Katherine ( 27th and 28th June)

Arrived in Katherine fairly early to go to the hot springs and started to drive down to the gorge, however soon realized the hot springs were elsewhere. We made our way back, after stopping at one caravan park to ask for accomodation. We had seen some caravans parked on the front lawn and there was plenty of room so thought we would ask. Well, after waiting 40 minutes to get served, the manager said he would squeeze us in for a special price as we wouldn't be on site which would be 20/ adult and 10/ child. What a joke $70 to stay on the front lawn with no water or power. Get real MATE!! That's just not Australian.

Headed off and had a nice bath in Katherine Hot Springs. It was nice here and great to remember back to Adrian and Dave's wedding in Katherine Gorge 3 years ago. We also went for a swim at the springs when up for the wedding and Ashley was with me when she was only 4 months old. She was shocked to hear she had been there before. Headed out of town and found a small road off to the side which led us to a great place in between the railway and a quarry site. We parked in what seemed like a big parking lot and set up for the night, as there was no accomodation, at a reasonable price, available in Katherine. What a great place, fantastic sunrise and sunset, room galore, great open space for the kids to play and freight trains who were just as entertained by seeing us as we were them. They beeped furiously as the kids waved back. We even saw a four wheel drive on wheels driving down the track. Looked quite strange!! This camping find was so good we decided to head back to Katherine for another full day as we knew we had good accomodation to return to.

We decided to do a boat trip in Katherine Gorge. It was was very scenic and interesting, however in retrospect, considering fund restrictions, not really worth the money. The canoes were $50 each for the day and you could do all the gorges, picking up another canoe further upstream for another $50. They know how to make their money, but i thought this would be a better way as you would have the time to explore, swim and discover. There were some great walks available but all a little challenging for the kids. We had a great swim in the gorge however, before and after the cruise, even after seeing many fresh water crocs lying on the river banks. I had a good day this day, not panicking too much about the possibility of salt water crocodiles, but made sure there was always other people out further than the kids. They had traps along the banks and patrolled regularly but I know that, although slim, there is always a slight possibility that they can slip in.

After our second swim we headed back into Katherine to do a big shop. All of us headed in and all helped do the shop. It was funny, when unpacking onto the conveyor belt, how many chocolates and lolly's and seconds of things had popped in. Luuk was just as cheeky as the kids, being the chocoholic that he is. I nearly fell of my perch when we had to pay over $500, but I knew that we had quite a few weeks of food and that this would, in the end, save us money as Kakadu is known for its priciness. On our way out from the shopping centre, with two overloaded trolleys, an aboriginal man approached us asking to help with the trolleys if we would allow him to return them for the money. We agreed as our loads were enormous and the car was a little distance away and we wanted to get onto the road. Sad situation, that someone who may have had so much pride in a hunter gatherer lifestyle is now demeaned to collecting trolleys for extra money to buy cigarettes and alcohol. We haven't seen too much positiveness amongst the aboriginal populations yet so we pray that it improves the more we move around. There is no answer, the more you think about strategies and ways to help them improve their plot. It would involve removing the feeling of helplessness and the boredom but to suggest working, even if in a traditional sense, is once again white fella dictating what should occur.

We pack the fridge until it is bulging, the cupboards until they are overflowing and under our bed, where there is storage, until Luuk is boiling when he even considers our new tow ball weight. I try to appease him by saying, we haven't got far to go and look at everyone else's caravans, who are dragging their arses along the ground. He agrees starvation is a less favorable option and knows I won't let him buy anything in Kakadu. We head off to our free camp 15km outside of Katherine for another night. Once again, pretty happy with this find. Have dropped a pin on the GPS to utilize this one again.