Litchfield National park and heading west....

Hi all- have had no internet reception the past 5 days or so…I am actually uploading this from a roadhouse petrol stop at Timber Creek (west of Katherine on the way to WA) as we have some phone service here and I had the laptop in the car!!

We’ve had a great time since Darwin exploring some national parks- here is our latest travel news (upload piccies when we are back in a town with service in a couple of days):


Monday August 14

Howdy- currently in Litchfield NP and it is very beautiful here- lots of wonderful waterfalls and swimming spots. Our caravan park is near Wangi Falls and is nice and peaceful. No phone or internet reception out here at all though (hence this being the first online update for a while).

We went to lovely Florence Falls and Buley rock pools today and had lots of swims, a nice picnic lunch by a waterfall. Very good day. Also drove into the “Lost City” eroded sandstone formations which look like the ancient ruins of a long ago city.

This afternoon we went into Wangi Falls (a top spot! I also had a swim there when we arrived yesterday afternoon), and had a swim and also put on our face masks to check out the freshwater fish (barra, catfish etc). Then we had a bbq for dinner in the picnic area at the falls. Once again it was a clear sunny day, the temp up to 34 degrees….and the sun doesn’t set here until about 6.35pm –and its winter! Fantastic- feels like summer to us.

More exploring and waterfalls on the agenda for tomorrow.

Tuesday august 15th

The fun continues in Litchfield…like a big outdoor amusement park, full of natural swimming pools, bubbling spas and top views. Today we visited Sandy creek falls and had to drive through a substantial creek crossing to get there- a bit of a test for the Toyota Kluger, but we came through no worries (and Adam rather enjoyed conquering the crossing- a boy thing). I took some photos on the way out which give a good indication of what it was like (and show Adam in action, gallantly bringing his powerful steed across the mighty waterway).
There was a hot 2km walk into the falls and swimming hole, but it was well worth it- a beautiful spot and surprisingly uncrowded (either we got lucky or the creek crossing put some people off).
After that we went to Tolmer Falls, also very pretty, before returning for lunch and a swim at Wangi Falls, beautiful in the afternoon sun. Today’s top temp- 35.

At this point the caravan feels too small, but we haven’t killed each other- yet. We seem to go in cycles. :-)

Wednesday august 16th

We couldn’t have asked for a better day to finish our stay at Litchfield- hot and sunny once again and today we explored Walker Creek and its many swimming holes (there are 8 listed in total along the marked walking track). We swam in a few of the different pristine swimming holes, with deep clear water. We also took our face masks and saw lots of little fish- many of them hanging around the bubbles formed by the waterfalls into the pools- it was like an outdoor fishtank! We had lunch by a waterfalls and read books, before walking back out.

This evening we went to Wangi Falls (near our campground) for a late swim and took some food for a barbeque dinner at the picnic area. It was so peaceful there and the last rays of sun lit up the rock walls around Waangi Falls and its plunge pool. We stuck around after dinner to watch a free slide show on the NP put on by the park rangers.

Tomorrow we hit the road again- heading back to Katherine and then west, towards the WA border. We’ll be in another state in just a few days!

Our trip in some ways is going so quickly- and yet in other ways, it feels soooo long ago that we set off and stopped at Yamba. We have done and seen so much already- so many wonderful and varied experiences in 3.5 months. We are truly lucky to have been able to plan and save for this and actually do it!


Thursday 17th-Friday 18th

Hi- long drive on Thursday from Litchfield back down to Katherine and then west, through a more remote corner of the NT….we stopped last night at Victoria River Roadhouse, so we could do some bushwalks in Gregory National Park- a little publicized area, and a real surprise, as the walks were stunning! A large ridge line, which turned red in the late afternoon sun- we walked to the top of the escarpment and had great views!

This morning we rose early and from our site (nice and green and grassy) had great views of the surrounding national park- lit up in the suns first rays the rocky escarpment seemed to glow. We did an early walk, which was excellent, with lots of palms beneath the rocky ridge line.

Now back on the road heading west – tonight stopping in a campground (no water, no power) at Keep River National Park, before crossing the border into WA!

Love and hugs,
Emma and Adam