Wednesday 20 July
Up early this morning to have BBB and
breakfast at 7am. After breakfast I had time to walk down to Home
Billabong which was beautiful in the early morning light.
We headed south west towards Pine Creek
passing some beautiful scenery and a few kapok trees. At Mary River
roadhouse we had a stretch and at Pine Creek we found a park for a
cuppa at the historic railway station museum.
On then to Katherine where we bought
our own take away lunch to eat together under a shady tree. I found a
twisty clothes line at a camping shop then went for a walk over the
Katherine River footbridge.
Our afternoon entertainment was a dip
in the Katherine Hot Springs. It was most refreshing as the water was
in the shade and just warm enough to get straight into. We wallowed
away the time whilst chatting together.
We arrived at the motel at about 4:30pm
and had enough time to shower and rest before dinner.
I must be improving movement wise
because I was able to cut my nails on both feet without pain in the
hip or knee. My cold has gone and apart from being a bit stiff in the
mornings I am able to walk well without using my stick.
Thursday 21 July
We had a more relaxed start to our day
today with our first stop at the Katherine School of the Air just
along the road. It is amazing how the technology has changed since
Surrey and I visited the School of the Air in Alice Springs in 1975.
The lady who presented (school holidays still) just make the whole
process come alive.
Next stop was the Nitmiluk National
Park and, after lunch at the cafe, our Katherine Gorge Cruise. It was
really hot on land but quite a cool breeze was coming down along the
gorge so as long as we were not in the sun for too long we were quite
comfortable.
We saw a few fresh water crocodiles
along the banks but the amazing part was the steepness of the cliffs
on either side – almost vertical walls in many places.
Back to the motel by late afternoon and
after resting our ankles vertically up the wall Joan and I went for a
cool dunk in the pool. A shower completed our activities for the day
before packing ready for tomorrow's early start and long drive.
Friday 22 July
An early start this morning with
breakfast at 6:30 then off, heading west towards Kununurra. The
kapok trees became more common in the savanah/woodland vegetation.
There were some large mobs of grey cattle around the tanks. The
termite mounds were plentiful but smallish and stood stark in the
areas of blackened trunks and burnt grass.
We stopped at Victoria River roadhouse
for morning tea with the day warming gradually.
Road trains of cattle and fuel and lots
of grey nomad motor homes passed us heading east.
At Timber Creek we stopped for lunch.
Sandwiches, cakes and fruit were all waiting in the dining room when
we arrived with the temperature climbing ever higher. After this stop
the boab trees became more numerous with a few quite big ones along
side the road.
By the time we arrived at the border to
eat our remaining bus fruit at the inspection station it was well
into the mid 30s and we were all quite drained. The inspector was
quite jovial telling us all to line up for a body search before we
walked across the border to be picked up by Allan on the WA side.
On into Kununurra and the Lakeside
resort. With the time change we had lots of time to relax, rehydrate
and resalt before a delightful sunset over the lake and heading down
to the dining area for pre-dinner drinks. Dinner was delicious –
scotch fillet and prawns with vegies.
As Allan has a day off tomorrow we'll
have plenty of time to wash and catch up on diaries before our
afternoon activities begin.
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