Multi-Club adventure

23 Jun 2021

Members of Darwin, Charles Darwin, Marrara and Palmerston Probus Clubs recently headed off on tours of Kakadu National Park.

Tours commenced at 6:30am with pick-up by the AAT Kings bus at the Darwin Bus Centre, continuing to Palmerston.

They then headed off down the Stuart Highway, and onto the Arnhem Highway commencing the tour to Kakadu National Park.

The first stop was the Warradjan Culture Centre to learn about the Bininj/Mungguy culture with a variety of displays and artifacts to illustrate the local history and traditions of the area.

After a light lunch at Cooinda Lodge the Probians moved onto the Yellow Water Billabong for a boat tour of the Billabong and South Alligator River. The guide on the cruise was able to identify the vast array of birdlife and vegetation in the region as well as finding a number of saltwater crocodiles on the river banks.

Returning to Jabiru they booked into the Kakadu Crocodile Hotel for dinner and overnight accommodation.

After a comfortable night’s rest the Probians had an early start to the day’s activities heading off for a Guluyambi Cultural Cruise on the East Alligator River. They drove to Cahills Crossing and boarded the boats.

This was a wonderful tour as they viewed the pristine wilderness of the World Heritage landscape. Local guides provided members with an insight into their culture, local mythology and the river’s abundant food chain, traditional uses for many plants and animals together with bush survival skills. With special permission of the traditional owners they were able to go ashore on the northern bank of the river into Arnhem Land. They saw a number of vehicles crossing the river at Cahills Crossing.

Next, the group explored the World Heritage Area of Nourlangie, including the extensive Aboriginal Rock Art and Galleries.

Then it was lunch back in Jabiru before commencing the journey back to Darwin. On board the bus, John Brears, a member of the Probus Club of Charles Darwin, spoke about the design and construction of the Kakadu Crocodile Hotel from his time as Project Manager.

The bus driver and guide, Paul, was very knowledgeable, extremely helpful and a great ambassador for both Kakadu and the AAT Kings tour company.