After all the planning and preparation the time has come to start your journey. We fly to Darwin and will be picked up at the airport and head straight to Pudakul on Wulna Country. The drive will take just over 1 hour. We meet with Aboriginal elders for a traditional Welcome to Country (Cul Cul) and settle in and set up camp. We will then join the local indigenous team for a full trip and safety briefing. Depending on our arrival time we will start our cultural immersion program this afternoon. Our hands on program will include engaging with a local Aboriginal family on Aboriginal land, connection to Country and how the local peoples consider themselves custodians of the land and have lived in harmony with their environment for thousands of years. Tonight we will have a BBQ with our hosts and learn about storytelling and sacred dreamtime stories around the campfire. Overnight camping at Pudakul

Meals:  L,D

Today we will continue our cultural immersion program joining the local community on a trek on Pudakul grounds foraging, collecting and gathering bush plant materials to make clapstick and spears. We will also collect materials used for crushing ochre colour and strip fibres to make rope and colour using local dyes. On return to camp we will participate in a number of hands on activities with the materials collected including arts, hunting, and flora and fauna identification. We will learn the meaning behind Pudakul (the name of the Macaranga tree used to make spears) and try our hand at throwing one, along with learning about using local fibres and local ochre colours in everyday life. Tonight we will engage in storytelling and storylines over dinner. Camping at Pudakul.

Meals:  B,L,D

Today we will engage in a service program with the local community. The service program will be discussed with the community and school prior to arriving to find a suitable project. The projects are many and varied and can and have included creating a native bush tucker garden and vegetable garden for the local community to upkeep, join the primary school students on local landscaping programs, building and maintaining a chicken coupe, conservation work in the community including upgrading walking tracks connecting lands, sign creating, upgrading and maintenance, weed identification and maintenance and tree planting. The group can also engage with the locals and help with bush tucker harvesting, following seasons, trekking, collecting, packing and labelling items. Overnight camping at Pudakul.

Meals:  B,L,D

This morning we rise and have breakfast with our hosts before continuing our cultural immersion program on Pudakul land. After lunch we head off into the stunning wetlands areas. In the late afternoon we take a cruise on the Yellow Water Billabong, home to an astounding variety of wildlife. We may encounter Brumbies, wallabies and goannas drinking from the waterside, salt-water crocodile and thousands of birds including Magpie Geese, Brolga, Cormorants, Pelicans and one of Australia's largest flying birds – the Black-necked stork (Jabiru). The flat-bottomed boat is guided by an expert wildlife guide. This is a wonderful experience and gives a unique perspective of this huge National park and its origins. We continue to our semi permanent campsite located at Djarradjin Billabong, in the heart of Kakadu National Park. Students will be required to help participate with set up, food prep and general camp duties. Overnight Djarradjin Camp

Meals:  B,L,D

This morning we wake to the dawn chorus of the multitude of birds of the Savannah and wetlands. Students help with breakfast routine and food prep before a safety briefing and gear check for the coming days walking activities. Our day is focussed on a trek within the World Heritage listed National Park. We have a choice of two trek options today, depending on the weather and access within the park. One is to Jim Jim Falls along a bumpy old track, to Kakadu’s most famous waterfalls. Our visit is a trek that goes well beyond the regular tourist groups. Our other option for the day is to visit Ubirr, Cahills Crossing and to complete the Bardeljildiji sandstone walk. The walk at Ubir is short but passes several breathtaking Aboriginal art sites. The Bardeljildiji sandstone walk will take us through towering sandstone pillars and small pockets of monsoonal rainforest. We will aim to watch the sunset over the surrounding savannah and wetlands. We return to our semi-permanent camp near Djarradjin Billabong.

Meals:  B,L,D

This morning we rise and begin our breakfast routine. After pack down we will prepare and pack out lunch before we drive a short distance to Nourlangie massif and begin our trek into the heart of the National park. Our trek will take in the stunning lookouts of the Barrk and Nourlangie Circuit. Barrk is the indigenous name for the male black wallaroo, a member of the kangaroo family which lives in this area. On our trek we learn of the ranger conservation programs operating in the park. After lunch we complete the second part of our trek as we head out on the Angbangbang Billabong Walk. This is a beautiful billabong teeming with bird life. In the late afternoon we return to Dajarradjin Billabong camp to relax around the campfire and enjoy another evening meal.

Meals:  B,L,D

Heading south we will explore some of the other stunning waterfalls and gorges of Kakadu on foot. Maguk (Barramundi) Falls is reached via a stunning walk through the monsoon forest, opening out to a deep plunge pool lined with blonde quartzite cliffs. Keep your eye out for birds such as Rainbow pitas, Emerald doves and Spangled drongos as well as the endemic Anbinik tree – the biggest trees in Stone Country as we trek. In the far south of the National Park we arrive at our semi-permanent camp near Gunlom. Gunlom is a magnificent waterfall and plunge pool ringed by sandy beaches and pandanus palms, the perfect spot to relax. *Please note Gunlom plung pool is currently closed. If this site remains closed into 2023 we will amend the itinerary accordingly.

Meals:  B,L,D

Today is the most physically demanding on our program. Over the day we will undertake our expedition by foot, deep in to Southern Kakadu Buladjang Country. We aim to visit Motor Car Creek Falls areas and undertake a challenging walk (up to 11 km), taking most of the day. The highlight is arriving at an unspoilt, stunning crystal clear waterhole and some outstanding views of the surrounding hills and woodland. We have the freedom to set the pace of the walk depending on the ability of the group and weather of the day. Our walk takes us through open woodland past some remarkable Salmon Gums, glowing pink in the morning sun, before entering an area of pristine monsoon rainforest. Tonight we can take in our last Kakadu sunset while preparing and cooking dinner. Walking distance: up to 11km

Meals:  B,L,D

This morning we rise for breakfast and depending on your departure flight time we may enjoy a relaxing swim and visit to a nearby waterhole, and our last picnic lunch at at one of the many waterfalls and gorges, before continuing north to Darwin to the airport for your flight home.

Meals:  B