Video Transcript
This is Australia, and today I’ll take you into the wild.
Welcome to Out of the World, and you’re still joining me on an epic road trip around Australia. And we’re doing that with this awesome camper van by Broom & Beyond. This behind me here is Katherine Gorge, and this episode is Nitmiluk National Park.
Here’s what you saw so far. After the start in Broome, we explored the Kimberley. We stopped at the incredible Bungle Bungles and continued the Gibb River Road from Kununurra. El Questro was like a dream. We swam with crocs in Lake Argyll. And from there, we crossed the border into Northern Territory.
Goodbye, Western Australia. Hello, Northern Territory. Yeah.
On the way, we saw the biggest insect ever. This footlong praying mantis should be in a museum.
Coffee. Lolly.
In about 5 hours, we arrive in Katherine. We just woke up on the campsite of Big Four Breeze in Katherine, and it was chilly last night. It was also raining, and it was very cozy inside with the raindrops on the tent, so we had a wonderful night’s rest together up there in the tent. It’s also a little bit cloudy today, but today that’s a good thing, especially in Australia, because it’s normally quite hot. And today is the day we’re going to the Nitmiluk National Park to visit Hot Springs. So the first thing you’re going to see is the Katherine Hot Springs.
Our campsite is next to the Katherine River in the middle of nature Paradise. Along that same river, we drive to the next top site in the area, which is totally free.
The Katherine Hot Springs are located on the banks of the Katherine River in the town of Katherine. As you can see, it’s right in the middle of nature, and this used to be just an indentation of the Katherine River. But now it’s these thermal baths where you can have a swim, you can take a walk around the park, and you can have a nice picnic. But look at this, guys.
Not only is the water here a nice 30 degrees all year round, it’s also a natural, lazy river where you can float around in the jungle and have some fun at the waterfalls. This little river seems to go on for hundreds of meters, so we’re following the stream into the jungle. What really surprises us is that this free hotspot, literally in this case, is not even that crowded. We’re now at the biggest pool, which is the warmest, because this is the source, I guess, and there are some waterfalls.
I do find more life on this side of the river, but this might scare you off a bit.
Unless you’re a Spiderman, maybe. We hang out at the city park for a bit and explore the colourful town of Katherine next. Especially the street art here is remarkable. And the many birds. I’m loving it.
We just had to stop at the first McDonald’s in a thousand kilometres. And it turns out that Batman was here, too. At the campsite, we see many more crawling creatures. Some scary, and some super cute.
There’s something quite abnormal today, something I never experienced in my lifetime. It’s unique, it’s wonderful. It’s a cloudy day in Northern Australia, the first one in a big trip. You still need the pool, though, because it’s quite hot and pretty humid. So let’s refresh a little bit. I’m bubbling.
We love this campsite for the nature, but we head on for some more in the National Park.
The Nitmiluk National Park is a must visit in the Northern Territory, and it covers approximately 3,000 square kilometres. It has an entrance in north and in the south, and because we came from the town of Katherine, we visit the south side first. It’s a 30 minute drive, and over here we can find the entrance to the Katherine Gorge. Time to explore the Majestic Gorge. We stay at the campsite at the entrance and walk straight in.
Of course, the true highlight of the Nitmiluk National Park is the Katherine Gorge. In centuries of time, the river has created a beautiful a gorge of 50 kilometres long, and there are, of course, many walks that you can make. The one that we’re doing is called the Baruwei Lookout Walk. It’s a short hike which takes about 2 hours there and back, and on the way, you’re rewarded with beautiful views like this one. The Aboriginal name Nitmiluk comes from the cicada insects and their sound.
When we get to the top, this is the first platform, and there’s another one over there. But the view, guys, magnificent.
And then, of course, the upper platform. From the two platforms, we get a good impression of the majestic Gorge. And before we head on, we relax on this really cool campsite.
Time to leave this campground, guys, and time to see the other side of Nitmiluk. But of course, I’ve got one important rule, you all know that don’t go anywhere without having a coffee.
These red winged parrots are waiting for us at the next stop. We first visited the Southern part of Nitmiluk National Park, and now it’s time for the Northern part. Over there, we will find Edith Falls, also known to the Aboriginals as Lilleen. There are three pools, and I’m swimming in the lower one, but there’s also a middle one and an upper one where you can make a short hike, but this one is close to the parking lot.
The Edith Falls are located in a particularly rugged landscape. The pools are part of the Edith River, connected by waterfalls between 8 and 15 metres high.
Walking over to the pools, there’s a lot of signs that will say, be croc wise, which means, watch out for crocs. There’s a very low risk here, but what they don’t tell you is there are snakes, and even venomous ones. And we saw one. And yes, people, this greater black whip snake is highly venomous and can be deadly. Yikes.
That’s it for this episode around Katherine, and we continue driving north to Darwin.
Stay tuned as we’ll visit Litchfield, the Territory Wildlife Park, Darwin, and also the islands of Vanuatu and Fiji. And come with us. Ciao.
Wout of the World
Online travel show in Dutch and English with World traveler and actor Wout of the World. In dozens of episodes Wout takes you out for adventure all over the world, always in the most budget-friendly way. Enjoy over 120 countries from your couch, phone or the computer.