Half-lap Day 38: Katherine -> Batchelor

Tony and I were up early again, setting things up for another potential day without the car. I drove into town to test it out, and get milk and a couple of other supplies. At first it didn’t overheat, but when I cranked the AC up the temperature started going up. I dropped off the milk and fridge and other necessities and took it around to the mechanic, this time with the temp still hot so that he could see it. He jumped in to the drivers seat and we took it for a drive, he could get it to cool down but then it did heat up again when driving around town.

He decided to change the thermostat – the one he’d ordered hadn’t come so he’d put in an after-market one, he thought maybe putting in the genuine part might fix it. He dropped me back at the caravan park and said he’d call me when it was done.

We spent the morning hanging around again, playing with the puppies and kittens, doing puzzles, I read Brisingr for a while. Tony went for a bike ride on Caitlin’s bike, to get a new puncture kit for his tyre which was flat again. He had discovered a big thorn through his tyre which may have been repuncturing the tube. Being near the RAAF base, we’d heard fighter planes several times during our stay but hadn’t seen them, today they came right overhead which was a bit exciting.

I talked to the mechanic after lunch and changing the thermostat hadn’t helped. They’d tried a few other little things with no luck, and the next step was to take out the water pump and check it. I asked if it would be fine to drive to Darwin, and he talked about how to manage things if the temperature started to rise, so we decided to pack up and head north and try to get the car fixed when we got to Darwin.

Tony rode over to get the car around 2pm, and we had everything packed up and ready to go by just after 4, one of our quickest pack ups (from scratch) yet. We rang a caravan park in Batchelor and booked in for the night so we weren’t worried about having to try to find somewhere when we arrived. The old billy goat came over while were packing and it took Tony quite a while to get rid of him – he just wanted to stick around and wouldn’t be pushed or dragged or scared away – he even went up on his hind legs a couple of times like he wanted to fight - which was scary to watch but didn’t bother Tony. We said goodbye to the owners and to the puppies (kids were a bit sad at that) and finally left.

Heading out of town and for the first half an hour or so we were a bit worried about how the car would manage, especially with the load of the trailer on. Whenever it heated up Tony popped it into neutral and revved the engine and it cooled back down, and after a while the temperature stopped going up. Tony found that driving a bit faster than usual helped keep it cooler too.(we normally sit around 80 or 90km/hr with the trailer on, 100km/hr seemed to work better today). After an hour or so we tried putting the air conditioner on and the temperature stayed stable – so it was a much more comfortable drive than we had anticipated, and we made it to Batchelor by 6.50pm. Reception at the caravan park closed at 7, and the guy was happy to see us as he thought perhaps our car hadn’t made it. He said it would have stayed open a little longer for us seeing as we’d rung – he was so friendly and helpful and it was a great welcome after a hot and frustrating day.

It was practically dark by the time we started setting up, in a great bush site at the back of the caravan park. There were a lot of mosquitoes but we sprayed ourselves and things settled down a bit. We are fairly well practiced at setting up now so the dark didn’t slow us down too much – and it was so great to see the stars again! Our campsite in Katherine had a light on a big pole right next to our tent, so we were under artificial light the whole evening and night, and it was so refreshing to just be outside and feel part of the night and the surrounds again. We hadn’t realised how much our campground was getting us down, as well as the worry about the car it was hot and dry and dusty and there was no view, it was too far to walk to anything in the heat so we had felt quite stuck – it’s different having a rest day because we choose to as opposed to having a rest day because we can’t get anywhere. The kids explored the park while Tony and I settled back into a happy holiday routine and both felt like we were enjoying our trip again and could look forward to the rest of it.

We had a conglomeration of left overs for dinner and then tried to set up our new tent fans to cool the tent down a bit. This is definitely the most humid place we’ve been, we were still sweating profusely as we went to bed and there was little relief from the heat.

Half-lap Day 37: Katherine

Tony and I were up early, getting things out of the car and figuring out what we’d need for the day without the car there. He put his bike on the back of the car and drove it to the mechanic’s. The kids and I played with the puppies and played on iPads and did some puzzles, had some breakfast and hung around the tent. Tony rode his bike back to camp after dropping the car off.

Later in the morning the girls came over to play so all the kids wandered around chatting and looking for animals and looking at the fish.  The girls left in the late morning and everyone was sad to see them go. Tony and I started packing up so that we could leave as soon as the car was fixed, he’d said it would only take a couple of hours. Tony rode his bike back over to the mechanics but it wasn’t ready yet so we hung around the tent some more, played games and chatted, talked to a few friends on the phone. We were reluctant to pack everything up in case the car wasn’t ready in time, so it was a long, slow, hot, uncertain afternoon.

At 3pm we decided it was too late to pack up and go now even if we did get the car back, and it did feel better to know what we were doing. I paid for another night and throughout the afternoon we got the beds back out and set things up again. Tony rang and they said the car was ready, he rode into town to something and got another puncture so walked out to the mechanic, who said the car was all fixed. Tony drove back in to town to get his bike and buy food for dinner, then back to camp, and the engine was overheating again. I rang the mechanic and he said to bring it straight back – by the time Tony got there it had cooled down and they couldn’t reproduce the problem – he drove back to the tent and it was heating up again.

We were both feeling extremely frustrated and everyone was hot. Caitlin had been really keen to go to the hot springs, so I said I’d take her and see how the car went. We drove for a while with no problem, then I turned the air con up and the heat started to rise. I turned it off and it didn’t go back down! We drove to the hot springs and had a really quick dip – basically just in and out. There were other people swimming, not very many, and the signs were still saying do not enter the water because of crocodile sightings. The water was very clear and we checked it carefully before we went in, and we’d been told that the sulphur in the springs usually keeps them away, but any more than a minute in the water felt too risky and scary. A quick dip was enough to feel refreshed anyway. We walked along the springs, they are quite pretty, then back to the car. I drove home via the low-level bridge, and the temperature kept going up. I stopped a few times, let it cool down a bit, then kept going. I drove past the mechanic and the shed was still open with lights on so went in and called out but no one answered so we went back home.

Puppy cuddles

We had dinner, everyone a bit subdued, and played with puppies and kittens and read our books and did puzzles and hunted for geckos. The kids and I went over for a shower – took ages to get all of us organised – then in to bed as quickly as we could, Millie was really tired. Tony had a chat to his dad about what the car problem might be, still no ideas, and he took the car for another drive after we’d gone to bed – still getting hot. Town driving seems to make it worse, but it’s all a bit mystery.

Half-lap Day 36: Katherine

Millie and I were up before sunrise. She could see the sky becoming orange in the east, and stood for a while to see if she could see the sun come up – it was still a good while until that would happen so she snuggled back in to bed with Tony and the iPad, and I got ready to go for a walk. I’d wanted to walk across the old railway bridge near town, which is now a pedestrian bridge, and see the low level nature reserve further down the river. Tony had ridden his bike around that loop the night before, and we’d talked about me riding his bike to see it but even with the seat down it was just too big for me. I thought about riding Caitlin’s bike but figured I was way more comfortable walking. LiAM woke and wanted to come with me and I said I was going to walk fast and far – he decided to stay at the tent.

It was a beautiful morning and it was cool seeing the trees light up as the sun rose. I went to the pedestrian/railway bridge end first. The middle of the bridge was solid metal, the edges were metal mesh so I could see through it down to the river, a little scary actually. The edges of the bridge were quite high so it was hard to see the river from the bridge, there was a raised area on each side where you could stand to see the view. I was looking upstream towards the car bridge and saw something floating in the water – it looked like a crocodile head but I figured it could easily be a log. It went under an overhanging tree and then I saw lots of ripples coming out from under the tree – then the whole crocodile emerged and I saw it floating along and under the bridge. I didn’t see it come out the other side, so it either submerged or went to the shore under the bridge. It was long – a couple of metres I’d guess – and a yellowy green with black stripes. It had quite a pointy noise so I think it was a freshwater – still very exciting to see my first wild crocodile.

I continued over the bridge then checked out the steam engine in the park near town, then walked down the bike track along the other side of the river. It was a long walk, just along the side of a street, with trees on my right so I couldn’t see the water. Eventually I reached a school – lots of kids were being dropped off at 8am, I wonder if school starts earlier here? – and found some steps leading down to the hot springs. Tony had said swimming was closed there the day before, but I couldn’t see any signs that said that. There were a few people swimming and it looked divine. I dipped my hands in and the water was a beautiful temperature – not hot, but it would have been easy to get straight in.

From the springs it was a short walk to the bridge which crosses the low level. There was a weir there and lots of rocks, a really beautiful spot. There were picnic tables on one side and easy access to the water, although there were also signs here saying don’t enter the water because of recent croc sightings. This bridge was very close to the water level and also metal mesh on the pedestrian part – a little shaky when cars crossed the bridge but not scary like the high bridge was. The walk back from the low level was along the path I’d walked some of a few days ago, but I couldn’t remember how far I’d come last time. It was hot by now, I wished I’d bought a hat. I felt like I’d been walking a long time since the low level bridge, and I still didn’t recognize the path, so felt like I had ages still to go – and suddenly I saw the caravan park so I was back! It had been a 2 hour walk (LiAM was very please he hadn’t come with me, although a little disappointed that he’d missed the crocodile). I was pleased with my new shoes too – that’s 2 walks I’ve done in the 1^st 2 days and they are comfortable and my feet don’t sweat in them!

The weir at the low-level crossing

We had breakfast and hung around the tent and played with Bundy and Pumbaa. I got the owner’s son’s phone number and Tony gave him a call about the car, he said to bring it in in an hour. Tony, Caitlin and LiAM went in to town to do a few messages – buy a fan, exchange one of the shirts I’d bought for Tony, get Millie’s birthday present, get new batteries for Tony’s cap with lights in it. Millie and I hung out with the dogs and played some games, then Tony dropped the other kids off and took the car to the mechanic. He was back quite quickly, the guy hadn’t been there and the other mechanic had said to come back in a couple of hours.

We had a quiet morning, catching up on a few things, I tidied up all the paper and stuff that had accumulated in our car, then went and plugged the computer in and did some email and blogging. Tony took the car back and the guy said that it’s probably a radiator problem, when he looked at the radiator he said it is made of plastic and quite brittle and if he tried to do anything with it it would probably crack, and getting a new radiator is probably the way to go. He ordered the parts and will put it in tomorrow morning.

By this stage the girls who the kids had been playing with were back from their trip to the caves, and they spent the afternoon all playing together. They explored the little fish ponds around the owner’s house, catching fish in bowls and putting them back in and comparing all the different types. Tony and I had wanted to go to Edith Falls and maybe have a swim – the kids were freaked out by stories of freshwater crocs in the water and said they wouldn’t swim. LiAM wanted to go and see the falls anyway, Caitlin was undecided and Millie was a definite no. They were having so much fun with their friends that we decided to give it a miss and just have a true rest day, hanging out at the caravan park and doing very little. I read my book and did some puzzles and some more blogging, talked to the girls’ mother, did a little more tidying of the car and had a very relaxing afternoon. The puppy was back and forth to our tent, and one of the kittens came over at one stage too (but was soon chased back by Bundy). Tony and Caitlin did the bike ride that Tony had done the day before. The Hot Springs were closed with a sign saying a croc had been seen there today - they were full of people swimming though, and the water was so clear that it would be easy to see a crocodile if it was there, I guess. Caitlin had a quick dip - just in, across to the other side and back and then out.

The kids played together until it was dark then went to have their respective dinners (we had sausages, tomato and pasta) then got back together and went exploring the park for frogs and geckos and spiders. One of the girls had been desperate to see and hold a green tree frog and they were all thrilled to find one. Everyone had a hold and the frog was released back into the garden. LiAM found a little brown frog and caught it for a brief pat as well.

Millie was really tired and went to bed as soon as she could after tea (she was delayed a little by the frog then headed for bed). I had an early night too, Tony and the other two had showers and came to bed a bit later on.

Half-lap Day 35: Katherine

Our plan was to get up and going as quickly as we could to head out to Katherine Gorge before it got too hot. We were on our way by 9am, which is about how long it takes us to get up and have breakfast, play with the puppies, play some games and tidy up a bit. (Pumbaa, the biggest of the puppies, expanded his range enough to come over to our tent, so there was lots of puppy cuddles and amusement as he played under our table). The drive out to the gorge was interesting, seeing some of the outlying houses of Katherine and then the farms along the road. There was an old steam engine in one paddock (not a train, a road engine I think). We also saw a few horses.

We wandered in to the Visitor Centre which was lovely and cool – the morning was pretty warm already. Looking at the maps and chatting to the girl at the desk we decided on a walk to a lookout which would let us see the first gorge – about an hour return, which everyone felt ok about. As Tony was coming in a guy handed him a voucher for a bacon and egg roll which he didn’t need – so Tony and the kids ordered that while I went back to the car to get shoes and hats and sunscreen and food for our walk. It took the usual very long time for Millie to get her sunscreen on – she’s very thorough – then we headed off.

Before we got to the place where the boat tours leave we discovered trees full of red-nosed flying foxes. They were hanging in the trees and making a lot of noise. Very cool to see. The walk was quite pleasant after the boat ramp, through trees and with a rock wall on our right. There were stairs and rocks going up and down, and we stopped to rest a few times. After a while the path started to climb – lots of metal stairs, and about halfway up Millie stopped and wasn’t keen to go any further. I went on with Caitlin and LiAM, Tony and Millie followed after a while. The climb wasn’t too strenuous and we soon arrived at a small outcrop where we could see the river (with no fences) then it wasn’t far from there up to the lookout.

Even Millie was impressed with the view, she liked the sparkling sun reflecting off the river. It was great to see the high cliff faces with the river flowing slowly through between them, a beautiful green colour like all the rivers up here. We looked for crocodiles but didn’t see any. We stayed at the lookout for quite a while, enjoying all aspects of the view, and marveling that because it wasn’t quite on the edge of the cliff, I felt no fear at all, even though the consequences of falling from here would be just as bad as those other places where I was freaking out.

On the way back down the kids thought they saw a crocodile on the far bank, but it was hard to tell from that distance. We walked back a slightly different way, closer to the edge of the river, which was a little nerve-wracking, thinking about crocs. Swimming and canoeing in the river are closed at the moment as there have been recent crocodile sightings. We made it back without incident and watched the flying foxes for a while, then back to the Visitor Centre where we explored the display on the local area. It showed how the gorge had been formed and lots about the local people and culture. Exploring the gift shop afterwards, Millie found a sparkly plush crocodile which she really wanted – she decided to get it as an early birthday present and was thrilled.

We drove back in to town, stopping briefly at Knotts Crossing – a place on the river with a small weir, and easy access from the carpark. It was beautiful, although the sign saying a crocodile had been sighted here only 4 days ago made everyone a little nervous when we were close to the water – we didn’t linger.

Once in town we went straight to the pool. Caitlin bought some new goggles and we played in the shady end of the pool for ages. Tony watched some of the Collingwood game on his phone then joined us. He played with the basketball and hoops for a while too. I went and got the cold chicken and bread and stuff from the car and we had some lunch, then went back in the pool. LiAM had had enough before the girls, so he and I played Dots until the pool was about to close. I had quick dip to cool off again, then we went back home.

The kids spent most of the afternoon playing with the girls they had met the day before, and going to see the puppies. The owner of the puppies let them out for a play, and also let his kittens out of the house, so there were lots of happy kids playing with baby animals for a while. Tony went for a bike ride on the track that goes either side of the river here, and saw the low level rapids and the hot springs. I read my book and did some puzzles and had a lovely quiet afternoon.

Tony cooked sausages on the BBQ for dinner and then the kids played with their friends for a little longer - they went gecko hunting and were excited to catch one, until it dropped it's tail and ran off and they all felt really bad. After a while everyone headed off home to get ready for bed (which seemed to take us ages).

Half-lap Day 34: Katherine

I was up first and went for a walk along the Katherine River. The path was up high and separated from the river by trees, I caught glimpses of the water from time to time and saw the sun come up behind the trees on the other side. I had hoped to walk to the Low Level Nature Reserve but didn’t know how far it was and turned back before I got there. Back at camp LiAM was awake and I walked him over to the toilets – some of the big dogs were off their leads and he didn’t want to walk over by himself.

We went and sat up in a communal area near the owner’s house, where there is a powerpoint I could plug my computer in. LiAM played on his iPad and I caught up a bit on blogging and email. We chatted to the owner’s grandson and his son, and found out a bit about Katherine and the surrounding areas, and about our car and other things. They told me of a mechanic (a relative) who might be able to have a look at our car.

After breakfast Caitlin and I went in to town to browse the op shops and get some clothes that we’re in need of in this hotter weather. Tony and I realised that most of the shirts we bought with us are dark colours and it would be good to have some lighter ones, or they have polyester in them which is just too hot and sticky. We went to 3 op shops and found a few things that were suitable (although the prices seemed high compared to the op shop prices I’m used to). We went to the Visitor Centre and talked to a lady at the counter who gave us lots of info about the area, then went to Target to try to find goggles for Caitlin – they didn’t have what she wanted, but I did get some slip on runners which are more comfortable than the ones I bought with me. We popped into Woolworths to get a chicken for lunch, and ran into Millie’s friend and her family, so had a good chat with them about everyone’s plans for while we are in Katherine.

We headed home and had some lunch, then spent a few hours sitting in the shade of our awning and playing games, chatting, patting the dog – the mummy dog has made our place her little home, she sleeps on our carpet and wanders around after us whenever we go anywhere. The kids went to see the puppies regularly, and Caitlin met a couple of other girls in the campground and showed them the puppies as well. It was a hot afternoon but sitting around in the shade wasn’t too bad, even though we were all sweating. Eventually we decided to head to the pool for a swim before it closed – when we got there we discovered that it closes earlier on weekends and we’d missed it by an hour. Everyone was very very disappointed, a swim would have been great. We played in the awesome playground across from the pool, and watched the local Rugby League game on the oval next to us. There were some cool birds there too, with blue heads and yellow wings. The security guy came in and asked us to close the gate when we left (we were the last people there and it was close to sunset) – we weren’t sure whether he meant to lock it or just close it – we locked it and hoped that was the right thing to do.

On the way home we stopped at Subway – we had a voucher to buy one footlong sub and get one free, so we bought the 2 footlongs and a 6 inch and everyone got a 6 inch sub. As usual it took us ages to decide what we wanted, we did eventually manage to order then stopped at Woolworths to get some cheap soft drink to have with dinner, then back to our tent to eat. The night was still warm but not hot anymore and we had a relaxing evening eating and playing and talking to the dog. As we were getting ready to go to bed I walked everyone over to the toilet – one of the big male dogs was out and playing with Bundy (the female that was hanging out at our tent). He was pretty scary and we asked Tony to walk with us as well – the dog kept appearing in front of us as we walked over (we walked the long way around, on the road and he could run between vans) and he really freaked us out. We figured that my head torch was freaking him out and that’s why he was barking at us – once I turned it off he settled down, but the kids were pretty spooked by then and I didn’t feel brave enough to walk past him on my own, we were all very glad Tony was with us, he comfortably went over and patted the dog and held his collar until we were past. The dog’s owner came and got him and took him home, so walking back was much more relaxing.

We hopped into bed and read for a little while and all fell asleep fairly quickly.