Karumba

Saturday the 5th of June we arrived at Karumba Point Sunset Caravan Park. The park was completely full with our arrival. We chose this van park because of tips we got from other travellers that it is walking distance to the cafes and the Sunset Tavern. I think the tips were accurate and as a first time visit to Karumba I think that was the best choice. On future visits if you want bigger sites and space then you might choose the big park in Karumba town. But this was a good park with a pool and served our purposes but a bit overpriced at $46 a powered site.
We went for a walk after lunch to take a look at the gulf for the first time. The water is not clear like the Pacific or Indian Ocean. It is more like the Timor sea where the water is a bit cloudy.
These photos are looking from either side of the boat ramp at the Point.
The Tavern is a great place to watch the sunset over the gulf. That first evening we went to the Tavern to do just that and have dinner. Pretty good meals as well. The place was very busy.
Sunday morning we went for a drive into Karumba, the main town, although some may argue the Point is the main part of Karumba. There is a prawning fleet here. This is one of the prawning boats.
I got a tip from some travellers that we had spoken to at Gregory Downs that the sunset and croc spotting cruise was worth doing. It was only $60 so I thought I would do it. The pick up point was at the boat ramp near our van park. So away we went. The boat launched at 3.30pm and we headed toward the Karumba township. There was this biggish croc laying on the bank. There were quite a few tinny’s nearby with people fishing. It seems the croc and the fisherman agree it is a good fishing spot.
These are photos of the Karumba township and of the prawning fleet.
We took the remaining members of the cruise onboard and the skipper went back to the big croc to show the folk who hadn’t seen him yet. As we approached the croc opened his jaws to show his teeth right on queue. They say that the croc sometimes does that to reduce their heat but as he did it when we were getting close it might have been a warning.
We then went back up the Norman River and got a closer look at the prawning fleet.
We went along the mangroves and there were a couple of water birds there. There was a big one which I can’t remember the name of.
There was another, smaller croc on the edge of the mangroves. We wound up seeing another two smaller crocs.
Then there was a zinc processing plant which was part of the Century Mine near Lawn Hill.
The crew served drinks and were not stingy about it either. There were nibblys and a prawn cocktail as well. I was impressed with the catering. Then the sunset started and it was awesome. There was virtually no wind. It was just beautiful.

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