On our way to Litchfield National Park we made a morning tea stop at Adelaide River, a small and historic town just south of the turn off to the national park, and of course it is on the Adelaide River. The town was first settled in 1872, with workers who arrived in the area to construct the overland telegraph line. And, during world war II, Adelaide River was a key rest area for personnel serving in Darwin, and following the bombing of Darwin, a military airfield was built in the town.

Adelaide River Railway Museum, and of course more blue sky!

There is a delightful railway museum in town, managed by the National Trust, that includes the old railway station. We enjoyed a half hour tour around the different exhibits before continuing our journey north to the little town of Batchelor, our base for the next 3 days. Batchelor is just a small distance from Litchfield National Park and only 98kms south of Darwin.

The township of around 500 is today based around tourism, education and horticulture, having started out in the early 1900s as a farming community. Batchelor is very close to Rum Jungle, which was the site of early uranium mining in Australia which commenced in 1948 and ceased in 1971. When walking around the town, it is apparent that like many smaller towns, community is important, however there is still limited opportunity for advancement for youngsters unless they gravitate to major centres of employment.

On Sunday we spent the day in Litchfield National Park, which really is geared for tourism, with a number of caravan and camping grounds both close to and within the Park confines. We were ever hopeful that we would enjoy seeing an abundance of Australian wildlife, however, yes you guessed it, yet again ‘they’ were all hiding from us! But, our disappointment was more than made up for with the delightful water falls, water holes and nature walks. There are a number of attractions to visit, and we certainly enjoyed time at the key ones.

Cathedral Termite Mound, about 5m high and over 50 years old, home to a colony of grass eating termites

We have developed a fascination with Northern Australia’s multitude of termite mounds, and the first attraction visited and of course photographed was the Magnetic Termite Mounds – these little ‘white ants’ build their massive termite nests on a north/south axis to make the best use of warmth and shade. You can see the significant size of these ones!

The rest of our day was spent visiting water falls and swimming holes, where we could take a dip and enjoy some reprieve from the warm temperatures. Because there are still areas that are closed to the public after summer flooding, we visited Buley Rockhole, Florence Falls, Tolmer Falls, the Cascades and the very stunning Wangi Falls. All of these are in easy walking distance through natural bush and easy walking trails.

Wangi Falls, where we spent some time swimming in the big pool!

Yesterday we packed a picnic lunch, took our books and swimmers and staked out our own swimming pool at Buley Rockhole, which is a series of natural swimming holes through which the river cascades.

Natural swimming hole at Buley Rockhole

Sitting under shady trees and taking regular dips was very relaxing. And yes, on the way back out of the park, 3 red kangaroos bounded up the hillside, so now we know there is wildlife to be found. I was beginning to think that the buffalo in fields just outside of the park was the only animal life we would see!

This morning we hit the road again, for the drive to Darwin. We will base ourselves here for a few weeks and are currently in a very pleasant caravan park about 15kms from the CBD. Needing a ‘sea fix’, this afternoon was spent on the Esplanade and waterfront in Darwin, and over the next few weeks we will certainly spend a lot of time on the coast. Sadly though, with salt water crocs, swimming is out, so man made pools will have to suffice.