From there we carried on East across the Adelaide River and Mary River arriving at the Mary River Wilderness Retreat just after lunch. We pretty much had our pick of sites as wasn't very busy when we arrived. We picked two sites as Carol and Stephen are rejoining us tomorrow. The sites are quite large, green, and shady. The only thing to be aware of is the placement of power/water points is not consistent and you need to ensure you are within reach of each service. We had stayed here previously in 2011 and were happy to return. Amenity block was fairly good but could have been a bit cleaner. I will give 3 Stars. There is a swimming pool which although small was very nice. A bit of a walk to it as is located near the administration/restaurant building. Nice and green everywhere as they are watering grass continually. Mornings are beautiful here with Sunrise, Mist, and Kangaroos!
We got settled in and did some organizing/laundry in the afternoon. Sandra and I organized an Air Boat tour for Friday morning for the four of us. We had wanted to do the last time we were here but couldn't arrange during our stay. We cooled off in the pool as well. Mobile service is sketchy down by the caravan area so we did some internet catch up at the Pool area as well.
Wednesday we became aware of the terrible wildfire situation playing out in our former Hometown of Fort McMurray, Alberta, Canada. We spent most of the day on the computers trying to keep up with the latest developments. A terrible tragedy with the whole city of over 80,000 people being evacuated and some 2000 home/buildings being destroyed. The positive being that miraculously their were no fatalities. Another positive on a dark day was the many stories of heroism and kind acts! It is wonderful to see how people can come together in a crisis. The crisis is still playing out with no planned return date for the City residents. Our thoughts and prayers are with all the people affected.
Sandra and I went for a short walk in the early afternoon to clear our heads and get some exercise. We did the Bamboo walk which is about 3 Km. Was pretty hot and didn't really see too much as viewpoints at River were overgrown and well back from the water.
The Ransleys arrived at Mary River in late afternoon after flying into Darwin earlier in the day. We enjoyed a nice BBQ Baked Chicken dinner with them. They are both well but tired from the trip and busy activity while they were home for Stephen's Mum's funeral. It was an early night for all of us.
Thursday morning we did a drive with the Ransleys. We retraced some of the sites we had seen in 2011 with the expectation that there would be more water as the Wet Season had just ended. Unfortunately we witnessed first hand the results of a dry "Wet Season". Apparently they only received about half of their normal rainfall during the Wet Season which has led to water levels being very low. Our first stop was Fogg Dam where we stopped at the viewing platform before doing a walk out to the wetlands. Very disappointing as very little water or bird life.
The next stop was the Window on the Wetlands tourist site. This is a lovely tourist display with only a gold coin donation if you like. We had seen before and mainly came to see the view as is located on a hill. Again there was limited water, so limited wildlife as well.
A few more stops at Leaning Tree Lagoon and Bird Billabong netted similar results.
We returned to the caravan park for a late lunch and a relaxing afternoon. We spent some time up at the swimming pool in the late afternoon and after dinner. The girls decided to have a hair day with each of them getting a dye job. Discovered our outdoor shower might have been missed in our cleanup from Lorella Springs.
I haven't mentioned yet about the mosquitoes. They are terrible! Even sprayed with repellent and under water they were attacking in full force in the swimming pool. We've tried a few things to discourage them but not successfully to date.
Friday morning we were up early and travelling to Wildman's Wilderness Lodge for our Air Boat trip over the Wetlands. It is located on the Point Stuart Road towards Shady Camp. We arrived just after 8AM at the Lodge. It is a really nice place and would be interesting place to stay for non caravan travelers. We suggested they consider a few caravan spots as the road in is great and is a lovely location.
Our Guide, Chase, rounded us onto our transportation to the Billabong, where we boarded the Air Boat. Sandra loved the side mirror on the truck! One other couple joined us for the trip. It was certainly a great way to see the Wetlands although would have been even better with a better "Wet Season" I think. We saw a few Crocodiles and lots of bird life. Lillies and Lotus were out as well so was quite pretty as we drove through/over the Billabong/Wetlands. I've included lots of pictures, but as always there are more on the photo link of our trip.
We arrived back at the Wilderness Lodge after 90 minute tour where we had a quick break before heading off. We traveled back out to Point Stuart Road and then North to Shady Camp. This is apparently one of the "Holy Grail's" of Barramundi fishing! There is a barrage built that is intended to keep the Salt water entering the fresh water of the Mary River system. Apparently this also draws a huge population of Salt Water Crocodiles and Barramundi. We didn't see any of either, although we did see a few people placing themselves in unsafe positions in the attempt of catching a Barramundi! Was quite a nice area and has a large camping area that would accommodate vans of all sizes. No services other than toilets that we could see, but pricing was very reasonable. Not too many people there which is probably because of the hot weather and high humidity. I would guess it would get quite busy when the weather is good and the fish are biting!
We drove back towards our caravan park but stopped at Mistake Billabong for our picnic lunch. Very little water in this Billabong as well, which apparently is one of the last to dry up in the area. Last stop of the day was at the historic Bark Hut for a cold drink. Quite a unique pub and worth a visit if in the area. We all had a bit of a rest back at the caravans, and did some clean up/organizing. Another hot day and with lots of mosquitoes.
Saturday we enjoyed a bit of a sleep in as no early plans. We did have a boat rental arranged for 10:30 at the Wilderness Retreat which we were able to walk to. Spent about 3 hours on the Mary River exploring. Saw a good sized Saltwater Crocodile and a small Freshwater Crocodile. I tried my hand at fishing with no success. Somethings haven't changed from our last trip! We enjoyed a Picnic lunch on the boat. Haven't seen nearly as many Crocodiles as our last trip to this area. Not sure if numbers are down or they are just harder to find?
Late afternoon was spent relaxing and preparing to move on tomorrow. We are off to Darwin for a week or so. Have enjoyed Mary River Park again although the lack of water has reduced the Crocodile and Wetland experience a bit for us. Would stay here again should we return to try Wet Season again!
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