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To all our loyal followers, please note that our Blog has permanently moved to a new site. Please click the following link: http://landcruisinaroundoz.blogspot.com/ to go to our new location. If you are a regular reader, or are friends or family it would be best to bookmark or save to your favourites the above link for easy future access.

Many Thanks !!

Hi everyone,

I have been trying out a new host site for our Blog. I am still coming to grips with it as it quite different to post to. I would like all our followers to click on this link: http://landcruisinaroundoz.blogspot.com/ and let us know what you think. This new site is quicker to load and more user friendly than bigblog.

Comments please !!!!

Heading south along the Stuart Hwy we turned off to reach the town of Batchelor at lunchtime. Batchelor, the gateway to Litchfield, is an attractive small town with large areas of parkland containing many mature trees and all surrounded by lush green grass, a perfect place for a lunch break. However before we started lunch we were advised that the only campground within the park, Wangi Falls, that allows caravans fills up very early, so we decided to defer lunch and travel the 60 or so Km in the hope of getting a spot. We reached Wangi at about 1.30 to find all sites taken so we had to settle for a commercial campground about 4.5 Km away just outside the National Park. After a quick set-up and a late lunch we returned Wangi for a swim in the large pool at the base of the spectacular waterfall.

Now refreshed from our swim in the cool crystal clear waters we walked back through the campground before returning to the car. In the campground we met up with some people we had camped with previously and they had been at Wangi for 4 days, and so they advised us to be back at the campground the next morning to wait for someone to leave so we could get a site. This is what we did and it was easy to find a suitable site where we stayed for the next 4 nights. The National Park campground at Wangi is quite good; it has recently been upgraded with good-sized sites (sandy, no grass) and a good amenities block with solar heated showers, and costs $6.60 p.p.p.n.

It is often remarked that people have a preference for Litchfield over Kakadu and that Litchfield is more spectacular. We tend to think that one is not better than the other, just different, they are both very good and well worth the effort and time to visit if you can. What advantage Litchfield has is that it’s more compact, allowing you to set up a base camp and do day trips to the various points of interest. This was our plan and we managed to cover two major points each day and still be back at Wangi for a refreshing afternoon swim. Litchfield’s main attraction is it’s spectacular waterfalls and we managed to visit all of them and swim in as many as you are allowed. Our favourites would be Wangi, Florence, Sandy Creek and Buley Rockhole. Other attractions we visited were; The Lost City, Reynolds River 4WD track, Bamboo Creek Tin Mine, Tolmer Falls and Greenant Creek. The snorkel we had fitted in Darwin proved useful as we negotiated a couple of deep-water crossings on the Reynolds River Track.

I will try to get some pictures up on the blogsite as soon as possible but we are heading out to Daly River for a couple of days and I don’t expect any internet coverage, so keep watching and the pics should be available to view in about a week.

After spending 3 weeks in Darwin it was time to venture a little south to Litchfield N.P. We enjoyed our stay in Darwin; the weather was fine and sunny the whole time. Mostly daytime temps were in the low 30s and some of the nights didn’t cool down all that much. Let’s just say we managed to give our air-conditioner a reel good run. Several nights were a little cooler with morning temps down to about 15º which made sleeping much more comfortable for us, although it had the locals complaining and indeed we did see lots of people in jumpers and cardigans while we were wearing shorts and T-shirts.

With Darwin being the largest town we had been in for quite some time we took the opportunity to have some mods made to the vehicle. Firstly we had a snorkel fitted at ARB and their workmanship and service were first class. For some time we had been wanting to have a cover made for our roof rack to keep things clean and dry as well as making it easier and quicker to load and unload the items we store there. On the recommendation of the boss at ARB we visited the Canopy Man. Nick, the boss, attended to our enquiry and quickly drew up a sketch of what he could do and the price quoted was very reasonable indeed. To say we are happy with the outcome would be an understatement, the cover fits easily and snugly and will make my life much more simple when we need to access items on the roof rack. It looks much better than the previous arrangement of tarps covering individual items and I tend to think it will help with fuel consumption, as the whole thing is now very sleek and aerodynamic.

When you add the amounts we spent on the vehicle and the cost of caravan park fees, general living expenses and tours and entry fees, not mention the cost of Sue’s dental work (nearly $2,500, ouch) we feel we did our bit to help prop up the local economy.

With a last minute call at the supermarket and grog shop to stock up on supplies at the cheapest prices we will see for a while, we departed Darwin on Monday 15^th June.

We have been in Darwin for 2 weeks now and are enjoying looking around. Apart from the usual tourist activities we have been fortunate to have been able to catch up with Sue’s second cousin, Brian and his wife Suzie and their son Phoenix (20 months) We got a dinner invitation to Brian's on the first Friday we were in town and of course we accepted. Brian also escorted us on a day out for a BBQ picnic and some fishing at a little known spot on the Adelaide River. (On the Saturday of the long weekend) We had a great time and I was the only one to catch a fish, although not a ‘keeper’. I was most disappointed when I managed to loose one of Brian's favourite lures but he was very understanding and said it was all part of fishing.

We have done most of the “must see” tourist things around Darwin including the Aquascene fish feeding (Sue loved this and got very excited), where many hundreds of fish come in on the high tide to be fed a little bit of bread. The other things we have done are visiting the excellent museum and art gallery of the N.T. as well as the East Point Military museum, a heritage walk around the city, a ferry ride from Cullen Bay across the harbour to Mandorah, and amongst other markets a visit to the Mindil Beach Sunset Markets. Food stalls of all kinds dominate these markets and the variety is amazing. We tried sweet & sour Barra, sate′ prawn skewers and choc coated frozen pineapple, which are just a few of the wide selection available. The sunset over Mindil beach was just fantastic and was witnessed by many hundreds of people, probably many more than visit the beach during the day. With your choice of any dish you like and a cold drink it is a great way to enjoy a tropical sunset.

Apart from the very good museum and art gallery (one of the best we have seen), which is free, just about everything you do around Darwin has you dipping your hand into your pocket. Some are a little overpriced by our judgement, even throwing a couple of bits of bread to the fish at Aquascene costs $11 p.p. We have booked in for another week as Sue’s next dentist appointment is on Tuesday 9^th and we thought we had better stay the remainder of the week in case she needs more follow-up. That will see us leaving Darwin on Monday the 15^th heading for Litchfield N.P.