Parking
Park at Mardukal Campground 1, where the signed walk starts. The managed campground has 2WD access, toilets and showers; bring drinking water.
Overview
About Mardukal Billabong Walk
Why go
- Excellent birdwatching with surprisingly low crowds
- Shaded, scenic picnic spot at the end of the return walk
Heads up
- Very short and flat—underwhelming if you want a workout
- Crocodile risk limits any close water access or lingering at the edge
This is Kakadu’s easy win: a short, shady return walk skirting a tranquil billabong near Mardukal Campground. Expect still water, paperbark and pandanus shade, and a soundtrack of bird calls rather than crowds. If you’re camping nearby or road-tripping the highway, it’s a perfect leg-stretcher with real wetland atmosphere.
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 Mardukal Billabong 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 trailhead
Mardugal CampgroundListen
“You're coming up on Mardugal Campground, a popular bush camp that serves as a quieter alternative to staying in the main Cooinda area.”
Plays as you drive up to this trailhead in the Parkwolf Kakadu Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
- Night Chorus of Yellow Water
- Cooinda Airport Scenic Flight Hub
- Cooinda Lodge and Yellow Water Hub
- Warradjan Aboriginal Cultural Centre
- 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 Mardukal Billabong Walk
The walkPlan on roughly 1 mile (about 1.
Plan on roughly 1 mile (about 1.5 km) for the full return walk, taking around 30 minutes at a relaxed pace. Follow the formed track from Mardukal Campground 1 to the billabong picnic viewpoint, then return the same way. It’s flat and simple—Grade 2 easy—more amble than hike. Some official and third-party listings round the distance differently, but the mapped named corridor measures about 0.765 km each way and supports the 1-mile total-return convention.
What you’ll seeCome for the birdlife.
Come for the birdlife. Magpie geese, comb-crested jacanas tiptoeing the lilies, cormorants drying wings, purple swamphens, and kingfishers are regulars. The billabong itself is classic Kakadu wetland—seasonal water, big skies, and reflections—best appreciated slowly with binoculars in hand. Anglers work the high bank for barramundi and saratoga, but the water is crocodile country, so keep well back.
Need to knowDo not swim or approach the water’s edge—large saltwater crocodiles are present.
Do not swim or approach the water’s edge—large saltwater crocodiles are present. If you’re fishing and snag a lure, leave it. Keep children within reach and stick to the high bank and formed track. The walk is flat but unpaved and uneven in places, so it’s not wheelchair or stroller friendly. Toilets and showers are available at the adjacent managed campground; bring drinking water, as the campground listing does not provide it. 2WD access is typical.
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.
