Report by Andrew Neverly
Our second free day in Kakadu. After sussing out the scene with a couple of locals the previous night, Ian our expedition doctor and I decided to ease the pace and take the locals advice and hang out next day at Barramundi Gorge ‘the best swimming spot around’, minus the residents with a predatory inclination.
We woke about 9.30am to another clear sunny day in the high 20s. The camp was virtually empty by this time with most people having had breakfast and long gone to various destinations around the park.
After breakfast and picking up a couple of stragglers, in the names of Themis and Mary, we departed.
From Cooinda we travelled about 45kms on the black top to the turn off to Maguk previously known as Barramundi Gorge. From the turnoff we were soon in giant termite mound country with some over 3 metres high. After the obligatory photos and 12kms of good dirt road we arrived at the car park. The walk to the Gorge was easy (not accessible unfortunately for wheelchairs though) with stunning views of the crystal clear waters of Barramundi Creek surrounded by Pandadis Palms. Themis, our expedition angler was quick to identify the many varieties of fingerlings.
The Gorge consisted of a large swimming hole with a 10 metre fall flowing into it. The most interesting swimming was in the narrow gorge feeding the falls. Being only a few metres wide it was at least 7-8 metres in depth. It was fun watching the tourist guides demonstrate to their clients the art of diving 10 metres from the highest cliffs surrounding the gorge. It didn’t take Ian our “Mad Doctor” long before he too was diving or jumping, if only from half the height. There was also a neat underwater rock tube to dive into which takes you into the main part of the gorge underwater.
After a great afternoon together we headed back to Cooinda for a spectacular sunset over Yellow Waters, dinner and the pub afterwards.
Alternate report by Caroline Davy
That Sharon, Alison and Rita deserted us for the hardships of the Alligator Hotel at Jabiru. Apparently Sharon’s cousin works there and needed them to assist with activities like sleeping in beds, taking hot baths, luxuriating in 5-star accommodation and being pampered by the pool. Somebody had to do it!!!
Quite a number of vehicles took a part of Wheelies to visit Twin Falls. A corrugated road fives out to a 4WD track and then you have to walk. Some ingenious use of snatch straps helped get some of the way in but in the end we made it to the river by a lot of pushing, carrying and picking our way over rocks, through sand and around vegetation.
The Falls can only be seen by swimming quite a way down the river – so we set out, some on li-los, Noel had a tyre tube for Sally, some just swimming with the group. Michael was first down the river on his li-lo, Albert was there too and Branka was back in the water for her first real swim since her accident. What a great place – some parts of it could be used as locations for an exotic tropical movie – and it was its own brand of paradise to swim under the high cliffs, to soak up some warmth from the rocks in the stream and to just take in the scene.