Riverview Tourist Village, Northern Territory, Australia
No one was in a hurry to get moving this morning. We had already booked our Nitmiluk (Katherine) Gorge cruise for the following morning, and a ‘Cultural Experience’ for the next afternoon (there were insufficient numbers for them to run it today). And so we sat around the outdoor table enjoying a leisurely breakfast (eggs and bacon/muesli) in the cool of the morning. I spent considerable time editing and uploading photos to my blog (the most time-consuming part of maintaining a blog, especially when the internet upload speed is quite slow).
Thinking it would be a good idea to see if we could find a short walk to a rock pool, but only having done some rough research, we decided to drive into the gorge (half an hour away) to check out the visitors’ centre. We thought it would be a good idea to check exactly how long the drive would take us, as we had booked a 9am tour for the following morning and didn’t want to risk being late.
The woman at the centre informed us that the only walk to any swimming holes was a 4-hour return walk! Even without Nola to carry, it would have been a tough walk in the middle of the day, with the temperature being about 37ºC.
Seeing our predicament, the woman suggested we use the camping ground’s swimming pool, even though it is meant to be for guests only. We gladly accepted the offer and enjoyed relaxing in the shade and dipping in the most attractive camping grounds’ pool I’ve ever seen. Nola is quite the water baby now, and simply loves swimming whenever she gets the chance.
We shopped for supplies on the way home, and then headed back down to the hot springs — this time without any valuables (no cameras or phones). This gave us the opportunity to start our swim at the larger pool, then clamour over the little falls and swim along the narrow channel down to the areas where we had swum the evening before. I chose to walk back to the area above the large pool where we had left our shoes and towels, rather than swim back (clamouring up the very small waterfall didn’t appeal to me) — but what a mistake! The metal boardwalk was so painful to walk on that I had to lean against the railing in order to relieve some of the pressure on my poor feet! Eventually, Gretl brought me my sandals, saving me a few more painful metres.
We enjoyed chicken and salad for dinner and then headed off to bed early, ready for the busy day ahead.
Tom Allen
2020-08-24
What great memories you are creating on this trip of three generations, plus those of us on the bus! So with your dad, (Hi Ian!) that makes it a four generation adventure. It's such a beautiful part of the world to discover, and it is very significant in my mum's family history. There is stark contrast between beauty and god-forsaken desert.
Ian
2020-08-26
Hi Tom. Hi everybody. I am enjoying your outline of events occurring each day. I am glad that you are being successful in modifying your planned schedule of places to visit and things to do in this four generational tour, when things don't quite go according to plan. The generosity of the attendant at the Riverview Tourist Village in allowing you to use the pool because of the cancelled tour enabled you to have time to relax and enjoy the peaceful atmosphere of the surroundings.