Froggles Travels: Katherine to Adelaide River NT 19.06.2016

We arrived in Katherine and booked into the Riverview Tourist Village for a few nights. The town is situated about 320km south of Darwin and is the gateway to the north as well as to Western Australia. The two main attractions are the gorges at the famous Nitmiluk National Park as well as Edith Falls

I have included some facts and history which may interest some readers which I have downloaded from the internet. But in a nutshell the town comes alive every year for six months during the dry season, which is in winter. The rest of the year the town comes to a standstill as the roads are impassable due to the severe wet weather.

Katherine NT

Often called the 'Crossroads of the North' because of its location, Katherine is the fourth largest town in the Northern Territory and is located 312 km south-east of Darwin on the Katherine River.

With a population of over 10,766 people Katherine is a modern thriving regional center that offers a wide range of services to communities from the Western Australian border to the Gulf of Carpentaria on the Queensland border.

There is a modern air conditioned shopping centre, hospital, sports grounds, parks and gardens as well as a large number of Commonwealth and Territory Government services.
The Municipality of Katherine covers an area of 7421 square kilometres and is located on the beautiful Katherine River, offering excellent fishing, walking and cycling trails and recreational parks and reserves.

The Katherine Region is 336,674 square kilometres, or almost the size of the Australian State of Victoria and the Australian Height Datum has listed the main street of Katherine (at the intersection of Warburton Street and Katherine Terrace) as being 104.57 meters above sea level.

The total population of the region is just over 24,000 people of which 60% identify as Indigenous.

The Katherine Town Council is dedicated to offering quality services to the people of Katherine. The Council works actively with the community to create a vibrant, safe, happy place that offers attractive business, social and cultural opportunities for everyone.

The following day we went to Edith falls which is situated approximately 50km on the road to Darwin. The falls are a must see and do in Katherine and as the weather was good and the temperature hot, what a way to relax and spend the day in the crystal clear pools.

We had a cold beverage and could not stay too long as we had to leave the dogs in the car as we were in a national park and dogs are not permitted.

Photo of the cafe at Edith Falls

We saw this mascot outside the cafe, just had to take the photo

We returned to Katherine and booked for an excursion to Katherine Gorge and went home to much needed rest, we also took the opportunity to go down to the natural spring which was situated at the rear of the caravan park for a quick swim. The spring was not spectacular and was frequented by the most annoying kids, but was a relief from the heat of the day, however we could take the dogs with us which was a blessing.

The excursion to the Gorge was amazing, we left early in the morning and were the first on site. It was bitterly cold and I had forgotten to bring a jacket so I froze for the first couple of hours until the sun came up, but once the sun came up, it was a perfect day.

Here are some photos of the gorge; it was breath taking to say the least.

The boat ramp

Leaving the boat ramp early in the morning ...... Freezing

Early morning sunrise heading towards the Gorge

Below photos of the Gorge absolutely breathe taking.

We were most impressed with the Gorge, unfortunately the trip was short and only lasted 3 hours, but all the same it was money well spent.

We left Katherine and stopped at Pine Creek and had a pie for lunch (which I would say was the best pie that I have ever tasted) and made our way to Adelaide River. Here is a small town known for the cemetery where most of the soldiers from the territory who had perished during the Second World War were buried and especially the civilians killed during the raid on Darwin by the Japanese during that time. There is a monument built in honour of the men and women who were killed in a bomb attack on the central post office of Darwin. It is a beautiful cemetery which is very well kept and has manicured gardens.

See some of the photos below.