KATHERINE (NITMILUK NATIONAL PARK)

Father and Son overlooking Katherine Gorge

Mother and Daughter overlooking Katherine Gorge

Beth in the longed-for canoe ride on Katherine Gorge

DAY 24 – KATHERINE (NITMILUK NATIONAL PARK)                           Tuesday, 26^th July

Well, today was not what you would have called one of our more successful days.  It started off well – perfect weather …again!  So we drove out to Nitmiluk National Park to take in the sights and sounds of Katherine Gorge.  David, having been here the last two years, thought it best to take canoes at our own pace.  However, we then discovered that Beth and Ben could not go in a canoe by themselves.  Cruises are very expensive so we decided to hire one canoe which David and Tess would paddle down to Southern Waterhole and meet the rest of us.  There we would have lunch together and David would take the kids one by one out on the canoe and then paddle home with Bridgie while the rest of us walked back to the car.  The ranger assured us that this was a feasible plan, so off we went feeling very confident.

Sounds like a good plan, but I know all you Dads out there are feeling a little bit uncomfortable … thinking “We have all had a great plan like that …. which then goes completely wrong!!!”.  The walk was very difficult, very hot and VERY LONG.  We didn’t realise, but it was about 8.4 kms of really difficult walking over rocks, sand and boulders.  Lots of climbing up steep rocks and down into gorges.  By the time Beth, Ben, Bridget and I reached the waterhole, I had already decided that there was no way we could go back and David would just have to ferry us all back in the canoe to the carpark!  When we arrived at the waterhole it became obvious that you cannot reach the waterhole from the Katherine River by canoe and even the people at the waterhole said you cannot do it on foot.  So, with no way of contacting David, and not knowing if perhaps he was waiting somewhere on the Katherine River for us, I left the kids at the waterhole (don’t stress, Mum, it wasn’t TOO far) and took off to see if I could find him.  Arriving at the Katherine River I could see no sign of David up and down the River, so after having a small meltdown, I went back to the kids and informed them of the bad news – that they would have to walk the 4.5 kms back out of here.  Promised only a measly icecream, they were magnificent!  They did not complain once, even though it was 30 degrees and they had to climb and walk for another 2 hours to get back to the car.  Ben was beautiful helping his old Mum and Bethie was the best older sister, helping Bridgie all the time.  The only falter was when we ran out of water and had to walk almost 2 kms without water.  This is when Bridgie started telling me that she had rabies from the spinifex!!  Vintage Bridget.  Could not convince her that rabies does not come from spinifex.  But she did insist on hearing the story of my first love in Grade 4 over and over and over!!  Doesn’t it sound fun!!!!

I laugh now at my voice when I saw the watertank at the halfway mark!  I was almost hysterical!  “I can see it, Bridgie!”  I had to keep pretending that we were in John McDouall Stuart’s expedition from Adelaide to Darwin!! 

Meanwhile, my beautiful husband paddled for three hours to try to find us! He and poor Tessie had no food with them all day and they were aching from the paddling against the current!  I think he had a worse time than we did.  (David’s note:  “What do you mean “they were paddling”?)

David did manage get rid of the canoe and work out where we would come out eventually and came to rescue us!  He then did manage to convince the people at the Canoe Hire that he needed to give his other three children an experience of canoeing through the Katherine Gorge!  They were very happy they got the canoe ride in the end.  Needless to say the dip in the pool when we got home was very welcome – AND the icecream!   

We live and learn.  Often these stories are the ones you end up telling the most – and embellishing a little bit!! J  J