Gunn Point NT

Having seen what we wanted to in Darwin, it was time to move on.

We snuck in a quick selfie with Michael and Pam.

On the way out on town we did a wash, a shop and a dump! 

Then we pointed Buster towards Gunn Point. 

But before we got there we stopped to have a look at Howard Springs Nature Park which has been a popular recreation spot for Darwin locals since World War II. The park features a mix of monsoon forest and open woodland, supporting a variety of native wildlife. There are shaded picnic areas with barbecues and an adventure play area with man-made rock pools offering the kids plenty of fun.

Interpretive signs along the walkway help you spot native fish, turtles and water pythons often visible from the weir wall. During World War II, rest camps were established here for up to 120 Australian and American servicemen. The weir was constructed in 1944 by the Royal Australian Engineers to improve water access to the area.

After another 50km up along the sealed road we got to the dirt track to take us home to the northern end of Gunn Point beach. It was pretty bumpy in places. By the time we hit the beach we decided to air down. One of the casualties of the rough road was the screws of our Enerdrive battery charger and worked loose and had fallen against the 12v system and tripped off. Luckily it was easily fixed!

The western side of Gunn Point Peninsula is denoted as Murrumujuk and derives its name from a sacred aboriginal site on the beach. Murrumujuk is the long sandy beach between Gunn Point and Tree Point,  but it is normally referred to as Gunn Point beach. The area is a popular bush-camping site during the dry season, with no freshwater or toilet facilities. The beach sees a fair amount of traffic during the weekends and we had motorbikes and cars hooning up and down the beach. Litter can also be a problem. We even got a fireworks displays each night after watching the amazing sunsets.

We enjoyed walks along the beach and did general catch up and planning before tackling the next part of our journey… Kakadu.

Very popular driving

North Gunn Point beach 

Did get away from the tide quick enough

Shell collection so far this trip.