Katherine and Litchfield

Katherine and Litchfield

The last six days could arguably be the most relaxing and awe inspiring yet.  I say this because we have been, yet again, treated to some more examples of stunning and jaw-dropping natural wonder.  

The morning after arriving in Katherine we drove to Nitmiluk National Park to check out the gorge there.  A work colleague of mine had suggested we do the breakfast cruise there, but we were out of luck this time.  Thanks for the recommendation anyways Miss Doelcm ;) We did, however, book a 2 hour cruise along the first two gorges on the Katherine River. We were interested in hiring a canoe and paddling our own way up the gorge, but alas, nobody under the age of 5 is allowed in the canoes.  The upside to this was that children under 5 get on the cruise boats for free!

The cruise was scheduled to leave at midday, so we had enough time to suit Ranger Ebony into her backpack and complete the Baruwei Walk, which takes you to a viewing platform above the first gorge.  The walk itself wasn't strenuous and we were back within an hour.  

A quick lunch at the cafe and we boarded our cruise boat for out tour.  The tour took us along the first gorge before we had to disembark, walk about 500m and then board another boat to traverse the second gorge.  All the way along our guide, nicknamed Oyster....., gave us the history of the gorge as well as some insights into the culture of the local indigenous people.  Oyster kept us all interested and entertained with his jokes, stories and knowledge of the gorge.  He had a moustache that even Merv Hughes would envy!

   

In the dry season (current) the water level drops so that there are actually 13 separate gorges.  Depending on the time and funds available, you can choose to either canoe or cruise as far as you like.  In the wet season, the water rises so much that the gorge becomes one continuous body of water.  An interesting fact is that at peak flooding times there is enough water flowing down the Katherine river to fill Sydney Harbour in 9 minutes.  Fascinating! 

The sheer cliffs, pristine water and serenity of the gorge was amazing.  Every turn the boat took was met with "oohs" and "aahs" from the tourists.  Even Ebony seemed to marvel at the enormity of the place.  

The good thing about visiting Katherine in the dry season is that there is a severely reduced risk of an encounter with an estuarine crocodile.  We did, however, get a chance to see some of the much more timid and considerably smaller freshwater variety of crocodile.  

The tour was certainly well-worth it and we thanked our esteemed guide, Oyster, for his time.  

On the way back to town we dropped in to see Marksy, a friend of my parents.  Marksy runs a bush tucker dinner in Katherine for six months of the year.  We had a chat for a good 20 minutes and I was intrigued at his set up. Everything he cooks for his dinner is inspired by locally available spices, herbs and fruits and the menu he was describing to me was something I would only hear on Masterchef!   Marksy only uses camp ovens and fire; no gas or electricity.  It is a shame we couldn't actually have dinner there.  

The rest of the time at Katherine was either spent in the pool or stocking up on supplies. We were keen to get to Litchfield as the weather was looking hot and the thought of swimming at some of the country's most beautiful waterfalls and rockholes was sounding lovely.  

We awoke the next morning, packed up and hit the road by 7:30am.  It is just as well we did, because the campground at Wangi (One-gee) Falls was almost full by the time we got there.  Luckily, we were able to find a sheltered spot vacant and we subsequently set up.  For the rest of the day, and the time we were camped at Wangi Falls, there was a constant stream of caravans and motorhomes entering with high hopes and leaving looking either angered or dejected.  It is certainly a very popular place to stay.  

The roads into Litchfield were lined with shrubs and palm trees.  We had become accustomed to the natural beauty of open skies and little vegetation, but one thing was for sure: We had reached the tropical north!  11:00 that morning the temperature gauge was already at 26 degrees.  

Ebony went down for a nap after lunch and I took the opportunity to have a look at the falls.  Wow...just wow!  Such an amazing place!  I couldn't believe that people were actually allowed to swim here.  Needless to say, the afternoon was spent doing just that! The falls in Litchfield flow all year round and I can only imagine what they must look like in the wet season.  

That evening, after a delectable home made pizza dinner, I set about making an itinerary for the following two days.  Once the draft was complete I submitted it for review by the Minister for War and Finance.  Approval was received quickly, so I was able to relax for the rest of the evening. 

The following morning began with a little bit of 4 wheel driving and bushwalking to check out Sandy Creek Falls.  You are allowed to swim at the falls, but we had reserved aquatic activities for the afternoon, so we walked back to the car and drove to Blythe Homestead.  

The drive in involved a couple of small river crossings which had water lapping at the doors.  Good fun!  The homestead is now but a ruin, but the history of the Sargent Family is well documented there.  There are some excerpts of writings by the children who used to live in the homestead and one tells of how they had to treat a crushed and broken hand of their 8 year old sibling at the time.  This was back in the early 1900s, so there was no such thing as medical aid let alone anaesthetic.  There is also a now closed tin mine behind the homestead that you can walk to.  

Another couple of river crossings and some sandy driving later we arrived in the Lost City.  The early, intrepid explorers could be forgiven for thinking this remarkable series of rock formations actually was an ancient city.  Only the nerdy will get this and I apologise, but as I walked through the Lost City I was reminded of the Final Fantasy series, so I was sure that a rock golem or something was hiding somewhere...maybe a chocobo?  Once I had ensured that all available hidden Gil was found, we headed back to the van for lunch.  

After lunch we ventured to the Buley Rock Holes and Florence Falls for a swim.  The Buley Rock Hole car park was full, so we went to Florence first.  A short, 1.1km walk down a flight of 135 stairs took us to a lovely waterhole with cascading waterfalls.  After a swim we decided to chance the Buley Rockholes again and we were lucky enough that people were beginning to leave.  Buley turned out to be a great little spot for a swim with plenty of room.  Ebony was very keen on exploring and she had a blast.  She spied a group of kids jumping from one of the ledges into the water and insisted that her turn was next.  Ummm.... 2 year old jumping from a two metre high ledge into water??  Kudos for having the guts to want to, but I think not!  

That evening we were both in bed by 8:30pm.  The end of a hectic, but awesome day.  

The mercury was forecast to reach low 30s the following day, so a morning walk was in order.  We decided on the Cascades to the north of where we were staying.  There wasn't a lot if information about the place, but we thought that we would chance it anyways.  Well, I am certainly glad we did.  After a 1.5km hike up and in we were rewarded with a magnificent series of rock holes flowing down and ending in a sweet little waterfall and rock hole.  The walk in wasn't strenuous, but it was difficult to navigate the steep and slippery sections with the backpack.  I guess that made the rockholes at the end of the walk that little more rewarding.  

The place was just so inviting, that we decided to head back after lunch for a swim.  It was just great exploring the waterfall and rockholes there.  The fact that the Cascades are a little bit further from Batchelor made it so that there were very few people swimming there.  In fact we had the area to ourselves for considerable time; our own little slice of paradise.    

Litchfield would have to be one of the best places we have visited so far on our trip.  Sarah rates it as her number 1.  Swimming in and exploring some of the most amazing and beautiful waterholes and waterfalls was just spectacular.  It will be something that we remember for a long time.  We will be back, that's for sure!  

This morning we said a rather sombre farewell to Litchfield and made the trek to Darwin where we will stay for the next 6 nights.  Our good friends Tan and Dave will be here in a couple of days and we are very much looking forward to the reunion!  

More soon!