Butterfly Falls
ABOVE The waterhole at Butterfly Falls provides sanctuary from crocodiles.
You only have to travel 25km north of the Southern Lost City to reach another unmissable camping destination at Butterfly Falls. This shady oasis takes its name from the thousands of common crow butterflies that rise in spectacular, fluttering clouds from the amphitheatre’s cool, stone walls when disturbed. We watch them, floating beneath the trickling waterfall, soaking up Limmen’s only croc-free swimming opportunity as waterbirds wade amongst purple water lilies and azure kingfishers flit overhead, feeding on the wing. Around our shady campsite, sulphurcrested cockatoos feed on blooming, bright orange fern-leaf grevilleas, bending branches and filling the air with a delicious honeyscented nectar. On our most recent midwinter visit, we shared this spacious camp with just two other rigs, even though it could easily accommodate a crowd. The waterhole is deep enough for a proper swim and within easy reach of the campground, which means you can wander down again and again before finally drying off and stoking up a campfire. Like every camp in Limmen National Park, this one provides wheelchair-accessible toilets, fire pits and picnic tables, all for the low, low price of just $3.30 a head.
Towns River Camping
Pushing north, Towns River offers the most idyllic camping in the park, perched on the high set limestone edge of this clear, dark river. Like the Roper River, Towns River conjures up the kinds of legendary catches that lure barramundi aficionados so far down Limmen’s corrugated tracks, and it’s popular with caravanners for the hard ground and clear views. We slip through a sea of caravans to a riverfront nook just waiting for us, and spend the afternoon watching anglers reel in their fish dinners while bold black kites swoop for their share of the catch. An elderly couple warns us about the estuarine crocodiles nearby, but from our
ABOVE Limmen's lily-covered lagoons blaze with colour.
102 caravanworld.com.au