Litchfield NP Pt 1 - Falling Down

Today I went on another day trip with AAT Kings, this time our destination was the Litchfield National Park.
Entering the coach, I saw that this tour was way more diverse in age, which was a little bit of a bummer. The atmosphere is completely different when there are just older people (and one young - me). Now you could really feel that the people were more divided, it wasn't such a great vibe as to Kakadu NP.
Our first stop was the Cathedral Termite Mounds. These little see-through insects can build 5m tall mounds that just look astonishing. It's weather resistant which is very important considering the unbearable heat in dry season and floods in wet season. Another rather fascinating kind of termites are the Magnetic Termites who build their mounds always in north-south direction so that one side of it is always cool. Amazing, isn't it?
The next stop was Florence Falls where we could go swimming if we wanted to. That was the cue I was waiting for!
I went to the viewing platform to overlook the waterfalls, then went down the 135 steps. It was a pretty heavy stream, so I decided to not swim directly in the Florence Falls plunge pool but to go up the Shadow Creek Walk and find another plunge pool there. Strolling up the hill, I saw how the vegetation turned from a lush and vibrant green to a burnt black vastness that looks very unhealthy, though it is just preventing uncontrollable bush fires to destroy the beautiful nature. It still looks quite odd, to be fair.
I finally found a good place to go into the cold, icy water (I'm sure it was not less than 20°C but when you're in 30°C heat, it feels like ice at first) and jumped because of a fish that was nibbling curiously on my feet.
The water was so clear, I could see every single fish move around without any trouble. This pause was quite refreshing.
After relaxing and watching the fish a bit, I made my way back to the coach. Whilst my bare feet hurt on the ground, my body dried off in the midday sun, so that it was rather easy to change back to my normal clothes.
When putting my bathing suit onto a stone in the sun to dry, I watched a little lizard making its way through the leaves. Then we had to go to the next stop: Tolmer Falls.
It's the highest single-fall in Litchfield NP and not available for swimming as it is a protected area. However, you've got quite a stunning view over the south of Litchfield NP from here.
After this quick stop, we made our way back to the coach to get something in our stomachs.
We ate at Litchfield Café, and I sat down next to an elder couple who quickly started talking to me. We talked about our origins, our plans, ours trip so far. And I shared the apple story with them. Again, I got lots of sympathy and disbelief that the penalty was so much out of proportion. Then, Robyn remembered that the man sitting behind them in the coach used to work for exactly that Infringement Unit. She just went to him, explaining my situation and asked what I could do. Answer: If I got the declaration document in English instead of German (my mother tongue) I would have a good case. So, my mood was lifted and I was very grateful for elder people's chattiness.En savoir plus