MATARANKA TO KATHERINE

Dear all,

Having a bit of trouble with signal up here so can only catch up on our Blog when able.






Thursday, 30/7/09
Up early for the 100 km trip to Katherine. We're really looking forward to getting out of the dust and into a town (with shops!).









Checked into the All Seasons Tourist Village and booked an ensuite site. It is lovely and green with a beautiful pool. After a rest and a cold drink, off into town we went to check out the visitors information centre.

31 degrees Fuel 129.9
Katherine is a large town with a population of 12,000 and mainly aboriginal people. It is a centre for beef-cattle properties and produce farms. There are a couple of pubs but they had music blaring out of the open doors and were full of the locals. We opted for a cold drink at the Katherine Golf Club which was a bit more to our liking ... only a "bit more to our liking" because all there is no law preventing smokers from smoking inside. After a while you don't notice it, but boy - when we got back to the caravan, our clothes stunk!

Friday, 31/7/09


Found out the The Ghan was arriving at the Katherine Railway Station so went down to take a look. I went on the train a couple of years ago with my Mum, sister Jan, and cousin Norma, so I had seen it, but Ken was amazed when the 1km train snaked it's way into the station.










Went into town and had a look at the shops, the most exciting shop being Target!




Had a bit of a look outside of the town itself. This bronze statue is dedicated to the pioneers of the outback. If you double click on the photo, you will notice the man on the horse is chinese!

So, after having "done" the town, back to the Katherine Club Back and a bit of a play on the pokies - Ken won $40!! I lost $10!! then had a swim in the pool. It is so very hot but I'm not complaining when I see the temperatures down south!

Saturday, 1/8/09
I can't believe we've been on the road for nearly 2 months and we haven't had an argument!

Today we went out to Katherine Gorge and went on a 2-hour lunch cruise of 2 gorges.


If it wasn't for the backpackers out here in hire canoes, it would be just so lovely and peaceful. Nevertheless, it was beautiful cruising the gorge with a cold glass of wine and a beautifully presented lunch of cold meats, salads, and breads. It cost $73 each but it was worth it.






The aboriginal rock art was truly awesome. (I hate that word but I can't think of anything else to describe it adequately!)













On the way back, we came across this old Overland Telegraph Station which, although on private property, is signposted and one can take a walk to see it as it is historic. Because it is on private property, no-one is taking care of it and it will slowly disappear into the bush.









Sunday, 2/8/09
Today we went to the Circus! What fun we had. It was a fantastic couple of hours.







Monday, 3/8/09
It is a public holiday today in the Northern Territory, so everything closed (except the Katherine Club!!), so we took a drive out to the Tindal Air Base. Access is prohibited, but we took a short drive in to see the township and couldn't believe the bat colony before our eyes. There were thousands all hanging and screeching from trees over the houses.



Tuesday, 4/8/09
Left Katherine after seeing the arrival of The Ghan which is now on it's 80th Anniversary trip from Adelaide to Darwin. Whilst on the platform, I spoke to one of the butlers who let us into the private carriages (2 of them) which are privately leased by a group ... a family or a group of friends .... for the trip which costs $17,000. For this price, you get 2 beautiful oak lined carriages with a butler and a chef, your private dining room, double beds with private ensuites. These carriages were used for royalty in the 1930's and are beautifully appointed. There is a pianola and flat screen tv's. This is more my style Mum so next time we go, this is us!! I'm sorry I didn't take a photo, only a video. I'm sure you could see it if you go to The Ghan website.

Onward and upwards to Darwin!!

On the way we went to a town called Pine Creek which was a goldrush town in the 1870's. It is still mining gold and has one of the largest open cut gold mines in the Northern Territory. The town contains historic buildings although they are very run down. One of the buildings is an old bakery which was run by a chinaman who decided that there was more money in providing the town with fresh baked goods than the hard, hot task of mining for gold with little reward. When WWII came to the Northern Territory with the bombing of Darwin, American and Australian troops were here to stay and they took over the bake house to bake for the soldiers. After the war the chinese family returned only to find the bake house in ruin, so they moved out of town. The chinese were there in large numbers attracted by the gold and when the gold ran out, they turned to produce and clothes making. There is an old chinese cemetery and many of the street names reflect the chinese influence.







Hope you are enjoying our story. We're having a wonderful time .... this is such a massive country and the Northern Territory is just magnificent. Stay tuned!

xx