Jim Jim and the Rainforest Gorge (Anbadjgoran)

200 metres tall with a final sheer drop of 160 metres, Jim Jim Falls is the highest in Kakadu. The falls are at their most spectacular during the wet season. At this time of the year, the 4WD tracks are closed. The only way to see the falls is on a scenic flight or, from the ground, on a bushwalking expedition. For more than 20 years, Willis's Walkabouts has been the only tour operator visiting Jim Jim on the ground during the wet season.

The photo at left was taken on our January 2009 Kakadu Super Circle trip.

Many of our other trips visit Jim Jim during the dry season. We hike up the marked trail to the top of the falls, spend some time looking around there, then trek upstream, stopping to swim in the pools and visit a number of Aboriginal art sites. We camp in places like the one shown below.

Anbadjgoran (labelled as "Ankarrkarrkarrmi" on the 1:250,000 Kakadu map), one of the longest rainforest gorges in Kakadu, lies between Jim Jim and Twin Falls Creeks. The spring fed creek running through the gorge continues to flow strongly long after its more famous neighbours have stopped. The photo at right shows part of the upper Anbadjgoran falls. It was taken well into the dry season when Jim Jim was only a trickle.

Although it is less than six kilometres long, continuous rock hopping makes the hike through the gorge a slow one. Fortunately, constant shade and lovely pools make this one of the coolest treks in the park.

The first European to visit the area was Ludwig Leichhardt on his epic trek across Australia in 1844–45. He descended from the Arnhem Plateau somewhere between Anbadjgoran and Jim Jim Creek, one of the few places where the descent is possible with horses.

We visit Jim Jim and Anbadjgoran on a number of our Circle Trips and Highlights Trips. For details of which trips offer bushwalks in this area, see our Kakadu trips list.