Yellow Water Billabong Sunrise Cruise
Join a Yellow Water sunrise cruise — one of Australia's great wildlife experiences — on the South Alligator River floodplain wetlands, with crocodiles, sea eagles, and jabiru storks in a Gondwana landscape.
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Cooinda Lodge Departure
Yellow Water cruises depart from Cooinda Lodge at dawn — the pre-sunrise departure means crossing the floodplain in darkness, arriving at the billabong as the first light turns the water gold.
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Yellow Water Billabong Entry
Yellow Water (Ngurrungurrudjba) is the most biodiverse wetland in Kakadu — the tannin-stained floodplain water turns golden in the sunrise light, giving the billabong its name.
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Saltwater Crocodile Banks
Large saltwater crocodiles bask on the billabong banks — the population density here is one of the highest in the Territory, and the sunrise cruise regularly encounters animals of 4-5 metres within metres of the boat.
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Jabiru Stork Wetlands
The jabiru (black-necked stork) is Kakadu's most iconic bird — the large, colourful stork wades through the shallow floodplain water hunting frogs and fish, and the billabong supports significant numbers year-round.
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White-Bellied Sea Eagle Roost
A pair of white-bellied sea eagles roost in a paperbark tree above the billabong — they hunt over the water and the territorial pair has used this roost for many consecutive wet seasons.
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Lotus Flower Floodplain View
In the late dry season, lotus flowers cover sections of the billabong in pink — the sight of lotus blooms above the tannin water, backed by paperbark forest and the escarpment, is one of Kakadu's most beautiful.