Australian Outback Adventure Days 11/12 - Darwin

Australian Outback Adventure - Day 11 and 12 - Darwin

Monday, October 29, 2012                                                                                    Day 11 - Northern Territory Museum and Laundry

Unlike the other legs of the trip, we did not gather the last night of our Outback Adventure with our guide and group for a goodbye dinner.  A small ad hoc group gathered together, while others were delighted to just go "home" to a cool room, showers, and rest.  Our new "home" was the Palms City Resort.  Our room had a kitchenette, airconditioner, and balcony...heaven.  The resort also had a laundry facility only a few steps from the swimming pool.

Exploring on Our Own

We were now on our own.  After a sleep in until 8:00 a.m. we lounged around and had a leisurely brekkie (Aussie talk for breakfast) in our room.  By the time we ventured out it was close to 11:00 a.m. and already sweltering.

Russ and I made our way to the bus station  enjoying the beautiful parkway and historical monuments.





Lest We Forget Monument to World War II Veterans.  Did you know Darwin was Bombed by the Japanese?

Flame Tree - Ponciana in Full Bloom




Telegraph Jump Station Connecting Darwin to the Rest of the World

We caught a bus out to the Northern Territory Museum.  Bill Bryson remarked in his book In Sunburn Country (American Title) or Down Under (Australian Title) about his specific visit to this museum to see the Box Jelly Fish display and became thoroughly engaged in the Hurricane Tracy exhibit that devastated Darwin in 1972.

The bus we took out to the exhibit dropped us a couple of blocks away which necessitated walking in the noon day sun.  By the time we made it to the museum, we were hot, sweaty, and in need of a cold drink so we made our way first to the museum cafe. 

Meetup with one of our Adventure Mates

We had just ordered when one of our fellow adventurers, Claudia from Hamburg, walked in as bedraggled as we. Claudia had spent the morning at the botanical gardens, a place where there were supposed to be an outstanding display of orchids.  Claudia enjoyed the gardens, but informed us that the orchids were spent and disappointing.  We promptly crossed the gardens off our list.

After lunch, we all went our separate ways in the museum, meeting up a couple of times in different locations.  Indeed we saw the box jelly fish, Aboriginal Art, and Hurricane Tracy Exhibit. Sorry, but we couldn't take any photographs in this museum.

Virtual Hurricane Experience

In the hurricane exhibit, there is a small dark room with surround sound of the noise of a hurricane ripping a city apart.  The room shakes, vibrates, and groans.  It seemed very realistic and would definitely be terrifying if it were a real hurricane, and there was no easy exit from the uncertainty of what would happen next.  For us though, the exit was easy.  Our thoughts go out to the people on the East Coast of America who are currently bracing for Super Storm Sandy due to hit them later tonight.  The storm has been dubbed the Frankenstorm.

We took the bus back to Darwin, bought ready-made salads and a bottle of wine at the super market and walked back to our hotel.  Making ourselves wine coolers, we headed down to the pool to cool off while our laundry was washing and drying a few feet away in the laundromat.  There was shade on the pool and the water was not particularly cold, but it was refreshing.  Afternoon turned to dusk, and we headed back to our air conditioned room.

Tuesday, October 30, 2012

Day 12 - Northern Territory Parliament, Waterfront, Fish Feeding, Geocaching, and Deck Chair Cinema.

Today is the last day of our Northern Territory Holiday, so we cram as much in as we can. Not to be disappointed and let down by city life, we go where we know their will be some real outback adventure...the Northern Territory Parliament.

We arrive after a brief look at some historical government buildings,

Historic Ruins ofTown Hall Today

NT Prime Minister Lives Here



Government Administration Building

at the Parliament building just before 10:00 a.m. and check through security. We climb the stairs to the visitors' gallery just as the 1 hour morning question and answer session begins.

Unlike our legislature, members of opposing sides sit facing one another - quite nice we think.  The majority party sits on one side with their head minister and ministers of education, business, health, finance, etc.in the front row (analogous to the ministers would be the chairs of our subcommittees).  Lesser ranking and  novice members sit in the back row.  Across from the majority party sits the minority party or the "shadow" ministers.  The shadow ministers mirror the majority party ministers presumably to balance any discussion, but in reality as a counterpoint barb for every discussion.  A member of the majority party is the speaker of the house and tries to maintain order of this raucous group.

Photo from television - no cameras in the chamber

Members may ask questions of their own party or the opposition party, and of specific members of the party.  Lesser members of the majority party are clearly given scripted questions to ask of their own members.  The hour is consumed by grandstanding, derisve laughter, snarking, and members degrading each others viewpoints.

The local radio show broadcasts these non-productive sessions so everyone is trying their hardest to come up with a fiery 15 second sound bite. It's amusing but really quite a waste of time.  We thought perhaps since there was just recently a change during the last election 9 weeks ago of the majority party, that this was just a continued prologue of a new administration.  One of the educational guides said "No, this has been going on for the last 10 years."  So it seems that this is the feisty tradition of the Northern Territory.

We were also informed that the real business, much like our own, comes after the morning snark session, when bills are read and discussed.  But by then the key ministers have gotten up and left.

Regardless of the continent, it seems that our politicians relish in being polarized and casting blame than coming to centrist solutions and compromise.  Very interesting and disappointing for those of us who expect better from our government.  It's a lose/lose situation.  We finished our two hour stay at the parliament with a tour of the library and art exhibits.

Darwin Waterfront

Our next stop was the Darwin Waterfront.  It is a lovely area with a wave pool and restaurants.

Wave pool in the foreground

We briefly met up with Claudia who was also sight seeing.  A quick look around and we headed back to our room where we could eat lunch and cool off.  After a rest and a swim, we headed out again around 4:30 to pass by a few more monuments

and to find a couple of geocaches and visit Aquascene - a fish feeding cove where tourists get to feed the fish bread. 

We quickly found both of geocaches we were looking for then headed to Aquascene for the 5:30 (high tide fish feeding).  The sun was setting on the west facing shore, and it was uncomfortably glarey and hot.  For children and those who have not come up close and personal to fish, this may be exciting. It was pretty ho hum for the two of us, having hand fed large sting rays and diving during a shark feed.

We met up once again with Claudia at the fish feeding for the last time before we departed from Darwin. Claudia was on her way to New Zealand before returning to Germany.   There was some lovely statuary at Aquascene and we took a commemorative photo of the three of us.

We could only tolerate 20 minutes at the fish feed and we headed downtown to Monsoons for a beer and fish and chips.  From there we spent our last evening at the Deck Chair Cinema.  This shaded grotto on the Darwin Bay is filled with low slung canvas backed deck chairs.  We hadn't thought it would be packed, but it was,  and we were glad we arrived a half hour before the show began.

With ice cold water in hand, we could have had wine or beer, we located some chairs mid-section and settled back to watch The Saphires. This is a true story of an Aboriginal all girl singing group similar to the Supremes that made their debut singing in Vietnam in the late 60's.  We throughly enjoyed the movie and outdoor ambiance of our last night in Darwin. It was quite fun, almost like a drive on a warm summer evening without the car.

We left Darwin the following morning and arrived back in the cooler, dryer climate of Brisbane.   We had a great time, and would definitely recommend the Way Out Back Tours to our adventurours friends, as long as you can read between the lines and know that it will be an adventure in the top end of Australia, not the top end of glam-camping.  Cheers!

All is Well with the 2 Sail R's now back on SV Worrall Wind.

Australian Outback Adventure - Day 10 - JimJim Falls

Sunday, October 21, 2012 Last Day in Kakadu

Our Wayout Back Itinerary:- Day 10

We are up early for our adventure into Twin Falls Gorge which is accessed by 4-wheel drive track, a boat shuttle service and a rocky walking track and boardwalk. Once there you can relax on the sandy banks and admire the falls. There’s more 4-wheel driving as we make our way to Jim Jim Falls where a walk through monsoon forest and over boulders takes us to the waterfall and plunge pool which are surrounded by 150 metre cliffs. In the afternoon we leave the highway and return to Darwin.

• Twin Falls
• Jim Jim Falls.

Fed and packed, we are rocking and rolling by 6:30 am. This is definitely a 4 wheeling day.  blogging while wheeling is not working well, so woill put I pad awzy for a while.......

It's almost 3:00 p.m. and we are on the way back to Darwin. Our first stop this morning was to Twin Falls. The 4x4 drive had been quite exciting as we squirreled through, dirt, sand, a few billabongs and a deep water crossing of a river. We reached a car park and walked down a trail for 100 meters and boarded a swamp boat to travel down the Twin Falls Gorge.

 The morning light shone on the gorge and reflected in the still depths of the river where salty crocs live. We would see the falls or what is left of them in the dry season, but we wouldn't be swimming here for obvious reasons, tic toc, tic toc, tic toc.



Cascading Pools

 The falls despite the lack of water and the glistening walls of the canyon were beautiful. We had a morning snack here at least nine feet (three meters) from the waters edge (just in case) on a lovely white sand beach and gazed out across the large pool of deep green satin, surrounded by rock cliffs so old there are NO FOSSILS. Australia is a continent of erosion with mountain ranges that were high as the Himalayas long gone. The remnants are these exposed craggy cliffs that were buried at a time when there was no life on earth and hence no fossil remains. Awesome!

Tic Toc Tic Toc

Croc Trap

Rocks Older Than Life on Earth....no fossil remains

The Intrepid Adventurers Not Swimming With the Crocs at Twin Falls

We hiked back to the boat and floated back down the river to where we had parked our overland rover, climbed aboard and bumped and rocked for another 45 minutes to our JimJim hike.  We had yet to change into our swim suits so we grabbed them and stuffed them into our backpacks, loaded up on water, slopped on the sunscreen, slapped on our hats and insect repellant, land were on our way.  

We were only trekking 1 kilometer, but it was over a rough trail of rocks and boulders that required hopping, climbing, sliding, and vigorous activity.  The sun was beating down on us for the last half of the hike when we emerged from the gum forest.  Sweat rolled down my forehead into my eyes carrying sunscreen with it, blur and burn. Sand on sun glazed rocks turned slanted slabs into ball bearing slides.



Jim Jim Falls - Fell (Now waiting for the wet season)



Refreshing Swim

Finally, we reached JimJim.  It was a huge pool perhaps 150 meter across with towering cliffs.  There are no salties here, but some freshies.   I was tempted to just jump in with all of my clothes, but decided if I wanted to swim across the pool, my suit would be better.  Only our group, and a few young men occupied this massive boxed canyon pool area.  Some of the young men who had arrived before us were jumping from some rock shelves on the opposite side.  They looked to be only a half inch in size, white skin and bright shorts popping them out against the black water slick walls of the gorge.

The lack of water over the falls, at the end of the dry season nothing really, allowed for a swim right up to the back wall where we hadnseen the young men, behind where billions of gallons of water shoot over in the wet season.  We spent nearly an hour enjoying the cooling pool before negotiating our way back over the boulders to our outback rover.  

The walk back in our wet suits was much more bearable.  A cloud cover had formed and we could see a few maverick raindrops dropping into the quiet waters of the river casting concentric ripples outward.  It could rain now, our trip had reached its end.  We feasted on all the leftovers for lunch and headed back to Darwin.  Along the way we came across some wild horses and cattle.

Arriving in Darwin around 6:00 p.m., we said good bye to our fellow travelers, 4 of us having been together for the 10 days from Alice Springs.  It was a grand adventure.

Russ and I checked into our hotels The Palms.  It is a little self contained room with a kitchenette.  We unpacked, separating the clean and dirty, dry and sweat soggy clothes for laundry, then headed to the grocery store for some take away salads which we brought back to our suite.  With the air condition on full blast, we ate, showered, watched television, and fell asleep in clean sheets.

Australian Outback Adventure - Day 9 - Ubirr and Barramundi Gorge

Saturday, October 27, 2012 - Cave Art and Swimming with the Crocs?

Way Outback Itinerary for Day 9:

You will journey to Ubirr, located within the East Alligator Region of Kakadu National Park. Here you will view a wide range of ancient Aboriginal art which will be interpreted by your guide. Learn the story of the Rainbow Serpent and climb the Nadab Lookout for panoramic views over the floodplain and beyond into Arnhem Land. After lunch we travel along a dirt road to Maguk (Barramundi Gorge). Following a short hike through monsoon forest and a rocky creek bed you will view the waterfall and have the opportunity to cool off with a swim in the clear plunge pool. As the day draws to an end we head to our private campsite at Cooinda for dinner and overnight stay.

• Ubirr
• Maguk (Barramundi Gorge)

Ubirr

Our first stop was Ubirr Art and Cultural site.  Towering rocks, cliffs, and over-hangs provided the sandstone "canvass" for the Bininj/ Mengguy people to illustrate their culture and transmit their values and stories for their young.  

Intimacy

Tasmanian Tiger

Great View from the Top of the Cliffs

Billabongs fill with early rain water - filled with bird life

We visited several rock galleries and climbed to the top of high rock outcropping or spectacular views of the valley already greening from early rains and dotted with billabongs (watering holes).  

While at one of the sites a school group of indigenous boys in uniforms from a football academy 300 km east of here joined our group and listened intently to the stories thatp Luke was sharing related to the art.

We finished our cultural walk around 11:00.  We were sweating but there was no cooling breeze and our clothes stuck to us like hot wet rags.   We clamored on to the bus wishing the air conditioner to hurry up and cool us off, then we were off to Jabiru and a bar-b-que chicken burger lunch.

Barramundi Gorge and Maguk

After lunch we made our way to Barramundi Gorge and Maguk (a fish) via the visitor center in Jabiru just long enough to change into our swim suits.  Luke flew across the rutted dirt road.  We were bouncing around hard and fast.  I thought we might bite off our tongues as our teeth chattered across the washboard.  We arrived in Maguk late afternoon and hiked to Maguk Falls and very large plunge pool.  In the wet season when the water is high, saltwater crocs find their way into the pool.  

As the water recedes in June, and the land bridge between the pool and the river is exposed, the salties are caught (they think they get all of them all, hmmm) and transported overland to the river, but they leave the fresh water crocs in the pool. 

Since we are one of the last safaris of the dry season, and they haven't had anybody attacked or eaten, they are reasonably sure that the salties are gone, but the freshies are still in the dark pool.  All righty then!  

Good enough for us.The sun is hot, our clothes are sticky, and the flies are all over us.  We ease ourselves into the water that does not feel all that cool, but at least the flies are at bay.  Some of our group swim across the pond to the waterfall and jumping rocks, others stay close to the beach....just in case....you know, tic toc, tic toc, tic toc.

After an hour or so of splashing about, we hurriedly dress and try to walk faster than the flies.  I've found that my light weight paru when wet and drapped over my head with visor and shoulders keeps me cool, shaded, and unattractive to.....flies and everyone else.  Perhaps this is also one of the reasons that Muslim women willingly wear a hijab. 

We couldn't resist taking photos of these termite mounds in the late afternoon sun.  Russ is the photographer.

These trees don't look so good.  Wonder Why?

Our Encampment

Once again we are  4 wheeling to our encampment.  We are in unpowered tents tonight.  Not only is there no light except from our headlamps, there is no oscillating floor fan and the tent is a stifling sauna.  

Camp Kitchen and Dining Room Enclosed by Screens

Home sweet home for our last night

Sleeping outdoors is not a realistic option either as there are some very active mossies waiting to suck our blood.  Eventually, after a great barbie of chicken sausages, beef and kangaroo steaks, wine coolers and a cool showers, we wander back to our tent.  We sleep on top of the sheet with nothing else.  This is our last night camping.