Kakadu school students treated to trip to Cooinda

Kakadu School Kids had a great day out during the recent school holidays. 
Local organisations banded together to take a group of young people down the Kakadu Highway to Gagudju Lodge Cooinda, the home of Yellow Water. 
Under watchful eye of CatholicCare NT staff, kids met at the Jabiru Pool and jumped on the bus enroute to the Warradjan Cultural Centre to be met by a Senior Traditional Owner of Murumburr country Violet Lawson. 
To the delight of the group, they were given a personal tour of the cultural centre, with stories of family moiety, pandanus weaving, fish catching and the buffalo days. 
The Yellow Water boat cruise was booked for 1pm, so after a quick look through the well-stocked Warradjan Art Gallery and a quick chat to the Bininj artists in residence, David and Abel from Manaburdurma (Jabiru Town Camp), it was off to Cooinda to get wet. 
While the barbecue was cooking, the kids enjoyed a dip in the pool before heading down to Home Billabong for the cruise on Yellow Water. 
Guide Trevor Wie was skipper of the boat and delivered an informative and entertaining talk on the diverse water – way of Jim Jim Creek and Yellow Water Billabong. 
The group even got to see a crocodile up close, but it was too quick for us to take a photo. 
It was a fantastic day, enjoyed by all and the Kakadu kids would like to thank all those who made the day possible, including Cooinda Lodge, CatholicCare NT, Gundjeihmi Aboriginal Corporation, Jabiru Area School, Kakadu National Park and West Arnhem Regional Council.