Australia So Much to See

Kakadu National Park - Aboriginal rock paintings at Nourlangie and Nanguluwur

Kakadu has some of the oldest Aboriginal rock paintings ever seen.  We visit Nourlangie Rock first. 

Our next base was at the Muirella campground.  This is at the site of a former hunting safari camp.  The long Darradjin Billabong runs alongside the campground.  There is a boat ramp, but only powered boats may be taken in the lagoon and fishing with live bait is prohibited.  Salt water crocodiles inhabit this lagoon. 

Kakadu Cultural Camp with safari tent accommodation is adjacent.  Demonstrations of didgeridoo playing and spear throwing are given.  Night animal spotting boat rides are $70 per person from the Cultural Camp, and we were offered tickets at half price due to cancellations but reluctantly declined as we had just come in from a long day of touring. 

The day area car park near the campground is at the start of the easy four kilometre Bubba Wetlands walk.   The Bubba wetlands feature billabongs and swamps dotted with lilies and fringed with paperbarks, pandanus and fresh water mangroves.  An ideal bird watching nature walk. 

Four kilometres west of the Muirella turnoff is a track into Mirrai Lookout on Mount Cahill.  A one kilometre walk took us to a viewing platform with signage at the top of the hill.  There are 360° views from this platform.  The early morning mist sat low around Nourlangie and adjacent rocks, and along the East Alligator River. 

Nourlangie is a popular Aboriginal rock painting viewing venue, and a 1.5 kilometre wheel chair accessible path follows around the different galleries.  This is a popular destination for the tourist coaches. 

The most common ochres used in rock paintings are Haematite (red), Limonite (yellow), Pipe clay (white) and Charcoal (black). 

The first paintings we saw have been made on a rough rock surface and are difficult to photograph. As with so many rock painting galleries, there are paintings on top of other paintings, as it is the significance was in doing the painting, rather than in the painting itself. Some of the paintings were very faded while others were more vivid, giving the impression that some may have been touched up, although that would be unusual and not typical of this region.  One gallery was dated as recent – 1,000 years old. 

Anbangbang Gallery is photographed to the left.  This collection of figures tells a story, although the meaning is not known to us. 

Namarndjolg is the large figure at the top of the painting; he and his sister # broke the kinship laws on the rock ledge above this gallery.  Namarndjolg later became Ginga, the great saltwater crocodile. 

This was the first time I had experienced seeing rock painting high on a rock face, and marvelled at how they achieved painting at this height. These included hands used as a stencil.   Most Aboriginal rock painting sites are low in sandstone overhangs. 

Namarrgon is the Lightening Man and he can be seen to the right of Narmarndjolg.  He wears his lightening like a band around him connecting his arms, legs and head.  He has stone axes on his knees and his elbows make thunder. 

Namarrgon, his wife Barrginj and their children Aljurr came from the north coast searching for a good place to settle.  Namarrgon now lives at Lightening Dreaming on the escarpment.  His children Aljurr is the lightening, but also has another form – the bright orange and blue grasshoppers which come during the early storm season.  They are looking for Namarrgon.  Aboriginal people know that it is now time to seek shelter.  

Barrginj, Namarrgon’s wife, is on the left side, just below Namarndjolg’s leg. 

Family groups of men and women on their way to a ceremony are arranged at the bottom of the picture.  Flecks on the breasts of the two women on the right indicate they are breastfeeding children.

Guluibirr, the Saratoga fish is a popular food fished from the waterways nearby and is seen just above the families on the lower right. 

Nearby the Anbangbang Billabong is a small lagoon which is part of a chain of wetlands.  There is a walk right around the billabong, but we did not do this walk as the drive covers the entire length of the billabong with a few parking areas and picnic tables along the way to stop and take photos.  The colourful sandstone of Nourlangie Rock can be seen across the lily covered water. 

Hands have been the subject of rock painting since Aboriginal people first came to the area perhaps 50,000 years ago.  The display of stencilled hands above includes some prints with all fingers open, and others with the middle three fingers grouped together. 

Some of the paintings were very clear, and included many x-ray style fish and turtles and some are dated as more recent in origin, being accredited to two people during the 1960s.  It is also believed that Reckets Blue (laundry product) was added to the natural pigments during this era. 

Of special interest is the picture of a sailing vessel.  Ships like this were seen in the area between 1880 and 1950 when they brought supplies to buffalo hunting camps on the floodplains of the Alligator Rivers, returning to Darwin with hides.  Many Aboriginal people worked in these camps seasonally.  This painting clearly shows the detail of an anchor chain at the front, and has a dinghy in tow behind.  Aboriginal artists have a very retentive memory for detail when seeing something totally new. The fish to the left of the ship appears to have been painted at a later time. 

The car park for Nanguluwur is not far off the track to Gubara pools.  A rough track continues for nine kilometres, followed by a three kilometre walk past sandstone cliffs to shady monsoon forest pools.  For the six kilometre return walk, four hours is recommended.   When accessible, visits would be better in the wet season when the water is flowing well.  We did not go to Gubara.