Jumping Crocodiles

The water was brown and murky. The banks were overgrown with trees and bushes.

I was on a boat, moving down the Alligator River in the Northern Territory. While the river looked peaceful, beneath the brown surface moved deadly predators.

Crocodiles.

Salties.

They’re such amazing animals. Their huge teeth never stop growing.

Those teeth could rip into my flesh and tear it from my bones. Inside the crocodile’s strong mouth, my bones would snap like twigs.

I can’t help but be fascinated!

Back on the boat, a man holds a long pole and reaches across the water. Dangling from the pole is a slab of beef, tied to string. The beef dips briefly into the water before being yanked back up. The surface of the water suddenly breaks and the snout of a crocodile moves into view.

We’re here to watch the crocodiles leap

from the water to grab the meat.

The crocodile is made to jump. The first crocodile leap is amazing.

The snout and front half of the crocodile jump from the water,

into the air.

But it’s not good enough... the crocodile is not given the food. With an extra wriggle, and a sudden flick of the strong tail, the crocodile leaps further out of the water. Its front and back legs clear the surface. The meat is torn from the pole and the crocodile vanishes back into the water.

It all happens in a moment... a great moment. I can’t help but imagine that I am in a tree overhanging the water, legs folded up, with an angry crocodile leaping up and snatching at my toes.

Imagine...