CHRISTMAS 2020 and NEW YEAR 2021 in DARWIN

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Hello everyone

We hope and pray that you have all enjoyed a happy and safe Christmas and that 2021 brings many blessings to you.

As mentioned in the previous post, Nance and I flew into Darwin from Minjilang, Croker Island just before Christmas. Around the same time Laura flew in from Brisbane and six of Christy's family flew in from Geelong. Dean and Kristy were very brave in hosting Christmas for all of us this year - thank you very much. We all enjoyed a great time together. 

A Darwin thunder storm on Boxing Day evening put on an impressive light and sound show. Generally however the weather has been kind to us. As I write this blog post, the BOM are forecasting a cyclone to form in the Gulf of Carpentaria shortly and then move into Queensland. 

Below the Macdonald Christmas 2020 photo L to R - Dean, Kristy, Nance, Bryan, Laura and Jayson.

Some of Christy's family - Marney, Cameron, Paddy and Kristy. 

And below Paddy and Sharon. 

This time of the year in the Top End with the increased amount of cloud, it can make for some great sunsets. The photo below was taken at Nightcliff, one of the Darwin suburbs that look out over the outer harbour.

Paddy was keen to see some crocs, in the wild and up close - well not too close. So we took a drive out to the Adelaide River on the road to Kakadu National Park. This is the off peak tourist season for the Top End however we were able to find one tour operator still conducting limited tours - the original Adelaide River Jumping Crocs. 

In the Adelaide River 80% of the crocs are female. This is due to the water temperature which influences the gender of the hatchlings and that the large male crocs are territorial. Below one of the many adult females.

Below a female jumping for some meat. To be able to raise themselves out of the water like this they have to first move from their normal horizontal swimming position to a vertical position and then use the power of their tails to lift themselves so that at times their back legs are out of the water. This requires quite a lot of effort.

Below - a short video of a female croc jumping.

And then the large dominant male for this part of the river put in an appearance. Much larger than the females, he swam slower but with a very measured and purposeful style and very much with an attitude of - I am the king here, and I will go at my pace and you will wait for me. After some 'encouragement' the tour guide did manage to get him to jump.

Another short video - this time of the large male croc jumping.

Someone got a drone for Christmas...... 
Darwin Airport is located fairly centrally in Darwin which means that most parts of Darwin are 'no fly areas' for drones, we had to take a drive out of Darwin to fly the drone - and let the dogs have a run. 
Below is a still photo from above. We managed a few flights and returned with no crashes. In the future, I hope to post some videos of some of the spectacular Top End scenery and some of the wildlife that call this area home. 


Until next time, take care and stay safe. God bless.

Bryan and Nance

PS. Thank you to Laura who has helped revamp our blog, which included 'subscribe' and 'follow' options. 

Comments

Janeen said…
Hi Bryan and Nancy. It was great to read of your latest adventure in NT. This year also is going to be a change for me. I am starting a new teaching position at a private school in Hervey Bay. It happened quite quickly so I'm still in a spin. The family photo was lovely to see. Sending my love and prayers, Janeen
9 January 2021 at 15:44
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