Well we have seen all the glorious advertising pictures and the splendid vistas of tropical green forests, water lilies and wetlands. But here we are, halfway through the dry, so it is a very different Kakadu we are seeing.
Kakadu park entrance is some 60 km off the Stuart highway from Pine Creek and there is plenty of dry open woodlands to get to the good stuff. We stayed at a free camp outside the park to break the journey and had a very idyllic spot with a telstra connection point. As you see in the photo you place your phone on a stand directly under the satellite and then make your call (you have to use your speaker function because you can’t pick up the phone or you lose the connection! ) Very quirky.
You would have to be here in the wet season to see the wetlands in all their splendor via an airboat or chopper, but all the same we took in what Kakadu had to offer and on reflection, it didn’t disappoint. The whole wetland system is fed from the Arnhem Tablelands during the monsoonal wet season. Interestingly the name ‘Arnhem’ is not an Aboriginal word at all but the name comes from the Dutch ship Arnhem which visited here in 1623. Prior to this the area was frequently visited by ‘Macassan’ fishers who made the long and sometimes dangerous maritime journey from the port town of Makassar in southern Sulawesi to the coastline of Arnhem Land and the Kimberley waters each year the collection trepang (teripang in Indonesian), edible holothurians also known as sea cucumbers, bêche-de-mer or sea slugs. They were the first known foreigners the Aboriginals had encountered and can been seen depicted in some early rock art.
Aboriginal painting depicting early sea trade with Macassans from South East Asia.
Artist Unknown
Kakadu NP is World Heritage listed and is really huge – 20,000 sq km (that’s nearly half the size of Switzerland !). The distances between points of interest can easily be more than 50 km. We camped first in a NP camping area called Maguk where there was a lovely walk up to Barramundi Falls and plunge pool/swimming hole. Fires were allowed and it wasn’t too busy because the 4WD road to get here was quite a challenge.
Our next camp in the park was Mardugal Camp Ground just outside Cooinda Lodge where we had booked a sunrise cruise on the Yellow Water Billabong (Yellow Waters name comes from the tree tannins which stain the water). The billabong is part of the South Alligator River which floods the plains in the wet then gradually dries up as the Dry season progresses leaving large waterways and navigable billabongs. This sunrise cruise was really about the bird life in the billabong. The white breasted fish eagle being the most spectacular down to the tiny brightly coloured kingfishers. There were plenty of Magpie Geese which apparently are very tasty roasted (according to Ranger Dennis), and oh so many crocs! All sizes – and the ones you don’t see are the ones to watch out for! Good advice.
The etymology of the word billabong is most likely derived from the Wiradjuri term bilabaŋ, which means “a watercourse that runs only after rain”. It is derived from bila, meaning “river”, It may have been combined with bong or bung, meaning “dead”.
Wikipedia
We came across many water buffalo. Probably the thing that was most shocking was the destruction of the grasslands and wetlands caused by these and other introduced feral animals. The hooved animals like the buffalo, pigs and wild horses destroy the grassland and wetlands. Why these feral animals are not controlled in one of our “premium” National Parks I really can’t understand! Our ranger, Dennis, said they did attempt an aerial culling program a few years ago, but it ceased after a tragic helicopter crash and has not resumed.
“Water buffalo were imported to Australia in the 19th century to supply meat to remote northern settlements. The settlements and their buffalo were abandoned in 1949 and, despite harvesting for meat, hides and as hunters’ trophies, feral buffalo spread across the northern floodplains. The Brucellosis and Tuberculosis Eradication Campaign reduced feral buffalo numbers significantly in the 1980s and 1990s but numbers are again very high right across northern Australia causing significant damage to wetlands.” Environment.gov.au website.
Another disastrously ‘great idea’ was the introduction in 1935 of the cane toad to control sugar cane beetle. The toad has adapted so well to it’s environment is now feral enemy number one. Every part of it’s skin is poisonous which is having a disastrous effect on native carnivorous animals which die after eating the toad, then when the next predator in the food chain eats the dead animal, it in turn dies because the toad is the gift that just keeps on giving! So many native animals have almost disappeared from this area and Ranger Dennis said that he had not eaten goanna for 15 years (but neither have I !) Surprisingly there were no fresh water crocs here either because they die from eating toads! The crows have worked it out though – flip the toads over onto their backs and eat the guts!
Spectacular 360 degree views 
Rock Art at Ubirr 
Click to zoom in on the Thylacine
Another highlight for us was visiting the rock art in Ubirr at the NE end of the park north of Jabiru (and the Ranger Uranium Mine). The artwork was spectacular and made everything else we had seen pale by comparison. There was even a picture of the Thylacine (Tasmanian Tiger – now extinct) which it is estimated was in the area some 4000 years ago. Interestingly the aboriginals do not see this rock art as ‘art’ but more a place of story telling so while it was ok for them to paint over previous works, it was very bad luck to touch up previous works. As a bonus we had spectacular views over the wetlands from a small rocky hill. We made a quick trip down to the East Alligator River to have a look at Cahills crossing which is a concrete weir and a popular place for a bit of croc spotting.
A tide over six metres pushes up over the crossing, bringing bait fish like mullet and barramundi, and the crocs move downstream to wait for these treats. Unfortunately for us the tide was not right but the crocs were there both on the riverbanks and in the water (especially near the boat ramp) just waiting for their afternoon meal.
