The Top End - call of the wild

The Top End is known for it's wild frontier vibe with rich wetlands, magnificent waterfalls, stunning ancient landscape, indigenous culture and abundant animal life including the iconc saltwater crocodile.

This journey includes the iconic Kakudu National Park, Litchfield National Park, Nitmiluk National Park and Elsey National Park.

The Top End is top half of the Northern Territory being a huge area, roughly the size of France, Spain & Italy combined.

Approximately 50% of the Northern Territory is Aboriginal land with more than 80 indigenous language groups. Approximately 40 indigenous languages are still spoken today.

Like all of northern Australia, the best time to visit is during the dry season months of May to September which is the best time for the locals as well. Most of the attractions in the national parks can only be accessed in the dry season when the water from the wet season recedes. After a typical wet, hot & humid wet season, the Top End really comes alive in the dry season with non-stop festivals and events.

For me, there is something about the Top End that makes it a world apart from the rest of Australia. Every time I visit, I am strongly impacted by the adventure & final frontier vibe which feels like I have discovered Australia’s very soul. It’s the sort of place that can't be over sold as the adventures in store just won’t disappoint and will leave you in awe.

Whether flying into Darwin or driving as part of a bigger journey, the Top End is very accessible. All the attractions in this post are accessible by sealed roads with the exception of Twin Falls, Jim Jim Falls and the Lost City which all require a 4WD.

Map background courtesy of Qld. Govt.

Our purpose with this post is to give you just enough insight to spark your curiosity and enable you to plan your own expedition of discovery. Blessed are the curious for they shall have adventures.

This post tells the story of our adventure to the Top End. This post starts at Daly Waters.

A trip through the Top End would not be complete without an overnight stop at Daly Waters Pub which is an iconic Outback pub and a very sought after destination for an overnight stay.

Next, we came to Elsey National Park, being only 4km from the Stuart Highway, and is adjacent to Mataranka Homestead being a popular caravan park at Mataranka where we camped. The most popular activity here would be swimming in the Mataranka Thermal Pool which is a natural spring pool at around 30°C, pumping out 30.5 megalitres of water each day.

The walks in the national park are surrounded by palm forests and paperbark making it a very special oasis and very relaxing after a long journey. Elsey Park Fact Sheet provides more detail on this special park.

Elsey NP was made famous in Jeannie Gunn's classic novel 'We of the Never Never'. In 1902 Jeannie Gunn left the comfort of her Melbourne home to join her new husband in the very remote frontier of the Northern Territory where her husband had been appointed the manager of Elsey Cattle Station. The book gives a moving account of Jeannies life in this beautiful yet isolated pioneering environment. For me, knowing this history made our visit to Mataranka that much more impactful.

Our next leg took was only a1.5 hour drive from Mataranka to Nitmiluk National Park (pronounced Nit-me-look) best known for Nitmiluk (Katherine) Gorge being a system of 13 spectacular gorges with towering majestic sandstone cliffs, waterfalls and rapids. The gorges, some of which plunge up to 100 meters deep, can only be explored in the dry season by foot, canoe, tour boats or helicopter with the Nitmiluk Gorge tour being the most popular option.

We camped at the Nitmiluk Campground which was an excellent campground adjacent to Nitmiluk Visitors Centre.

The volume of water that passes through Nitmiluk Gorge in the wet season, is enough to fill Sydney Harbour every 9 hours. During the dry season the water levels drop by 10 metres.

There are freshwater crocodiles in Nitmiluk Gorge however they are not considered dangerous unlike the saltwater crocodile. There are however, saltwater crocodiles in the Katherine River further downstream.

On this visit to Nitmikuk Gorge, we chose the sunset dinner tour which includes a 3 course candle lit dinner on the boat which is described as the jewel in the crown of the Nitmiluk experience. In the gorge we enjoyed dramatic changing colours of the gorge with an unforgettable sunset experience.

The gorges and the surrounding landscape have great ceremonial significance to the local Jawon people, who are custodians of Nitmiluk National Park.

More information, including a detailed map, can be found in the Nitmiluk Fact Sheet.

The board walk on the Gorge Tour is much better than years ago when you had to scramble over the rocks.

A very popular stop for visitors travelling the Stuart Highway is Leliyn (Edith Falls) which is 60km north of Katherine and part of Nitmiluk NP where we made camp for two nights. The camp site is lush, grassy and shady with some excellent walking trails.

More than a one night stop is needed for this beautiful oasis.

A 2.5 hour drive from Leliyn brought us to Cooinda in the wild heart of World Heritage listed Kakadu National Park. This is Australia's largest national park @ 20,000 square kilometres with absolutely breathtaking landscapes and great cultural significance.

We made a base camp, for a few days, at the Cooinda Campground & Caravan Park which includes the Cooinda Lodge pool, restaurants, bars and shop. Cooinda is only a 3 hour drive from Darwin.

Our favourite part of Kakadu is the remarkable wetlands of Yellow Water (Ngurrungurrudjba) Billabong and tributaries of the South Alligator River. This unique eco system is absolutely bursting with life including crocodiles galore and millions of migratory birds. About one third of Australia's bird species are found in Kakadu.

For us, a cruise on Yellow Water is a must do on every visit to Kakadu. On this visit, we saw an phenomenal crocodile feeding frenzy spectacle in a billabong full of Barramundi with multiple crocodiles launching out of the water simultaneously to catch & kill their prey.

There is something very special about seeing all this wildlife in their natural habitat where you very much feel like a visitor in their world. We also saw plenty of Jabiru, Brolgas and Magpie Geese.

The dorsal plates on the crocodiles back allow them to sneak up on their prey without making any ripples in the water. No wonder the crocodile has survived so well as a successful prehistoric predator.

The best way to see Yellow Water is with the Yellow Water boat cruises which have exclusive use of Yellow Water Billabong.

Other highlights of Kakadu include exploring spectacular Jim Jim & Twin Falls which involve a thrilling 60km 4WD adventure.

A 2km return walk takes you to the base of the huge 200m high escarpment of Jim Jim Falls which is Kakadu's biggest waterfall. Twin Falls requires a shuttle boat, then walking over boulders and a boardwalk.

I found being at the base of these massive falls needs time to sit and take in the enormity of what I was seeing.

Flying over these iconic waterfalls during the wet season, to see them in full flight, would also be a fantastic experience.

Burrungkuy (Nourlangie), in Kakadu NP, is most famous for its world heritage rock art most of which is easily accessible with walking trails.

When we visited Burrungkuy we joined an indigenous ranger led guided walk who we have always found to give amazing insight into this ancient 65,000 year old Bininj / Mungguy culture.

Even with this brief background from such a tour makes the visit significantly more impactful and gives so much context.

I loved the loop walk to Nourlangie Rock and the amazing grand scale of the vista of the Arnhem Land escarpment.

This rock art at Burrungkuy rock are site is part of 5,000 aboriginal art sites in the park. The rock art in the above photo depicts Namarrkon being an important creation ancestor responsible for violent lightning storms.

At the northern end of Kakadu, Ubirr also contains a very precious and substantial amount of rock art which is considered the best in the world. This rock art includes stories about aboriginals first encounter with europeans.

Views over the Nadab flood plains, at Ubirr, are absolutely magnificent which famously featured in the movie 'Crocodile Dundee'. Ubirr is one of Kakadu's most popular locations.

To the north west of the Top End lies Litchfield National Park, being only a one hour drive from Darwin. Litchfield is less well known than Kakadu yet still a very popular and stunning destination with beautiful waterfalls and waterholes.

Some of the most popular attractions at Litchfield include Wangi Falls, Buley Rockhole, Florence Falls & Tolmer Falls. Buley Rockhole and Wangi Falls being the most popular and particularly popular for swimming.

Our favourite was Wangi Falls which has lovely picnic area with shady lawns overlooking the falls and escarpment.

The landscape of Litchfield is very diverse including the massive magnetic Cathedral Termite Mounds, some of which are over 100 years old. If you are up for a rough & rocky 4WD adventure you can visit The Lost City where the natural sandstone pillar formations look a bit like the ruins of man made structures.

NT Parks & Wildlife provide a handy Litchfield information sheet & map on the walks in Litchfield.

After Litchfield, a stop at Adelaide River Inn is a must do.

After Charlie died (the buffalo that Mick Dundee mesmerised in Crocodile Dundee) he was stuffed and mounted in the bar at the Adelaide River Inn.

On the way to Darwin, a unique attraction is the Adelaide River Queen Jumping Crocodile Cruises. This experience does allow a visitor to get up close and personal to a massive crocodile in all it's glory.

Of course, a tour of the Top End would not be complete without visiting the Northern Territory's capital, Darwin.

Darwin is Australia's most remote capital city. Darwin also the only capital city with a frontier come adventure capital vibe and really comes alive during the tourist season, in the dry season, with non stop events & festivals.

Darwin is the smallest capital city in Australia, with approximately 106,000 residents. It is located closer to Jakarta than Canberra, nearer to Singapore than Melbourne, consequently Darwin looks outward to Asia as much as it looks inland to the rest of Australia which is reflected in Darwin’s cosmopolitan atmosphere.

If someone wears a tie in Darwin, they are assumed to be either getting married or on their way to court as the accused.

There is a lot to see in Darwin and some of our favourites include the Mindil Beach Sunset Market, Parap Village Market, Deckchair cinema, Museum & Art Gallery of the Northern Territory, Botanic Gardens and Stokes Hill Wharf.

This croc, at the Museum & Art Gallery of the NT, is 'Sweetheart' which was an extremely aggressive large male estuarine crocodile who gained notoriety in the 1970's for attacking boats. Sweetheart was accidently drowned during capture for relocation. At the time, the London Daily Mail reported that Sweetheart was opened up to find 2 outboard motors and human bones inside the croc.

The Mindil Beach Sunset market is a popular meeting place to enjoy a stunning sunset.

Established in 1954, the Deck Chair Cinema in Darwin is a great night out for dinner and access to movies that would otherwise go unseen on the big screen.

Stokes Hill Wharf, on Darwin harbour, now includes the Bombing of Darwin tourist attraction and RFDS Tourist Facility together with lots of dining options. Darwin harbour is twice the size of Sydney Harbour.

Darwin holds a significant place in Australia's history following the devastating events of the bombing of Darwin during WWII and Cyclone Tracy in 1974.

David & Rosemary Allan – the faces behind:

May adventure & discovery be your constant companions.

Reflection:

For me, a trip is memorable when I am enriched by a deeper sense of connection to a place which triggers an emotional or spiritual response. This comes from feelings of Awe when I feel part of something bigger. Such as, seeing dramatic landscapes, being caught up in the history and sensing the passion of the human spirit.

A memorable experience will cause me to day dream about the next trip even more than the last trip.

Remember: Your adventure begins the moment you decide to go.