Our alarm goes off at 6am, and thankfully we've had a better night. the room is cooler as we've kept the air con on and managed to sleep through the noise. As we leave, someone arrives to fix it. Doh.

We store our luggage in a shared storeroom and decide to take our documents with us, as we're unsure about security. We check out, and we're due back in three days - we're camping in Kakadu.

The wrong company picks us up - apparently ours has only two people booked on it - us, so has passed us onto another company - Kakadu 4wd Safaris. We're not very happy about this, as we booked 2 months ago, specifically with Kakadu Down Under, as we liked their itinerary and style. We also were told that my foot wouldn't stop us doing anything, it was all short walks. However, this trip is $60 pp more expensive, and we don't have to pay the extra as we didn't book it. Apparently this company were told late last night that we needed a space - it crosses our minds that we could've missed the trip altogether if it'd been full, despite booking really early. We called the original company last night to confirm our pick up, and they didn't mention the change. Nor did they mention to Kakadu 4wd Safaris that I have a dodgy foot, or that I am vegetarian.

Our driver and guide is Damo, a young (he refuses to tell us his age) Australian who has lived with Aborigines for the last five years, in nearby Arnhemland, as a sports officer, introducing them to new games and sports.

There are nine of us in the Land Cruiser, the others are an Italian couple, a German couple, two British and a Dutch guy. The cruiser is very basic, eight of us in the back, sitting on two facing benches. There are no handles to hold, which is a concern, given our experience of unsealed roads. It's also hard to get into, with a high ledge to climb. We have a trailer on the back, with all our luggage in. It's not squashed, but it's not overly comfy either - just about okay. If I sit at the back, I can stretch my foot out.

We drive to Adam's house - Adam owns the company. It's a small company, with just him and two drivers. His wife, Jen, sorts me out some veggie food for the next three days, thankfully. We meet (and hold) Adam's pet venomous snake and baby crocodile. He designed his house himself, it's 3 metres up on stilts, Damo reckons he had it built in Darwin, cut in half, and driven here to the middle of nowhere.

An hour later we stop for breakfast, and to buy beer. Everyone is getting along well, there's plenty of chatting, and the language barriers are being solved. Everyone has different length trips and different experiences. There's a lot of surprise when we describe our itinerary and the timescale in which we're doing it - some of these guys are doing less in six months.

[Kakadu wetlands]

It's a long drive to Kakadu, partly back down the Stuart Highway, which is the road we've driven in Adelaide and Alice - it's 3000km long and runs the height of Australia, through the middle. The drive up the length takes a week of desert crossing, and most backpackers do it in a bus.

We stop at the entrance to the park, and Damo draws a map on the sand, and talks about our itinerary. It's going to be a busy three days. Sounds similar to the trip we booked. Entrance fees are paid at the visitors' centre, which we'll pass on the way out - it's all done on trust. The park costs $18m pa to run, and $3m of this comes from visitors, at $17 pp. That's 3400 visitors a week, in an area the size of Switzerland.

[Termites repair Damo-damage]

[The group in front of the mound]

We've driven three hours in total when we turn onto a track road to see termite mounds. Damo has a secret location other tours don't go to, where he reckons he's found the biggest mound in the park. It's pretty big, but Iain reckons the one we saw in Litchfield was taller. Damo breaks a bit off to show us the termites inside. Thousands of them scurry out to fix it - he says they'll fix the 10cm diameter hole in around three hours - when we leave half an hour later they're well on their way. He eats a few termites then offers them around - gross. Iain has one, and is not forthcoming about the taste - don't think he enjoyed it much! Damo has so much knowledge about the bush, he's always stopping and showing us an animal or plant, and talking about how it's used. He's extremely knowledgeable and willing to show us.

[Brumbies (if you look carefully)]

We stop at a waterhole to watch the birds and brumbies (feral horses). Damo tells us a story about a fisherman a few years back who was killed by a crocodile - he was standing in shallow water, pulled a fish in and turned his back to wave to his mate who was filming. His mate caught the whole attack on camera. A few people have died here over the last twenty years, but croc attacks are rare - salties are caught and relocated every year - they swim in during the wet. Much of the park is inaccessible during the wet, though the land that is reachable is lush, green, and has amazing waterfalls - it's best seen from the air.

Next stop is to collect firewood, and then we drive through a river - apparently there are crocs, but it's only half a metre deep here.

[Finding firewood]

[And tying it on]

We reach our campsite for a picnic lunch at 1pm. It's a clearing with "long drop dunnies" - toilets. We leave the trailer here, and drive off again. We go to Maguk (Barramundi) Falls, and walk to the base. It's a tough walk for me, over rocks, river and deep sand. The group goes to the top of the falls, and Iain stays with me to help me reach the bottom. It's really difficult, clambering over both huge rocks and smaller pebbles, and my foot isn't happy. The base is beautiful, a huge pool surrounded by sheer cliffs, the odd rock you can scramble onto, and a tall waterfall. It's warm and clear water, and we swim. There are signs everywhere there's water in Kakadu, saying they do their best to remove the salties but there's no guarantee. We swim under the fall, watch the fish (stripey, barramundi and armer), and sit in the sun. The group turns up an hour and a half later, and we set off, so we've got extra time to get back. By this time my foot is pretty sore - walking on rocks is bending it painfully. When Damo turns up with the group, he says we've been sitting near a croc's cave, but it's full of "harmless" freshies.

[Bushfire *yawn*]

We drive to a billabong (waterhole) for sunset. There's not as much wildlife as we were hoping to see, but it's peaceful and scenic. We talk and drink beer as the scenery changes colours. We hear lots of dingoes, and on the way back to camp, see lots of deliberate grass-clearing fires near the road - pretty dramatic in the dark.

Back at camp, we have kangaroo (or bean for me) burritos for dinner, cooked over the fire, and learn how to use a swag - it's like a giant sleeping bag that you put your own sleeping bag inside. It's a relief to get a good dinner - a veggie we spoke to some time ago said she had nothing but pumpkin soup in Kakadu for three days.

We drive out late to see animals. Damo finds a file snake and shows us - we stay in the van as we can see crocs's eyes in the water, and Damo says it's not safe. Being Crocodile Dundee himself he wades out to see what's around.

We get back at 11pm, sit round the fire telling stories and jokes for while, and go to bed - another early start tomorrow.