Day 294 - Kakadu NP, Australia

KAKADU NATIONAL PARK (22/10/09)

Kakadu National Park is the largest of all Australia's National Parks and has an amazing variety of landscapes and habitats. This unusual looking bush had also fallen prey to the dry weather - a large bush fire had passed through only a few weeks before. Much of the park is only accessible by four wheel drive cars but since many of the famous attractions are waterfalls we were not too bothered- we had already seen how dry they can become.

Not affected by the dry weather, and the main reason we had come to Kakadu, are the spectacular Aboriginal Rock Art sites. The paintings date back perhaps 20,000 years and are mostly found under natural rock shelters. The first we visited were at a site called Ubirr and depicted various subjects including this fierce looking warrior spirit, probably painted to protect the shelter from evil spirits.

Another subject which featured prominently was food. It was common for the tribes people to paint a picture of their catch from the days hunting if they were proud of what they had caught. Here is a depiction of a Long-necked Turtle.

Another food painting - a large fish.

As is still the case today the Aboriginals used paintings as health warnings. This unfortunate lady is showing the painful swollen joint disease it was believed would be contracted if you visited certain forbidden, sacred sites without the proper authority.

A clearer picture of the underside of one of the smaller shelters showing various animals as well as people.

Ubirr is a huge rocky outcrop in the otherwise fairly flat surrounding land. It is not only famous for it's rock art but also for the incredible views from the top of the expansive flood plains below. The lush green, flat land had not yet fully succumbed to the dry conditions and provided a stark contrast to the arid bush we had been seeing.

It was quite a feeling looking out over so much land and the strong breezes were a great relief from the heat, despite the fact it was still only about 9.30am.

Not far from Ubirr is an area known as Cahill's Crossing, where the road crosses a river from Kakudu into Arnhemland which is now a restricted area requiring a permit from anyone who is not indiginous to the area. On the Banks of the East Alligator River we spotted these fruit bats who seemed a little suprised to see us.

We had come to the East Alligator River in the hope that despite the misnomer we might be able to spot some wild Salt Water Crocodiles. We weren't overly hopeful and were dlighted when we spotted this large individual just over the river from us.

We spotted three in total, it certainly made Adams day. There is always, however, the disconcerting feeling that they are watching you just as intently as you are watching them.

Off the main roads we drove down some of these incredibly Australian looking outback roads.

When it was no longer possible to drive we took off on foot with a backpack of full of water.

Even a short trek through the bush in this heat feels a lot longer than it really is and after what felt like several hours but was probably about half an hour we arrived at Nanguluwur, one of the park's less visited Aboriginal Shelters and art sites. It is easy to see why the people chose these places- the rocky overhang provides shade from the heat of the day and shelter from the torrential wet season rains.

Liz with several fish paintings.

Hundreds of hand prints on the walls gave us a real feel of the number of people who had lived in this place.

A variety of figures representing both people and spirits.

On the other side of the huge rocky escarpment from Nanguluwur is the site of Nourlangie, also the name of the huge rock itself.

Nourlangie was an important Aboriginal site and was home to hundreds with it's huge shelters, abundance of shade and cool breezes (which we greatly appreciated too).

Food was, and is, a very important part of Aboriginal culture. Paintings of food items are everywhere including this large, red Kangaroo.

Nourlangie would have also hosted many important rituals and events. This lively painting depicts a number of people involved in a complex dance.

These more modern paintings at the site are much better understood than the older paintings and the spirits and their stories are much better remembered. Many of the pictures are of evil spirits, a reminder for the population to always be on their guard.

After one of the best days we have spent in Australia we decided to forsake the poor quality, over priced food shops around the National Park and head back towards Darwin and the lure of a decent dinner for our very worked up appetites.

As we approached Dawin again a stunning tropical sunset brought the day to an end.