← PreviousWhole days on the road: from Pentland to KatherineThe night hadn't been as good as expected. Bad call on the choice of road. We'd thought it would be quiet, but from six in the morning it was a real procession and we were wide awake by seven. We lingered a little "in bed" before buying supplies when Woolworths opened. A day of hiking lay ahead and we had to prepare for it. We bought what we needed for sandwiches and breakfast.
After about fifteen minutes' drive, we reached the gorges of Nitmiluk National Park. The scenery promised in the photos was truly wonderful and we couldn't wait to tackle it. Like seasoned hikers, we stopped at the visitor centre to pick up a map and find out if there was anything particular to know before setting off. The lady at the counter estimated our route would take 4 hours.
The start of the hike was completely flat and we passed through a hundred or so trees full of bats. There were literally thousands of them, and at first glance I'd mistaken them for fruit. It was an impressive sight. After a series of really tough steps, we reached the first point of interest. The view was indeed worth the detour, and I didn't miss the chance to get the drone out.
But the moment it was in the air, we saw an eagle swoop on it and circle around it. I judged it wiser to bring it home, as the bird seemed to be protecting its territory. That was only the start of my troubles with my quadcopter. We followed the path to the other viewpoints, and monotony was already setting in. It was a bit frustrating having to walk over stones in the middle of nowhere when we knew that a few metres to our left lay the gorge and its breathtaking scenery. Add to that the water problem. We'd brought three litres, but they were already warm after an hour, and the taps dotted at three spots delivered more than lukewarm water.
At the last viewpoint, the scenery was magnificent. The gorge made a double bend that gave the place an Arizona, Grand Canyon feel. Of course I got the drone out to film and was delighted with the shots I managed to capture. As we were on a ridge, I couldn't land it the normal way. I had to catch it in flight while bringing it down manually. It was a manoeuvre I'd done dozens of times, but this time, for no logical reason, I caught it with the wrong hand and couldn't press the right button to stop the propellers.
Fortunately Cassandre reacted quickly enough to stop it, but the damage was done: my arm was cut. It wasn't really serious, but it was bleeding in four places, and the prospect of walking at least two more hours back to the car didn't thrill us. Still, as we didn't really have a choice, we carried on at a slower pace. The heat became stifling and we were starting to think it would never end when we finally saw a signpost telling us our ordeal would be over in four kilometres. They were the longest of our lives, but we reached the car alive. The tally for this hike? Grazes all over Cassandre's leg after a fall, cuts on my left arm, aching muscles and three litres of hot water in our bottles.
We were really glad to be back in the semi-civilisation of the town of Katherine, and we decided to go to the town's thermal pool to cool off. The place had a touch of paradise about it. It was a natural river and the water was so clear you could see the bottom. The town had laid it out so you followed a circuit. You climbed down a ladder at the top of the course and let the current carry you. The water was 32 degrees and it was really pleasant after a gruelling day. We watched families come to enjoy a swim. There were lots of Aboriginal people, as they make up 30% of the Northern Territory's population.
We enjoyed watching the children laughing and making the most of these carefree moments. Given how hard it was to find a shower in this region, we treated this stop as a bath. We'd had a good wash in the water and only had to eat. Tired of pasta, we went to Woolworths to buy vegetables for a salad. After this frugal but delicious meal, we settled near the Wi-Fi hotspot to use the internet before going to sleep. That's when we witnessed a scene we'd seen in documentaries about Australia. An elderly Aboriginal woman was blind drunk, slumped against a wall and shouting at passers-by.
I'd been on the receiving end when I went to the toilets at the McDonald's next door. It didn't take long for the police to turn up and question the old woman. From where we were, it was hard to tell whether they were kind or not, but they seemed rather concerned about her health. Voyeurism not being our cup of tea, we went to find a place to spend the night at the end of a cul-de-sac, without repeating the previous night's mistake. The lane was quiet apart from a dog barking in the distance.