The Grotto

Visited: late dry season

Recommendation: This area is unbelievably stunning. Camping is questionable but if you can be here after dark and at first light, you are likely to see some wonderful wildlife.

The Grotto is a little spot just outside of Parry Lagoons. It's just off the road between Kununurra and Wyndham. It's signposted very well as a beauty spot and there is a nice bitumen road up to the car park. Some websites label it as a campsite, although there are no facilities. There are no signs there saying you can or can't camp there but generally, I think people go there for the day. There is a swimming hole at the bottom of the Grotto, which must be very nice after the seasonal rains. I visited in the very late dry season so there was no waterfall running from the creek into the grotto pool but you can see where the water will come from and you can walk along it. It is a kind of slate and rock lined area and it's really beautiful.

The Grotto itself is 150 or so steps down, which are quite rocky. I didn't really enjoy going down it in the day and that was a bit unfortunate because it meant that I really didn't want to go down at night. Standing at the top of the steps, I could hear a lot of wildlife, particularly frogs.  

In the day, I heard lots of cuckoos. The Pheasant Coucal, Pacific Koel, the Horsfield's Bronze Cuckoo, and the Pallid and Sahul Brush Cuckoo. That is some noise! Also flying around were the Blue-winged Kookaburra and I could hear Sacred Kingfishers and the familiar wail of the Red-tailed Black Cockatoo. Surprisingly, there were also a couple of Sulphur-crested Cockatoos, which you don't see very much up here. 

Early in the morning was a great time to see the White-quilled Rock-Pigeon. It was just there at about six o'clock in the morning as I opened the van door. Just sitting on the rocks at the top of the Grotto! It was only the second time I'd ever seen them. During the day when I did go down into the Grotto, it was really beautiful and worth it just for the experience of seeing the waterhole. There were some dragons and other lizards down there. 

White-quilled Rock-Pigeon (Petrophassa albipennis) 

At night, my partner saw the Short-eared Rock Wallaby and he also got this beautiful Olive Python as well. 

We stayed less than 24 hours and saw around 30 species of bird, along with marsupials, reptiles and frogs. It's definitely worth a visit just for the beautiful environment but also there are plenty of wildlife to be seen here too.