Katherine to Daly Waters

Gidday

I'm actually in a place called Ti-Tree which is about 200kms north of Alice Springs. There are a few of the natives here plus there are a lot of their dogs. Unfortunately Chardy has taken a liking to one of the dogs and is acting like a little 'hussy' so I have had to have words.

Katherine Gorge was quite good but did not see as many crocs as I did at Geike Gorge, not that it is all about crocs. We had to change boats when we went from one gorge to the other and it was all very interesting.

You think the Gold Coast has a lot of bats well I've never see such large colonies as there is near the gorge. I haven't heard anything about the Hendra virus being here.

After Katherine I went to Mataranka and stayed in a Park on the river. There are also natural springs here and yes this time I did go for a swim. The water was warm so really wasn't that refreshing. These springs were called Bitter Springs and then I also went to the Mataranka Springs but didn't swim there. The Bitter Springs are in natural enviroment but the Mataranka ones have been enclosed like a swimming pool.

From there I went to Daly Waters which is a town that has a pub, souvenier shop and petrol bowsers. The pub put on a meal of beef, barramundi (You could have either of 1/2 and 1/2, which is what I had) and salad for $27.50 and it was delicious and far too much for me.

I'm now making my way to Alice and will hopefully get there tomorrow. I will probably only stay there one night as there really isn't anything there, except shopping for food.

Here at Ti-Tree there are 2 peacocks and 8 peahens which I find rather odd. I have no idea how they got here but are obviously happy.

Well that's it till next time

Katherine Gorge

Katherine Gorge

Rock Art at Katherine Gorge

 Guess who?

Tortoise in Billabong at Springvale Homestead Caravan Park

Part of Bitter Springs

Devils Marbles - well some of them anyway

Well once again it's time to goodbye. Hope everyone is well

Lots of Love

Jo, Kaiser, Chardy and Shiraz

xx    woof     woof         woof

Photos

                          
Flip and I.

 Nice name for a cafe. This was at the Mindil Markets

 Wangi Falls - Litchfield National Park

Florence Falls and Rock Pool

                                     
Buley Rock Pools - no I don't know who he is

Well I'm pleased I could put the photos on. Not sure what happened before.

Love

Jo, Kaiser, Chardy and Shiraz
xx     woof    woof          woof

Darwin to Litchfield National Park

Hi Everyone

Well my time with my sister and brother-in-law came to an end too quickly. They headed of to Kakadu last Tuesday and were staying there 4 nights. The Caravan Park, in Kakadu, was far nicer than the one we stayed at in Darwin.

Before they left we did visit the Markets at Mindil Beach which is at Fannie Bay. The market is well known for it's food stalls which are all of different Nationalities. There were also a lot of Art and Craft stalls. The market doesn't start till 4pm on Sundays and 5pm on Thursdays and they run for 5 hours. We brought our dinner there and took it back to our vans but a majority of the people bought their table and chairs and ate their meal there, which was next to a beach. We took ours 'home' because we had to have 'happy hour' before we ate!! The food was delicious and there was enough for 2 meals so we had it again the next night.

Peter, brother-in-law, had to go to Harvey Norman and whilst there he noticed that they had a special on having photos printed, 9cents per print. It finished that day so he took me there and I had 1148 prints done and saved $35!! Now to put them in Albums, I haven't done the last lot yet and there are 700 prints.

After Flip left I washed and clipped the dogs. I know so exciting but they were in desperate need for a wash and could've lasted a few more weeks before a clip but decided to do it as had not much else to do.

I left Darwin on Friday and went to Litchfield National Safari Park which was great. There was no reception there so that's why I'm a bit behind with my blog.
There are a few waterfalls plus rock pools so I went on my scooter to see them. I had to travel 28kms to get to Florence Falls but was well worth the effort.Yes I did go for a swim at Florence Falls and Rock Pool and it was quite cold when you first got in but you soon got used to it. There were lots and lots of people at the rock pools and it wasn't that easy to get in because of the slippery rocks and limited areas on where you could go in. Buley Rock Pools were close to Florence and quite different as they were along a river where as Florence was a the base of 2 waterfalls.

I'm now back at Adelaide River to catch up on my emails and blog. Also to recharge camera battery and computer as I wasn't on a powered site at Litchfield.

Tomorrow I head back to Katherine, to see Katherine Gorge and then head for Alice Springs and the great rock!

I'm having trouble putting photos on so will do another blog.

Love to everyone

Jo, Kaiser, Chardy and Shiraz
I

Finally in Darwin

Hi Everyone

Well I'm now in Darwin and with my sister and brother-in-law. It is great to see them and we are seeing Darwin together.

After leaving Timber Creek I went to Katherine and stayed at Springvale Homestead. It was very nice there and I actually camped beside a Billabong. It was a non powered site and only cost $10. The next night I went to a Caravan park in Katherine, and had a powered site,( a bit of a comfort zone but am getting more confident in staying somewhere without power), which was $34!
Anyway it backed onto the Hot Springs area so that was an added bonus. The water temperature in these springs is 32 degrees, and NO I didn't go for a swim but lots of other people did.

I do plan to go back to Katherine on my way to Alice Springs and will visit Katherine Gorge which is now called something else, aboriginal of course.

From Katherine I went to Mary River which is at the south Entrance to Kakadu. I had arranged with Dennis ( well he suggested it) to meet there and I  would look after his dog so he could go into Kakadu for a day and then he'd look after my 2 so I could go. I must admit I did enjoy Kakadu but thought there would be more Gorges and other things to see. The Cultural Centre was great, as was the Rock Art. It was extremely hot and with all the walking was quite exhausting. You also had to pay a $25 entrance fee but no one ever checked that you had a ticket. The Caravan Park had no reception and I was on a unpowered site so all I could do was read my book.

There were some Aborigines living in the Caravan Park and were very friendly. Their house had a colourbond roof and the walls were made of wire mesh so you could actually see in at any time of the day or night. They did have a section that was screened off that I think was the bathroom as their bed was in view.

From Kakadu I went to Adelaide River but there was nothing there. Darwin was the next stop where I caught up with my sister and brother-in-law.

It was fantastic to see them and can you believe Flip cooked me a roast which is the first one I'd had in 5 months!! She cooked it in the Baby Q Bar B Que and it was delicious.

We are seeing Darwin together and it is so nice to have someone to share the sites with. It is 32 degrees and the nights are warm so the airconditioner is getting a lot of use.

 Billabong at Springvale Homestead

 Hot Springs at Katherine

 Signs at Amenities Block at bMary River

 Rock Art Kakadu

Part Of Kakadu

I tried to put a photo of thje wetlands at Kakadu but it wouldn't happen.

Hope everyone is well and hopefully I uodate again soon. There really isn't much here in Darwin.

Lots of  love

Jo, Kaiser, Chardy and Shiraz
xx     woof    woof           woof

Have reached Northern Territory

Hi Everyone

I'm sorry for the delay but I haven't had reception for a few days.

I saw a little bit of Derby and am pleased I didn't book in for 2 nights. I missed low tide so can't compare with high tide. The tides have been amazing up the west coast compared with the East.

Next stop was a free park and then Fitzroy Crossing, where I stayed at a Caravan Park on the Fitzroy River. The current in the river is quite strong so it is not advisable to go swimming.  I also did a tour of the Geike Gorge which was fantastic. The scenery and History were amazing. Saw quite a few Fresh Water Crocs which apparently aren't as aggressive as the Salty, I wasn't prepared to find out though. I also met Bob who is a 'native' and I was sucked into buying another carved Boab Fruit, I'll never learn! I also took his photo and he said that it costs $5!! He didn't get the $5. He was friendly and sits outside the Carvan Park every day. There are a lot of Aboriginies employed at the park.

Next was a couple more Free Parks as there is nothing at Halls Creek or Warmun ( Turkey Creek) so decided not to waste money staying there. I got to Kunanurra on Saturday 2nd. The caravan park is on a Lake and really is quite relaxing watching the birds and Monitor Lizards. I drove 100kms to Wyndham the next day and went to the  5 Rivers lookout which is self explanatory. Also took a photo of the Big Crocodile. I then drove back to Kunanuura. My great expense, here, was a flight to the Bungle Bungles, Lake Argyle and the Argyle Diamond Mine, well worth it. The Mine was enormous and the lease goes to 2020 but Rio Tinto aren't sure whether to extend. There is billions of dollars worth of Diamonds still to be mined so not sure why they wouldn't continue.

The Bungle Bungles are well worth a look at. You can go in, in 4WDs but I don't think you would get the same effect as from the air.

I stayed at Kunanurra for 3 nights and then went to Lake Argyle which is only an hour away. Lake Argyle is classed as an inland sea covering 1,000 square kms. It was formed by the damming of the Ord River and is Australia's largest body of fresh water. How's that for a history lesson!!

The caravan park has a swimming pool that overlooks part of the lake. I was talking to one couple who had a schnauzer and were travelling with another couple who had a poodle. When they found out that I clip my dogs, the people with the poodle were at my door asking me if I'd clip there dog, which I did. I asked them not to let anyone else know as I'm not a dog groomer.

Well I'm now in Timber Creek, NT. I had to put my watch forward 1 1/2 hrs, yesterday, which made my stay at the free park a short one. Tomorrow I head for Katherine

 

  Boab Prison Tree n Derby - 14.7 metres in diameter

 Geike Gorge

 Geike Gorge

 He might be a little out of focus - sorry

 My friend Bob!

 Bungle Bungles - part thereof

 Monitor

On Lake Argyle

View from pool at Caravan Park

Well that's it. Next Blog will probably be from Darwin. Hope everyone is well

Lots of Love

Jo, Kaiser, Chardy and Shiraz
xx    woof    woof          woof