Darwin monsoon magic

A not so friendly local in Katherine Gorge

While the rest of Australia bakes in a dry heat, Darwin welcomes the summer months with bracing showers. We bring you 10 reasons why now is peak season at the top

Soak in the spray of Florence Falls
in Litchfield National Park
Photo: Courtesy of Tourism NT HOT sticky, wet – there’s no escaping the dense heat that pervades Australia’s northern-most city during the tropical summer that lasts from December to early March. Thankfully, the wet season also brings with it spectacular daily thunderstorms which offer relief from the steamy weather. Lightning lights up the sky and the heavens open in a deafening torrent of refreshing, tropical rain.

The upside of visiting in the wet season is everything springs to life, revealing the Territory’s staggering natural beauty at its best. While holidaymakers in other capitals pack up and head for the coast, those in the Territory escape clogged highways and crowded beaches to drop back a gear or two. Darwin may be Australia’s most far flung outpost, but it’s no longer a city of dusty roads where the only drink you can get is beer. Sitting on a large harbour, and closer geographically to the capitals of three Asian countries – Dilli, Jakarta and Port Moresby – than to Canberra, Darwin is a bustling, multicultural city with a tropical, laidback feel. Follow the Territorians’ lead and make the most of the balmy weather: shop at outdoor markets, revel in the blazing sunsets and sultry nights, hold impromptu picnics along the waterfront, or enjoy a spritz bath courtesy of the towering waterfalls within the Territory’s rugged oases.

Here, we offer 10 good reasons why tropical summer is the best time to go.

{REASON TO GO NO 01}
To market, to market
For the locals, the weekend markets are not just a place to bargain but a soul-enriching hangout to socialise…

Parap Markets are a treasure
trove of goodies
PHOTO: SHERIDAN RHODES

Take your taste buds on a journey at Darwin’s exotic, open-air weekend markets, held at the suburban shopping centres of Parap, Nightcliff and Rapid Creek. Every weekend, throughout the tropical summer, stall holders set up shop to hawk their wares and serve up a smorgasbord of Darwin home-style cooking and handmade arts and crafts. For the locals, the weekend markets are not just a place to bargain hunt but a soul-enriching hangout to socialise with mates and nourish the tummy. A diverse range of quality art and craftwork seduces, from bush art, sculpture, pottery and puppets, to original gifts to charm friends. The Saturday morning Parap market is famous for its delicious food cooked on the spot, local arts and crafts, and fresh local produce, just five minutes from the city centre. Amid a babble of accents and languages, the aroma of fresh spices greet you as you savour freshly rolled sushi, steaming noodles and sizzling satay dipped in homemade peanut sauce, all washed down with freshly whizzed fruit juices. Come Sunday morning, head to the Rapid Creek Market. It’s touted as “the most authentic Asian-style market in Darwin” and it’s also the city’s oldest. Those with sweet tooths will love the colourful and quaint traditional Asian sweets, like sticky rice cakes, paw paw (papaya) salad and taro custard served on makeshift bamboo plates. For food, fashion and second-hand treasures, do include the Nightcliff market on your list. Here, Sundays begin with an organic Timor coffee, a delicious hot treat from Ken’s Crepes before taking in a massage – just listen out for the masseurs pummelling customers.

{REASON TO GO NO 02}
Sunset sailing

Kick back onboard a harbour cruise while basking in yet another stunning tropical summer sunset. As you familiarise yourself with the city skyline you can learn a little of Darwin’s history, or simply lap up the atmosphere and warm ocean breezes while sitting down to an impressive dinner complete with white tablecloths. There’s plenty of cruise options and vessels to choose from, operating from both Stokes Hill Wharf and Cullen Bay Marina. Enjoy a glass of bubbly and sample exotic pearl meat aboard a 14m yacht, while the wind in the sails and seascape lull you into deep relaxation (AU$50, Australian Harbour Cruises, tel: +61 (8) 8941 4000, www.australianharbourcruises.com.au). Alternatively, sit down to a seafood barbecue banquet on a magnificent, restored pearl lugger with Cape Adieu Harbour Cruises (AU$78, tel: +61 (8) 8942 2011, www.capeadieu.com.au).

{REASON TO GO NO 03}
Where the barra’ bite

Darwin’s waterways, such as Yellow Water
Billabong in Kakadu National Park,
tempt with impressive fish
Photos: Courtesy of Tourism NT

Experience the thrill of fishing along Darwin’s coastline or river systems by hiring a boat or joining a guided tour. The Northern Territory is a fishing mecca and summer is one of the best times to land a barramundi (barra), one of the world’s great sporting and eating fish. Barramundi are most active when the water temperature rises, attracting anglers from Australia and overseas. The waterways throughout the Top End teem with barra: in billabongs, big tidal rivers, mangrove-lined estuaries, along hundreds of kilometres of coastline and in Darwin’s massive harbour. Fishing in the Northern Territory isn’t highly regulated, but anglers must comply with rules and regulations to maintain fish populations, while catch and release techniques are encouraged.

{REASON TO GO NO 04}
The crown jewel

Overwhelming silence engulfs you at
Yellow Water Billabong in Kakadu National Park
Photo: Courtesy of Tourism NT

Soak up the spirituality of Kakadu National Park. Part of the South Alligator River floodplain, Yellow Water Billabong provides an opportunity to see the incredibly diverse flora and fauna of Kakadu’s World Heritage wetlands, which bristles with verdant life during the Tropical Summer. Covering some 20,000km², almost the size of Tasmania, Kakadu also features outstanding cultural and geographical attractions. A sunset Yellow Water Cruise, run by the local Gagudju people, is arguably one of the greatest wilderness experiences you can have in Australia (AU$43 for adults for a 1.5-hour cruise, AU$50 for a two-hour cruise, tel: +61 (8) 8979 0145, www.gagudju-dreaming.com). Guides ably steer a canopied boat though the serene waters, past crocodiles sunbaking on rocks, while pointing out jabirus, egrets, sea eagles and kingfishers swooping across the flood plain. About one third of Australia’s bird species are represented in Kakadu National Park, with at least 60 species found in the wetlands. The tropical summer season enables passengers to cruise through the wetlands’ lush mystical forests before the engine is cut, the brilliant sun dips and the honking of thousands of magpie geese haunt the dusk. The ancient rock art galleries of the Aboriginal people remain fully accessible during the tropical summer and are essential viewing; Nourlangie Rock and Ubirr are two good sites to explore. And although some unsealed roads may be impassable, this is the best time to take in a bird’s eye view of the vast floodplains and thundering waterfalls – from the seat of a light plane or helicopter (Barrier Air Charters, tel: +61 (08) 8945 5475; Australasian Jet tel: +61 (08) 8920 2400).

{REASON TO GO NO 05}
Enter the oasis

Edith Falls is just one of
Litchfield National
Park’s thundering waterfallsVisit Litchfield National Park. Spread over 1,500km² and just 90 minutes from Darwin, there are numerous attractions here to keep you busy for a day or two, with various types of accommodation available. Discover the park’s natural beauty of weathered sandstone escarpments, patches of monsoonal rainforests and perennial spring-fed streams. There are historic ruins, built by the Territory’s early pioneers and, although you can’t swim in the waterholes during the wet season, the dramatic waterfalls of Florence Falls, Wangi Falls, Walker Creek, Edith Falls and Buley Rockhole provide the perfect backdrop for a picnic. On your return journey to Darwin, stop at the intriguing magnetic termite mounds which stand up to two metres tall. The mounds face north and south to minimise sun exposure, acting as a natural temperature-control mechanism.

{REASON TO GO NO 06} A feast for sore eyes

All tables enjoy a view when
dining at Katherine Gorge in
Nitmiluk National Park
Take a scenic cruise on the pristine, deep green waters of the stunning Katherine Gorge, with its vertical escarpments and abundant bird and wildlife. During the summer months, Nitmiluk Tours (tel: +61 (8) 8972 1253, www.nitmiluktours.com. au) provide a sunrise breakfast, sunset dinner and a two-hour scenic cruise in Katherine Gorge within Nitmiluk National Park. The early morning cruise is great for photographers looking to snap crocodiles basking on the banks or the prolific birdlife, while the sunset cruise option provides a unique dining experience with the backdrop of the soaring cliffs. Whether you take a cruise or not, visitors to the park can explore the many walking trails. All activities are open year-round, except during flooding.

The dramatic waterfalls of Litchfield National Park provide the perfect backdrop for a picnic.

{REASON TO GO NO 07}
Eye of the storm

Visit the Black Room. Once the door closes behind you, the room blackens and you are transported to the middle of Cyclone Tracy, the cyclone which ripped through Darwin on Christmas Eve 1974. The sound of ferocious winds, flying debris and smashing glass fill the room of this permanent exhibition at the Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory (entry is free, Conacher Street, Bullocky Point, tel: +61 (8) 8999 8264, www.nt.gov.au/nreta/museums). It depicts life in Darwin before and after the devastating 220kmh cyclone flattened 90% of the city’s homes and killed 66 people.

{REASON TO GO NO 08}
Garden of Eden

Escape the heat by taking a cooling stroll through the monsoon forest at the George Brown Botanic Gardens (www.nt.gov.au/nreta/parks/ botanic). These lush gardens are an easy bike ride or short drive from the city centre, opposite the famous Mindil Beach where the sunset markets operate during the dry season. The gardens house a major collection of Northern Australian tropical flora, including orchids, bromeliads and other strikingly foliaged plants. Come wet season they are at their blooming best.

The Garden’s ethno-botanical collections, particularly in the areas of Aboriginal plant use, are world-renowned and fascinating.

{REASON TO GO NO 09}
Art from the outback

Discover the different styles and mediums of indigenous art from throughout the Territory. A variety of Aboriginal art galleries are located in Darwin, including Framed - The Darwin Gallery (two kilometres out of town on the Stuart Highway, tel: +61 (8) 8981 2994) and the Aboriginal Fine Arts Gallery (corner of Mitchell and Knuckey Streets, tel: +61 (8) 8981 1315), where you can invest in both traditional and contemporary indigenous art. Or visit the Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory (Conacher Street, Bullocky Point, +61 (8) 8999 8264) and browse its impressive display of Aboriginal artwork.

{REASON TO GO NO 10}
Cool down

Follow the locals’ lead and cool down with a dip at nearby Lake Alexander. With swimming safe year-round, the area is one of the city’s best spots for a picnic or barbecue while watching the sun go down over the Timor Sea (East Point Reserve, Fannie Bay, tel: +61 (8) 8982 2511). Hear distant thunder heralding an imminent downpour and a chorus of green tree frogs while trying to spot residents of the Reserve’s wallaby colony. East Point Reserve is also the location of Darwin’s Military Museum, featuring genuine footage of the World War II bombings of Darwin, reminding one of this city’s pivotal place in history.

For more information visit Darwin’s Visitor Information Centres at
Corner Mitchell and Knuckey Streets, tel: +61 (8) 8936 2499;
Smith Street Mall, tel: +61 (8) 8942 1856;
Darwin International Airport, tel: +61 (8) 8936 2477;
the Cruiseship Terminal and Ghan Railway Station.

Photos: Courtesy of Tourism NT

Jetstar flies to Darwin from Adelaide, Melbourne and Brisbane, visit www.jetstar.com