The Ghan and Katherine, NT: Aug 30-31

We boarded the famous Ghan train that evening for the overnight ride to Katherine, where we would have a four hour stop, then continue on to Darwin. The train was super comfortable and we were surrounded by various European backpackers, so it was a fun, lively atmosphere. Still, everone quieted down pretty early and attempted to get a good night’s sleep. Charles had no problem conking right out. I had a harder time of it and ended up stuffing clothes into the pillow-case I travel with (Charles’s brilliant travel habit) and eventually figured it out, though I did wake up often. If the seats had been just an inch wider, or if the dividing armrest went up, I would have had room to curl up my legs. Oh well, I guess I’m too much of a princess to sleep just anywhere!

Katherine is known for Kitmiluk Gorge. We wanted to hire a kayak and paddle down it all day, but that would have meant waiting a few days for the next train and there just wasn’t enough to do there. So we settled for the cheapest of the Whistlestop Tours run by the train, which was a shuttle ride to the gorge entrance and visitor’s center for $18. So, we attempted to make it our own. I was a bit groggy and grumpy after a rough night's sleep, so we got coffee and tea and ate our sandwiches before doing anything else. This guy unsuccessfully begged for our food.

Then we hiked up the gorge wall to a lookout point after admiring some Agile Wallabies.

We had just been saying that we hoped to be cool enough and healthy enough in 30 years that we could still make that type of climb to earn the view (this while watching cruiseboats float lazily by below), when a 60-something couple rounded the corner and joined us at the lookout. They completely shared our sentiments and thought they earned the view more than those below had. They were funny. I love the random encounters you have with other travelers.

We had planned to meet the shuttle at a specific place and time (everyone else from the shuttle went on the cruise because the shuttle filled with cheap backpackers had been overbooked and we were put on this one). When we got back down the wall, we had about 15 minutes left. The guy manning the boat launch said that there shouldn't be any crocs in the river right now, so we took an extremely quick dip and went, slightly dripping, back to the parking lot...where we found ourselves completely alone. Yikes.

As we were realizing how alone we were, two rangers pulled up in a pickup and asked if we were us...and since we were us, we hoped in and he sped his way back to the train, having radioed ahead to let them know we had been found. How embarrassing - and it definitely wasn't our fault! Apparently the driver had completely forgotten our special arrangement, which we had repeated 3 times to her. Grrr. Luckily we arrived at the train station at the same time as the buses were unloading so it wasn't obvious and the passengers were not waiting on us. Phew.

But the dip in the water was so worth it! The gorge itself...eh, pretty, but nothing mind-blowing. I think if we had been able to get into the second gorge it would have been much more striking. oh well.

The remaining train ride went along uneventfully enough. We were a bit bummed that the scenery wasn't interesting. The whole reason for the train ride through the outback was to see views you miss from a more developed roadway. As it turned out, the Stuart Hwy parallels the rail line and isn't developed at all except for a few small towns...and this sign about sums up those "towns."

So we actually got to see more in the southern half by driving at our own pace, and didn't miss much in the top half by not being able to stop because it was all the same - sparsely forested with sad looking trees and blandly colored except for the frequent areas scorched by brush fires. So it all worked out perfectly I'd say.

When we got to Darwin we took a cab straight to the airport where we picked up another rental car. And we got a standard car! oops. Shifting with my left....um...okay. That's how I first learned to shift...from the passenger seat before I learned to drive, so I was hoping it would come back quickly, and it did. Luckily the positions of the gears are the same, you just use your other hand. We also learned that Budget insurance doesn't cover driving at night outside the city because of accidents with animals. And we had arrived around 9pm and had to drive 2 hours north...hmmmm. Thank goodness for credit card coverage. We first headed to a food bazaar only to find out it was no longer on Fridays. Fail. So we headed out of the city toward Litchfield Park without even going downtown.