After leaving Edith Falls, we headed towards Pine Creek for a diesel top off, and then started our trek into Kakadu National Park. Running a bit late after our day’s adventures, we decided to stop for the night at Mary River Roadhouse on the edge of Kakadu. 

 The following morning, we headed out early and began our trip into the park.  We were very excited because we spotted a group of about 10 wild horses. We were able to stop and take a couple of pics before they galloped off. They were so beautiful- Kaytlin and Jackie were particularly in awe of them! Our first stop was the visitors’ centre, where we had a look at some features of the park and things to look out for.

We then headed into Cooinda resort and checked in- what a beautiful place! We left the van and headed the couple of km to Yellow River for a quick look, followed by a stop in at the cultural centre- well worth a visit! Heading back to the van, Zach and Melinda stayed to complete some school work while Joe, Jackie, Josh and Kaytlin headed out for a cruise on the Yellow River. They had a wonderful time amongst the mangroves and spotted a number of crocs as well as wildlife including various birds and fish. They even saw a few more wild horses (known as brumbys) and a range of gorgeous water lilies. Early afternoon, we enjoyed a swim in the resort pool, followed by a delicious bbq dinner.

The following morning, Joe rose with the dawn and headed out to the resorts pontoon. His early efforts paid off and he caught his first barramundi! The kids were very excited watching him clean his catch and we all knew that we had some nice dinner to look forward too! We headed over to Yellow River again and joined a ranger guided tour along the boardwalk. As it was still quite early in the day, the wetlands were teaming with wildlife and we really enjoyed learning about the ecosystem of the area. We particularly liked watching an egret hunt for food and got up close to some frogs. The kids liked holding a tortoise shell and a croc skull.

We then packed up the van and headed up into Jabiru. After a brief look at the couple of shops there, we checked into Jabiru Lodge. We loved the set up of this park, with all spots arranged in a circle and the pool area, restaurant and bar located in the centre. Being a humid day, we headed down to the pool for a swim and some lunch. As the afternoon cooled, we drove up to Ubirr and joined a ranger guided tour in the ‘main gallery’. It was really interesting learning about the various rock art and absorb some aboriginal culture. We then headed up to the lookout with the ranger and took in the gorgeous mangroves plains. The bird life was amazing and we even spotted a couple of wallabies enjoying dinner. The sunset was just stunning and well worth the adventurous trip up the rocks. Upon returning to the park, we enjoyed Joe’s barra poolside- delicious!

The following morning we slept in a little before heading west to Mamukala. There are a couple of lovely walks here- we opted to take the small walk to the boarded lookout. What an absolutely gorgeous place! There were at least 500 birds in the swamp area- many different kinds and it was simply amazing to watch them interect with each other. The purple water lillies here were so lovely and the kids got involved in identifying birds they saw using displays on the wall.

We then continued west to the Adelaide River and joined The Original Jumping Crocodile boat cruise. As we cruised along, we were all surprised with how many crocs were in the water and how active they were. It was amazing to watch how they powerfully moved through the water. This was a particularly adventurous cruise because we had no plastic or metal walls up between us and the crocs, so when they jumped for their meat- it was literally right next to us! Incredible!  We all breathed a sigh of relief when we returned safely to the dock. This was a great cruise and a lovely coffee shop with kids play area to visit afterward. Jackie and Mel were also in awe of the aussie spirit displayed by the owners and staff after the area had been previously flooded quite a number of times. The photographs told an amazing story.