Oceania: Day 32: 8-4-94: Litchfield National Park

We spent today going to various locales within Litchfield National Park. First we visited the wonderous Cathedral Termite Mounds. The mounds, made over a period of 60+ years in some cases, can grow up to 25 feet high and hold in excess of 55,000 termites. The industrious little fellas chew on mud and grass, which mixes with their saliva and forms a solid compound that dries as hard as concrete. The resulting mound provides a safe home for generations of termites and continues to grow as long as the colony thrives.

------------------------------Cathedral Termite Mound-----------------------------

Next we visited two different waterfalls. The first was called Wangi Falls, where I lazed around writing postcards and taking photos of a giant (4 foot) goana lizard that lumbered by. Then it was off to Florence Falls. When we arrived at the top of the 50-foot cliff from whence the water plunged, I was among the brave few who took the "Scott And Carl Cuzzy Bro Challenge" and jumped off the thing. I did it quickly, before I had time to really think about it and potentially chicken out. After a mad adrenaline rush and a (thankfully) painless splash, I realized my mistake -- I was in such a rush that I never asked anyone to capture my "Kodak Moment" and immortalize the daring deed. No photos, no proof . . . no proof, no glory! As I proceeded to mentally prepare myself to jump again, I came to another unsettling realization: in order to take my proposed second plunge (something Scott and Carl said no one had ever been keen to try), I first had to make a dangerous trek up the side of the steep, slippery (not to mention sharp!) rock wall. It was slow going, but I did eventually manage to make it (though my bare feet suffered a few lacerations for the effort). After making sure my volunteer photog was ready to snap away, I jumped again, once more finding a smooth landing without injury (some of my friends weren't so lucky, bruising their backs and/or thighs after just a single attempt).

--------------------------------My Florence Falls Fall----------------------------------

After we all had a brief swim at the bottom of the falls, it was off to see the Magnetic Termite Mounds. While not as tall as their cousins we saw earlier, Magnetic Termite Mounds are nonetheless impressive natural architectural structures. Magnetic Termite Mounds are straight, smooth, wide and thin, and are so named because they always align with the North and South Magnetic Poles. Magnetic Termites need the warmth of the sun to survive, so when the sun rises, they move to the East side of the mound, and when the sun sets, they work their way over to the West side (and no, I'm afraid I don't have time to tell a West Side Story).

We arrived back at the Darwin Hotel, where we had a couple hours to unwind. Then it was off to the Darwin Street Markets, where I had my first taste of South American cuisine -- a chicken dish with potatoes, vegetables and rice -- and bought my very own didgeridoo (now I just have to learn how to play the darn thing!). I also purchased a plastic boomerang toy for the kids to throw around (I plan to get an authentic one, as well, sometime tomorrow).

After leaving the street fair, it was back to Hotel Darwin for a Strongbow Draught with Max, Roger and a couple of his German friends from Roger's previous tour. Then it was off to a self-imposed early bedtime, as tomorrow would be the tour's final night, and I needed to rest up.