Crocodiles and camping
Casamara
John & Susan Simpson
Thu 25 Apr 2024 02:34
Darwin is the smallest and most northerly of Australia’s capital cities and is the capital of the Northern Territory. Although the city has only been in existence for 150 years it has already been rebuilt four times, three times due to cyclones and once after Japanese air raids during World War II. Shortly after the bombing of Pearl Harbour the same Japanese aircraft attack group bombed Darwin Harbour and it is said that more bombs were dropped and more ships were sunk in Darwin than at Pearl Harbour. This is clearly a bit of sore point in Darwin and there’s a feeling that they’re a bit forgotten in comparison to global recognition of the Pearl Harbour mission. The last cyclone to hit Darwin was on Christmas Eve 1974. Cyclone Tracy reached windspeed of 135 mph before instruments failed and more than 70 percent of Darwin’s buildings were destroyed. Amazingly, the city was rebuilt in only three years after it was razed to the ground. The opportunity was taken to modernise the layout to create green public spaces and wide streets so the city feels very modern but also surprisingly empty because it’s so spacious - and there aren’t many people! Many of the buildings are decorated with enormous paintings which softens the effect of the modern box-like structures.  Darwin Street Art  The artist who painted the crocodile (Vexx) is from Belgium and when he was researching the city of Darwin for the Street Art Festival in 2019 one subject came up continuously - crocodiles. That’s certainly true. There are both freshwater and saltwater crocodiles here, although confusingly the saltwater ones (the ‘salties') can also be found in fresh water. The crocodiles generate tourist income for the area and there was also one famous film based here. I give you John Simpson as ….. ‘Crocodile Dundee’!  From Darwin our travels took a different turn as we’d signed up for a three day camping tour in Kakadu National Park. It’s a while since we were in tent - probably 20 years - so we’d opted for the upmarket option of tent with proper beds and bedding. To say it was luxury would be a misnomer as there was quite a bit of squalor involved! It’s true that we could stand up in our tent and it did have a front door but we certainly appreciated how comfortable we are on Casamara having slept in it.  Our home from home in Jabiru, Kakadu National Park The comfort factor wasn’t helped by the group being transported everywhere in a four wheel drive bus which was incredibly uncomfortable and noisy inside; the distances are huge so we were in it for at least 3-4 hours each day.  The battle bus! Kakadu is a UNESCO World Heritage site in recognition of it being a living cultural landscape and it was here that we began to learn more about aboriginal culture. Aboriginal people have lived here continuously for more than 65,000 years, since before the last ice age. The huge area (8,000 square miles) is a complex ecosystem containing a wide range of plant and animal species, although to our untrained eyes it appears remarkably uniform. We learned about the incredible changes that occur in the landscape as it flips between rainy and dry seasons, and how the people, plants and animals adapted to the climate. Aboriginal culture recognises six seasons in a year and their activities are dependent on the cycle. We were there on the cusp of harvest time (April) and cool weather time (May/June). Floodwaters were receding and the wetlands were carpeted with water lilies. Drying winds were starting to dry and knock down the tall grass and this change tells the Aboriginal people it is time to patchwork burn the woodlands. We had previously thought that the trees we saw with blackened trunks were survivors of wild fires but found out that low burning of the grass between the trees is a natural collaboration between the Aboriginal people and the land. They burn the grass in a managed way so that the seeds and larvae that depend on intense heat for germination can do their thing. The trees have adapted to withstand a certain level of heat; their bark may be blackened but it is not destroyed.  Our guide Darrell picking wild passion fruit for us to try. They were tiny, just a few seeds in each, but delicious.  Waterlilies in the wetlands. Aboriginal people eat every part of the plant, from bulb to petals. As the flood waters had not yet fully receded we didn’t see any saltwater crocodiles in the wild. When the creeks dry up they are forced to congregate in the water holes but for now they have plenty of hunting territory. We did see a baby freshwater crocodile and a huge saltie in captivity.  This croc was being a nuisance biting the propellor shafts off outboard motors so was brought into captivity. There’s a photo of him hanging onto the blade of a chainsaw when trees were being cut in his pen.  A popular slogan here! We enjoyed some great walks in Kakadu and neighbouring Litchfield National Parks, including some to Aboriginal rock art sites. For Aboriginal people the act of painting is more important than the painting itself so many older paintings are covered by younger ones. The paintings depict creation ancestors and elements of daily life over time. There’s even a picture of a sailing boat said to date from when the first Europeans arrived.  Aboriginal art in the Ubirr rock art gallery   John swimming at Motor Car Falls, Kakadu National Park In adjoining Litchfield National Park we stopped to admire an area of magnetic termite nests. From a distance they look like a graveyard or an Australian version of Stonehenge! These termites are only found in Northern Australia and have adapted to create these nests to cope with rising water tables in the wet season and intense heat when it’s dry. The nests rise out of the ground up to about 18 feet and are tall, narrow structures that align North-South so that the sun is only ever on one side. Scientists tested how termites are able to create that alignment and concluded they must have an inbuilt compass because they made changes to the nest when the surrounding magnetic field was changed with magnets. They are completely blind so cannot see the sun.  Magnetic termite nests in Litchfield National Park Back in Darwin after the tour (and relieved to be back in our comfortable hotel!) John had one last outing into crocodile country, this time on a trail bike. He loved it so I wouldn’t be surprised if motor bikes become a feature of future travels! So, our tour of the Northern Territory complete, we packed our bags again and waved goodbye to the Top End to fly to Cairns. There we would do a bit of research ready for sailing back this way in a few weeks time. |