Two Nights on a Houseboat on Corroboree Billabong

Sep 11

4 min read

We had spent nearly four months living out of two Toyotas, working our way across the Top End. So when Paul's birthday rolled around, we decided to do something completely different. We parked both rigs, swapped four wheels for a hull, and moved onto the water for two nights.

It was the first proper experience we had splashed out on in four months on the road, and there is a reason for that. We do not have kids, we do not have pets, we have camera lenses and cars, and that tends to eat the budget. But a birthday felt like the right excuse. Paul reckons birthdays do not mean much to him, though he was happy enough to call this the best birthday present going, which we will take as a win after the slightly ambitious cake a couple of weeks earlier back in Gregory National Park.

Meet Carol

Our home for the next two nights was a Corroboree Billabong houseboat called Carol, run by Corroboree Houseboats. Neither of us had ever skippered a boat like her, so before we were handed the keys the owner walked us through how she worked, every system, switch and tank, then took us out for a quick spin to make sure we were comfortable unberthing, driving and berthing her ourselves.

Two men on the covered rear deck of a houseboat, one seated at the wheel learning to drive and one standing looking out over the river. — *Paul practices berthing* Carol under the watchful eye of manager (also) Paul

Getting a boat that size on and off a berth is a genuine skill, but once he was happy, he set us loose. From there it was just us, Carol, and two nights out on Corroboree Billabong.

Croc country

We had barely been aboard a few hours when the first big saltwater crocodile cruised straight across the billabong in front of us. Then another. By the end of that first afternoon we had spotted a few, along with a pair of huge eagles, water buffalo on the banks, and more birdlife than we could keep up with.

Two large birds of prey perched side by side on a eucalyptus branch, one with a white head and breast, against a hazy sky. — *Two Sea Eagles on the banks of the Corroboree Billabong*

For one of us, this was the whole point. Karleah had lived in Darwin for two years and seen plenty of freshies, but never a saltwater croc in the wild. Two nights on the Mary River sorted that out on the first afternoon. Bucket list, ticked.

A large saltwater crocodile lying half-submerged at the grassy edge of the river, its ridged back and tail out of the water. — *Big brutus of a saltwater crocodile on the billabong banks*

The crocs did not let up over the two days. Some were sunning on the bank, some holding station in the current, and a few were absolute units, all girth and spines, clearly feeding well out there. There is something about seeing them on their own terms, in their own country, that no wildlife park comes close to.

Slow days on Corroboree Billabong

The best thing about having two nights rather than one was the pace. There was nowhere we needed to be. We had a slow first morning with a couple of coffees and some breakfast, weighed anchor, and moseyed up towards the northern flood plains where a lot of the action is, watching the water the whole way.

Aerial view of the houseboat moored alone on calm water in a vast Top End wetland at dawn, the sun low over a misty floodplain. — *Sunrise overlooking the billabong and wetlands*

We picked each anchorage for the sunset. The first looked out over the marsh and wetlands, and the second was tucked into a quiet bend with the sun going down over the water. Glass-off mornings, long light of an evening, and the wind holding off until we had already found our spot. If you are only doing one night, the operators suggest heading straight up to the northern end. If you can spare two, do two. It takes the pressure out of getting to a spot, actually enjoying it, and getting back in time.

Dinner with a view

On the final evening, with a sunset beer in hand, Paul knocked up dinner: a duck and veggie dumpling noodle soup, something he had made on the regular while living in Cambodia. The galley was cramped and half his usual ingredients were sitting back in the car, so it was an improvised effort, no soy, dumplings that had had a rough life, veggie stock standing in for the good stuff. It came together anyway, and eaten out the back with that view, it was hard to beat.

A Mary River houseboat moored on still water at sunset, with an orange and purple sky reflected across the river. — *Another epic sunset overlooking Corroboree Billabong*

Heading back

On the last morning we were a little sad to be handing Carol back, but there were places to go and things to do. We cruised back nice and slow, made the most of the last couple of hours on the water, and Paul brought her back alongside without so much as a bump, which was handy, since neither of us fancied explaining a scratch.

Two nights, and two nights is what we would recommend to anyone thinking about it. It was easily the best value experience we have done on this trip, and a birthday neither of us will forget in a hurry.