Katherine

Katherine  

It was another beautiful sunrise seen from the comfort of the train.

Another view of the sunrise with its red, orane and yellow colours.

A termite mound. These termites feed on grass, not wood.

Another termite mound. There are dozens of then scattered through the bush.

We arrived in Katherine, named after Katherine Chambers, who father had funded John MacDouall Stuart's expeditions to the top end of the country.

We boarded coaches to reach the Nitmiluk National Park for our cruise along a river running through a gorge.

A view from the water up to the top of the cliffs.

A snady bank with a sign to warn people to stay away as this is a crocodile nesting site. The female digs a hole and lays her eggs. They develop over the next few weeks until they are ready to hatch. The signs warn people not to walk here as they could crush the eggs. The signs are removed when the eggs hatch.

More sandy banks.

A view of the river.

A blockage. The river flows through the rocks but it is not navigable for boats. Visitors get out and walk around the blockage to board another boat beyond the blockage. There is some Aboriginal rock art dating back thousands of years on the walls above the flood level.

A view up the gorge.

A view down the gorge. This is perhaps the most photographed part of the gorge. It has been used in several adverts and films.

Another view. Just here the water is up to 30 metres deep whilst the shallowest point is just 1.5 metres deep just after the blockage.