After an excellent brunch taken with two (Of many to be found aboard this train) best friends and travelling 240kms south we arrived at the Katherine River for a cruise through the Nitmiluk Gorge.
The Katherine River is located in the Northern Territory, Australia. Its headwaters are in Nitmiluk National Park, it flows through the town of Katherine and is a major tributary of the Daly River.
The Katherine River drops around 384m over its 328 km length. In late January 1998, heavy rain associated with Cyclone Les raised the level of the river by more than 20 metres and flooded a large part of Katherine town. A more recent flood on 6 April 2006 caused a state of emergency to be declared. During this event the river peaked at a height of just below 19 metres at the Katherine bridge on the Stuart Highway.
Nitmiluk National Park is 244 km southeast of Darwin, and 23 km northeast of the town of Katherine.
The Nitmiluk Gorge, was carved through ancient sandstone by the Katherine River. It's made up of thirteen gorges, with rapids and falls, and follows the Katherine River, which begins in Kakadu. The gorges and the surrounding landscape have great ceremonial significance to the local Jawoyn people, who are custodians of the Nitmiluk National Park. In the Jawoyn language, Nitmiluk means "place of the cicada dreaming".
During the dry season, roughly from April to October, the Nitmiluk Gorge waters are placid in most spots and ideal for swimming and canoeing. There are Freshwater Crocodiles in most parts of the river, as they nest along the banks, but they are harmless to humans. Saltwater crocodiles regularly enter the river during the wet season, when the water levels are very high, but because they are so dangerous to humans, the river is regularly surveyed by Rangers and the Saltwater crocs are trapped and returned to the lower levels at the onset of the dry season.
Our cruise this afternoon was in an electric powered boat to enjoy the silence and cicadas but none were heard! We were given great slices of fresh melon before we boarded. We cruised up to the second gorge before a low water rapid prevented further movement upstream.
(With acknowledgement and thanks to Wikipedia)
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