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Australia - Top End - Kakadu National Park and Arnhem Land
Kakadu National Park is just 257km from Darwin along the sealed Arnhem Highway. In its 19,000sq km, it is home to around 275 species of birds, 75 species of reptiles, 25 species of frogs, an estimated 10,000 species of insects and 1,600 plant species comprising more than a third of the Top End's plant life.
The name "Kakadu" comes from "Gagudju" - the main Aboriginal language used in the Northern part of the area at the start of the 20th century. Today, three major languages are spoken within the park - Gundjeihmi / Mayali, Kunwinjku and Jawoyn.
For at least 50,000 years, Aboriginal people have continuously lived in the area now defined by the National Park, leaving behind shelters, stone tools, grindstones and ochre for ceremonial painting.
The parts of their legacy most visitors come to see are the famous Ubirr and Nourlangie Rock, where Dreamtime legend, and day-to-day lining are presented side-by-side. The rock art galleries reveal sprayed hand stencils, hunters carrying barbed spears and creation beings Namarrgon the Lightning Man and Ngalyod the Rainbow Serpent. Fish, birds and animals are presented x-ray style, revealing internal organs and bone structures. There are as many as 5,000 other recorded sites scattered throughout the Park.
The sandstone escarpment to the east, soaring 100 to 200 meters, is a celebration of waterfalls like Jim Jim Falls, Twin Falls and Gunlom.
Between November and March, when the rains come to the Top End, Kakadu National Park springs to life. The floodplains fill to become an endless sea of birdlife and the waterfalls roar their loudest. Waving meadows of speargrass grow 2
meters high in just a few short weeks.
As Arnhem land is Aboriginal land most of it is blocked off from independent travelers, however you can visit the north western and north eastern corners of la and Gove, and Oenpelli near Kakadu's East Alligator River. The area also has some magnificent rock art, which is a big attraction, along with its natural beauty. The drive along the dust road from Kakadu to Oenpelli is spectacular, as you travel along the East Alligator flood plain. |
