| |
Visitor Safety in Kakadu National
Park*
There are a number of safety-related aspects of travelling in Kakadu National
Park: crocodiles, disease-carrying insects, large feral animals, dehydration,
and what to do if a member of your group gets injured or lost. |
| External Link
On Crocodiles, Swimming in pools and gorges, Disease-carrying insects, Large feral
animals, Dehydration, Lost or injured group members, Wildfires, Flash flooding,
Emergency telephone numbers. http://www.environment.gov.au
- Click here for more information - visitor safety - Kakadu National Park. |
Crocodile Safety Information
Northern Australia is crocodile
country. Therefore it is important to put awareness of crocodiles and safety at
the top of your priority list when living in, working in or simply visiting crocodile
habitat. Living with crocodiles is not difficult so long as you bear the following
points in mind.  •
Always be aware that crocodiles may be present
anywhere that there is water.
• Unless there
is clear signage that it is safe to swim, assume that crocodiles may be present.
• Warning signs are there for your benefit! Ignoring
them is foolish.
• Always check with local authorities
and rangers whether an area is likely to contain crocodiles.
•
If in doubt, always swim in designated swimming areas only.
•
If there's no sign, don't go swimming.
• A
spotlight or LED head-torch is strongly recommended at night so that any eyeshines
can be seen, but a lack of eyeshines does not mean that it's safe to swim - crocodiles
may be underwater.
© http://crocwatch.org/
We
suggest you also visit a website called http://crocwatch.org/safety | Swimming
in Kakadu will pose a threat from Crocodiles in the Northern Territory. Though
please check with the National Parks Headquaters in Darwin, Tourism Top
End, Bowali Visitors Centre on the way through to Kakadu and always look for and
heed any warning signs including Crocodile warning signs. Often there are friendly
rangers at the bigger falls, tourist information centres and government websites
for more accurate infomation. See more on swimming below.  A
printable map of Kakadu National Park ©
- courtesy of www.kakadu.com.au
|
|  |  |
Are
there certain times of the yea r that I can’t swim?
The
seasonality of waterholes across the Northern Territory depend on the amount of
rain throughout the year. NT Parks and Wildlife monitor water levels and erect
signs advising visitors when it is safe to swim. Always obey sign posts. Check
the latest access report on the web ©
www.nt.gov.au/nreta/parks/access.html.
How can you identify if
a water-ho le is safe to swim in?
Salt and freshwater crocodiles are found
in most Top End billabongs and rivers, and are occasionally seen on remote beaches.
The accessible rivers and billabongs are generally sign-posted if saltwater crocodiles
are known to inhabit the area, but if you are not sure, don’t swim. Swim only
where recommended and always observe and read the crocodile warning signs. Aren’t
swimming spots hard to get to or only acesible as part of a tour?
All the
swimming spots in Darwin, Litchfield National Park, Katherine, Mataranka and the
MacDonnell Ranges are accessible by self-drive. A few locations are only accessible
by four wheel-drive, such as Butterfly Gorge Nature Park and Tjaynera Falls in
Litchfield National Park. Tour operators with swimming options include Adventure
Tours Australia, Australian Pacific Touring, Connections Safaris, Odyssey Tours
and Safaris and many more' | Map
of Kakadu National Park | | |
| Warnings - External link http://www.environment.gov.au/parks/kakadu/visitor-information/safety.html
Please note sometimes the main link from the government database is replaced if
so here is the start of the Parks section and please subsearch for crocoidle warngs
etc http://www.environment.gov.au/parks/index.html
+ Kakadu http://www.environment.gov.au/parks/kakadu/index.html Parks
& Wildlife Commission of the Northern TerritoryHead
Office - Goyder Centre 25 Chung Wah Tce Palmerston, NT 0830
PO Box 496 Palmerston
NT 0831
Ph: +61 (0) 8 8999 5511 Inorfmation
courtesy of http://www.tourismnt.com.au/nt/system/galleries/download/Marketing/trade-factsheet-swimming.pdf |
|
