Katherine – Thursday

When we were choosing our campsite at Litchfield I told Alex I didn’t want to be too far from the amenities block. Apart from disappearing off into the bush campsites we were about as far away as it was possible to get! To make up for that our campsite here has its own “ensuite” complete with laundry tub, washing line and sensor lights and we’re both enjoying the luxury.

The original town here was at Knott’s Crossing and today we went to see the site. Alex really excelled himself when he took a wrong turn and ended up on the hospital helipad! The Knott’s Crossing location is lovely. There were warning signs about the possibility of crocodiles so we kept a watchful eye out but all was peaceful. Having seen the size of the snake caught in some fishing line I’m very glad the path was clear.

Knott’s Crossing

Knott’s Crossing

Birds at Knott’s Crossing

Snake caught in fishing net

Snake caught in fishing net

The Katherine Museum was also on our list for today and we roamed about there until we reached overload. We learnt a lot though especially about the ethnic backgrounds of early settlers and their attempts to make a go of their farms. Where ever we go Chinese seem to have been involved in setting up market gardens to supply fresh food to the community.

Old vehicles, Katherine Museum

One of the boards describing a local character

Overland Telegraph Linesman at his accommodation

Overland Telegraph building

Old machine

I didn’t know this!

A statue of a horseman has caught my eye a couple of times but today we took the time to check it out. Luckily we’d read about the man when we were at the museum but the statue is a tribute to not just one man but to the many pioneering families in the community.

Sabu Sing monument

Our last venture for the day was to the Katherine Creek for a swim in the “Hot Springs”. The benchmark for hot was set for us at Beduori so we give the water at Katherine a rating of only mildly warm or lovely and warm if you get back in after stepping out into a breeze. The setting was completely different though, Bedouri’s hot pool was a man-made structure whereas at Katherine it’s the river. Our enjoyment was magnified by that of those around us especially a young couple who were persuaded to “seal glide” over some rocks into the deepest part. They were so overwhelmed by the experience they went to the highest most accessible point and floated all the way down and over the rocks for a second time. Floating in amongst the little bubbles just over the rocks was like being in a lemonade bath.

Katherine Creek – swimming hole

Katherine Creek – swimming pool

Tomorrow we’re travelling down the Stuart Highway, probably to Dunmarra which isn’t much more than a wayside stop so it’s possible we won’t be able to access the internet.