Kakadu National Park

We've just finished finished exploring the behemoth that is Kakadu National Park. Highlights include the fabulous Gunlom Falls, that were still flowing and just opened after the wet season clean up. Gunlom is a beautiful waterfall cascading down to a wide open pool. Climbing to the top of the falls were several other pools beautifully clear for swimming after the sweaty ascent ( see pics: you may recognize the shot, it's used for a lot of tourism ads). It's mostly a 4wd track on the way in, so that keeps some of the 'terry tourists' ( like ourselves :) away, and makes for a nice campsite. Great spot and not as well known as Jim Jim and Twin falls, that were currently still closed due to the number of crocs still present after the Wet season.We also did the classic Yellow Water billabong cruise on the Kakadu wetlands. It was great bird and croc spotting, not crowded ( we figure we are about 2-3wks ahead of the tourist pack) and very peaceful and serene cruising around such a complex Eco-system. The girls were expecting to see crocs leaping out of the water ( like on the front of the tacky tour brochure where they hand feed them meat in a grand display) but instead found the crocs spend most of the day not moving an inch on the sunny banks.The Ubirr rock art was also amazing, we did a tour there with a ranger who thrilled the kids with the indigenous tales of wonder and dreaming, usually ending with someone being killed or eaten ( most of the stories from the rock paintings are cautionary moral tales about right and wrong). The view over the floodplain at Ubirr was stunning, another classic shot for the Macca-Myer photo album...We really enjoyed Kakadu, there is an argument among travellers to Kaka-don't ( thinking the park is overated)but most people race through the park with not enough time, expecting to see everything.The locals generally seem to prefer Litchfield National Park which is smaller and can be seen as a day trip from Darwin. We were surprised too find that the weather wasn't as hot as we were expecting in Kakadu. Apparently the weather had moved from Yegge (cool but still humid) to Wurrgeng (cold weather) a month earlier than usual. It was still 27 degs every day so it certainly wasn't cool by Woodend standards!Interesting bits: Jules is keeping stats on the amount of kms's we've driven and the petrol price on an I- phone app called 'Gas Cubby'. For the record we've driven 7,000km's, the most expensive diesel price being $2.33 at Kings Canyon ( any more specific boy details will need to be directed to Jules, not my department...) Jules is trying to save money on fuel by keeping the air-con in the car off as much as possible, the girls usually 'crack it' by mid arvo and demand it goes on...Ahhh the negotiations that come with life on the road....Best wishes to you all from the top of Australia...next report from Darwin.