BATCHELOR AND LITCHFIELD NATIONAL PARK.

Batchelor, the gateway to Litchfield National Park, lies just 100 kilometres south of Darwin.  Goyder's survey partly passed through the area in 1869, and in 1874 a small roadhouse, the Rum Jungle Hotel, was constructed on the supply route.  The present township stands on a section of land that was part of a demonstration farm established in 1912 by a Mr. E Batchelor.  The area began to flourish in 1949 with the discovery of uranium by John Michael White .  1952 saw the expansion of town when it became home to workers employed at the Rum Jungle Uranium Mine , Australia's first uranium mine  and one of the greatest economic influences on the subsequent development of the Top End. Mining operations ceased in the early 1970's  and Batchelor came under the control of the Northern Territory Administration.  Bachelor Institute of Indigenous Tertiary Education, in the centre of town, originally occupied the single men's quarters of the mining company.

After booking at the information centre into Jim's Caravan and Cabin Park, the girls found a great venue for a much needed coffee and cake.  The happy chappy  and owner of the unusual  place, Bachelor Butterfly and Bird Farm,  was an Irishman who never wore shoes.  

He was a collector of 'things'. 

Looks like a teddy bears picnic!! 

Imagine the size of the tree that provided the tables. 

The girls admiring the garden. What a perfect breeding place for mosquitoes. Think they made the right decision to book into a cabin at the park. 

The Park covers approximately 1,500 sq. km, near the township of Batchelor, 100km. south-west of Darwin, in the Northern Territory of Australia.  Each year the park attracts over 260,000 visitors.  Parks and Wildlife Commission of the Northern Territory manage the park. Proclaimed a national park in 1986, it is named after Frederick Henry Litchfield, a Territory pioneer who explored areas of the Territory from Escape Cliffs on the Timor Sea to the Daly River in 1864. 

A well kept walk way to a viewing platform at Florence Falls where the fit could walk down 150 stairs to swim safely in the pool below the long waterfall. 

FLORENCE FALLS 

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A very fit person out for a thrill at Florence Falls. 

A GREAT VIEW FROM THE PLATFORM 

ARTISTIC GROUND COVERAGE 

THE ONLY BIRD WE SAW IN THE PARK!!! 

WANGI FALLS IS SEGMENTED. HAS AN 84 METRES ELEVATION AND IS 41-52 METRES HIGH, WITH ONE DROP.  IT IS ON THE WANGI CREEK.   The brave girls had a quick dip, having been told all the salties had been removed after the wet, and if there were fresh water crocs , they are harmless!!!  They braved a quick swim because they felt they couldn't inform friends, they didn't swim in the park.  After a rest under trees they proceeded to the cafe for a light meal.  Margaret chattered to a safari group  on the way and was given a left-over sausage and onions on bread. 

KAREN ENJOYING THE DIP. 

SOME BRAVE PEOPLE SWAM QUITE A DISTANCE TO THE FALLS.

VERY UNPRODUCTIVE COUNTRY 

THEY TOOK A RIGHT TURN TO A DIS-USED MINE SITE AT RUM JUNGLE WHICH IS NOW A BEAUTIFUL LAKE. 

THE GIRLS ENJOYED A BEER WHILE TALKING TO LOCALS AND A COUPLE OF FRENCH BACKPACKERS WHO ARE HITCHING AROUND AUSTRALIA, AND SLEEPING IN HUMMOCKS WHEN SUITABLE TREES ARE FOUND. 

NEVER SEEN A PLASTIC WOVEN WALL BEFORE!!!  

EVERY AFTERNOON AT 5, JIM FEEDS THE BIRDS IN THE LARGE PARK.

GIRLS APPEAR TO HAVE HAD A 'FEW'