Judy & Brian Tour Oz: Arnhemland 2016 Tour

Day 7 - Travel from Maningrida to Mount Borradaile

Up again at silly o’clock, this time to be on the road by 7am so that we could get into Davidson’s Safari Lodge at Mt Borradaile by 1 pm. By the time we arrived we were hot and bothered and the first order of business for about half a dozen of us was a swim in the pool. It’s not huge, but again, very deep, and oh so refreshing. Pure bliss. This is the only place not owned by Outback Spirit but it has been substantially updated to accommodate the 20 odd guests that appear every two days in comfort and style. And this they do in newly refurbished ‘tin sheds’, which have large screened windows, an ensuite and a balcony. No air-con though, you just leave everything open and the overhead fan running.

After a delicious lunch we were given more swim-time and a bit of time off before we boarded a bus and headed out to our first attraction: aboriginal cave rock art. The bus was a treat. It is a big Toyota thing that holds 20 or so, but its painted army matt green and has no windows, except at the back to keep the following dust out. Naturally the young fellow, Greg or King Gee as it says on his shirt pocket, had heard all of our 27 lame jokes about air-conditioning and clean windows a million times before. Actually, Greg was ‘new’ to Borradaile having spent the last 4 years working as a marine biologist, his last stint on some superlunary yacht being plied with Grange and wagyu beef by his very wealthy employer.

Occasionally you come across a guide who isn't just a guide, but a walking compendium about all things in their environment: flora, fauna, aboriginal art and culture, geology etc etc and Greg was just that. Without doubt the best informed, passionate and most interesting guide we have ever had.. The plan was that this afternoon’s walk was to let us get a feel for how we would cope with tomorrow's walks: one easy and 600m the other harder and 2 1/2 km and clambering over rocks. We stopped at a few spots and got the usual chat about a few of the more interesting plants, saw a few bits of rock art and even a cave that had been used hundreds of years as living quarters. We walked some more, and listened to the chat, and the he says, ‘now look up’. OMG there on the ceiling of a rock ledge 5 or 6 metres above us was the biggest single art work we had ever scene, and the only one ever of the dreamtime serpent. Picking our jaws up out of the red dirt, we followed Greg around and up the back of the rocky outcrop and emerged on that very same rock ledge. To the best of their knowledge, this is the only place where a single dreaming serpent appears, intact and by itself. The image itself is six metres long, so a snap from 2 metres away was never going to work out too well. The TO of the area, Charlie, who is best mates with Max Davidson the owner of the lodge, claims to have no idea what any of the art means or why this one appears to be a particularly special place.

Safari transport. Davidson's Safari Camp, Mt Borradaile

The Jewel box beetles. Davidson's Safari Camp, Mt Borradaile

Dreamtime Serpent. Davidson's Safari Camp, Mt Borradaile

This shorter get-to-know-yourself walk ended with a few more ‘normal’ artworks, and then back to the camp for ... another swim of course. The only complaint was that the pool was being invaded by these insects that look like a cross between a giant mosquito and a stick insect. They were weird. They tended to clump together and when a ball of them stuck on your skin they gave you the creeps. If you touched them they'd bite, but if you picked them up by the tail, all they could do was squirm as you tossed them out of the pool.

Another dinner and of to our sheds for the night.

Day 8 - Mount Borradaile (Davidson’s Safari Camp)

Out and about at 7, getting ready for our days walk. The two groups, 600m and 2.5km would set out in separate transport, do their walk and meet somewhere for a BBQ lunch, before heading back to camp by 2pm. We of course had chosen to do the ‘big one’, which again had Greg as the guide.We travelled out about into the bush for about 30 minutes before parking in a small clearing next to another rocky outcrop. They had burnt the area just the day before, so walking over charred grass and still smouldering logs wasn't too pleasant, but the fire hadn't made it past the soft grassy mire next to the billabong. Of course there are crocodiles, so just keep moving and keep your eyes peeled for overgrown lizards. Soon enough we were clambering over rocks and up into the formations, stopping here and there to look at some extraordinary art. The aboriginal connection with outsiders and the approximate time was confirmed with paintings depicting sailing boats, rifles and flint lock pistols. There are a predominant number of women depicted. One in particular has them baffled; from the identifiable bits and pieces on the image, they can only conclude that she was someone special in rank, and a breast feeding widowed virgin as well. These paintings just keep raising so many questions, not just about the image but about who drew it and why. Greg tells us that Max found this particular place when hunting buffalo with a german tourist; just stumbled right into it looking for some shade. Apart from the art, there are grinding holes still with the stones in them, and skeletons of ancestors long ago departed wrapped in bark and stored in ledges in the caves. Out of respect for the TOs wishes, there are no photos of dead people.

Aboriginal rock art. Davidson's Safari Camp, Mt Borradaile

Grinding stones and grooves. Davidson's Safari Camp, Mt Borradaile

Check out the sailing boat, probably a Macassan prau. Aboriginal rock art. Davidson's Safari Camp, Mt Borradaile

Flint lock musket. Aboriginal rock art. Davidson's Safari Camp, Mt Borradaile

Two rifles, upside down. Aboriginal rock art. Davidson's Safari Camp, Mt Borradaile

Extremely rare blue paintings using what is assume to be "Reckitts Blue" found in the area. Aboriginal rock art. Davidson's Safari Camp, Mt Borradaile

Coiled up snake. Aboriginal rock art. Davidson's Safari Camp, Mt Borradaile

The next stop was another eye opener. They call this place the catacombs, and for good reason. Imagine the caves at the base of the sandstone cliffs where the ocean pounds away at them. They are hollow except for a maze of pillars which keeps it all standing. The story is that this rock formation was once at the bottom of an ocean and that is exactly how they were formed. What they were though is almost perfect ready-made accommodation for an ancient aboriginal family.

The Catacombs. Davidson's Safari Camp, Mt Borradaile

After you get past the painting on the outside, you go into the dark and cool of the caves. The walls and ceiling is black from a million campfires, the bones of the ‘old-people’ are neatly stored away here and there, unless they have been disturbed by animals, in which case they are left exactly where they are laying.

In a small rock ledge in an inner cave, Greg stops and starts pulling out white-fellar artefacts: a buckle, a tin box, an axe head and handle, bits of a bottle and a big ball of bees’ wax, which was aboriginal. The yarn is that all these things were found right there on that shelf and they are under pain-of-death if they don't put them back exactly how they found them. The small tin box was interesting; it was a matchbox, but tests have show that it was used at one time to carry some sort of blue powder, which he described as the ‘blue’ they once used in washing clothes. Outside and further around we came across some more painting, except some of them are quite distinctly blue, which is extraordinarily rare.

Greg,'King Gee' with a small tin match box. Davidson's Safari Camp, Mt Borradaile

Our last cave was more of a high ledge, called the Emu Cave, after the huge emu and eggs depicted on its ceiling.

Emu and eggs. Aboriginal rock art. Davidson's Safari Camp, Mt Borradaile

Stilt man, thought to be able to walk through the ocean and rivers. Aboriginal rock art. Davidson's Safari Camp, Mt Borradaile

Sting ray. Aboriginal rock art. Davidson's Safari Camp, Mt Borradaile

From here we hiked back to our bus and drove another 20 minutes to the BBQ lunch site, which is a large roofed structure were we sat at tables and chairs and enjoyed our ‘roo, buff burgers and bangers.

BBQ lunch @ Davidson's Safari Camp, Mt Borradaile

Back at the camp, more swims were in order before our next event, a cruise on Coopers Billabong. Not "the" Cooper, but the white-fella who first came through this way.

Having done the odd billabong cruise in Kakadu, it was interesting to be taken down this particular billabong, which is a tributary to the East Alligator river. Of course there are crocodiles and some birds and lilies and reeds and things, but what we were waiting for as we sipped wine and nibbled on crackers, was the sunset. Possibly not the best one we have seen, but a pretty nice way to finish and extraordinary day.