Across the Top – a voyage 20,000 years in the making

There are no roads to this land. Expedition cruiser, Roderick Eime, goes in search of ancient art, mysteries and tales almost forgotten.

It was just after 9.30 am when the first Japanese Zero fighter broke from formation and dived toward the church. Father John McGrath was busily radioing his message to Area Combined Headquarters at Darwin: “An unusually large air formation bearing down on us from the northwest.”

As soon as the transmission was sent, bullets immediately began shattering the woodwork and rattling the tin roofs like angry stones from above. This was the first enemy attack on Australia soil, twenty minutes before that fateful raid on Darwin on February 19, 1942.

“And ‘eres the radio Father McGrath used that day,” says Trevor Tipungwuti, our Tiwi Island guide, picking up the handset as if to correct the mistake, “and ya know the rest.”

To further the folklore of the Tiwi Islands, Flight Sergeant Hajimi Toyoshima’s Zero fighter crashed on Melville Island when returning from the raid whereupon he was captured by Matthias Ulungura, a Bathurst Islander, and delivered to authorities. Most history books refer to brave Matthias as just “an Aboriginal” if mention is made at all.

The little community of Nguiu on Bathurst Island even featured in a fictional scene from the movie, “Australia” when little Nullah was rescued from under the noses of hostile Japanese.

The two Tiwi Islands, Bathurst and big brother Melville, sit like a giant topographic awning over the city of Darwin. The 2500 Tiwi people, surprisingly perhaps, are quite distinct from their cousins across the Beagle Gulf in Arnhem Land with linguistic and cultural differences that belie the proximity of the communities.

Visiting the islands is mainly by day ferry from Darwin where tourism operators will hook up with the local team at Tiwi Tours for guided visits to sights like the artists’ workshops, church, burial ground and nearby museum. The propeller from Toyoshima’s Zero is still propped up against the old radio shack where Father McGrath sent his message.

But to gather a total experience of the region, including the adjacent Garig Gunak Barlu National Park, a voyage aboard one of Australia’s specialist adventure cruise vessels is essential. Cairns-based Coral Princess Cruises operates the 2000 ton Oceanic Discoverer on an 11-night exploration that begins in their homeport and culminates in Darwin.

Regular readers of Cruise Passenger Magazine will know from past issues that Coral Princess Cruises operate some of the most engaging expedition and adventure itineraries around our country. From comprehensive Great Barrier Reef explorations, Kimberley coast and New Zealand expeditions to sailings into remote PNG, Solomon Islands and Vanuatu, Coral Princess Cruises’ fleet of three vessels ensures unparalleled coverage of accessible adventure destinations.

On board are Ian Morris and Sandy Scott, two specialist lecturers on biology, history, indigenous culture and environmental science aboard, ensuring this journey is no cocktail-sipping doddle. While there is plenty of opportunity for the 76 passengers to relax, enjoy a drink and kick back, the on-shore activities include energetic hikes across the apparently desolate shores and rocky headlands. Apparently, because in the company of our observant guides, you’re soon directed toward remarkable flora ingeniously adapted to the harsh landscape as well as birds, mammals and reptiles that might go otherwise overlooked.

One of the most engaging excursions is certainly to the abandoned settlement of Victoria at Port Essington on the Coburg Peninsula. The story of this wretched outpost defies belief. Victoria was created in 1838 after the failure of nearby Fort Dundas and Fort Wellington. The stubborn insistence of the British colonial authorities, thousands of miles away in Sydney, kept this northern port maintained despite malaria, dysentery, cyclones and ferocious insects that tormented the god-forsaken residents continuously. With its ultimate and inevitable failure in 1849, it wasn’t until the establishment of Darwin in 1869 that the fledgling colony had its first permanent northern port.

Most of us remember from our school days the valiant European explorers like Van Diemen, Torres, Flinders and Leichhardt who mapped and “discovered” these territories and gave them their names. But the history of interaction with the original settlers goes way beyond even the first Europeans of the early 17th Century. Macassan trepangers (sea cucumber fishermen) from Sulawesi may have been trading with the local clans as far back as the early 15th Century. Their artefacts, tools, customs and even their dead can be found along our shores. Rock art as far away as Cape York Peninsula depicts visiting boats of all shapes and sizes, with the distinctive lines of the Macassan prau clearly among them.

Euphemistically titled “Across the Top”, this highly experiential journey delivers an insightful and intimate discovery of the most remote and isolated indigenous communities still independent within our sometimes overbearing administration. More importantly, it gives us a chance to shake off generations of prejudice and misinformation and gain an authentic understanding of the people who lovingly cared for this land long before we took over.

Doing It:

Oceanic Discoverer

Coral Princess Cruises offers the bi-annual ‘Across the Top’ itinerary as part of their array of Australian and South Pacific journeys that includes the Kimberley, Papua New Guinea, Vanuatu and New Zealand.

11 nights from Cairns to Darwin each April and reverse in September and October. Prices fro $6450 per person, twin share.

Vessel: Oceanic Princess
Cruise Line: Coral Princess Cruises
Star Rating: not rated
Tonnage: 1838 GRT
Max Passenger Capacity: 76
Entered Service: 2005

Built by NQEA in Cairns, Oceanic Princess is equipped with Zodiacs, a glass-bottomed boat and a specially designed, 80-seat, high-powered aluminium excursion vessel with awning and toilet.

* 38 staterooms, each with private facilities, sofa, desk, wardrobe, luggage space and individual air conditioning controls. Serviced daily.
* Australian registered with full SOLAS (international) compliance.
* Large sundeck and Spa Pool
* Internet booth and Comprehensive reference library
* Phone and fax facilities
* Lecture lounge with large plasma screen
* Limited laundry facilities
* Two fully stocked cocktail bars
* Boutique and dive shop
* Air-conditioned public areas

Bookings:

For further information, contact Coral Princess Cruises on 1800 079 545 or visit www.coralprincess.com.au

Getting there and back;

Virgin Blue flies regularly to both Cairns and Darwin with direct connections to most major cities. See www.virginblue.com.au

Garig Gunak Barlu National Park – www.nt.gov.au/nreta/parks