Top End Escape - Darwin, Day 1/8, Friday 17th May 2013.

A fine autumn day to start our first real holiday, if for only 8 days, in nearly 6 years.

 We are flying off to Darwin for a couple of days, an overnight stay in Kakadu and then on the Ghan to Adelaide where we fly straight home again.

Click on 'Older Post' at bottom of page to go to next day.

Click on photo to enlarge.
 

Leaving Sydney. Parramatta River with Gladesville and Iron Cove bridges.
 

 

In flight entertainment to keep help past the time.
What's wrong with Giggle and Hoot!!!???

 

It didn't take me long to be the top scorer in the 'Trivia Quiz' game.

 

Looking more like the top of a pancake I once cooked than a landscape.  

 

Channel country, must be western Queensland.

 

All the tracks lead to water.

 

Cloud build up shows that we have reached the tropics.

 

Darwin, the northern gateway to the 'Top End'.

 

Darwin, no longer a dusty pioneering outpost.

 

Safely on terra firma again.

 



One of the welcoming locals. 
An Orange-footed Scrub Fowl scratching around in Bicentennial Park.

 





Darwin harbour from Bicentennial Park.

 



Fruiting tree in Bicentennial Park, I wonder what they are.

Thanks to the comment from Bernie , it's called 'Elephant Apple'.

 



You would know it if one fell on your head.

 

Memorial plaques for the areas we served in during WW2.

 

Keeping out northern waters safe.

 

A more peaceful way on the water.

 



A quick 3 hour dash, on foot, to the gardens for
 'Flora Friday'. The tropical conditions (35C and high
 humidity) had me wringing wet by the time I got back to our
accommodation .
 

 

Flowers and fruit of the Cannonball Tree.
They were the size of cannon balls.

 



One of the colourful gingers.

 

 

A splash of tropical colours.

More locals in the gardens.

 

Well, what do you think?



Back in the sheds, knackered.

 

Top End Escape - Litchfield, Day 2/8, Saturday 18th May 2013

Hired a car (Nissan X-Trail) for the next 2 days. Today we went off to visit Fog Dam Wetlands, Litchfield National Park and the war cemetery at Adelaide River.

Water Buffalo enjoy a wallow.

 



Magpie Geese at Fog Dam.

Comb-crested Jacana (Lotus-bird) and water lily.

 

Sacred Lotus  (introduced).

 

                       Just in case you forget. 

I don't know what side they drove on to get here.

 



   Tolmer Falls. The rare Orange Horseshoe Bat and Ghost Bat live in the caves located in this gorge.                                         Crowds at the falls lookout and Fan Palms after fires.

Wanji Falls.



Lynn cooling off.

Come on in, the water's lovely.

  

Did I hear someone scream "CROCODILE'S GOT ME!!!"

 



I'll stay here, someone has to go for help.



Some flowers of Litchfield.

 



Clockwise:  Partridge Pigeon, Blue-winged Kookaburra, dragon lizard,
dragonfly, orb-spider and Black Flying-Fox.

 

 

One of the locals near Batchelor.

Castle in park at Batchelor.

 

As soon as I turned the car's motor off it started pouring down at the Adelaide River War Cemetery.

 

After the 19th February 1942 Japanese raid on Darwin during WW2, other towns in the north, such as Broome, were bombed a further 62 times between 4th March 1942 and 12th November 1943.

 

 

 

  

 

 

Not only soldiers died in the bombing of Darwin.

 

I took this photo in 1969 which I believe was the War Cemetery. 

                         Is that how it was then?

 

 

Motoring back to Darwin. How fast are you going?

 

 

Top End Escape - Darwin, Day 3/8 Sunday 19th May 2013

Yesterday was spent covering the more natural environment around Darwin, today we spent time looking around the more developed parts of the city. We covered 604kms over the 2 days we had the hire car, most of the k's were done yesterday.

 



Aftermath of the previous nights 'Italian Festival' laying on the ground.

 



Northern Territory's Parliament House.
The festival was held in these grounds last night.

 



Looking over the Darwin Waterfront from the Vibe Hotel.

.

 



Wave Lagoon and Convention Centre.

 



Waterfront lagoon / pool.

 




Waterfront lagoon / pool.

 



Surf?????.........maybe in a Cyclone.

 



Tugboat Lynny on Stokes Hill Wharf.

 



And they are still adding to the place.

 




A popular car-boot fishing spot. I told this fellow he needed

 a bigger bucket. The line on their hand reels, which were

wrapped around the wharf, was the thickness of a biro refill,

 looked to be 100kg b/s.

 



Custom patrol boats.

 




Must be big calamari. It was closed so I couldn't try them

 all out.

 




There are a lot of references to the bombings and the

 militarisation of Darwin during WW2.

 



The different life style of the Darwinians .

The bike riding barbecuing type and, the

relaxing gardener type.

 




Some original old buildings in Darwin.

 




Government House in all it's tropical colours.

 




Looking over Cullen Bay.

 




Fannie Bay looking south towards Cullen Bay.

 




Colourful rocks at Fannie Bay.

 




No mention of crocodiles.

A fellow told me that there were no crocodiles in Fannie

Bay but he wouldn't put a dog in the water around at

Casuarina beach, there the crocs weren't that big (only 4

foot) but they would put you in hospital ( we took on his

advise).

 



WW2 defences at East Point.



Looks like a storm abroo'n, Casuarina Beach.



A good time to call my brother and wish him a Happy 60th.

Some locals enjoy? the showers.  Bush Thick-knees.



The sun soon shone at the Dripstone Cliffs.



Coral strewn beach at Lee Point.



Lee Point Beach



Fishing at Buffalo Creek.



Whooooa, aren't there crocodiles around here. Fellow trying out his gill net
to catch his dinner. We hung around for a while hoping to get something
for 'Funniest Home Videos' but we ran out of time.



Some of the house styles in the new suburbs. Besser brick,
iron roofs and no gutters.



Darwin from Charles Darwin National Park.

 

 

Darwin skyline.



Camouflaged WW2 munition bunkers in Charles Darwin  National Park.




Seen today. Clockwise from bottom right:
Red-tailed Black Cockatoo, Peaceful Dove, Sacred Kingfisher,
Little Friar Bird, Rainbow Bee-eater, Forest Kingfisher, Reef
Heron and Bush Thick-knee.










Another road-train.




Not much of a tropical sunset after the Mindil sunset markets.





This little gecko welcomed us back to our resort.




The end of another full day.