Lake Argyle to Katherine
Leaving Lake Argyle and that magnificent pool, we had a 500km drive ahead of us to reach
Katherine. After crossing the border and posing for the
usual border photos, we settled in for the drive. The boys settled into some maths and spelling
whilst Chrissy kept rule over the ‘ in
car classroom’ as Jim kept his eye on
the road. As we began to get nearer to Timber Creek we drove through some quite
beautiful rocky outcrop style country, coupled
with regular glimpses of the mighty Victoria River. Jim
thought Policeman’s Point Lookout near Timber Creek would be a good place for
lunch as recommended by his Aunty Glenda but after the vibrations near trashed
the insides of the caravan he was on his absolute best behaviour for a while. We soon passed Coolibah Station where ‘
Keeping up with the Jones’ is filmed and we decided not to visit.
Arriving in Katherine we made our way to the Low Level
Caravan Park and headed for the pool to cool off. It was not as hot as Kunnunurra which was a
nice change (since our caravan air-conditioner was still out of action) but it
was still 34 deg at 5.00pm. That night the kids loved their first views of the
huge fruit bats that fly around after dusk and spend their days hanging by the
river.
The next morning we had a bit of a slow start as we adjusted
to the time difference, before heading
in to town for some Woollies therapy and a look around. After lunch we were heading off to an
Aboriginal Cultural Experience when Jim reversed the car into a decent white
gum. All was very quiet for a little while!
Off to the Top Didj Cultural Experience we were introduced
to Manuel - Dalabon man from Arnhem
land. He is an acclaimed artist who
shared with us his story as well as teaching all us some of his customs and the
Dalabon way. He took us through the
steps to complete a small painting using some traditional as well as modern
materials and they all looked great. He
made a great effort to spend time with all of us and tried so hard to call the
9 of us in the group by our names.
Jordy at stage two of the painting process
Manuel and Will
Manuel working with Kurt and Chrissy
For a man who speaks 5 languages (can speak English but can’t read or write,)
he showed us what it is to be a traditional aboriginal in Australia. He
wanted to know about us, was very engaging in the way he shared his knowledge
with us and yet showed us that his culture was the most important thing in his
life.
Later we used traditional fire sticks to make fire, as well as throwing spears with woomeras
which the boys absolutely loved. Manuel
makes a living through his art and cultural shows and spends his wet season out
bush and painting and is a very talented man.
Jordy trying to make fire.
This is how you do it!
Will lets fly!
Recalling previous hunting trips.
Jordy has a go.
Kurt aiming to catch dinner.
Jim's turn.
With our finished artwork
The next morning we packed up and soaked at the Katherine
Hot Springs before heading off to the very beautiful Edith Falls for a swim. Will decided that the 150m across the deep,
cold pool was a little daunting, so he and Jim retreated to the banks. Chrissy, Jordy and Kurt braved the journey
and were rewarded by the beauty of the falls.
We then headed off toward Litchfield National Park. We had a short stay in Katherine but we will
return after we have visited Kakadu and Darwin.
Katherine hot springs
Edith Falls a 100m swim
Phew, made it!
One of the reasons it is so hot here is the amount of rock.
Rocks, rocks, rocks. Even Kurt has given up throwing them, we think
he’s got pitchers arm! They are everywhere and soak up so much heat making both
the Kimberley and the Territory very hot in places.
Litchfield National Park
After leaving Edith falls we had a two hundred kilometre
drive to the Litchfield Tourist Park just outside Batchelor. Arrival and set up
was pretty straight forward and the kids were soon in the pool and dinner
cooked. One great thing about being up here is the geckos hanging around the
lights at night. We spotted 21 at the toilets and they are such characters,
dashing out to catch insects.
The day began with a very unusual and damp fog. We set off early for
Litchfield National Park. After the magnetic termite mounds which point north
we were off to Cascade Falls for our first walk and swim of the day. It wasn’t
a long walk but hot as some of it was over sand and rock. We generally followed
and criss crossed the creek until we reached Lower Cascades and by the time we reached that, we
were certainly hot enough. Jordy, Kurt and Jim ventured on another few hundred metres to a
whole series of very picturesque falls before cooling off back with the rest of
the group. On arrival at the cascades Will came up with a great quote, “How
clever is God to make this!” it was a magic spot for a soak before heading on.
The boys at Cascade Falls,
that is not Jim under the waterfall by the way
Chin up time.
Under Curtain Falls
Next stop was Wangi Falls for lunch before a walk and a
swim. Being only 120km from Darwin, Litchfield is the destination for lots of
tour groups as well as locals out for the day, and we know 120km is nothing in
the Territory but several countries in Europe. There were certainly plenty of
German tourists about and they are constantly getting a bashing in the papers for things like not
putting out fires, putting 2wds through water crossings and swimming in croc
hangouts. Anyway Jordy and Jim set off for a walk over the escarpment
after lunch whilst the rest of the crew headed for the look-out and falls. Despite being
busy the falls were beautiful and the pool perfect for swimming and snorkeling - the boys enjoyed identifying different fish species. A really,
beautiful place. That’s about all that can be said, just beautiful. Will
cracked out the life jacket as the water is up to 14m deep and at least a 70m
swim to the falls and we all snorkelled about for quite a while in the
beautiful water.
Kurt and Will at Wangi Falls
Planking or resting?
Wangi Falls and Pool
Our final destination for the day was Florence Falls on the
way back to the tourist park. A steep decline down to the valley floor
involving 135 steps soon saw us under a monsoonal forest canopy walking
alongside crystal clear streams. The falls were busy but worth the walk, with
two main falls filling a good sized plunge pool. On entering the water, lots of
quite big sooty grunter(fish) swam amongst our legs and made us welcome. We had
a swim and enjoyed the falls before heading home to the park exhausted.
Florence Falls plunge pool
Cooling off at the end of a great day.
Next off to Darwin for satay prawns, a laksa, mango
smoothies and lots of other great stuff.
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