10/08 – 28/09/2024
As a (temporary) farewell to Western Australia, we stopped at Marlgu Billabong and enjoyed the view from Telegraph Hill. By the way, ‘billabong’ is an Australian English term (a spoken and written variant of English) and refers to a small, permanent body of water that only fills with water during the wet season.
When we arrived in the Northern Territory, we first visited the Keep River National Park. The 1 1/2 hour time difference to Western Australia and 30 degrees in the shade were more noticeable than expected on a rather moderate tour.
We then ‘did’ the following Gregory National Park as we drove past, as the starting points of the few & short hiking trails were directly on the main road.
We travelled further north-west and the predominant flora changed as a result. In Elsey National Park, we were able to explore this on a great hike along the Roper River and not only ‘discover’ the Mataranka Falls, but also admire the water colouring caused by cyanobacteria.
Our destination the next day was Darwin, the capital of the Northern Territory. On the slightly longer journey there, we were able to stretch our legs a little in Umbrawarra Gorge Nature Park.
On the outskirts of the city, in Holmes Jungle Nature Park to be precise, we visited a protected section of monsoon rainforest the next day, which was found everywhere here until this area was developed. Afterwards, we took a short walk through the city centre itself.
We continued on to the Mary River National Park. To start the day, we hiked around Bird Billabong and were able to spot wallabies as well as pelicans. At Jimmy Creek, we then did a lap through vine thicket forest before an easy but exciting four-wheel drive route took us to the idyllic Connellan Lagoon.
We spent four days in Kakadu National Park, which is roughly the size of Saxony and the second largest in Australia. In addition to hikes along billabongs and through eucalypt forests, several important sites with aboriginal rock paintings awaited us. There is also the opportunity to observe saltwater crocodiles at close range. Besides, you can learn interesting facts about these impressive reptiles from a ranger.
2000 kilometres further east, we reached a region where, apart from endless, flat savannah, there were other types of landscape to explore.
Fortunately, we had the opportunity to see a live specimen of the Julia Creek Dunnart on the way. This species of marsupial (from the genus of narrow-footed marsupials) is found worldwide exclusively in the area around Julia Creek, Queensland.
In the White Mountains National Park we finally found a ‘playground’ for our reliable vehicle again, after many days on paved roads.
Now we were off to the so-called ‘far north of Queensland’ and our first overnight stay was in Porcupine Gorge National Park. The next morning, we descended from the campsite into the gorge of Porcupine Creek to view it from a lookout point 5 kilometres downstream afterwards. Here, surprisingly, we were presented with a completely different picture, in the form of an impressive sandstone gorge.
This was followed by a stop at Undara Volcanic National Park. This is home to the remains of one of the longest lava flows on earth that originated from a single volcano. On guided tours, you can enter part of the tunnels formed here and learn all about their formation (correct magma composition paired with the appropriate geological profile of the volcanic crater environment), as well as the special flora and fauna around the ‘entrances’ to the tubes.
The following days were typical for a road trip. Pack up in the morning, hit the (not always sealed) road and visit one or two sights on the way to the next campsite.
Day 1: This was unexpectedly nerve-wracking and full of lessons. While the start was quite relaxed, the road through the Tumoulin Forest Reserve, to & from McKenzie Falls, demanded everything from us and the car. We managed the first mud puddles without any problems, but we ended up getting stuck in the last one. However, we were well prepared and eventually fought our way out of the mud bit by bit with the help of folding spades and recovery tracks.
Day 2: Stops at the Curtain Fig Tree and the Cathedral Fig Tree
Day 3: Hike in the Mossman Gorge and views from Mount Alexandra Lookout
Day 4: Rainforest, mangroves and swamps in the Daintree National Park
Day 5: View from Mount Cook and Grassy Hill in Cooktown
Then we headed south again and have now been in Walkamin (75km west of Cairns) for over 2 weeks on a super cosy caravan park. We used the time to make plans, have the car repaired, go on excursions in the surrounding area, play and chat with the other campers and of course have a good time 😉
