The park is set up for driving from attraction to attraction with very little trail development. We saw mammoth red termite mounds which were fascinating but totally creepy. The larges was about 30 feet tall and estimated to be 50 years old! creepy.
There was also another type that was grey and headstone shaped and were "magnetic termite mounds." The park was sorely lacking in informational signs, but what I overheard a tour leader say was that they are not actually magnetic, but are aligned with Earth's magnetic field...but I have no idea why. Because of them all facing the same direction, I actually thought they were old graveyards with giant headstones when I saw them earlier in our trip. oops.
Then we got to the real treat - swimming holes! Yay! It was so that the first area of a river that was accessible, we just jumped right in. Charles was wearing his swimming trunks but I just jumped in fully clothed. Can I just say how much I love quick-dry clothing! So worth the investment for a trip like this. We splashed around and just sat in the knee-deep holes and a crawfish nibbled Charles's toe and then scuttled away when he moved. When we moved on our clothes dried in minutes in that desert climate.
The next stop in the park was Wangi Falls - the main attraction of the park. Signs said there aren't any Salties in the dry season and that Freshies are rarely seen. It was a beautiful seen with two falls plunging into a large swimmable area. We sat for some time with just our feet in the water, but we couldn't help ourselves and jumped in again. The water was lovely and crystal clear.
The next morning we drove back in to the park to visit a couple more stops and for a final swim. This area was more a series of tiny water falls with small water holes. We splashed around for a while on our way out. As I scrambled across a rock that had a small, flowering plant on it, Charles saw a cloud of flying somethings rise up, and heard me scream as one stung my bum, and again when I swatted and got stung a second time on my finger. Ouch! I have been stung several times in my life, including by a white-tailed hornet (wasp?) and they didn't come close to the pain this caused! Thankfully, the pain and throbbing was gone by that evening. After that, we decided we had had quite enough, and Charles found another path out since he is at least slightly allergic to bees. On our way out, I rolled my ankle and gashed the edge of my big toe on the rough path surface. It was not a fun half hour.
But, on the flip side, it is always nice when one of the supplies you always pack actually comes in useful. I got to use an iodine swab and antibiotic cream I've been traveling with for years. :-) Anyway, the stinging went away and the toe healed nicely. No harm done. After licking my wounds, we went back to the caravan park we had spent the two previous nights in for a tasty crocodile burger! yum. The croc itself was like a mix of calamari steak and some white fish - probably not all that flavorful by itself, but the texture was actually great. The flavor was helped immensely by the fried egg, bacon, lettuce, tomato and beets that also came on the burger. Such an odd but oh-so-tasty combination.
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