country.
We put the kids to bed and it started to rain. We sat under the awning reading someone elses blog, they are on the same path we are so we are looking for tips. The rain came down, it rained all night long.
We were outta there first thing in the morning and heading towards Fitzroy Crossing which is meant to be even worse!
Tuesday, September 7, 2010
Monday, September 6, 2010
Night 46 - Kununurra
Happy Fathers Day to Craig....
Kai and I were at the newsagents trying to find a card. We found one that read:
Holy Mackerel your one great dad
No Trout about it
You totally kick Bass
Sure, your a Clown sometimes
But your a hip Cat too
In Tuna with the times
Without you life would be Crappie
The whole family would Flounder
Cod go on, but long story short
Your the greatest dad ever and that's no fish story!
We both looked at eachother amd said 'perfect'. I went to his favourite shop the 'Rod and Rifle' and bought him a jaffle iron for the campfire, some Bushmans insect repellant and a few scratchies.
On the way to W.A, so exciting! Along the way we see wild horses...
And some massive Boab trees...
We see this road sign quite a bit, have no idea what it means! Any clues?
We had read about the quarantine checkpoint at the N.T / W.A border. We had a heap of potatoes that needed to be either used or thrown out so I cooked up a potato salad and threw everything in! In the car we madly ate all the fruit we had leftover.
How about the massive road trains, they are a bit scary when they pass us at over 100k's per hour.
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We made it to the checkpoint at just after lunch.....Yippie.....My first time in W.A
There were a few cars parked along the side of the road with everyone also eating everything they had. At the checkpoint they checked the car and caravan for anything that was prohibited. He took our honey and lettuce but everything else we had had been devoured by Craig!
We made it to Kununurra, it was not at all what I had expected. It is much bigger and nicer than I thought. Of course being a Sunday everything was closed except Coles. We found a caravan park and Craig took the kids swimming. The streets in the town are lined with massive mango trees, the caravan park also is covered. I have never seen so many mango trees in my life! Our eyes were wide with excitement but all were either too high up to pick or not ripe enough. We then climbed up to the top of a lookout with really nice views over the town. Only staying here one night as there isnt too much to do.
Kai and I were at the newsagents trying to find a card. We found one that read:
Holy Mackerel your one great dad
No Trout about it
You totally kick Bass
Sure, your a Clown sometimes
But your a hip Cat too
In Tuna with the times
Without you life would be Crappie
The whole family would Flounder
Cod go on, but long story short
Your the greatest dad ever and that's no fish story!
We both looked at eachother amd said 'perfect'. I went to his favourite shop the 'Rod and Rifle' and bought him a jaffle iron for the campfire, some Bushmans insect repellant and a few scratchies.
On the way to W.A, so exciting! Along the way we see wild horses...
And some massive Boab trees...
We see this road sign quite a bit, have no idea what it means! Any clues?
We had read about the quarantine checkpoint at the N.T / W.A border. We had a heap of potatoes that needed to be either used or thrown out so I cooked up a potato salad and threw everything in! In the car we madly ate all the fruit we had leftover.
How about the massive road trains, they are a bit scary when they pass us at over 100k's per hour.
.JPG)
We made it to the checkpoint at just after lunch.....Yippie.....My first time in W.A
There were a few cars parked along the side of the road with everyone also eating everything they had. At the checkpoint they checked the car and caravan for anything that was prohibited. He took our honey and lettuce but everything else we had had been devoured by Craig!
We made it to Kununurra, it was not at all what I had expected. It is much bigger and nicer than I thought. Of course being a Sunday everything was closed except Coles. We found a caravan park and Craig took the kids swimming. The streets in the town are lined with massive mango trees, the caravan park also is covered. I have never seen so many mango trees in my life! Our eyes were wide with excitement but all were either too high up to pick or not ripe enough. We then climbed up to the top of a lookout with really nice views over the town. Only staying here one night as there isnt too much to do.
Sunday, September 5, 2010
Night 45 - Timber Creek
This morning we drove up to Katherine Gorge and we had planned on staying the night here however it was raining and starting to get a bit muddy. We went to Nitmiluk National Park and walked to the first lookout to check out some of Katherine Gorge. It was a long steep way up, again Craig got stuck carrying Ellie most of the way. We made it to the top after about 40 mins, the rain was getting harder but it was lovely and cool. The Gorge was just beautiful and I can imagine it would have been pretty spectacular if we had decided to go further. We almost pre booked a tour the day before and Im glad we didnt as the rain clouds wouldnt have done the gorge justice. We were the only ones at the lookout and I could have stayed and just sat there for an hour. Once we got to the top we realised we had left the camera in the car, no probs we thought we will just use our phones. Well Craigs camera had run out of battery and mine doesnt take really good shots. Anyway we took these...
Poor Kai, such lightweight he nearly blew over the edge!!
Once the boys realised there was a great echo they screamed their little lings out! Echo....Cooee....Hello....Crocodiles....Mars Bars....Bananas....Dad's bald....surfing....sickness!
We drove back into Katherine for some lunch and one final drive down the main street....Past the Katherine Sobering Up Shelter....
The Bucking Bull Cafe...
And Craig's favourite the Rod and Rifle...
After lunch in Katherine we drove to Timber Creek, about 330k's. We got in the car and the kids slept for hours, I knew we would never get them to bed that night but a peaceful car journey is worth it!! We arrived at Timber Creek at 5pm, just in time for the croc feeding show. The creek right out the back of the caravan park was home to more crocs so Craig took the kids down to have a look while I set up the van. First of all the Irish guy running the show asked who wanted to have a turn. The boys didnt want to so Craig showed them the way then of course they were keen. Kai was up first and nearly got pulled in by the croc, he obviously needs to build up his muscles. Bailey had a turn next and Ellie refused.
This is a picture of the creek
It was actually a really nice spot to camp for the night, cost us about $25. We almost decided to stay another night but W.A is calling...
Poor Kai, such lightweight he nearly blew over the edge!!
Once the boys realised there was a great echo they screamed their little lings out! Echo....Cooee....Hello....Crocodiles....Mars Bars....Bananas....Dad's bald....surfing....sickness!
We drove back into Katherine for some lunch and one final drive down the main street....Past the Katherine Sobering Up Shelter....
The Bucking Bull Cafe...
And Craig's favourite the Rod and Rifle...
After lunch in Katherine we drove to Timber Creek, about 330k's. We got in the car and the kids slept for hours, I knew we would never get them to bed that night but a peaceful car journey is worth it!! We arrived at Timber Creek at 5pm, just in time for the croc feeding show. The creek right out the back of the caravan park was home to more crocs so Craig took the kids down to have a look while I set up the van. First of all the Irish guy running the show asked who wanted to have a turn. The boys didnt want to so Craig showed them the way then of course they were keen. Kai was up first and nearly got pulled in by the croc, he obviously needs to build up his muscles. Bailey had a turn next and Ellie refused.
This is a picture of the creek
It was actually a really nice spot to camp for the night, cost us about $25. We almost decided to stay another night but W.A is calling...
Saturday, September 4, 2010
Night 44 - Katherine
Im still getting over the flu but it helps when Craig takes the kids swimming so I can have a bit of piece and quiet! They went swimming in the Katherine hot springs in the morning then to the caravan park swimming pool in the arvo. Great!
We continued to do the kids schoolwork, this week for P.E they learnt how to balance on different objects.
Craig went to the shops to buy a few things and I pottered around the van. I always seem to be cleaning out cupboards to make more room! He wanted to stock up on buying some alcohol for the trip west but because of the "2 litres per day" limit on wine (that is recorded against his license) he decided to panic and bought a case of beer and a bottle of gin as well.....lifeboat rations huh!!
After lunch we looked around Katherine a bit more. The kids spotted a local skate park and we stopped there but it was so hot they only scootered for about 15 mins before they all had red rosy cheeks and said they were ready to go!
I really needed to go back to Woolies but it was 6pm, Craig said he dared me to go back up to the centre of town as it was getting kinda rough. I took Kai as my bodyguard! We arrived at Wollies to groups of Aborigional people looking for a fight....all were drunk and kind of messy. Katherine after dark is not the kind of place you want to be. I know its a dangerous place when we pull up at traffic lights and Craig locks all of the doors!
We had a restless sleep as it rained so heavily. It actually sounded like hail it was so hard. Craig got up a few times in the night to make sure nothing was leaking and everything outside under the awning was dry. In the morning we listened to our neighbours complain that their van leaked all night but luckily ours didnt. I really love our Windsor rapid, its certainly doing the job!
We continued to do the kids schoolwork, this week for P.E they learnt how to balance on different objects.
Craig went to the shops to buy a few things and I pottered around the van. I always seem to be cleaning out cupboards to make more room! He wanted to stock up on buying some alcohol for the trip west but because of the "2 litres per day" limit on wine (that is recorded against his license) he decided to panic and bought a case of beer and a bottle of gin as well.....lifeboat rations huh!!
After lunch we looked around Katherine a bit more. The kids spotted a local skate park and we stopped there but it was so hot they only scootered for about 15 mins before they all had red rosy cheeks and said they were ready to go!
I really needed to go back to Woolies but it was 6pm, Craig said he dared me to go back up to the centre of town as it was getting kinda rough. I took Kai as my bodyguard! We arrived at Wollies to groups of Aborigional people looking for a fight....all were drunk and kind of messy. Katherine after dark is not the kind of place you want to be. I know its a dangerous place when we pull up at traffic lights and Craig locks all of the doors!
We had a restless sleep as it rained so heavily. It actually sounded like hail it was so hard. Craig got up a few times in the night to make sure nothing was leaking and everything outside under the awning was dry. In the morning we listened to our neighbours complain that their van leaked all night but luckily ours didnt. I really love our Windsor rapid, its certainly doing the job!
Friday, September 3, 2010
Night 43 - Katherine
Goodbye Kakadu National Park. We have had a great time and Im sure we will be back.
I have had a horrible flu for the last two days. I was so sick this morning that I couldnt even get my head off the pillow to take some panadol for my headache. A flu in 35 degree heat is no fun at all!
We arrive back in Katherine at around 10am and booked into the same caravan park that we stayed at on the way up to Darwin. Riverview Caravan Park is really nice and when we exit through the back gate we are about 200m from the Katherine Springs. Craig takes the kids all arvo so I can rest. Its really shady and peaceful here, we really like it.
Main street in Katherine....
We head to Woolies to stock up on everything... bread, milk, wine, fresh fruit and veg and plenty of video tapes as we ran out of them in Kakadu. Its still unbelievably hot and humid, I just want to escape it but we cant find a way.
After dinner Craig and I sit outdoors under the awning with not a bug, fly or mosquito in sight.....just perfect.
I have had a horrible flu for the last two days. I was so sick this morning that I couldnt even get my head off the pillow to take some panadol for my headache. A flu in 35 degree heat is no fun at all!
We arrive back in Katherine at around 10am and booked into the same caravan park that we stayed at on the way up to Darwin. Riverview Caravan Park is really nice and when we exit through the back gate we are about 200m from the Katherine Springs. Craig takes the kids all arvo so I can rest. Its really shady and peaceful here, we really like it.
Main street in Katherine....
We head to Woolies to stock up on everything... bread, milk, wine, fresh fruit and veg and plenty of video tapes as we ran out of them in Kakadu. Its still unbelievably hot and humid, I just want to escape it but we cant find a way.
After dinner Craig and I sit outdoors under the awning with not a bug, fly or mosquito in sight.....just perfect.
Thursday, September 2, 2010
Night 42 - Kakadu
We got the hell out of "bugsville" early (its about 2km`s past the Cooinda turnoff on the Kakadu Highway). It would have been a great spot as it had its own croc infested billabong (which was the breeding ground for the flying marauders) and a boat ramp to get amongst the barra.
Our next spot was Mary River Roadhouse campground which is right at the southern entrance to Kakadu on the Kakadu highway. It was a pretty plain sort of joint but as it was only a place chuck the van, we didn`t mind.
We unhooked the van and headed 12k`s back into Kakadu to the Gunlom turnoff. From there it was supposed to be 37k`s of 'sometimes corrugated' maintained gravel road.......how about 37k`s of bumpy hell!!! Our only times of relief was the 2 crossings of croc infested rivers that broke up the monotonous bounce.
But.....it was all worth it. Gunlom was beautiful. A tall waterfall (that was only a dribble as its the dry season) into this big pool set against huge cliffs.
It looked just like Wangi Falls in Litchfield except there had been warnings of saltwater crocs in there. I had been told of the great swimming holes on top of the falls so Bailey and I decided to tackle the steep 300m path up to the top. It took a while with Bailey falling over only once up the top, but we made it. It was an absolute oasis up there with these deep holes dotting the creek up higher and higher and you just had to pick which one you would gracefully do a bomb into.
You can really get that "wet-edge" pool look going with a backdrop of 300m down looking over Kakadu.....it really was a treat.
We made it back down unscathed and headed back on our joyous ride back to Mary River Roadhouse.........I'm sure they had a gin still running out the back and probably made there own 'roadkill jerky'.
We did chalk up another wild animal to the list on the drive back home.....a feral donkey!!
Goodbye Kakadu....its been great!
Our next spot was Mary River Roadhouse campground which is right at the southern entrance to Kakadu on the Kakadu highway. It was a pretty plain sort of joint but as it was only a place chuck the van, we didn`t mind.
We unhooked the van and headed 12k`s back into Kakadu to the Gunlom turnoff. From there it was supposed to be 37k`s of 'sometimes corrugated' maintained gravel road.......how about 37k`s of bumpy hell!!! Our only times of relief was the 2 crossings of croc infested rivers that broke up the monotonous bounce.
But.....it was all worth it. Gunlom was beautiful. A tall waterfall (that was only a dribble as its the dry season) into this big pool set against huge cliffs.
It looked just like Wangi Falls in Litchfield except there had been warnings of saltwater crocs in there. I had been told of the great swimming holes on top of the falls so Bailey and I decided to tackle the steep 300m path up to the top. It took a while with Bailey falling over only once up the top, but we made it. It was an absolute oasis up there with these deep holes dotting the creek up higher and higher and you just had to pick which one you would gracefully do a bomb into.
You can really get that "wet-edge" pool look going with a backdrop of 300m down looking over Kakadu.....it really was a treat.
We made it back down unscathed and headed back on our joyous ride back to Mary River Roadhouse.........I'm sure they had a gin still running out the back and probably made there own 'roadkill jerky'.
We did chalk up another wild animal to the list on the drive back home.....a feral donkey!!
Goodbye Kakadu....its been great!
Night 41 - Kakadu
This morning we checked out of the Kakadu Lodge and went straight to the famous Kakadu Bakery for the second day in a row. This tiny little bakery has some amazing cakes, pies and pastry's, I can see why people kept telling us to stop by. I was hugely impressed that they also had vegetarian pies and pizzas.....wow!
We were camping in the national park so we drove south down the Kakadu Hwy to our next stop. It cost $10 per adult and had really nice toilets and showers but no electricity or water.
We booked in to do a Yellow Water Cruise at 2.45pm and we were all very excited. The cruise went for an hour and a half and to be honest I was a little disappointed, I didnt think it was worth the $220 we spent.
The kids loved the crocs and Craig the bird nerd was in bird nerd heaven but I guess I was just expecting somethng more. We saw plenty of wildlife and of course the Yellow River Billabong and the East Alligator River are spectacular but I was hoping for some cultural facts and indigenous stories. Kai was cheif spotter, our tour guide was very impressed.....she even offered him a job!
We saw plenty of Sea Eagles...
The Jabiru
The Egret
The Rainbow Bee Eater
A million ducks
And a few mighty crocs
This Jabiru's nest is more than 10 years old and gets refurbished every year. It measures 3m wide.
After the cruise its time for dinner and more marshmallows.....Baileys tummy is getting bigger!!
We put the kids to bed and thought it would be lovely to sit outside and surf the net. Big mistake! The bugs were insane, millions of them and the computer was the magnet! Needless to say we had an early night.
We were camping in the national park so we drove south down the Kakadu Hwy to our next stop. It cost $10 per adult and had really nice toilets and showers but no electricity or water.
We booked in to do a Yellow Water Cruise at 2.45pm and we were all very excited. The cruise went for an hour and a half and to be honest I was a little disappointed, I didnt think it was worth the $220 we spent.
The kids loved the crocs and Craig the bird nerd was in bird nerd heaven but I guess I was just expecting somethng more. We saw plenty of wildlife and of course the Yellow River Billabong and the East Alligator River are spectacular but I was hoping for some cultural facts and indigenous stories. Kai was cheif spotter, our tour guide was very impressed.....she even offered him a job!
We saw plenty of Sea Eagles...
The Jabiru
The Egret
The Rainbow Bee Eater
A million ducks
And a few mighty crocs
This Jabiru's nest is more than 10 years old and gets refurbished every year. It measures 3m wide.
After the cruise its time for dinner and more marshmallows.....Baileys tummy is getting bigger!!
We put the kids to bed and thought it would be lovely to sit outside and surf the net. Big mistake! The bugs were insane, millions of them and the computer was the magnet! Needless to say we had an early night.
Tuesday, August 31, 2010
Night 40 - Kakadu
We would have rathered head off earlier but we had to wait until the Aboriginal Land Council opened in Jabiru so that we could get our permit to enter Arnhem Land. It cost us $13.50 each for 24 hours and the conditions were that we were only allowed to go to the Art Centre, no deviations, no stopping and no taking video or photos for commercial purposes.
After we got our permit we drove towards Oenpelli which is the first settlement in Arnhem Land. We stopped quickly at the Border Store to buy some cakes (Lisa's choice!).
There is a 6m range in tide at the border so we had to time it correctly but we had the tide tables.
Thinking I would keep the boys interested I said 'anyone see any crocs' and immediately Bailey said 'I do'!! They were only about 3m away from the car. It was like they were waiting for their next dinner to arrive. Its ok when your on a tour and you see them but when you see them and your on your own it quite unnerving.
We crossed the border into Arnhem Land feeling quite privileged, not many people get to experience this. I can see why they want to keep Arnhem Land sacred and why they want to make people pay because as soon as we crossed the East Alligator River the landscape changed from a woodland to an open wetland.
We travel along heavily corrugated road for about 8k's past a few abandoned cars that had obviously rolled over and werent roadworthy anymore. Oenpelli was intersting, very eye opening for the kids. We were greeted by a wave of stray bitsa dogs! I dont think the locals had seen too many cars with surfboards before!
We arrived at Injalak Art Centre to appreciate and see artists at work weaving the baskets and painting. When I parked at the art centre I had to get out and check that there were no dogs I was about to park in incase it was a family pet, and offending someone who then might spear me (tribal law!). Unfortunately there wasnt anyone weaving and the artwork and baskets were really expensive.
We decided to head back to Ubirr to check out some more rock art and the place made famous by Paul Hogan and Crocodile Dundee. We started on the 1.5kms walking track which took us past the Rainbow Serpent site.
.JPG)
And a few other sites....
We climbed up to the top of Ubirr and came to the spot made famous by Crocodile Dundee and here he is...
This is where he did the bull roarer scene....
The view from the top was outstanding....360 degree views of wetlands, escarpments and distant fires.
We headed back to the caravan park for another arvo of swimming and schoolwork.
After we got our permit we drove towards Oenpelli which is the first settlement in Arnhem Land. We stopped quickly at the Border Store to buy some cakes (Lisa's choice!).
There is a 6m range in tide at the border so we had to time it correctly but we had the tide tables.
Thinking I would keep the boys interested I said 'anyone see any crocs' and immediately Bailey said 'I do'!! They were only about 3m away from the car. It was like they were waiting for their next dinner to arrive. Its ok when your on a tour and you see them but when you see them and your on your own it quite unnerving.
We crossed the border into Arnhem Land feeling quite privileged, not many people get to experience this. I can see why they want to keep Arnhem Land sacred and why they want to make people pay because as soon as we crossed the East Alligator River the landscape changed from a woodland to an open wetland.
We travel along heavily corrugated road for about 8k's past a few abandoned cars that had obviously rolled over and werent roadworthy anymore. Oenpelli was intersting, very eye opening for the kids. We were greeted by a wave of stray bitsa dogs! I dont think the locals had seen too many cars with surfboards before!
We arrived at Injalak Art Centre to appreciate and see artists at work weaving the baskets and painting. When I parked at the art centre I had to get out and check that there were no dogs I was about to park in incase it was a family pet, and offending someone who then might spear me (tribal law!). Unfortunately there wasnt anyone weaving and the artwork and baskets were really expensive.
We decided to head back to Ubirr to check out some more rock art and the place made famous by Paul Hogan and Crocodile Dundee. We started on the 1.5kms walking track which took us past the Rainbow Serpent site.
.JPG)
And a few other sites....
We climbed up to the top of Ubirr and came to the spot made famous by Crocodile Dundee and here he is...
This is where he did the bull roarer scene....
The view from the top was outstanding....360 degree views of wetlands, escarpments and distant fires.
We headed back to the caravan park for another arvo of swimming and schoolwork.
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