The ultimate Litchfield Loop road trip in the Northern Territory

The secret is out: Litchfield National Park is every bit as awe-inspiring as Kakadu.

Take a smaller scale road trip along the Litchfield Loop for spring-fed waterfalls, close-up encounters with wildlife and some back-to-nature downtime.

Best for: Waterfalls and R&R
Drive time: 6 hours return

Stop 1: Batchelor

Make your first port of call the blink-and-you’ll-miss-it town of Batchelor. The town is host to a population of just 358. It was once so sleepy that for a time the government gave away blocks of land to encourage people to settle here.

Must do

• If you are in town on the second Sunday of the month, head to the Batchelor Market to pick up some local produce and browse the arts and crafts.
• Stand amid fluttering wings at Batchelor Butterfly Farm’s semitropical butterfly house, before saying hello to the goats, ducks, guinea pigs and rabbits at the on-site petting zoo.
• Stop in at the Rum Jungle Tavern for a pub grub lunch and to hear about how the surrounding settlement got its hilarious name.
• Take a 20-minute detour to the small township of Adelaide River. Here you can swim at the Robin Falls waterhole. Then peruse the Adelaide River War Cemetery. The cemetery commemorates the 434 soldiers and civilians killed in the 1942−43 air raids on northern Australia.

Stop 2: Litchfield National Park

A natural playground brimming with crystal-clear cascades, far-reaching sandstone plateaus and strange-shaped rock formations. Litchfield is the smaller and much more manageable alternative to the sprawling Kakadu – but just as rewarding.

Must do

• Wangi Falls, Litchfield’s big-ticket attraction, flows year-round and makes for a scenic day of swimming. Rainforest spouts on either side of a huge orange-rock outcrop. Falls abound in this national park. If you have time, make sure to also check out Surprise Creek, Tjaynera and Tolmer.
• Take the 120-metre jaunt from the car park to the Florence Falls Lookout for mesmerising views. Then continue on the 1.7-kilometre hike to Buley Rockhole.
• Behold the impressive Magnetic Termite Mounds, which jut out of the flat plains surrounding and measure up to two metres high.
• 4WD the 10-kilometre track to The Lost City – a series of large sandstone outcrops that look like the remains of an ancient civilisation.

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Stop 3: Dundee Beach

The picturesque Dundee Beach is a little slice of paradise for avid anglers. The beach is famed as one of the world’s single best blue-water fishing spots with an abundance of barra’. Linger longer to enjoy magnificent pastel-hued sunsets, a spot of bird-watching and some laid-back R&R surrounded by swaying palm trees.

Must do

• Throw out a line at nearby Perron Islands, Point Blaze, Finniss River and Bynoe Harbour.
• Book a bungalow, park your van or pitch a tent at Dundee Beach Holiday Park and spend a day or two revelling in the tropical lifestyle, relaxing around the park pool and munching on some chicken schnitty for dinner at The Lodge of Dundee.
• Take a walk along the pristine beaches lining the coast, keeping your eyes peeled for the turtles that nest their eggs here during the dry season. The season is generally between July and November.
• En route back to Darwin, be sure to make pit stops at Berry Springs Nature Park to cool off in clear pools and have a picnic in the shade, and Territory Wildlife Park to meet the local residents, including echidnas, ghost bats, pythons, quolls and bandicoots.

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Lead image: Berry Springs Nature Park © Tourism NT

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