Mary River National Park

The wide expanses of Mary Highway, about 5 km west of the River National Park protects Mary River. A separate information Safety and Comfort part of the Mary River sheet is available. • Observe park safety signs. catchment, where floodplains, Rockhole • Observe Crocodile warning signs. billabongs, woodlands, - a popular • Carry and drink plenty of water. paperbark and monsoon forests access point to the waterways of • Wear a shady hat, sunscreen and provide visitors with excellent the Mary River. A boat ramp and insect repellent. opportunities for wildlife picnic facilities are located here. • Wear suitable clothing and footwear. watching, fishing, four-wheel Barramundi fishing is popular. • Carry a first aid kit. Fact Sheet driving, bushwalking and • Avoid strenuous activity during the photography. Couzen’s Lookout Camping Area - heat of the day. The Mary River is one of eight offers secluded camping beside the • Ensure your boat and vehicle is well rivers in the which Mary River. It is only a short walk maintained and equipped. have large floodplains in their to the lookout where the sunsets are • Beware of theft, lock vehicles and catchments. The stunning. secure valuables. takes you across five of the eight rivers as you travel between Wildman 4WD Track Please Remember Darwin and Jabiru. - links the Rockhole and • Put your rubbish in the bin or take it Wildman roads. You can start away with you. Access (see map) at either end and explore the • Keep to designated roads and tracks. Located 150 km east of Darwin wetlands. A separate information • All cultural items and wildlife are along the Arnhem Highway. sheet is available. protected. In the dry season (May to Shady Camp • Pets are not permitted in this Park. September) most areas are - a popular • Nets, traps and firearms are not accessible to all vehicles, however, fishing spot with boat ramps, permitted. many roads are unsealed. During picnic areas, camping and toilets. • Take care with fire, light fires only in the wet season (October - April) A shaded viewing platform offers fireplaces provided. flooding causes road closures. excellent views of the river and • Camp only in designated camping floodplain along with its many areas. When to Visit saltwater and freshwater crocodiles. • Wash away from water courses. Commercial tours and A barrage helps prevent saltwater • Collect firewood before arriving at accommodation are available entering the freshwater wetlands. your picnic or campsite. all year. For more information, Fishing from the barrage is very • Collect fallen timber only. contact Tourism Top End. The dangerous and not recommended. • Observe all fishing and boating most comfortable time to visit regulations. is during the dry season (May - • Check that your vehicle is not September) transporting pests like weeds and Cane Toads. What to See and Do Mary River Crossing - on Magpie Geese the Arnhem Highway 3km west Anseranas semipalmata of the Bark Hut Inn. A picnic area, toilets and boat ramp make this an ideal site to access the Mary. Hardies 4WD Track - is accessible from the Arnhem

Parks & Wildlife Commission of the Wildman Office Regional Office - Goyder Centre Ph: (08) 8978 8986 25 Chung Wah Tce PALMERSTON NT 0830 PO Box 496 PALMERSTON NT 0831 www.parksandwildlife.nt.gov.au Ph: (08) 8999 4555 Darwin

Mary River National Park Mary River National Park George Brown Darwin Botanic Gardens Charles Darwin National Park Casuarina Coastal Reserve Holmes Jungle Nature Park Knuckey Lagoons Conservation Tree Point Reserve Conservation Area

DARWIN Howard Springs NatureFogg Park Dam Conservation Reserve Berry Springs Nature Park Window on theMary Wetlands River Djukbinj NationalNational Park Park Manton Dam Recreation Area Arnhem Highway

Litchfield National Park Stuart Highway Channel Point Coastal Reserve

Conservation Area

Douglas River Esplanade TjuwaliynHot Springs (Douglas) Park Nature Park To Katherine Butterfly GorgeUmbrawarra Nature Park Gorge

Brian Creek Monsoon eating’ bird species can be seen and heard The 6 km return walk to Stuart’s Forest Walk - a patch of in the forest canopy above. Located Memorial and the coast from the Day diverse monsoon forest which contrasts behind the Point Stuart Wilderness Lodge. Use Area takes you through a range of strongly with the surrounding woodlands. Length: 1.6 km loop walk different environments. The track takes This is quite an easy walk and a picnic Time: 30 minutes you across hot and exposed floodplains, table at the start of the track provides a Grade: easy. please ensure you carry and drink plenty quiet spot to rest an enjoy your surrounds. of water. From dry woodland it leads out Bird Billabong walk Length: 2 km return over the floodplains, through a coastal - a walking track and vine thicket and eventually to coastal Time: 45 minutes viewing platform provide access to a Grade: easy mangroves and Finke Bay. The track billabong situated between the Mount takes you past Stuart’s Memorial Cairn, Mistake Billabong - a Bundey Hills and the Mary River channel. the site where John McDouall Stuarts viewing platform Birdlife gather and many species such as journey over the Australian continent provides shade while you observe a Radjah Shelducks breed in the billabong ended. A separate information sheet is billabong fed by run off, a small creek as waters recede on the wetlands. The available. and from underground. It is actually one shallow depth of the billabong results in of the few permanent water bodies for vast changes to the area between seasons; Length: to Coast - 3 km (6 km return) many animals in the dry season. Visitors from fully flooded (February/March) to Time: 3 hrs can expect to see different species of bird parched dry (usually by October). Grade: Strenuous - flat, uneven ground - hot and exposed. and plant life and perhaps animals such as Length: 4.5 km wallabies and floodplain monitors, all of Time: 2 hrs NO SWIMMING - very which rely on this precious water source Grade: easy large numbers of Estuarine until the first rains of ‘the Wet’ arrive (Saltwater) Crocodiles (Nov/Dec). Point Stuart Coastal inhabit these waters. Reserve and Stuart’s Length: 200 metres Memorial Cairn - only Time: 10 mins accessible from May to Grade: easy October via a 4WD track. Jimmy Creek Monsoon Forest walk - a formed track and boardwalk provide easy, shaded and cool access to this dense monsoon forest. Teeming with life, this monsoon forest is home to the unique Orange-footed Scrub fowl, that create enormous nesting mounds purely by scratching at the litter on the forest floor. A variety of small fish can be spotted as you cross the footbridge over Jimmy Creek and the many ‘fruit-

Fact Sheet Mary River National Park

Point Stuart Day Stuart’s Tree Memorial Van Diemen Gulf Use Area Cairn

Chambers Bay Finke Bay

Stuart’s Tree Fishing Camp Mary River (bookings esential)

Conservation Creek

Reserve Tommycut Creek Tommycut

Sampan Swim Creek Conservation Reserve Shady Camp

Gate

Jimmy Creek Monsoon Forest

Point Stuart Wilderness Lodge River

Mistake Billabong Rockhole Mary Brian Creek Monsoon Kakadu Forest Wildman 4WD National Corroboree Track Park Billabong

Hardies 4WD Track To Darwin Couzens Lookout and camping area

Arnhem Highway To Jabiru

Bark Hut Inn Bird Billabong Annaburroo Billabong

Mary River Crossing

McKinlay

Mary Mary River Park

River To Cooinda River

LEGEND

Camping Walking Track River Picnic Area Accommodation Sealed Road Toilet Scenic Lookout Douglas Gravel Road Fuel Boat Ramp Range 4WD Track Kiosk Information Swimming Park Boundary 0 10 20 30 Wildman Ranger Station Park Area Kilometres D/10/2015PWCNT Fact Sheet For more information see our website: www.parksandwildlife.nt.gov.au or contact Tourism Top End (08) 8980 6000 or 1300 138 886 www.tourismtopend.com.au