I sent an e-mail to the Katherine Visitor Information Centre asking about the evening aboriginal corroboree and received the following reply: "I think you may mean the Springvale Homestead Caravan Park, but they no longer do these displays. In fact there is nothing similar anywhere in the Top End region that we are aware of. Central Australia may have something similar near Uluru. Please contact Alice Springs Information Centre for details."

Regina Jarmyn

Hi there longhorn. Good to see you back. You were such a help when I was planning our trip to the Top End. I second your comment "You are going to one of my favorite places, not only in Australia, but in the world." And you are going back again soon? I'm so jealous of you and judilie and suelynne. I had better get planning.

I've been to Australia 6 times so far and our 10 days visiting the Top End is one of the best trips I've taken there.

And I do hope judilie will consider 3 nights and 2 full days in Darwin and take an extra night in Katherine. Darwin is great, but you can really see a lot of it in that amount of time.

I have taken your suggestions to heart and have come up with a revised itinerary that includes one more day and night in Katherine and one less day and night in Darwin. I've also narrowed in on lodging options. Please let me know your reactions to all of this.

Thursday: Flight arrives Thurs., Sept. 10, at 12:30 pm; get rental car at the airport and drive to Batchelor. Staying that the Batchelor Butterfly Farm and Tropical Retreat. Try to see butterfly farm and some of Litchfield that day.

Friday: Get up early and spend morning in Litchfield (Magnetic termite mounds, Cathedral termite mounds, waterfalls and pools [Wangi, Tolmer, Florence, Tjayera, Buley Rock Holes])
– Visit Cemetary in Adelaide River

I am considering trying to get to Katherine by 1:50 pm so that we can do the last tour of the Katherine School of the Air. (It's not open on weekends.) However, is it worth rushing out of Litchfield for this?

Spend the night in Katherine, probably at a cabin at Knotts Crossing Resort

Saturday:
- Canoe or boat cruise Katherine Gorge (I'm leaning toward the 4-hour canoe trip, like longhorn55 did, since we will be passive passengers on all of the other boat cruises we will be doing on this trip.) ?Book through Nitmiluk or Travel North?
- See Visitors Center.
- Rest in the afternoon.
- In evening do Crocodile Adventures BBQ.
- Spend night at same place in Katherine.

Sunday:
- ?Cutta Cutta Caves (are these worthwhile?)
- Edith Falls NP
- Drive to Cooinda in late afternoon.
- Overnight in Coodinda at Gagudju Lodge, ?in Outback Double

Monday:
- 6:45 am Yellow Water Billabong Cruise, at Cooinda
- Warradjan Visitors Center
– Nourlangie Rock
– Anabangbang Billabong
- Drive to Jabiru and stay at Lakeview Park, Bush Bungalow

Tuesday: Kakadu
– Mamukala
– Bowali Visitors Center.
– Climb to Nadab lookout
– ?Boat trip (Guluyambi) on the East Alligator River
– ?Walking tracks along the E. Alligator R.
– ?Monsoon Rain Forest
– Ubirr Rock (at sunset)
- Overnight at same place in Jabiru

Wednesday: Drive to Darwin and see things along the way:
– Mary River N.P
– ?Jumping Crocodile Cruise (?Adelaide River Queen or Jumping Croc?) (We may be "croc'd out" by then)
– Windows on the Wetlands
– Fogg Dam Conservation Reserve
– Didgeridoo Hut and Urrduddu Emu Farm

Wed., Thurs., and Fri. nights in Darwin, at Mirambeena Resort

Thursday:
– Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory
- Botanical Gardens
- 5-10 pm: Mindil Beach Sunset Market

Friday
– Some other sights not yet visited in Darwin, e.g., self-guided tour of Parliament
– 6:30 pm: Deckchair Cinema

Saturday – Flight departs (for Perth) at 7 am.

I think this mostly looks like a great itinerary. I have a couple of thoughts.

My first take is that I don't think it is realistic to visit Litchfield in the morning on Friday and make it to Katherine by 1:50 pm. My recollection is that it is about a 3 hour drive Katherine - Bachelor. The stuff you want to do at Litchfield could actually take all day if you stop and swim at every place. We did it all in half a day and we were completely exhausted by the time we got back to Bachelor in the evening. You could probably take in some the afternoon before when you arrive, but I think it is about a half hour drive from Bachelor into the park so you are already spending an hour driving in and out. I don't think you will want to rush through Litchfield on Friday morning unless you just want to go stand by the waterfalls, rock holes, etc. and take a photo and move on. IMO, that would be missing Litchfield. Getting to the waterfall means a decent hike down and then back up, and then you swim there and swim over to the falls and hang out underneath. The rock holes are so different...a series of swimming holes all connected. Some deep and some shallow. You want to swim in at least a few. Wangi is different, too. More like a lake with a sandy bottom, but you may want to swim across and there is a walk around it with lots of fruitbats hanging upside down from the trees. And these places are not all right next to each other so there is some driving involved.

So get up early on Friday and head to Litchfield, but don't try to hold yourself to a timetable for getting to Katherine. You will be very tired after your day at Litchfield (less so if you don't swim, but I think that would miss a lot of the experience) and you won't have a place to shower before your drive so getting to Katherine will be a long haul. Take your time and if you don't have time for the cemetery it won't be that much of a loss. Or just plan to stop in quickly, take a look and get back on the road.

Let's think through the timing: I can't remember exactly how long it takes to get to Bachelor from Darwin. It is 100 km I think, so about 60 miles. Say you give an hour in Darwin to get car, etc. or maybe longer if things go wrong or you stop for food and you'll be on the road by around 2 pm at the latest. You will get to Bachelor 3-ish, check in and then decide if you want to head into Litchfield, which realistically might be happening around 3:30 pm, get to a pool at 4 pm. You will definitely have time to do some things in Litchfield on Thursday afternoon for a couple of hours. Leave Litchfield at 6, arrive back in Bachelor at 6:30...dinner, maybe see the Butterfly place then or the next morning?(we didn't do this, but I don't think it is a major attraction that will take too long and it is at the place where you are staying, right?)

Then next morning another half hour drive into Litchfield to do what you didn't do the previous afternoon. May not be as enticing to swim early, but the crowds will be less then so you may have it more to yourselves. So say 9-12 at Litchfield, then on to Katherine, arriving by 3-4 pm. Rest up, go to the Katherine Hot Springs for a swim.

Alternately you could stop at Berry Springs and the Territory Wildlife Park on the way south from Darwin on Thursday. I think they are about a half hour from Darwin. Swim there for an hour, spend a couple of hours at the TWP and then on to Bachelor by say 5:30 which would get you into Bachelor about 6. Then next morning really explore all of Litchfield on the same day, take a picnic lunch, leave after lunch for Katherine and get into Katherine late afternoon. Just a thought.

http://www.tourismtopend.com.au/page...national_park/

Here is a good site that lists all the things to do in Litchfield. There is so much more to do than we did in our half day there. We mostly just hit the pools and falls and didn't even make it to all of them, but the hikes sound great, too. I don't know when this site was updated but it says that access to the bottom of Tolmer Falls is restricted. Also they mention that there is a place to shower at Wangi so that might be something to factor in before heading out to Katherine.

So maybe a few hours at Litchfield on Thursday and then back again on Friday morning, doing some hiking in the morning, swimming later and then heading to Katherine in the afternoon is the way to go.

Is Cutta Cutta Cave worthwhile? We enjoyed our tour, but it wasn't a particularly "remarkable" cave. Based on your plans for Sunday, I would probably skip the cave and spend more time hiking and swimming at Edith Falls.

Should we consider spending two nights in Batchelor and one in Katherine, and get an early start the day we leave Batchelor?

Friday - All day in Litchfield; spend night again at Butterfly Farm

Saturday: Leave Batchelor early and drive to Katherine
- Along the way visit Cemetary in Adelaide River and Edith Falls NP
- In evening do Crocodile Adventures BBQ.
- Spend the night in Katherine, probably at a cabin at Knotts Crossing Resort

Sunday:
- Canoe or boat cruise Katherine Gorge
- See Visitors Center.
- Drive to Cooinda in late afternoon.
- Overnight in Coodinda at Gagudju Lodge, ?in Outback Double

Also, do you suggest that we keep our car once we get to Darwin? (We will be there 3 nights, 2 full days, and leave very early Sat. morning to go to airport. The place where we're staying says it has free parking.)

I think I'm going to be out of internet contact for nearly a week. I look forward to seeing what you all have to say by the time I reconnect.

Monday: we stopped at the Anabangbang Billabong for a picnic lunch (there are picnic tables there) and then walked all the way around the billabong...it was farther than it seemed when we were sitting at the picnic table! took at least an hour to make it all the way around. We enjoyed it. Easy walk, good path, all very flat.

I would stock up on some food supplies in Katherine. I don't know what will be open on Sunday there, but although you can buy some stuff in Cooinda at the resort store, it is expensive and limited. There is not another store in Cooinda as far as I know. So if you want to have a picnic at Edith Falls on Sunday and again on your way to Jabiru on Monday you should plan ahead. We had the breakfast at the Gagudju Lodge and it was very good, lots of food served buffet. We ate there after the Yellow Waters cruise was over, so you don't have to rush to get it before 6:30. We had some kind of package with the room that included breakfast. We ate dinner the night before in the bistro...simple, OK food, nothing special but less expensive than the restaurant. I don't think they sell alcohol in the store so you have to buy it from the restaurant, bistro or bar so that is something else to stock up on in Katherine if you want to have a beer that doesn't cost so much.

The lodge is a fun place. There is entertainment and the pool is great. You will enjoy just hanging around the bistro area. We stayed in the more motel-like part rather than in the cabins. It was much more expensive and fairly upscale (esp. for Kakadu) but I think we would have been fine in the "Outback Double"...there weren't any available when I made the decision to stay there...so if you want that you may need to go ahead and book soon. Everyone hangs out together around the pool and the bistro so even if you don't stay in the fancy part you can use the facilities.

Tuesday in Jabiru--looks good. You should pair Ubirr and Nadab in your thinking and itinerary and do them late in the day. You may want to stop in at Mamukala on your way to Darwin, unless you plan to hike there. It is on the way to Darwin.

In Jabiru you can visit the grocery store and stock up for lunch and dinner stuff you can make at the Lakeview on your own little grill. You may want to go there as soon as you get into Jabiru on Monday if they are still open. They have a decent sized grocery there. Near the grocery is a WestPac ATM machine (do you know about the Bank of America/WestPac partnership?) and also a take-away food place. We got into Jabiru late in the day, with no grocery supplies, and went to the Aurora Campground bistro to eat and it was a long wait, expensive, not so great food, but there were not a lot of options obvious. We could have gone over to the hotel that looks like a crocodile, but that would also have been quite expensive though probably better food. I think there are other cafes scattered around but you have to get the lay of the land to figure out where they are. Maybe someone else will have suggestions for restaurants in Jabiru.

I have to say that Jabiru was a bit of a surprise to me. I don't know where I got the idea of what to expect. It is very small and does not have a lot of touristy amenities, which was kind of endearing actually. It is not a very attractive town with a cute town center or anything like that. In August it was very brown and dry. I'm sure it all changes in the feel once the Wet comes and everything greens up. But there aren't cute little restaurants, etc. You are really out in the middle of a vast expanse of Kakadu.

I don't know anything about the Monsoon Rain Forest...of course you will be at the end of the Dry so it won't be monsooning.

Re: car. I was glad we had a car in Darwin. It will be useful to get to the Botanical Gardens and Mindil Market. Also just for driving around the area and checking out the borders of the town. There is limited public transportation. The downtown is small and you can walk from your hotel to lots of places you will want to go...restaurants, grocery store, Esplanade, but to go to the Indo-Pacific acquarium out on the wharf, to go to the places above I'd want to have the car. It will make it much easier to get to the airport, too. What time does your flight leave? Is it in the middle of the night like so many out of Darwin?

Going to Edith Falls BEFORE Katherine--"Leliyn (Edith Falls) on the western side of the Nitmiluk National Park, is reached by turning off the Stuart Highway 42km north of Katherine then following a sealed road for a further 19km." http://www.nt.gov.au/nreta/parks/find/nitmiluk.html
Hmmm. you could make this detour off the Stuart as you are heading south... this might make sense. Let me think about it.

Thanks, LynAK. Do you recall the agency from which you rented your car in Darwin?

Our flight from Darwin (to Perth) leaves at 7 a.m.

Any opinion about whether it might be better to spend two nights in Batchelor and one in Katherine and get an early start the day we leave Batchelor as proposed in my most recent tentative itinerary [on Jun 13, 09 at 10:04 AM], rather than one night in Batchelor and two in Katherine? I think that does work better. I'd like to book loddging soon.

(I found some ambient wifi.)

I'd like to book lodging very soon and want to decide soon whether to spend two nights in Batchelor and one in Katherine or the reverse.

After arriving in Darwin Thurs. at 12:30 pm and driving to Batchelor, with possible stops in Berry Springs/Territory Wildlife Park and Litchfield NP, and spending the night at the Butterfly Farm, the choices are:

1. Friday: All day in Litchfield; spend night again at Butterfly Farm

Saturday: Leave Batchelor early and drive to Katherine
- Along the way visit Cemetary in Adelaide River and Edith Falls NP
- In evening do Crocodile Adventures BBQ.
- Spend the night in Katherine, probably at a cabin at Knotts Crossing Resort

Sunday:
- Canoe or boat cruise Katherine Gorge
- See Visitors Center.
- Drive to Cooinda in late afternoon.
- Overnight in Coodinda at Gagudju Lodge, in Outback Double

or

2.Friday: Spend morning and perhaps early afternoon in Litchfield
- Visit Cemetary in Adelaide River
- Drive to Katherine
- Spend the night in Katherine, probably at a cabin at Knotts Crossing Resort

Saturday:
- Canoe or boat cruise Katherine Gorge
- See Visitors Center
- (nap)
- In evening do Crocodile Adventures BBQ (or the previous night)
- Spend night again in Katherine

Sunday:
- Edith Falls
- Drive to Cooinda in late afternoon.
- Overnight in Coodinda at Gagudju Lodge, in Outback Double

The second one seems somewhat less rushed (giving up on the idea of visiting the Katherine School of the Air helped), but I would appreciate your opinions.

I'd also would appreciate advice about rental car agencies and whether to canoe in Katherine Gorge or do the boat cruise. Do you get the idea with the first gorge (which is, apparently, all you can see easily on the 4-hr. canoe trip), or are the second and third gorges much more spectacular? (We're planning on 4 hours whether we canoe or do the boat cruise.)

Thanks!

We rented from Budget in downtown Darwin, were satisfied with everything. No problems along the way, and they didn't make any for us when we returned the car (no hidden fees, etc.)

I'm tempted to go with Option 1, though both have merits: 2 nights in Batchelor. There is really not much to Bachelor, so you don't want to expect to be seeing the sights of the town! But this plan lets you stop in at Berry Springs and maybe the TWP on the way south. I think you would have enough time, depending on when you get out of Darwin. It gives you all day at Litchfield, saves time driving in and out (about 1 hr. round trip, I think) on 2 separate days. All day at Litchfield will be a long tiring day, but at least at the end of it you can go back to your hotel rather than attempt a drive to Katherine. We could have spent longer at Litchfield, but this is presuming that you will want to experience the types of stuff it has to offer...swimming in a variety of swimming places, hiking, etc. If not into that, you won't want a whole day at Litchfield.

OK, then next morning off to Katherine. You will have plenty of time to do Edith Falls and the hikes to the upper pools justice...although this will be on the weekend, which is not the best time since it is likely to be more crowded..but you will be there either on Sat. or Sun. so that is just the way it is. The water (at least in the lower pool at Edith) is very cold so you might enjoy it more in the afternoon on your way to Katherine, rather than going there in the morning on your way to Cooinda.

Now your really long day is going to be the one that combines Katherine Gorge with driving to Cooinda. Since we took the boat ride at KG rather than the canoes we weren't really so tired after this 4 hour experience. You ride along, have to change boats occasionally as you go to a different gorge, but it isn't that taxing. I don't know how tired you would be after the canoes. Maybe someone who has done it will comment. I don't think I can guide you on which to do (boat ride vs. canoe)..

I also can't remember how long it takes to drive Katherine-Cooinda.

I guess the real thing to think about is whether you are going to be more tired after Litchfield or more tired after Katherine Gorge, because you are combining a long drive on the same day you are doing one of them.

Thanks, LynAK. As always, I appreciate your advice and suggestions.

I've booked a car through Budget (pick up and drop off at the Darwin airport). I went on vroomvroomvroom.com.au, which is a good website for comparing car-rental options, and Budget offered the best deal.

With either itinerary, we would be going to Edith Falls in the morning. I suppose we could be there later with Itin. 1 because we'd be much closer to Katherine (and the Croc. BBQ dinner I had in mind for that night) rather than Itin. 2, for which we'd need to drive to Cooinda afterward.

Are Berry Springs and Territory Wildlife Park really worth seeing given all of the other places we are going? I.e., are they different from the other places we'll be visiting on this trip (and other places we've been in Australia - see the first paragraph of my initial posting on this thread)?

It's around a 3-hour drive from Katherine to Cooinda (253 km).

By the way, I have booked the Outback Double at Gagudju Lodge in Cooinda and a Bush Bungalow at Lakeview Park in Jabiru. I see that neither of these are air conditioned but do have ceiling fans. Did that turn out to be a problem for anyone?

We stopped at Berry Springs and Territory Wildlife Park, but we had a total of 10 days to explore the Top End. Given your busy schedule, I wouldn't put either on the top of your list - depends on how much time you spend in Litchfield, how much you like the walking, swimming, etc.

I would prefer itinerary #1.

Agree with Ralph that you could skip Berry Springs and TWP...but they are not far off the highway, and Berry Springs is free as I recall, so you might want to just stop in there, esp. if you do Itinerary 1 and have time on the way to Bachelor. TWP is a bigger time commitment and it costs. I loved Berry Springs...little waterfall and very clear water. Do a little research on it and see what you think. You may get to Bachelor too early if you don't stop...I guess you could do the butterfly thing on that first afternoon (we didn't do it, so have no info on it)...

Bachelor to Katherine is a 3 hr. drive too, so you will get to Edith late morning if you leave Bachelor at 8 and stop at the cemetery. Spend several hours at Edith--take a picnic-- (maybe someone can give an idea of how long it takes to do the hike to the upper pool, swim and hike down. We spent about an hour swimming in the lower pool. My husband and daughter swam all the way across which is quite a distance and you would have to be a strong swimmer. I was happy to just hang out on the side and the water was too cold for me, but they loved it.)..on to Katherine, explore a little there, maybe check out the Katherine Hot Springs, then on to the crocodile show. Makes a good day.

As for AC..we didn't need it in August, but we are from Florida so maybe used to heat more...but it will be at the end of the winter in Sept./beginning of Spring so it shouldn't be too, too hot. We stayed in the bush bungalow and found it to be fine.

Oh Kiwirob - you always manage to put a smile on my face - I love your sense of humour. I've been flat out like a lizard drinking lately and don't get to check in too often at the moment - so thanks for the chuckle.

Here's looking at ewe kid!

I'm trying to decide on lodging for Katherine. I've decided to go with Option 1 above. We will be driving from Batchelor to Katherine, with stops along the way at the Adelaide River Cemetery and Edith Falls. That evening we will be doing the Crocodile BBQ Adventure. That "adventure" begins at the Springvale Homestead, so I'm thinking of staying there, in a budget motel accommodation (AUD 63/nt.; "the oldest standing Homestead in the Northern Territory; air-conditioning, colour television, private bathroom, non smoking rooms, refrigerator, tea/coffee making facilities, telephone; it appears to be run by Travel North). The next morning we would be doing the Katherine Gorge boat or canoe trip and then driving to Cooinda, so wouldn't need to return to our Katherine lodging. Has anyone stayed at or checked out the Springvale Homestead? Unless it is an absolute dump, I'm tempted to go for it because of its proximity to the Crocodile BBQ and the inexpensive price.

I recall looking at the Springvale website. We opted for a caravan park which turned out to be a dump. You might also look at the Low Level Caravan Park. I've heard good things about that from more than one person. I don't think I had any negative thoughts about Springvale, but the place we stayed was cheaper. Springvale makes sense if you are doing the crocodile thing. Longhorn has dealt with Travel North and I think she had a good experience with them.

Go to Tripadvisor and look up Springvale. There is one review (and only one review) from someone from England. Basically the review says average, but the complaints are that it needs updating, that it is clean but doesn't look it because it is "tired"...these complaints would not keep me from staying there. Someone else might think it was charming to have tired wallpaper in an historic place like this. Other comments, such as noting that wallabies were hopping around the place, made it sound appealing. I hope you will write a review if you stay there.

I had seen that review on TripAdvisor and didn't think it was a "deal breaker." We'll only be there for one night, so I think it should be OK.

Low-Level Caravan Park is now the Takaru Bush Resort. An air-conditioned ensuite cabin there costs AUD 150/nt.

I'll post a trip report when I return (though I still need to write reports on our two previous trips to Australia and have promised myself that I will do that before I leave on this trip).