Chefprefers BLOG

Katherine Gorge is about a three-hour drive south of Darwin and my son wants to roll out his newly bought four-wheel drive. I opened up Waze to see our ETA at 3:18 and the boat cruise leaves at 3:30. My first thought is that we’re not going to make it. Then on the road, I saw the 130 sign WTF

I laughed.

Pounding down the highway we made it there at 2:50 pm plenty of time. My worries were soften when my son said the boat leaves at four. Contingencies! It turns out to be the best time to take the boat tour up to the Katherine Gorge.

Few people were waiting for the boat and then the a bus load of Swedish women’s beach volleyball players turn up. And then bus load of the South African men’s rugby team appeared. Wow! This should be fun to watch. And then I wake up to find instead that it was the Kiwi travels club and Victorian country women’s association. Lots of walkers and canes trudging down the gangway. Those old codgers certainly can move with those things. I have this ability to break the ice with people, I like to engage with strangers . On this occasion, we have a common goal, enjoy the scenery. I spoke with one of the Kiwis and they were travelling to WA after this, to see the Whales off Exmouth. Trip of a life time. Well the walk down to the boat ramp from the car park, you encountered thousands of orange leaf nosed bats. The cauldron easily covered the trees for kilometres, meaning a lot.

Fascinating.

The tour started off down river to the Gorge. The tour guide gives you a safety speech as we listen from the class room style seating. The other tour boat landed on the right and then he says I’m going to hand you over to Wayne who has jumped off the other boat and stood in front of us patrons. Hello I’m Wayne I’m going to be your tour guide today. Wayne was very resourceful and I believe was a very good guide. We rode up the river to another landing. Where we get off and walk to the upper part of the Gorge. On our way he mentions the aboriginal wall paintings on the Gorge cliffs. We veered off course a little and noticed a snake crawling within the wall cavities and yes some paints on display . See photo

Anyway, I posted a few photos of the Gorge and they don’t give it justice to the beauty of the place. I was in Wow! mode. Wayne mentions about the saltwater Crocodiles and how they are captured out of the Gorge. They use this floating cage with a dangling chicken at the back which once probed shuts the gate. He said last year they caught a 4m Croc in the 3m cage.

The Gorge is populated with fresh water crocodiles which apparently are non aggressive. They swim away when the boat comes. One of Wayne’s stories tells the life of a crocodile where they lay eggs on the sandbars, there’s a 30% chance they will hatch and a 12% chance that they survive the first year. Each crocodile lays at least 8 eggs. Saying … not many survive.

Our trip ended, so we went up to the lookout to see the sunset. Perhaps a 1000 steps but when we arrived the thirty second sunset had fallen. What a beauty. Then the bats from below came to rise, flying down the gorge like a lingering scent wafting through a tunnel. Such beauty, thousands of them. The drive is worth just seeing that. Next up the mounds of Litchfield national park.