meters
Difference
Defects
the Tent
Shower
>50% Sunshine
Chocolate
Crossing the Northern Territory
Although David recovered quickly and well from his dengue fever, we took a gentle approach to our Australian journey. On the first day, we limited ourselves to leaving the residential area of Darwin on a pleasant cycle path.
After the successful start, we felt fit enough for a tour through Litchfield National Park, which is known for its waterfalls with crocodile-free bathing opportunities and the many termite mounds. The park is so manageable that we completed our tour in “only” two days and pedaled back north on the Stuart Highway. We also wanted to visit Kakadu National Park and stock up on supplies for this little expedition in Humpty Doo. There are three petrol stations with kiosks and a small store along the 450km road through the park. So our provisions had to last for a while.
With heavy bikes (abbreviated to ‘pushies’ in Australian English), a slight headwind and a rough road surface, we made slow progress. But there was always something for us to see in the bush, grass and river landscape: wild buffalo, cattle, horses and donkeys as well as native wallabies (small kangaroos, abbr. ‘roos’) and saltwater crocodiles (abbr. ‘salties’). These crocodiles also live in fresh water and their diet includes careless humans. The ubiquitous croc stories are very instructive. For example, we learned that you should, in the event of an attack, tie the crocodile’s snout together with a fishing line😊.
And as you’ve noticed, Australians love abbreviations for all kinds of words… and so do we😉.
Many attractions in Kakadu National Park were closed or too far away from the tarmac road and we’d rather take a 7km dead end for a cold drink than a dried up waterfall. Especially as we had missed the opening hours of the only store in Jabiru by 45 minutes. But the detour to the well-preserved Aboriginal rock paintings was well worth the extra effort.
At Pine Creek we reached the highway after six days again. The huge volume of traffic from motorhomes and camper vans in the small village was almost as impressive as coffee and scones. On the exit to the Stuart Highway, a sign kindly informed us that we should take our next break in 89 km in the small town of Katherine😉. We didn’t need to be asked twice and pedaled eagerly for a day and a half towards the next coffee. The journey on the busy highway was no fun, even apart from the headwind. We always had to be prepared for all kinds of vehicles so that we didn’t drift off the narrow shoulder uncontrollably. The notorious road trains with a length of up to 53.5 meters and a maximum of four trailers were less of a problem than the countless caravans, which often overtook us recklessly and closely.
Rolling into Katherine was a pleasure: wide streets, cafés and a Woolworth supermarket😊 (abbr. ‘Woolies’). At the tourist information office, we asked for information about the Katherine Gorge and, thanks to WiFi, received the news that we had found last-minute accommodation with Warmshower’s hosts. Lucky us! Margaret and Peter put us up in their living room in a very uncomplicated and friendly way. Shaun, a friendly cyclist from New Zealand, was already accommodated in the guest room. Their hospitality was so unlimited that we were allowed to take the time for a short two-day hike along the Katherine Gorge in Nitmiluk National Park. And Peter even drove us to the starting point by car!
We really enjoyed doing a real hike again, following small paths to a campsite with phenomenal views of the river and gorge. We hitchhiked back to Katherine, where in the evening we didn’t miss the event of the year, the Katherine Show. We found the lawnmower races somewhat embarrassing, but the patriotic rodeo competitions were spectacular.
After another rest day with a relaxing dip in the warm springs of Katherine (they weren’t hot), we set off on our onward journey. But where to? Straight south along the Stuart Highway to the center of Uluru and Co. Or turn left a little further south to follow the east coast later? No, we didn’t fancy that. A longer alternative was a tour to Western Australia. Many people and reports had tempted us and we decided to go for it.
It was about 600km to the next town, Kununurra, with no shopping facilities to speak of. So we packed food for seven days on our bikes and stocked up on 6 liters of water each to last us until the next water tank. Wow, did we have fun preparing and planning a section properly again! Wow, were our pushies heavy😊!
With a breeze of tailwind, we really enjoyed the drive through the varied steppe landscapes. There was neither too much nor too little traffic on the quiet Victoria Highway. We slept in the bush or at rest areas with water tanks, which are used by many campers as free overnight accommodation. Our days consisted of getting up, taking down the tent, breakfast (abbr. ‘brekky’), pedaling 40 kilometers, snack, pedaling 40 kilometers, lunch, pedaling 20 kilometers, setting up the tent, dinner, sleep. In short, a great road trip!
We ate food that packed as small as possible, such as oatmeal, lots of snacks, tortilla bread with peanut butter, spaghetti, tomato sauce from a tube and some fish from a bag. Fruit and vegetables were luxury items😊.
This changed from Timber Creek, the only hamlet on the route, from where we were well supplied with fruit and vegetables. The reason for this is that fruit, vegetables and honey are confiscated at the border between the Northern Territory and Western Australia, 200 kilometers away. Imports are prohibited due to possible parasites and are strictly controlled. This regulation was a great help to us, as we could ask drivers with a clear conscience whether they had any fresh vegetables left… … and made some wonderful acquaintances along the way😊.
Just a few kilometers before entering Western Australia, we turned off onto a sandy road to visit the small, little-known but very pretty Keep River National Park. We spent the night at two different campsites and went on various walks in the beautiful savannah landscape with impressive rock formations and baobab trees. A cheerful hiking group from Kununurra invited us for an evening drink around the campfire and Ann even offered us a place to stay overnight in her house in Kununurra. We didn’t turn down this wonderful opportunity and wrote the last lines of this article in a small café in Kununurra before moving on to Ann.