After spending four nights at an hotel on Darwins waterfront, we picked up our hire camper van yesterday and headed towards Litchfield National Park. Our chosen place to camp for the week is in a powered site at the Litchfield Safari Park. By the time we picked up shopping on route it was mid afternoon when we arrived. A quick sort out of our hired camper, food and clothes away, and we headed to the pool for a quick dip, and then begun to make plans for the rest of the week.

There’s quite a few walk trails in the park, along with waterfalls and swimming holes. Of course there’s always a bit of a danger of crocs, but generally in the dry season the water holes are reasonable safe, and the rangers put out all sorts of traps to ensure none move into tourist swimming areas. Any sign of them and the areas get closed quick smart until the croc is caught and re-located. Of course, the fresh water crocs are around, but they’re timid and usually keep well away from people. If I saw either in the water of course, I’d be walking on water faster than Jesus Christ and I’d be back on dry land faster than lightning. 

Today we chose the Wangi Falls walk. It was graded as a moderate walk of around an hour, and true to its description, it was in fact only a moderate walk, and it did only take approximately an hour. The walk starts at the Wangi plunge pool and water falls, and then meanders up and around the back of the falls in a circuit finishing back at the swimming hole. It’s a steep walk in places, but it’s not to difficult for a couple of old ducks like us. Mind you, Paul is a bit of a mountain goat, I definitely am not. I’m okay going up hill and can hold my own, but when it comes to the downhill sections I take my time and pick my way carefully.

The walk went through shady areas of green pandanas with hundreds of bats hanging from the trees overhead, then onto to rocky inclines with very little shade. I had been a little worried that a moderate grade walk may have been a bit too difficult (thinking back to moderate grade walks in Karijini – walks that had me wondering at the time, moderate for who, a fell runner). I needn’t have worried. The walk was indeed true to the grading assigned to it (in this writers opinion anyway). Very pleasant indeed.

Paul manages the steep sections easily. I pick my way, wearing my sturdy books and leaning on my trustee bush walking pole. I couldn’t do it without either, as well as my trusted walking companion Paul. Paul knows my limitations well and is intuitive to the places where a balancing arm or shoulder doesn’t go astray.

The walk finished, we made ourselves a chicken and salad roll in the camper, grabbed a bottle of water and headed back to the Wangi picnic area to eat it. Then into the water hole for a swim. It was cool to get in, but lovely and refreshing. I tried hard to get under the falls but they were just a tad too powerful. I got close though.

Then came the promised ice cream from the cafe. At $8.75 each, $17.50 for two, this won’t be the first of many, a one time treat only. I savoured and enjoyed every lick!

I can’t conclude this post without a bit of a whinge. Bloody WordPress has done some sort of an upgrade AGAIN. I wish they wouldn’t fix what ain’t broke! Now it’s all difficult to use again. Photos won’t go in where I want them, they go in at sizes I don’t want them to be, hence a photo of an ice-cream beside the Wangi plunge pool (I know the two don’t go together it was either that or have an image taking up a column space only on the page…… Grrrrr!!!!