From Yasi to the Crocks of Darwin
Trip Start
Nov 26, 2010
1
16
44
Trip End
May 15, 2011
Where I stayed
Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia
Saturday, February 5, 2011
We arrived in Darwin late on the 5th on a plane carrying no more than 29 passengers so almost having a plane to ourselves. We were expecting it to be a wet few days as this being the wet season Darwin always has showers and storms. We get a cab from the airport as the shuttle service is now closed and the price was pretty much the same anyway. Our hotel is a good 30 minutes drive away before we are able to check into our hotel.
Unlike most of the hotels we have been in we have breakfast available so get up in good time to sample what was on offer which was plentiful. After a fine start we go to see what's on offer in the way of trips, we weren’t expecting much to see here and to be honest didn’t see much that we wanted to do except the crocodile adventure and Lichfield Park with its waterfalls and termite mounds. So we chose to explore the town today and the crocodiles the next. We would wait and see for the final day.
We grabbed a few items and headed for town with the plan to return via the esplanade and then return so that I could write up my Cairns blog and watch England’s final one day game in Perth. So far the weather was being very kind and the sun was shining. The town was much like any other full of restaurants, shops, and bars. Quite a few more Aborigines were noticeable here sitting around. Once we came to the end of the town we came to the government building closely followed by a harbour area. Within this area was a fantastic wave pool, which we both decided would be a great place to spend our last day. Today it was very busy as it was the weekend but we would have it to ourselves almost during the week. Once we were done there we headed to the esplanade and along the way read all about how Darwin was attacked during World War 2 by the Japanese and also how the Cyclone back in the 70’s wiped out Darwin, both very interesting. Later on as mentioned we returned to the hotel to catch up, we did however go for a swim later even though now it was peeing down with rain but the water was still warm.
7th Feb
Up bright and early for a 6:30am collection from our tour guide. We still managed to get breakfast as this hotel provided it from 3am due to the workers who worked on the oil rigs. After collecting people from other hotels we set off on a fairly long journey to the Adelaide River where we were to see the jumping crocs. The boat we were on was a fairly small one enough for about 30 people and you were only about 2 foot above the water so were going to be very close to the crocodiles. The croc man new all these crocs by names even though they were still wild and not looked after other than being fed for our entertainment at least four times a day. Apparently there are about 80 crocs on the stretch they covered, there were no guarantees that any would come out but we were lucky in that we had several come out for food. The guide hung a chop out on a piece of string bashing it against the water to attract there attention and soon one would slink over before being slightly teased by the guide and made to jump out of the water to grab the chop literally a foot away from us. We saw crocs of varying sizes and some quite beaten over the years. It was a good trip and better than we had thought it was going to be. We also saw some birds of prey that he got to fly around us as he gave them some treats.
Once we returned the coach driver took us on another lengthy drive before we stopped for some food that was laid on for us, meat on skewers and some salad, all very nice. It was then onto the first of three waterfalls to see, the first was Wangi secondly Tolmer , which we got caught out in as it poured down leaving us extremely wet and bedraggled and thirdly Florence in which we could have a swim in the rock pool if we wanted too. We didn’t bother but chose to return through the Shady Creek walk way, a twisting and pretty path way back to the coach. In between these falls we had a look at two types of termite mounds, one which we saw was about 6 metres high and has only one queen supplying all the eggs. The mounds grow about 1 meter every 10 years and once the queen dies that is the end of the mound so you can see how old the queen is by the size. The other type of mound is called a magnetic one which is angled from north to south and only varies by 10 degrees. These look like tomb stones and are much smaller in size. These are grey whilst the larger ones are brown and are built in such a way as to get the sun. We then returned stopping for a quick drink at the place we ate and saw some wallabies and buffalo. By now it was peeing down again.
8th Feb
It started very rainy and we thought it might be a bad day for the wave pool, however the rain stopped and off we went. It was still very cloudy but as usual warm. The temperature here doesn’t vary a whole lot generally sticking between 26 to 32 degrees throughout the year. As we thought the pool was almost empty so armed with books and music we settled down for the day. The pool was great fun and the waves were pretty big at times. The waves went on for twenty minutes before stopping for ten and this repeated all day. This was to be our first mistake since being here with regard to the sun due to the fact we already had built a bit of a tan and the fact it was very overcast. Basically we were very lazy and paid the price in full by both getting very burnt. This became more apparent once we returned back to Melbourne the following day. We finished our day with a few beers and something to eat. We were to be up bright and early the next morning to fly back.
9th to 27th Feb
This section is to be brief as not a lot was done as we had already done most of what we wanted to do in Melbourne. It was mainly to rest up and plan for the next part of our journey to New Zealand and America. Firstly we had to attend with the sunburn, It was suggested to me that I should put some cream on to sooth it but all it did was take a layer of my skin off. I didn’t want anything else put on after that, blisters then appeared on my arm and chest, not a pretty site. Sue was burnt as well but didn’t seem quite as bad. As I write this on the 27th 36000 feet in the air I still have some scars from the burn. As I said the rest of our time was used to rest up and plan but we did visit Anglesey to see the kangaroos that frequent the golf course there and on our second visit we were lucky enough to see a group or whatever you call it of them. We strolled along an almost empty beach there as well, which was very nice and also visited the surf beach at Torquay. We visited the MCG for the final time to take the stadium tour and this was where I received a parking ticket, not for not paying but because I was facing the opposite way of the traffic. The fine was $72 approximately £48, not a happy bunny. We also got to spend some time with Janine my sister who came home for a short stay and some more time with my brother Michael and his family. Sue helped Marlene (My Dads wife) out at a couple of the markets she does selling the jewellery she makes. We also attended the NAB Cup to witness a AFL football game in Geelong, which was being run as part of the AFL pre-season games.
All the planning for New Zealand was pretty much finalised with a lot of accommodation sorted, car hire and the places we were to visit when tragedy hit Christchurch again. This was becoming a familiar pattern for us as we had now followed the floods of Brisbane, been in the Cyclone in Cairns and now Christchurch had been hit with a devastating earthquake. Plans had to be changed and I was having a lot of problems with deciding on what to do, change flights, change car hire, change hotels etc. We eventually decided to carry on to Christchurch (on our way as I write this) and obviously avoid Christchurch itself now heading for Hanmer Springs for a couple of days. We just hope the car hire people have done as they say and the holiday park has a place for us as they weren’t filling me with confidence. Time will tell, it’s all part of the great adventure.
Comments
Hi Sue and Terry,
Good to hear from you again and we have enjoyed the latest blog. Wave pool would be a yes from me, Crocodile chase would most definitely wouldn't. Even pictures of them give me the eeby jeebies.
So pleased to hear about the time you have spent with family over there, what a thrill for you all.
Your trip certainly does seem a bit blighted, it's obviously the Rews on the move that is creating all the natural disasters that are happening lol. So where next and does the government know you are on the way, don't be surprised if you don't gain entry!! mind you what's left, volcano perhaps God forbid a tsunami that wouldn't be funny. Having said that Wellingborough is foul at mo no actually just more foul than usual, we haven't seen sunshine for over a week and tonight the temp has dropped dramatically, I even think I heard somebody mention snow in the offing. I guess you are definitely doing the right thing. The sunburn looked fairly hideous you great dopes and I am guessing it hurt a bit too. Happened to me just the once, well actually more than once I guess we just don't learn haha must be an age thing. By the way should it happen again natural yoghurt is the way to go, it really does work.
Things here much the same, Chris received written warning and is now negotiating an exit package. He could be on garden leave soon and then goodness knows what I shall do with him. To quote just about everybody, things happen for a reason, lets hope its a good reason. We shall keep you posted. Went up to Southport last weekend, Dad marvelous, Mum deteriorating ho hum. The girls are all well and busy, in and out all the time so never a dull moment. Take care, have fun and keep us posted lots of love Jan
Tut, tut, tut! Your should of slipped, slopped, slapped...lol! I got really burnt one time when I was on Pat's dads boat, fell asleep sunbaking on the deck and when I woke up my backs of my legs were so burnt I could hardly walk! They ended up blistered like you! I learnt my lesson - to never fall asleep sunbaking! lol!