We pulled off the road at Caranbirini Conservation Reserve and did the Barrawulla Loop walk which was very worthwhile. It’s coming up to the Wet Season but the creeks are bone dry everywhere.

It was very hot but the path wasn’t too onerous. We knew of the ‘Lost City’ in the reserve but didn’t realise we were walking right to it. As soon as we saw it, we were reminded of the magnificent Bungle Bungles in the Kimberley. These were in miniature but still wonderful to see.

We heard a few cars pass the entrance to this beautiful Reserve and I couldn’t help but think it was a pity they didn’t take just an hour out of their day to explore.

On our way back, we took a short detour to the waterhole, which we expected to be empty. It wasn’t empty but it was very low. The amazing birdlife was still enjoying it and we spent some time just watching.

We dragged ourselves away from Caranbirini to continue on our way. We stopped at Cape Crawford for lunch then camped at the Hi-way Inn at Daly Waters for the night. The NT government had mandated the wearing of masks which was fine as we had some packed but there was a concern that the Aboriginal communities could be locked down as covid19 began to spread in Katherine and Robinson River. Our plan to spend a couple of days in Katherine was abandoned and we decided to head straight to the Central Arnhem Road (aka the track) to ensure we arrived in Nhulunbuy (a) before the Wet, and (b) before it might go into “lockdown”. After all we had a brand new grandson to meet.