Blog: Arnhem Highway from Darwin to Kakadu National Park in Northern Territory Australia is 253klm.

Leaving Darwin is generally travelled on the Stuart Highway from Darwin. Darwin CBD is basically 5 straight roads running into Daly St which is around 2klm long and that runs and begins the Stuart Highway. Map of Darwin CBD. If you take the Stuart Highway it's around 22klm to the junction with the Stuart Highway veering left to Katherine, Alice Springs, Kakadu and Litchfield and if you keep straight the road goes to the smaller city of Palmerston (Pop 22,000) straight ahead. Palmerston is also the home of our Defense base.

Then 3klm further the Howard Springs turnoff - which you pass the turn off you actually don't drive thru this town. There are a few bed and breakfasts and caravan parks in Howard Springs - see http://www.australia4tours.com/Accommodation/NT/Top_End.htm.

Veering left and further down 8klm you drive past the small country township of Coolalinga conveniently located 26km south of Darwin on the Stuart Highwa (last easy to find shopping centre-Woolworths Supermarket).

Down the highway around 35klm now from Darwin you see the Arnhem Highway on the left with a sign saying Humpty Doo and Jabiru. The first sight of interest alond the highway is the didgeridoo workshop, actually at the beginning but it's on the right of the road.

Humpty Doo, here is another fuel stop and the home to the Boxing Crocodile though it a great photo snap for the kids to be in it. It seems to be an obbession with Australian's to have the biggest icon's. Humpty Doo is a large sprawling country suburb of the outer Darwin region.

Point of Interest on humpty Doo: Humpty Doo is a town some 10klm from the begiining of the Arnhem Highway with around 2829 residents on 5-20 acre farms with some 1006 households in the area. I mentioned this as Humpty Doo seemd to stretch along the highway quiet a bit. I forgot to mention

Futher out the properties are larger and mostly farmed as Mango Plantations. Can you imagine the aroma driving with the window down when there in season around October/November (there was a small crop at the beginning of September also). Oh Mango prices at the Darwin/Parap markets on a Saturday morning are around $4-6 a kilo the first few weeks of the season and in the middle of the season you get huge Bowan Mangos (are you ready for this) I mean huge mangoes at AUD$2.50 a kilo.or whole trays at AUD$10.00 Just come for the mangoes at least.

The one things about the Arnhem Highway is once you are on it you don't get lost. It has every sign you need.

The sign are in a brown colour sometimes hard to see but I was glad to see the blended into the background colours of the land.

Fogg Dam is the only wetland easily accessible to conventional vehicles 12 months of the year – only an hour’s drive from Darwin on a sealed road.

Turn onto the Arnhem Highway and drive 35km (22 miles) to the Fogg Dam turnoff (Anzac Parade) on the left, which is well signed, and drive 6km to the entrance on the left hand side of the road, also well signed.

Large numbers of wading birds gather at the Dam wall at the end of the wet season. From the end of March until the build up, around the start of October is the best time to visit Fogg Dam.

Woodlands to Waterlily - Length: 2.2 km return. Time: 45 minutes. Grade: easy.
Monsoon Forest Walk - Length: 3.6 km. Time: 2 hours. Grade: easy.
Dam Wall Walk - Length: 2.2 km return. Time: 45 minutes. Grade: easy.
Pandanus Lookout - Length: 2.5 km return. Time: 1 hour. Grade: easy.

The second is Harry Bowmans - Adelaide River Crocodile cruise. So now we were some 6klm down the turnoff from the Arnhem Highway and we had Fogg Dam but then if you continued on and followed the hand made signs the road goes on for another 10 odd klms (or so it seemed) to a dead end. from there turn right and the jumping crocodile cruise is located on their private stretch of the Adelaide River at the end of Fogg Dam Road. All in all it was about 75 minutes since I left Darwin.

I then followed to the right on a dirt track form some 5klm to Harry Bowmans - Adelaide River Crocodile cruise. Once we arrived I knew that the 40min trip was worth it. Harry and Karen came out and greeted us large as life before he realised he had known us from 10 years ago. So we received a special once off private tour. And the photo's says it all. Wow that 30 minutes just amazed my wife and I. Harry's web site is http://www.adelaiderivercruises.com.au/ Harry’s brother Morgan & wife Maxine joined him 10 years ago when they embarked on a seachange from NSW. $43 for a adult and $16 for a child with 4 cruises a day and the boat capivity is 30 folks. Cruise times are 9am, 11am, 1pm, 3pm Daily from May to November

Bark Hut Inn & Caravan Park Arnhem Hwy Kakadu National Park NT 0886 Telephone: (08) 8978 8988 Facsimile: (08) 8978 8932. Here is a REAL Aussie Roadhouse with the walls adorned by crocodiles and buffalo. This is a tourist icon in itself and a must see on the way. The staff were a mix of international backpackers and locals with the service friendly and meals reasonable for a remote location. The park offers a nice pool and campgrounds and basic budget donga's. There a good gift shop and lot's of room to move around.

An alternative route to Cooinda (in Kakadu) is via turning right off the Arnhem Highway onto the unsealed Old Jim Jim Rd some 19km beyond the Bark Hut Inn (above). Often impassable in the wet season October - April. Though more so with the heavier rains January-March). The entrance to kakadu is around 38klm from the Bark Hut Inn. The gates are a great photographic opportunity and also stop at the Kakadu Information centre and there is a small box that has the free Kakadu Booklet in it.

29klm pass the West Branch of the Aligator River you reach the larger South Alligator river and also the Aurora Kakadu South Alligator Resort with accommodation and camping facilties. This where we filled up for fuel before driving down to Cooinda. Just to be safe I would fill up here and check the road conditions.

SUMMARY: Blog on the road - Arnhem Highway to Kakadu

Well from here you are only 25klm to Jabiru and the end of our stretch of the Arnhem Highway. Again all the web sites says just a 3 hour drive to Kakadu from Darwin and only 253klm. If you don't blink and drive straight then that's right but how could anyone drive straight and not stop. I would say stopping Fogg Dam, the Adelaide River Cruise, Bark Hut Inn, the Termite Mounds, Windows to the Wetlands, Mamukala Wetlands, South Alligator resort and stopping along the way say 10 times for photo shoots is an absorbing 10-15 hours. Maybe do some of the icons on the way back if you go back the same way.

Rob - September 2007

Roads to Kakadu National Park

Road conditions in the Park vary according to the two seasons being the Green 'Wet' season or Dry season. Widespread Green 'Wet' season flooding occured historically and frequently during November to April there nowdays the seasons have changed signifciantly. Therefore you should check the road conditions well before your departure .

Up-to-the-moment road reports can be obtained from the Bowali Visitor Centre (Telephone +61 (0) 8 8938 1120). The Arnhem and Kakadu Highways are sealed and generally remain open throughout the year. Green 'Wet' season flooding associated with any prolonged heavy rains may have various locational temporary closures.

We here also provide helpful tips on Kakadu National Park and what to see and activities available, visitor safety, park camping and accommodation facilities, emergency contacts and useful Kakadu Parks information.

If time allows, we advise you stay in the park for a 2-5 days so that the major sites can be explored at your leisure. Kakadu National Park can be visited selfdrive a 2 wheel drive vehicle such as a car, camper, 4WD or even a large motorhome though access is limited to the Kakadu Highway and the Arnhem Highway. Ubirr, Yellow Waters, Jabiru and Nourlangie Rock being main the extent of where you can visit a 2 wheel drive vehicle. Currently about 200,000+ folks visit Kakadu National Park each year. Visitor numbers are higher during the dry season months of June to September (approx. 33,000 people visit each July) and lower during the wet season months (approx. 7,000 people visit each January).

Select one of the following regions to access maps and information on the area below:

Selfdrive 4WD, Camper, Motorhome, RV hire and rentals through Kakadu National Park

Darwin with an population of 120,000 is approximately 4050km from Sydney, 3500km from Brisbane, 3200km from Adelaide, 4500km from Perth and 1482km from Alice Springs. Due to such long driving distances, it is sometimes not practical for international visitors to drive to Darwin from other state capital cities with time permitting. The drive between Darwin and Alice Springs does however contain a number of interesting and unique sights for visitors to enjoy.

As a result, many international visitors hire or rent recreational '4WD' 4 Wheel Drives, Campers, RV's, Motor Homes and Camper Vans to explore the Northern Territory of the Top End and Central Australia.

When touring the Northern Territory, visit Uluru - Kata Tjuta National Park a living cultural landscape, located approximately 443 km south west of Alice Springs (1452 klm from Darwin) by road.

The 4 Wheel Drive recognised tracks with camp sites are: 4 Mile Hole, 2 Mile Hole, Bucket Billabong, Alligator Billabong Sandy Billabong, Jim Jim Falls, Twin Falls, Red Lily Billabong, Maguk (Barramundi Gorge), Koolpin Gorge and Graveside Gorge (Graveside Gorge 4 Wheel Drive recognised track requires additional permit, bookings are required, with experienced 4WD only)

Where is Kakadu National Park

Kakadu National Park an Australian Natural Icon covers almost 20,000 square kms and is 257 kms East of Darwin the capital city of the Northern Territory, Australia. Kakadu National Park is a World Heritage listed area that has been listed for it's cultural and natural heritage and Kakadu is the largest terrestrial national park in Australia. Life in the park does depends on the water, also in respect to the tropical monsoon climate that produces the downpours of the tropical humidity of the "wet" season, and the milder weather of the "dry" season.

Kakadu National Park is the gateway to Arnhemland. The sealed roads from Darwin to Kakadu is via the Arnhem Highway and from Katherine to Kakadu National Park via the Kakadu Highway. The Bowali Visitor Centre near Jabiru in Kakadu National Park is located 257 km from Darwin in Northern Territory Australia via the Arnhem Highway entrance. If travelling by road, you should allow 3 hours travelling time from Darwin. Maps of the road to Kakadu National Park and of Kakadu National Park.