Australia So Much to See

East Alligator River Guluyambi Cultural Cruise. Guluyambi means paperbark raft in the Gundjeihmi language. Our host for the morning was an Aboriginal lady who was a knowledgeable guide and capable boat captain.

With barely a ripple a large crocodile drops below the surface and cannot be seen in the water as the boat approaches.

"He must be dead!"

Our guide pointed out one crocodile to us, looking very bloated and listing to one side. Was it dead or wasn’t it? The bloating and the angle indicated to me that it was dead, although the opinions of the other passengers were divided. Edging the boat in a little closer than she should, we were within a distance that would normally alarm a crocodile into flight. This one remained motionless as our guide debated that it may have eaten a wallaby and be sleeping the big meal off, or may have indeed been dead. She was not permitted to bring the boat any closer. At close range, there was not a flicker of movement or sign of life, so we stayed on watching, with more passengers agreeing with those of us who thought it dead. After quite some minutes, this large crocodile suddenly woke up and rapidly swum into the murky depths of the river. It certainly had fooled me.

We certainly saw crocodiles – many four to five metre crocodiles lay low along the river banks. The young ladies from France were really excited as the only one who spoke English translated the commentary enthusiastically. We also saw a small Mertens Monitor tucked under some rocks at the river’s edge.

The journey upstream along this 160 kilometre river was interrupted by a sand bank caused by cyclones in 2006. Previous to this, boats could navigate the river all the way to the escarpment.

We stopped on the Arnhem Land side of the river where our hostess explained pandanus weaving, dyeing and showed us various types of spears. The bright orange fruit of the pandanus can be eaten, but we were warned that it gives a sore mouth and throat.

This short river trip was packed with interest and we certainly saw lots of large crocodiles.

Our guide described many uses for paperbark. The bark is wrapped around a wet pandanus stalk to create a torch or a fire lighter. For cooking the bark is used to wrap food, such as a whole fish in for baking. Paperbark can be used as a cup or a basin, or as plates (with no washing up needed). It can be used as a mattress or blanket, and has insect repellent properties. Water can be found in nodules of bark on the trees.

The hibiscus tree drops its flowers into the river. The flowers are yellow in the morning, and to eat them will make you very sick. In the afternoon they turn orange-red and drop off, and to eat them will make you better.

Ubirr Rock (Obiri)

At Ubirr Rock there is a wealth of Aboriginal Rock paintings, with some of the painting being high on the rock faces, including the Mimi style. These slender red figures are the oldest paintings here, and are so old that they are said to pre-date the Aborigines and were painted by tiny Mimi spirits using blood. These aspects are similar to the Bradshaw paintings of the Kimberley region in Western Australia, said to have been painting by birds using their wing tips dipped in their own blood. The ones viewed at Ubirr are not as complex nor as old as the Bradshaw slender and elegant elaborately adorned people seen in the Kimberley, and some of these at Ubirr may be later ‘Mimi copies’ made at a later date by Aborigines.

Of zoological interest is a painting of a Thylacine which is high on the rock face. The Thylacine was once found on the mainland, but has been extinct for somewhere between two and three thousand years.

In contrast to the hand stencils at Nanguluwur, this hand is filled with ochre, with white sprayed around it. This style can also be seen in the Kimberley.

Most of the paintings at Ubirr Rock are of the X-Ray style and usually of food such as fish and turtles. These are probably from around 1,500 years old to more recent, and are lower down under the sandstone overhands, including on the ceilings. Another painting depicts a white man wearing boots, and is probably from the 1800s.

The Mimi paintings to the left are dark red, and higher up the rock face than the ones to the right. These are near the Rainbow Serpent and the ochre is orange, so these may post date the spirit paintings.

The Rainbow Serpent is one of the most powerful creation ancestors. There are many names and stories associated with the serpent acrossAustralia, all of which show the significance and power of this mystical being within Aboriginal cultures.

After exploring the many galleries, it is time to move high onto the pinnacle Ubirr Rock, overlooking the verdant green Nadab floodplain to the north. To watch the sunset from this pinnacle is a highlight for many visitors to Ubirr.

Read more about crocodiles in Australia here