Katherine Gorge

Sorry for the lack of posts, we have been out of range free camping in the bush.

Well we finally left Darwin. We really liked this laid back town, so hopefully we will be back someday.

We arrived in Katherine at the Big4 Low Level caravan Park in the late afternoon after stopping at yet another waterfall, Edith Falls, for lunch. Fortunately we had booked ahead as by the time we arrived the very large park was almost full.

Edith Falls.  This was the lower falls, we didn't walk up to the top

It is a beautiful park on 40 acres with lots of grassed areas, a lovely big swimming pool, restaurant and bar and you guessed it, surrounded by swaying palm trees. It is a little way out of town so is very quiet.

The name of the park 'The Low Levels' was a bit of a concern due to the amount of rainfall in this region, and the fact that it is right beside a river!  But fortunately there is not a cloud in the sky.

After a very cold night, a bit different to Darwin, we had an early start to join our Katherine Gorge Cruise.

The cruise left from the Nitmiluk National Park Visitors Centre, 29 kms out of town, a distance we had quite misjudged, and nearly missed the boat.

Katherine Gorge - now called Nitmiluk Gorge
A visit to the Northern Territory is not complete without a trip to the iconic Nitmiluk (Katherine) Gorge and the surrounding areas. It features some of the most stunning natural landscapes in the Territory with raging waterfalls an abundance of animal and birdlife and the ancient secrets of the Jawoyn culture.

The Majestic Cliffs

Nitmiluk Gorge winds along 12 kms of sheer rock cliffs most more than 70 m high. Consisting of 13 separate gorges, Nitmiluk Gorge is a maze of waterways sculptured from the sandstone over countless millennia by the Katherine River.

Nitmiluk tour company is a 100% indigenous owned organisation and is the sole tour operator within Nitmiluk National Park.

The tour we had chosen today was the 'Timeless Land 3 Gorge Cruise' over 4 hours.

We boarded the first boat which took as through the magnificent scenery of the first gorge, we had a wonderful indigenous guide who told us all about the area as we cruised. After almost an hour we climbed out onto a landing where our guide showed us some of the rock art by the Jawoyn people, explaining that the art was left as messages from one clan to another.

The Rainbow Serpent

Hand print of a Jawoyn Child

Jawoyn Art Site - Turtles

As the Jawoyn are nomadic people, as they moved on they left messages for the next family who wood come by, about the food sources available, where good camping and hunting sites where etc etc.

We then had a walk of approx 800 metres to board our second boat to cruise the next gorge. The gorges are separated by rock falls creating little dams, rock pools and waterfalls and one boat cannot go all the way through all the gorges.

Rock Dams between the gorges

This gorge was just as stunning as the first, but as we were travelling uphill or upstream the cliffs were not as high here.


In this second gorge the Jawoyn people believe the Rainbow Serpent still inhabits this area and they will not swim, fish or hunt here. But they don't mind tourists coming through, as they understand that we have different beliefs.

Time to enter the third gorge. This was a little tricky. We pulled up to the bank and the only way was to try and step off the boat onto rocks and scramble up the very steep rocky bank for the walk across to the next boat, but it was all well worth it, the gorges are magnificent.

After cruising for almost 2 hours it was time to do it all again in reverse. This time the boat stopped in at a flat rocky landing in the second gorge for a rest stop, and for a dip in the main Katherine River or in one of the rock holes. Many did choose to swim, but it was a bit cold for us.

Nitmiluk (Katherine) Gorge - you will never never know if you never never go.

We went and we loved it.

Back to the caravan park full of wonder and gratitude at the opportunity we had to immerse ourselves in the history, rugged beauty and culture of the majestic region of Nitmiluk Gorge.

We celebrated at happy hour with the cocktail of the day, and a beer (under the palm trees).

Happy Hour Celebrations