Camping in the Kakadu/Darwin/Bungle Bungle area.

[LKC]

We are thinking of going on a 'big' holiday with our kiddo's (aged 6 and 4) up to see some of the northern part of Australia and I wondered if anyone had any advice or could answer a couple of questions I have.

 

We are considering either Sept/Oct this year or June/July next, whenever coincides with the school holidays, and going for two or three weeks. We are thinking of flying to Darwin and picking up a Britz 4WD with camping stuff (they are kind of kitted out with a kitchen and so on in the back), and spending some time exploring around Kakadu, across towards Kununurra and the Bungle Bungles and maybe part of the Gibb River Road. It has always been a dream of ours to see this area. We were thinking about camping out mostly, with maybe a couple of two night stops in somewhere a bit more luxurious so as to be able to get clean and sleep in a proper bed.

 

Which would be the best time of the year to visit? We were thinking of late Sept/early Oct which I believe is the end of the dry, or alternatively

June/July.

 

Can anyone recommend any other places to visit, or maybe an itinerary that we could follow? We are pretty easy going with respect to how much we do, but don't want to waste the opportunity while we are there.

 

Are we completely mad trying to do something like this with smallish children? We do a fair bit of bushwalking, so they are used to that. On one hand they are still quite small and I am worried about putting them in unnecessary danger, but on the other hand I think it could be the most wonderful experience for them. I suppose I am ever so slightly worried about crocs and snakes (having never come across them in Sydney), and also you do hear of backpackers and so on running in to other sorts of violence/trouble in remote areas. The alternative option would be to hire a campervan which may be 'safer' but may also restrict us in terms of where we can go. Am I just being silly and over-protective?

 

Any other advice with regards to camping and so on, particularly with children?

[Freckleface]

I haven't been to the places you are talking about so can't offer any suggestions about that area. However we took our kids 'hard core' 4WD camping in very remote areas from the time they were babies. As long as you find out about the various areas you are going into they will be fine.

 

Actually they will be more than fine - they will have the time of their lives and make many happy memories.

[Maruska]

Sorry can`t offer advice but as for camping with kids - they are much more resilient than adults and oblivious to the discomforts of camping, it`s a big adventure to them. Your plan sounds great:biggrin:

[LKC]

I haven't been to the places you are talking about so can't offer any suggestions about that area. However we took our kids 'hard core' 4WD camping in very remote areas from the time they were babies. As long as you find out about the various areas you are going into they will be fine.

 

Actually they will be more than fine - they will have the time of their lives and make many happy memories.

 

I think you are right. Providing we are sensible in the fact that we have an itinerary, good maps, make sure we know where we can get petrol etc, we will probably have the time of our lives!

[Freckleface]

I think you are right. Providing we are sensible in the fact that we have an itinerary, good maps, make sure we know where we can get petrol etc, we will probably have the time of our lives!

 

I am sure you have already done this - but if not.......get in touch with National Parks and Wildlife in the NT (they probably have a website these days). They will be able to give you a lot of practical info about what to do and how to do it safely.

[Bobj]

We are thinking of going on a 'big' holiday with our kiddo's (aged 6 and 4) up to see some of the northern part of Australia and I wondered if anyone had any advice or could answer a couple of questions I have.

 

We are considering either Sept/Oct this year or June/July next, whenever coincides with the school holidays, and going for two or three weeks. We are thinking of flying to Darwin and picking up a Britz 4WD with camping stuff (they are kind of kitted out with a kitchen and so on in the back), and spending some time exploring around Kakadu, across towards Kununurra and the Bungle Bungles and maybe part of the Gibb River Road. It has always been a dream of ours to see this area. We were thinking about camping out mostly, with maybe a couple of two night stops in somewhere a bit more luxurious so as to be able to get clean and sleep in a proper bed.

Which would be the best time of the year to visit? We were thinking of late Sept/early Oct which I believe is the end of the dry, or alternatively

June/July.

 

Can anyone recommend any other places to visit, or maybe an itinerary that we could follow? We are pretty easy going with respect to how much we do, but don't want to waste the opportunity while we are there.

 

Are we completely mad trying to do something like this with smallish children? We do a fair bit of bushwalking, so they are used to that. On one hand they are still quite small and I am worried about putting them in unnecessary danger, but on the other hand I think it could be the most wonderful experience for them. I suppose I am ever so slightly worried about crocs and snakes (having never come across them in Sydney), and also you do hear of backpackers and so on running in to other sorts of violence/trouble in remote areas. The alternative option would be to hire a campervan which may be 'safer' but may also restrict us in terms of where we can go. Am I just being silly and over-protective?

 

Any other advice with regards to camping and so on, particularly with children?

 

DO IT!

I lived in the Kimberlies and every year take a trip back to marvel at the magnificence of it all. September will be fine and temps will be about the low to middle 30s.

A suggested sortie, or two off the bitumen;

 

First left hand down a bit after the WA border control (NO VEGIES, SPUDS ETC!!!:no:) is the Golden Gate Ck. turn left immediately after the ck, go 6.3 km, turn right and follow the track 9.1 km to a gorgeous gorge.

 

 

From there, back to hwy, turn left and go to the Lake Argyle t/off, go along there to the Spillway Ck, go over the bridge, head towards the village. About 1 km after the bridge is a very red rock some 30 metres off the road on the rhs. It has native paintings. Almost opposite, there is a track that leads to the Spillway Ck. Water is <label for="rb_iconid_14"></label> to drink. It is also one of our campsites.:yes:

 

 

After that, go to Kununurra, and have a squiz at Ivanhoe Crossing, 10 km from town. You can catch barra there<label for="rb_iconid_14"></label> Just cast a small soft plastic lure into the white water and retrieve.

 

That's enough for now...Might see you in Sept.

 

Cheers, Bobj.

[wakeboard1980]

Do it for sure. I did 3 months around Aus back in 2004 in a Hilux 4wd with a canopy on the back, I would honestly do it again tomorrow if I had the chance. I spent over about 45 days of that in the NT and WA. One of my favourite places would have to be Litchfield National Park. swimming under waterfalls in June.....middle of winter....it was great. There are so many places to see and visit up the Top End. I would suggest planning a route of where you want to go from peoples advice and your own research but don't plan it so gou have to be somewhere at a certain time. When I did it I would drive through somewhere and if I didn't have any where specific to visit I would have a quick scout around and if I saw anything I liked I would stay the day, if not, onto the next town.

 

I would generally stop for 2 nights every 5-6 days to do some washing etc and have a good explore around.

 

Gibb river road awsome, kakadu, not bad, did a jumping croc cruise on the way in, you can't go wrong up there.

 

I see Bobj has already posted on the thread, he is the man to speak to, think he explored the area with a horse and cart many moons ago:wink:get as much info out of him as possible.

 

Have fun planning your trip, I am very jealous, I will have to do something similar with my wife and little girl in a few years.

[LKC]

DO IT!

I lived in the Kimberlies and every year take a trip back to marvel at the magnificence of it all. September will be fine and temps will be about the low to middle 30s.

A suggested sortie, or two off the bitumen;

 

First left hand down a bit after the WA border control (NO VEGIES, SPUDS ETC!!!:no:) is the Golden Gate Ck. turn left immediately after the ck, go 6.3 km, turn right and follow the track 9.1 km to a gorgeous gorge.

 

 

From there, back to hwy, turn left and go to the Lake Argyle t/off, go along there to the Spillway Ck, go over the bridge, head towards the village. About 1 km after the bridge is a very red rock some 30 metres off the road on the rhs. It has native paintings. Almost opposite, there is a track that leads to the Spillway Ck. Water is <label for="rb_iconid_14"></label> to drink. It is also one of our campsites.:yes:

 

 

After that, go to Kununurra, and have a squiz at Ivanhoe Crossing, 10 km from town. You can catch barra there<label for="rb_iconid_14"></label> Just cast a small soft plastic lure into the white water and retrieve.

 

That's enough for now...Might see you in Sept.

 

Cheers, Bobj.

 

Thanks Bobj, I was hoping you'd be about! It is partly your wonderful stories that have inspired us to go up that way. We wanted to go on a 'big' holiday before Charlotte starts school and we have two of them bogged down with homework and after school things. We looked at flying in to Broome to start with, but the flights were way more expensive and the hire of the 4wd was more too so although I would have loved to see Broome, particularly the dinosaur footprints, we will have to give it a miss this time.

 

With regards to camping areas, are there specific areas to stop, or can you stop wherever takes your fancy? I presume that most of the land is either owned by cattle farms or is Aboriginal.

[LKC]

Do it for sure. I did 3 months around Aus back in 2004 in a Hilux 4wd with a canopy on the back, I would honestly do it again tomorrow if I had the chance. I spent over about 45 days of that in the NT and WA. One of my favourite places would have to be Litchfield National Park. swimming under waterfalls in June.....middle of winter....it was great. There are so many places to see and visit up the Top End. I would suggest planning a route of where you want to go from peoples advice and your own research but don't plan it so gou have to be somewhere at a certain time. When I did it I would drive through somewhere and if I didn't have any where specific to visit I would have a quick scout around and if I saw anything I liked I would stay the day, if not, onto the next town.

 

I would generally stop for 2 nights every 5-6 days to do some washing etc and have a good explore around.

 

Gibb river road awsome, kakadu, not bad, did a jumping croc cruise on the way in, you can't go wrong up there.

 

I see Bobj has already posted on the thread, he is the man to speak to, think he explored the area with a horse and cart many moons ago:wink:get as much info out of him as possible.

 

Have fun planning your trip, I am very jealous, I will have to do something similar with my wife and little girl in a few years.

 

We were thinking of doing something similar, camping for a few days and then stop somewhere to do washing and let the girls go crazy with the tv! Around that time, depending on exactly when we go, is our wedding anniversary and Matts birthday, can't think of anything more amazing than celebrating those in that setting.

 

I am toying with the idea of making it three to four weeks rather than two. Although it means Sophie will be off school a bit, she will learn loads by going. The school won't mind, there is one boy who was in her class last year who has gone travelling with a circus for a year!

[LKC]

Bobj, which is the thread with all of your photos on? Is it the sunrise/sunset one?

[mwgster]

Hey

Wish you were my parents! haha In all seriousness, I did a 3 day trip from Darwin into Kakadu and travelled Arnhem Land, Jim Jim Falls etc early/mid November time.. Went with a group of people in a big 4x4.. One of the best experiences I have ever had.. On the trip I remember a couple taking their two young lads.. they were probably a bit older.. around 7 & 10'ish... No problems at all.. I remember the flies being a real pain.. really viscious, in your ears, mouth and not bothered about where they went!! Could drive you mad.. There was the occassional bush fire too.. Would never see the fires but the smoke would linger all day.. My only concern is that as far as I understand you cannot travel where you like, without consent of the chief tribesmen of a particular area!?!? Also, local knowledge in this part of the world is priceless.. Just plan, plan and plan some more.. Like you say, if you are sensible and all goes well, it will be the most amazing experience ever... I remember doing things like swimming through underwater caves, in big pools with fresh water crocs about.. There was also this one place where we swam some 500 meters up this gorge and then came upon a sand bar where we all spent the afternoon.... AMAZING... Good luck.. I am very envious... Martin

[Rupert]

Sounds like a great trip. We were in the area in June last year and weather was perfect.

[Bobj]

Bobj, which is the thread with all of your photos on? Is it the sunrise/sunset one?

 

This 'un, but nothing for camping.

 

http://www.pomsinoz.com/forum/members/bobj-albums-odds-sods.html

 

Lotsa sunrise piccies in the other one...

 

http://www.pomsinoz.com/forum/members/bobj-albums-sunsets.html

 

"Thanks Bobj, I was hoping you'd be about! It is partly your wonderful stories that have inspired us to go up that way. We wanted to go on a 'big' holiday before Charlotte starts school and we have two of them bogged down with homework and after school things. We looked at flying in to Broome to start with, but the flights were way more expensive and the hire of the 4wd was more too so although I would have loved to see Broome, particularly the dinosaur footprints, we will have to give it a miss this time.

 

With regards to camping areas, are there specific areas to stop, or can you stop wherever takes your fancy? I presume that most of the land is either owned by cattle farms or is Aboriginal."

 

You can camp almost anywhere in The Kimberlies, just be aware that there are now quite a few roads to Aboriginal communities, usually signposted. Best to look for campsites about ½ an hour before the sun chucks it in for the day. In the Kimberlies, there are lots of old tracks to gravel pits; these areas are devoid of vegetation and make ideal places to camp overnight. Also, there are numerous free campsites within 100 metres of the highway all through The Kimberlies and on through The NT. to The Darwin and most, if not all of them, have water, not necessarily for drinking, but for car radiators...

 

I take it that you live in Sydney?? If so, would it be cheaper to fly direct to The Darwin, hire a camper set and proceed from there? I don't think that one has to return the camper set to the place of hire, just let 'em know where you intend going to and fly out of Broome... Anyway, the dino tracks are off any roads and you would need to hire a boat, or the hover craft at Broome, to see them... I think.

 

Cheers, Bobj.

[LKC]

This 'un, but nothing for camping.

 

http://www.pomsinoz.com/forum/members/bobj-albums-odds-sods.html

 

Lotsa sunrise piccies in the other one...

 

http://www.pomsinoz.com/forum/members/bobj-albums-sunsets.html

 

"Thanks Bobj, I was hoping you'd be about! It is partly your wonderful stories that have inspired us to go up that way. We wanted to go on a 'big' holiday before Charlotte starts school and we have two of them bogged down with homework and after school things. We looked at flying in to Broome to start with, but the flights were way more expensive and the hire of the 4wd was more too so although I would have loved to see Broome, particularly the dinosaur footprints, we will have to give it a miss this time.

 

With regards to camping areas, are there specific areas to stop, or can you stop wherever takes your fancy? I presume that most of the land is either owned by cattle farms or is Aboriginal."

 

You can camp almost anywhere in The Kimberlies, just be aware that there are now quite a few roads to Aboriginal communities, usually signposted. Best to look for campsites about ½ an hour before the sun chucks it in for the day. In the Kimberlies, there are lots of old tracks to gravel pits; these areas are devoid of vegetation and make ideal places to camp overnight. Also, there are numerous free campsites within 100 metres of the highway all through The Kimberlies and on through The NT. to The Darwin and most, if not all of them, have water, not necessarily for drinking, but for car radiators...

 

I take it that you live in Sydney?? If so, would it be cheaper to fly direct to The Darwin, hire a camper set and proceed from there? I don't think that one has to return the camper set to the place of hire, just let 'em know where you intend going to and fly out of Broome... Anyway, the dino tracks are off any roads and you would need to hire a boat, or the hover craft at Broome, to see them... I think.

 

Cheers, Bobj.

 

Thank you Bobj.

 

Yes, I think we would fly to Darwin and get a hire of a 4WD and camping stuff from there. We looked at flying in (or out) of Broome and out (or in) of Darwin and driving between the two, but it would cost us about $3000 more for the flights from Broome to Sydney plus the one way fee for the car/camping stuff plus the 'remote area fee' for picking up or dropping off at Broome.

[wakeboard1980]

We were thinking of doing something similar, camping for a few days and then stop somewhere to do washing and let the girls go crazy with the tv! Around that time, depending on exactly when we go, is our wedding anniversary and Matts birthday, can't think of anything more amazing than celebrating those in that setting.

 

I am toying with the idea of making it three to four weeks rather than two. Although it means Sophie will be off school a bit, she will learn loads by going. The school won't mind, there is one boy who was in her class last year who has gone travelling with a circus for a year!

 

Don't worry about the school, as you said she will learn heaps. Definatley go for 3-4 weeks. If you want to keep the kids occupied then I would suggest taking a laptop with a DVD player. You can buy a cheap inverter that will plug into the cigarette lighter and supply you with 240v power that is ideal for running/charging things like laptops, you could charge it when you are driving then you have enough to put on a DVD for them of a night.

 

There will be lots of areas to free camp up there or you can just go into a caravan park and get a site powered or unpowered. They don't cost that much and then you can have a shower each day.

[etjenkins]

I know this is a bit late but still might be of use to anyone planning things in the future... You may want to have a look on here

http://www.4wdaction.com.au/forum/viewforum.php?f=169

 

This is a 4wd forum with lots of trip reports and advice on planning trips or anything else 4x4 related. I'm always browsing on here looking at the wonderful places people go even though I'm still at college! We all have to dream though

 

Be nice to hear how you get on with the trip,

 

Elliot

[junellew]

Hey guys - bit late in on this thread but we did the reverse journey last year in July/August and it was amazing. We have 2 young boys aged just 3 and just 2 at the time and they had a ball. Loved nothign better than dirt and some toy cars. I freaked about Crocs and snakes but just need to be vigilent. We were also in 4wd and it lets you see so much more amazing things.

 

Definate recommendation if saving money is to by the "camps australia" book. Recommends all free campspots and whats at the, by the road, water, good scenery etc. It wa slike our bible and has full maps of oz in it too - great for the next big trip!

 

Kakadu was ok in personal opinion but Litchfield to me was alot more beautiful and worth spending time in. Gibb river road was a walk in the park and no where near as bad as people make out, especially the end you will be going from....just a bit rutted. Shame you can't come the other way though as that section form the Broome side was stunnign and less "touristy".

 

Hope you have a fab time, PM me if you want more details and I will try get my camp australia book out and recommend some stops for you that were good. Very jealous!!!

[RockDr]

We went to Kakadu at easter, start of the dry, so great weather, but still loads of water around, made for very spectacular scenery. Stayed at a caravan park in Jabiru township (we got a cabin, but lots of space for tents etc, and the place has a swimming pool to cool off in the evening.) There was loads to keep us occupied for a few days, could easily have stayed longer, and that was with a cheap 2WD hire (most of the 4WD roads were still under water anyway).

 

Going down to Katherine and then back up the other way via Litchfield etc would easily have kept us occupied for a couple of weeks without getting bored, or needing to go hard-core off-roading. So if you do go that time of year I wouldn't bother with the extra expense of a 4WD. End of the dry there'll be lots more accessible, so a 4WD could be fun.

 

Definitely do the yellow-waters cruise in Kakadu (I took 800 photos that day... it really was spectacular)

 

(I know I'm probably a bit late for you LKC, but thought I'd post anyway for any future lurkers...)