Category Archives: NT

Gregory National Park, the Northern Territory

Australia, Gregory National Park, Landscape, landscape, mountains, NT, Uncategorised

When The Doc drove to the Kimberley in 2015, he noticed the red escarpments of Gregory National Park. A note was made to return on the NT trip.

While on the road I heard of someone who said there is nothing at Gregory National Park. It seems the red escarpments and the wild crocodile infested Victoria River was boring. I will let the reader reach their own view, after looking at the photos. The Doc thinks that person was either asleep or had a bag over his head.

Most of these shots were taken close to the Victoria River Roadhouse.

Sorry The Doc can only do basic processing on the images.

Corroboree Billabong and Sweets Lagoon

Australia, coastal, flowers, Kakadu, lakes, Landscape, Plant, river/creeks, Wildflowers

The Doc has spent the last 2 days out on tours, to Sweets Lagoon and Corroboree Billabong (Mary River Floodplain). The Patrol had been serviced and it was time to see the wetlands by plane and boat (to avoid the mud and crocs by doing it on land).

On paper, Outback Floatplanes Adventures trip to Sweet Lagoon looked the better option. It had a floatplane flight, airboat (flat bottom boat driven by a V8 using a propeller), helicopter flight and cruise in a flat bottom boat.

Corroboree Billabong was the Wildlands Ultimate Tour consisting of an airboat and flat bottom boat tour. The BBC has filmed twice here. This billabong has the highest concentration of crocs in the world. The billabong is fed by the massive Mary River Floodplain. The wildlife has to be be seen to be believed. Thousands and thousands of birds, fish a plenty and lots of top line predators like crocs and White Bellied Sea Eagles. The Doc even got to eat some bush tucker from the Sacred Lotus Lily and another flower.

Hands down Corroboree Billabong was better and around 1/3 the cost of the Outback Floatplanes Adventure. Sweet lagoon was expensive at $800 [2017] for what it was, a little bit of the four things from around 8.30am to midday. They even charge a credit fee of 1.5%, unlike Wildlands. As an experienced Outback Traveller The Doc would not do it again, but would return to Corroboree Billabong in a heart beat, and that cost only $240 for both.

The Doc was left with the feeling Sweet Lagoon was all about maximising bums on seats and putting the tourist thorough the production line. This is the first time The Doc felt this on his trips. It was not the people, but the production line process.

The auxiliary battery in the Patrol failed on Saturday morning so The Doc has extended his stay in Darwin 2 days to wait for the replacement. A bit lucky the battery failed while the The Doc was in Darwin rather than in the Outback. The Doc has never seen a battery fail so fast, almost no warning signs (The Doc knew there was an issue Friday, but Saturday morning confirmed the failure). The demands of the hot weather was too much.

This is a sample of the floodplain in and around Mary River and Kakadu.

Corroboree Billbong, water, flowers crocs and birds, all in abundance.

Sweets Lagoon images.

Ormiston Waterhole & Gorge – West MacDonnell Range

Alice Springs, Australia, landscape, mountains, NT, Plant, river/creeks, The Red Centre, trees

As noted in the last blog post, the first part of the week was hit and miss. While Rainbow Valley was impressive, the Rogue’s Triangle of Uluru, The Olgas and Kings Canyon was not. Kings Canyon was $40 per night for a single unpowered site! Ulura was $45! Plus the access fees. So The Doc gave both a wide birth, which involved more travel.

Diesel was $123.9 a litre in Alice Springs, 200km south at Erlunda it was 52 cents a litre more, and over $2 at Ulura. It comes to a point where a fair profit margin becomes a rip off. The Doc turned around and avoided the Rogue’s Triangle. If you want to visit these places, pay a travel provider and be ripped off in style – these locations are now hostile to the average traveller.

Sadly The Doc has not seen so many places, so close together requiring you so often to put your hand in your pocket – no other place in Australia is like it. Even at Standley Chasm the access fee is $12.

In contrast, the $32 entrance fee to the Alice Spring Desert Park was a worth every cent. While the fee seems high, the value for money was excellent, great displays, several walk in aviaries, nocturnal house with rare animals and the list goes on. Visit while in Alice Springs, as it is about a 7 minute drive from the highway along Larapinta Drive. A single morning in this one location shows you what could take months in the field to see.

So the week was not going well until the Doc drove into Ormiston Gorge Campground, when things changed for the better, nice grounds, showers, shade and the gorge a short walk away. Up early the next morning for a sunrise photos at the gorge, but the light was not right until around 9am. Then a walk along the gorge, with a climb up to the lookout. A steep decent and a bacon and egg sandwich was the reward at the end. Then off again at around 11am.

A visit to Grosse Bluff was interesting. It is an imposing bluff on the northern side, but the track takes you into a picnic area in the centre where you are surrounded by walls– it turns out it is a meteor crater. The cataclysm when the meteor landed must have been big, no humugous.

Images of Ormiston.

 

The waterhole and gorge also had many large Red River Gums and their amazing textures. Enjoy.

Back to Finke Gorge in the morning.

Finke Gorge (Palm Valley) – The Red Centre

Alice Springs, Australia, Landscape, landscape, mountains, NT, The Red Centre

The Doc has spent the last week travelling the West MacDonnell Ranges out of Alice Springs. Truthfully the week was hit and miss. It started poorly but improved a lot on Friday and Saturday.

The Doc is now in Alice Springs going to Mass and restocking. On Saturday it was the intention to return to Alice and then travel north to the Davenport Ranges, but on the way back The Doc checked out Finke Gorge. What a stunning place! And an afternoon could not do it justice. So on Monday The Doc heads to Finke Gorge and the nearby Palm Valley for two days and then onto Davenport Ranges, refuelling while he passes through Alice Springs. Some point and shoot photos from Finke Gorge. Enjoy.

Happy Mothers Day.

East MacDonnell Ranges – Alice Springs the Red Centre

Alice Springs, The Red Centre

Less well known than the West MacDonnell Ranges, the East MacDonnells has Emily Gap, Jessie Gap, Corroboree Rock and Trephine Gorge National Park.

The Doc’s youngest nieces are Emily and Jessie, so the two gaps had added interest.

Atherrke is the Arrernte name for Jessie Gap. Jessie and Emily Gaps are associated with the Dreamtime stories for three Three Caterpillars: Yeperenye, Ntyarlke and Utnerrengatye.

These caterpillars formed Emily Gap, Jessie Gap and many of the topographic features around Alice Springs, then spread out to the edge of the Simpson Desert.

Then onto Corroboree Rock and Trephina Gorge, including the Bluff and Trephina Creek (dry). Most rivers and creeks in this part of the Red Centre only flow after rain. Enjoy.

Photo guide on East MacDonnell Ranges, with timetable, here. West MacDonnell Ranges guide here.

Darwin, Arnhem Land and Mighty Kakadu

Arnhem Land, Australia, coastal, Kakadu, Kakadu, lakes, Landscape, mountains, NT, plains, Plant, river/creeks

The Doc recently visited Darwin, Arnhem Land and Kakadu on a four day helicopter tour, with a few days each side in Darwin.

The flight was based out of Darwin and Jabiru (the township near the Ranger Uranium Mine), with some landings to refuel from jerry cans in remote parts of Arnhem Land. So The Doc got some ground shots.

The trip was at the end of the wet season and the scenery was spectacular, extensive wetlands, rivers, gorges, waterfalls and escarpment a plenty. These photos have minimal post processing.

Arnhem Land is a up on a plateau surrounded by an escarpment. The rain that falls runs off the escarpment and feeds a multitude of rivers along the coastal wetlands, including the Adelaide River, Mary River, Wildman River, the East Alligator/West Alligator/South Alligator Rivers, Liverpool River, Goomadeer River, White Creek, Julia Creek (tributary of Magela Creek), Mann River and Katherine River. Katherine River being the only one listed that flows south into Katherine Gorge near Katherine.

Along this coastal plain, there was an abundance of water, rivers, creeks, streams and wetlands that have abundant crocodiles and water buffalo. With so much water the crocodiles were very hard to spot.

This area has more rivers and water than either Cape York or The Kimberley and The Doc has flown over both of those areas.

On the way into and out of Arnhem Land you must fly over the escarpment, which is hundreds of metres tall in places. Twin Falls and Jim Jim Falls are well-known waterfalls that flow off the escarpment in Kakadu National Park.

The Doc nicknamed one part of the escarpment the Guard Towers, these massive structures were imposing as we flew by. They look smaller in the photos (The Doc used a 24mm lens), compared to real life.

We flew across Kakadu into Arnhem Land and through and abundance of waterways and gorges. The gorges were often full of dense rainforest, unlike any other place visited by The Doc. It makes you wonder what wildlife it hides.

As we approached one river and waterfall the copter noise spooked a black wallaby. So The Doc managed to see the rare all black wallaby. An All Black Wallaby may do rugby union supporters heads in! It is the male that is black, it is normally nocturnal and only found in Arnhem Land across to Nabarlek.

The abundance of water in the Wet Season means lots of waterfalls. The Doc was most impressed by the Mann River Gorge Waterfall in a remote part of Arnhem Land, even more than Jim Jim Falls and Twin Falls in Kakadu. He got both aerial and ground photos (as we refuelled), and a passing thunderstorm made it look even better.

The Doc is now frantically packing the Patrol to drive into The Northern Territory in the next few days. The last blog post for a while, enjoy.

Pungalina-Seven Emu

Australia, coastal, Landscape, NT, Pungalina-Seven Emu

The Doc has just flown in from Pungalina-Seven Emu,  an Australian Wildlife Conservancy property in the Gulf of Carpentaria in Northern Australia.

A magnificent place, detailed report to follow. Here is map of the trip the flight from Cairns to Pungalina. It includes a helicopter trip over the coast and a boat ride down the Calvert River.

Pungalina2016

Pungalina-Seven Emu – here comes The Doc

Australia, AWC, NT, Pungalina-Seven Emu

The Doc flies to Cairns tomorrow. On Monday he catches a charter flight to AWC’s Pungalina-Seven Emu (Seven Emu is owned by the Shadforth family) in the Gulf of Carpentaria (Northern Territory). The Doc spends 4 days and 3 nights there.

Having indexed the Pungalina photos he knows what a special place it is. Plus a video of Pungalina-Seven Emu was a key reason for him supporting AWC some 3 years ago.

Then back to Cairns and a few day trips.

The holiday finishes up with a 3 days trip on the Savannalander train. The Doc can be tracked here.

 

Newhaven – revisited

Australia, AWC, bark, desert, lakes, Landscape, landscape, mosses/lichens, Newhaven, NT, plains, Plant, Textures, trees

This time last year The Doc had finished his Kimberley/Pilbara trip and was returning through central Australia using Australia’s longest shortcut – The Great Central Road. After a rest stop at Alice Springs he headed to AWC’s Newhaven Sanctuary for a few days.

This Saturday he heads off to Cairns then onto Pungalina/Seven Emu in Arnham Land.

A few shots from Newhaven. More pictures here.