Parking
Park at the Yurmikmik Walks carpark, the shared trailhead for Motor Car Falls and the Kurrundie walk. An emergency call device is available at the carpark.
Overview
About Kurrundie Falls Walk
Why go
- High solitude beyond the Motor Car Falls section
- Remote waterfall, gorge, and creek scenery with wildlife viewing
Heads up
- Unmarked route with slow, rocky creek sections demands strong navigation
- Heat, flash flooding, and remote terrain can make conditions punishing
If you crave solitude and real wilderness, Kurrundie delivers. This is a challenging, remote 11 km return walk to one of Kakadu's least-visited waterfalls, threading through open woodland, monsoon forest, and stony escarpment country. Expect minimal people once you leave the Motor Car Falls track—often none at all.
Parkwolf’s verdictWhy goMap & elevation
The route
Plan your hike
Before you go
Parking
Best time to go
Safety
8 active Kakadu alerts
- ClosureJim Jim and Twin Falls area closed for 2026The Jim Jim and Twin Falls area is closed for 2026; do not visit the closed sites.Official details
- ClosureBarrk sandstone walk closedBarrk sandstone walk is closed at the request of Traditional Owners; do not enter. Check the current Kakadu access report before travelling.Official details
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Kakadu Tour Guide
Your drive to Kurrundie Falls Walk, narrated.
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Kakadu National Park. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.
See the Kakadu audio tourRecorded for this area
Yurmikmik Walks: Waterfalls of the Southern Stone CountryListen
“If you're looking for waterfalls late in the dry season, the Yurmikmik Walks are a good choice.”
Plays on the road 1.9 km from the trailhead in the Parkwolf Kakadu Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
- Chestnut-Quilled Rock-Pigeon: Secret of the Stone Country
- Kambolgie Campground
- The Making of the Stone Country
- 111 audio storiesacross Kakadu’s roads, triggered by GPS as you drive
- Wildlife heatmapsfor Saltwater Crocodile, Water Buffalo, Frilled Dragon, and 13 more
- Works offlinemaps, 35 trails, 54 places, and audio download before you lose signal
- CarPlay readysimple controls built for the drive
“Fantastic app with many points of information… It’s great to just turn on while you’re driving and it gives you an audio tour of the national Park. We love it!!!!”
Trail guide
Hiking Kurrundie Falls Walk
The hikePlan on about 6.8 miles/11 km total (return) and roughly 7 hours.
Plan on about 6.8 miles/11 km total (return) and roughly 7 hours. Start at the Yurmikmik Walks carpark and follow the Motor Car Falls walking track. After Motor Car Falls, continue on the old vehicle track to Kurrundie Creek, then follow the creek upstream to Kurrundie Falls. The final approach is rough and unmarked, with rocky footing, creek-bed sections, and boulder scrambling. This is a long, navigation-heavy day walk, not a maintained waterfall path.
Scenery & what to look forKurrundie Falls drops from the Arnhem Land plateau into a secluded gorge.
Kurrundie Falls drops from the Arnhem Land plateau into a secluded gorge. The creek's clay-rich soils can hold water later into the dry season than nearby sandy creeks, so pools may linger as the season advances. Watch for peregrine falcons around the cliffs, black wallaroos and antilopine wallaroos in the open country, and birds such as Gouldian finches and hooded parrots. The route also follows part of a historic 1946 mineral-exploration vehicle track.
Is it for you?This is a difficult, unmarked walk for experienced hikers who are comfortable navigating remote…
This is a difficult, unmarked walk for experienced hikers who are comfortable navigating remote terrain. Expect heat, rocky footing, creek crossings, and limited or no signage after the Motor Car Falls section. If you want a shorter, friendlier taste of the area with a maintained route and swimming, Motor Car Falls is the better choice.
TipsBottom line: a rough, rarely trodden route from Yurmikmik to a dramatic waterfall.
Bottom line: a rough, rarely trodden route from Yurmikmik to a dramatic waterfall. If you have the skills and the required permit, it is one of Kakadu's most satisfying quiet adventures.
- Treat this as a remote bushwalk: carry a map, GPS or compass, and a personal locator beacon; do not rely on phone reception.
- Carry plenty of water, sun protection, sturdy footwear, and first aid. Tell someone your plan and expected return.
- A permit is required for the Kurrundie walk; camping also requires a camping permit. Use designated campsites only if undertaking an overnight trip.
- Swimming is possible but conditions vary; take care around waterholes, cliffs, and flash-flood-prone creeks.
Wildlife
Wildlife in Kakadu
1,079 sightingsSaltwater CrocodileMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
121 sightingsWater BuffaloMost seen around 6 AMSighting map
76 sightingsFrilled DragonMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
116 sightingsRed-tailed Black CockatooMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
101 sightingsBrolgaMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
299 sightingsMagpie GooseMost seen around 5 PMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Kakadu. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
