To Broome and Back!: Days 42, 43 and 44. Resting in Darwin 22

Our days here in Darwin have been very relaxing. We have been out every afternoon sightseeing every nook and corner of this very pretty city. Our park at Howard Springs is some 24 kms south of the Darwin city centre so we have a quite a drive to get to the main tourist attractions.

We visited the Howard Springs Nature Park that is just up the road from our caravan park. On our arrival John chose a lovely tree under which to park so that we would be out of the sun. Just as we stepped out of the car a large bird decided to leave a huge deposit on the bonnet of the car. Well, I'm sure anyone within a 50 km radius could have heard John abusing the bird.

The area was developed in 1939 because of the continual problem for the township of Darwin with a water supply that depended upon wells, rainwater tanks and bores, A reticulation system from Howard Springs was developed, but was only intended as a short term solution whilst Manton Dam was being completed. The American Army were camped at Howard Springs for a short time and after they left it was developed as one of a series of rest camps that could accommodate 120 service personnel at one time. The Australian Army and Airforce were involved in construction works from 1942 to 1944 and in 1944 the Australian Field Company of Royal Australian Engineers constructed the present weir at Howard Springs. After the war the weir created a recreation swimming pool for Darwin civilians.

It now is a very popular area for family picnics because of great facilities for children. Whilst we were at the weir we saw a number of huge Barramundi just beneath a viewing platform that were being enticed to come to the surface to eat the Pilchards that were being offered. Not only are there Barra, but a number of varieties of other fish and turtles. At the waters edge a very large Water Monitor was patrolling the area.

The City of Palmerston is the local hub for shopping and also has over 100 suburban parks and recreation areas. We visited the very popular Marlow Lagoon Recreation Centre that contained a beautiful lake, bbq facilities and playgrounds.

We also travelled a distance out of town to investigate the L.P.G storage tanks that are used in the export of huge volumes of gas to China. We had to cross the huge Elizabeth River, a beautiful Azure blue in colour, that had mangrove swamps all around it. It was obvious that it would be croc infested so didn't investigate too closely. We also passed a Housing Immigration Centre and an enormous housing accommodation facility that houses 3000 people that work on the pipeline construction. We were told that both these facilities are owned by one man in Darwin who obviously is extremely rich and makes his fortune by leasing them to the Northern Territory Government.

Our last day in Darwin saw us heading to Cullen Bay Marina where we intended to catch the ferry to Mandorah, but after making some enquiries, we found that although the ferry continues to cross over, there is no longer a Hotel there and the area is now just for the Aboriginals. So we didn't go. John looked everywhere for the window walled toilet that Ian Bull told us of but without success. We decided to spend a little time at the Marina and enjoy the surroundings. A very attractive precinct with Cafes, Restaurants etc. and across the water we could see some very lovely homes with water frontages and private boat moorings. We then drove around the residential area of Cullen Bay that also had beautiful homes with more of those magnificent tropical gardens.

A short stop to check out the Star City Casino. As with most casinos, no expense has been spared in furnishing this casino and we were very impressed with interior and gardens outside. Dale you would have been very happy to spend some time here. The Casino and the Hotel both have wonderful views of Fannie Bay.

John of course wanted to see the Port of Darwin Wharf to check out the fishing boats. It is a very large wharf with many fishing trawlers, boats etc and in dock was the very large Customs and Border Patrol Ship. Not much was going on down there so we decided to go to Stokes Wharf downtown at the Waterfront. Stokes Wharf was the first area that the Japanese dropped their bombs on in Feb. 1942 completely destroying it, andkilling many waterside workers.The bombing also destroyed a number of ships that were in dock. It of course has been rebuilt and is a very important wharf for overseas cruise ships to dock.

While we where there a large boat carrying cattle to overseas destinations steamed out of the bay. Don witnessed the cattle actually being loaded onto this ship earlier in the day.

We took our last look at the city before heading to the Darwin Sailing Club for dinner tonight. The Sailing Club is in a superb setting on the beach. Magnificent views of the Darwin harbour and in a setting of lush lawns, palms, frangipani, tamarind trees and multi coloured tropical plants and shrubs.

A very enjoyable meal with Rod, Jude, Don and Heather as we celebrated our last day in this very lovely city.
Tomorrow we head for Kakadu.