The local Aboriginal name for Yellow Water is Ngurrungurrudjba (Noor-roong-oo-rooj- bar). Excellent day – well another excellent day because we finally reached Kakadu National Park!
Our site is very shady and not too far from the amenities (a handy thing when you get older). My hair was overdue for a colour so this was going to be the day. I have the best hairdresser because she gave me the recipe for my hair colour with precise instructions to follow.
Under the awning seemed to be the best place and that way I wouldn’t make a mess in the van. I forgot to bring a brush to apply the concoction so an old toothbrush was the next best thing but after a while I resorted to hands. I got a couple of funny looks from some of the staff and one older Aboriginal woman gave me a smile and a wave as she went about her work. Bobby helped me to rinse it with a couple of buckets and it was done!
Hair done we set off to the main centre to book some of the tours and buy some milk. Some $600 later we’d booked a sunset cruise, a sunrise cruise and an animal tracks safari.
The sunset cruise on Yellow Water was very special. Yellow Water is part of the South Alligator River floodplain. This billabong in Kakadu is almost the same as it’s been for thousands and thousands of years. No white fellas stuffing it up except for some weed that grows in the water but is flushed out to sea in the wet where it dies and wild pigs. The pigs do massive damage to the soil and we saw the results of their work.
Our guides (and bus drivers and cruise operators) were excellent – we learnt so much about the plants, animals and culture of the local indigenous people, Bininj. Many different birds live here (about 1/3 of Australia’s bird species can be found here) and migratory birds from Russia, China and Japan also fly here at different times of the year.
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| jabiru (my camera isn't flash but I'm pleased with photo) |
We saw a pair of jabiru sitting on their nest which was about 1.5 metres across and 1 metre deep – a significant structure but then again, they are big birds. They mate for life unlike the “Jesus” birds or jakuna (look like they’re walking on water except they are walking on lily pads and their long toes support them as they hunt for insects). The male looks after the eggs and chicks once they hatch whilst the female does the deed, lays the eggs and looks for another male to repeat the cycle. She does this about 5 times a year.
It wasn’t long before we began to spot crocodiles basking on the banks of the river. These salties are so much more dangerous looking than the freshwater ones. Most of the ones we saw were big with one being about 4 metres long.
Skinny-necked ducks with quite pretty feathers seem to flourish in this billabong. They don’t quack but they do whistle. There were plenty of them along the banks especially as the sun was setting. Herons abound here as well along with the willy-wagtails, sea eagle and whistling kites. There were plenty of other species but I don’t remember all of their names.
The cruise is very leisurely and takes a couple of hours. The boat is able to get very close to crocodiles that don’t seem to bother too much about it. Some do submerge and resurface but others just slowly sink under the water where they can sit for 2 hours.
We were told how the traditional owners hunted for fish. The men would mash up the fruit of the pandanas (which is not good for humans to eat) and they would spread the mashed fruit and seeds on top of the water.
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| pandanas |
Fish like this food so as they came to the surface to eat, the men would catch them. The women also had a job. They would wade waist-deep in the water and feel about the bed of the river with their feet. When they felt something scaly, they would bend down and catch a snake. To kill the snake, the head of it would be placed in the woman’s mouth where she would bite down and this would break the spine of the snake.
There are so many lilies on this billabong. A very large pad grows in the waters and the surface has many tiny little hairs that can hold water or repel it. In summer and winter, the pad is used as a hat to protect the wearer and it is also used to carry water.
After a couple of hours on this special place, the sun begins to set and there’s another very unique experience watching the sun go down as it lights the sky with different shades and hues of orange, pink, purple and grey. Magic!
Boh boh (bor bor) means goodbye here – not farewell but a bit like see you later.
Really looking forward to the sunrise cruise tomorrow. Up early to be at the bus stop by 6:20 a.m. Bobby’s already asleep (8:56 p.m.).
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