After spending 3 days exploring Kakadu, we continued on to chasing waterfalls in Litchfield National Park. It was hot and humid, so we spent most of our time in the water! There are many options for waterfall swims, from short drives off the main road to hours-long 4WDing excursions.
Florence Falls
The campground at Florence Falls had spacious camp sites, plenty big for our rig plus a campervan. It's first come, first served, with a pay envelope station in the centre. There is a central unit with bathrooms, cold showers, and a sink for doing dishes.
The walk from the campground to Florence Falls is down a steep set of metal stairs. Watch your step! It's only about a 10 minute walk to the falls.
The view from the lookout is worth an extra minute of walking! There's a longer loop trail if you're feeling energetic. We used the Florence Falls Campground as our jumping-off point to explore the rest of the park.
Blyth Homestead
We were sad to find the road to The Lost City was closed. This 10km track ending in spectacular sandstone formations is one of the highlights of the park. We weren't sure if this was due to the recent rain, upcoming wet season, or another reason.
Continuing on to the Reynolds River 4WD Track, we found the roads were very wet and muddy from frequent afternoon rainstorms.
We found a few deep river crossings, with one all the way up to the bonnet (hood for you Americans)! The road was in good condition most of the way, but we definitely needed our lifted 4WD and a snorkel to do the water crossings.
We stopped in at the Blyth Homestead, built by the Sargent Family in 1928. The family of sixteen operated a tin mine out back. Being so far from civilisation, they had to be very self-sufficient. Read more here.
The homestead was abandoned in 1960, and the land was later donated to the national park.
Tjaynera Falls (Sandy Creek)
After another 20 minutes of driving and about a 15 minute walk through the valley, we came to Tjaynera Falls. And we had it all to ourselves!
The parking area here doubles as a campground if you're interested in spending the night, but make sure you're well-supplied as you'll be in the middle of nowhere.
Magnetic Termite Mounds
There's a small pull-off near Florence Falls where you can see the magnetic termite mounds. This type of termite mound can only be found in parts of Northern Australia, characterised by thin edges pointing north to south and broad sides facing east to west. This regulates the inside temperature, and they grow to around 2 metres (6.5 ft) high.
The more common reddish-coloured catherdral termite mounds can grow to more than double that height!
Wangi Falls
Our final waterfall stop in Litchfield was Wangi Falls. With a cafe, barbecue area, and one minute walk in to the falls, this is the most accessible waterfall.
After a final dip, we made our way back to Darwin! We were very ready for a real shower and some air conditioning.
Check out the sights in nearby Kakadu National Park or Katherine. Questions about road tripping in this area? Comment below, contact us, or send us a message on our social media!
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