Traditional Custodians: The Jawoyn people

In June 2016 I traveled up from Adelaide to Darwin and headed south for three hours to the town of Katherine. I was meeting my friends Dan and Tom to spend five nights walking on the Jatbula trail. This trail starts at the Katherine Gorge and leads through the amazing Nitmiluk National Park following the path of an ancient song line used by the Jawoyn people. Each day leads from one amazing cascade to another, where camp is set up in the shade and the afternoon spent swimming and resting by the water cooling off from the days extreme heat.

The first day starts with a 2-minute ferry ride across the Katherine Gorge to the official beginning of the walking trail. There are two options for the ferry, a bright and early one or a late morning start. Unfortunately Dan woke up on this first morning with food poisoning and was emptying his stomach on a regular basis. We had planned for the early morning start but because of Dan’s health we delayed to late morning to give him time to sleep before the big walk.

Because we caught the later ferry we had to walk in the heat of the day. This was a pretty intensely draining day and unfortunately the first waterhole we came upon was UN-swimmable because of crock scares, but nevertheless it was a nice spot to stop in the shade for Dan to nap for a few hours. Dan powered on and after a good feed and a long sleep he was great for the rest of the walk.

Every campsite has a different waterhole or cascade nearby. They are each spectacular in their own way and can only be accessed by people walking the Jatbula Trail. I particularly loved the cascade we camped by on day one; it was such an achievement to reach the camp with Dan in relatively good health and the waterfall felt really special.

At the end of day one it became clear that it would be best to get up early each morning and complete all the walking by around lunchtime. This meant rising at 5.30am for a quick swim, waking Dan and Tom and getting out of camp by 7am. Each morning was fresh and beautiful, the light was soft and the air was crisp. It was a lovely contrast to the harsh bright light during the day.

Overall the hike is over relatively flat terrain, the first day has the most “incline” but it is very minimal and the last day has an easy decline to bring you to the final destination of Edith Falls.

Along the way blue arrows mark the track and no map is needed. As we were walking in the middle of the season the path was already well trodden and the majority of the time we could follow the trodden ground from arrow to arrow. But there were a number of times each day that we had to disperse ourselves out in different directions to locate the arrow and find the right direction to walk! Although the path is not undulating or a long distance each day, the heat really takes a toll on the body and lots of rest is needed to re-hydrate and gain strength. Since we would reach camp around lunchtime we had the remainder of the day to swim in the waterholes, climb up the cascades and surrounding rocks, read books and do lots of napping. There were a lot of flies around so I opted to spend most of the afternoons amerced in the water where they wouldn’t bother me. Along the path we saw some fresh water buffalo tracks and droppings but we didn’t sight any during our walk. It is not uncommon to see them! There are also hundreds of termite minds along the bush floor. They often seem perfectly spaced from each other and can have a creepy graveyard feel to them.

There is a rich cultural presence of the Jawoyn people along the trail; a number of days the path passes many rock art sites, some noted on the map and others left for only the most attentive walkers to notice. On day three there is a small detour that leads to “The Amphitheatre”, at first it appears to be a giant crack in the dry dusty ground but as you climb down into it you realize it is filled with lush vegetation surviving in this damp cavern in the ground. The rock walls on either side are covered (yes covered!) in beautiful, playful and creative drawings made by the Jawoyn people many years ago.

I would say this hike is very accessible for all. You do need to book, as there are only a select number of people allowed to start each day. This keeps the path and campsites in good condition and allows the experience to feel exclusive and not overcrowded. The water in the waterholes is fresh and safe to drink, so there is no need to carry more than one days worth of water. The weather is so warm there is no need to bring the outer shell of your tent we just set ours up with the inner fly net. We walked over a full moon period, making the while experience even more special!

By Alice Blanch

2016

aliceblanch.com

LFRF acknowledges all the Traditional Owners of the land [or country]  and pay our respects to the Elders, past and present of all of The Northern Territory and urges you to please do the same.

First off the Larapinta is hard. Contrary to popular opinion the Central desert is not flat
and apparently the MacDonnell ranges once stood the height of the Himalayas. While millions of years of erosion mean they are not of this scale today; hiking the crags of red rock which seem to have effortlessly risen out of the ground in waves defying gravity is no easy feat. Head down and with your mind focused on keeping your footing it can be easy to forget to look around
until suddenly you are on a ridge and the ground gives way either side of you and great vistas of country open up before you in hues of purples blues yellows greens and ochres.

Second then is the landscape. The 223km of the Larapinta covers a great range of country as it follows the MacDonnell ranges west from Alice Springs to Mt Sonder. Some days are spent scrambling through dry creek beds in gorges clambering around boulders the size of houses and inching your way along ledges pack on and hands clinging to the gorge walls. Others will be spent walking along the vast plains that extend between the ranges with vegetation that is only broken by the bones of unfortunate camels or livestock that have lost their way. There are times when you have to scale virtually vertical rockfaces pulling your weight with your hands and times spent walking along razorbacks with sheer drops on either side. Some nights you can camp by waterholes ancient and sacred places full with icy water year round welcome respites after 10 or so sweaty days without a shower. Some nights you can camp on the top of mountains, surrounded by stars and nothing else. We spent our last night camping on Brinkleys Bluff (one of the biggest climbs ) and were treated to a full moon rising in the distance while the sun set behind us. If you are lucky, you might see a dingo or at least hear its calls.

I completed 10 of 12 sections of the Larapinta over 15 days, originally meant to be more but my knees gave out on day three and I needed a rest day. If you are going to tackle the whole Larapinta (it can also be done in sections of pretty much your choice in duration) there are a few things to be aware of. The walk is seasonal, yes you are in a desert, and is best done in the cooler months. This means it can be really, really cold during the night times (-3 in our case), which is something to consider especially if you plan on sleeping sans tent. Make the most of the opportunities to camp along the track breaking up sections even if it means you have to carry two days of water. There are several places to do food drops along the way and two places where you can buy snacks and shower which breaks up the load and means non‐powdered non-­dehydrated treats. I would recommend walking from the Mt Sonder end, as the hardest days are towards Alice Springs allowing time to build up your fitness. I did not do this and paid the price by spending an afternoon virtually crawling down a mountain bum‐to­‐step one step at a time as my knees caused me agony. I found myself clinging to makeshift stick-­‐cum-­‐walking-­‐poles which days before I had openly mocked and would now swear by to anyone that has had problems with their knees. I think most people seem to experience a few days of blistered sore feet and aching limbs which improve as you grow stronger.

The Larapinta is an unforgiving track physically tough and demanding but it rewards you too. There is no doubt you are walking on ancient land and there is something special about spending an extended period of time so closely within it. The Larapinta requires planning and perseverance but grants you access to places you could never otherwise see. To dedicate such an extended period of time to walking and nothing else is a privilege that one cannot often afford a privilege that tests you mentally and physically and leaves you leaner and stronger. It is a privilege that I would highly recommend.

(apologies but we could not find a workable map)

by Rebecca McCauley
2015
rebeccajanemccauley.com

LFRF acknowledges all the Traditional Owners of the land [or country]  and pay our respects to the Elders, past and present of all of The Northern Territory and urges you to please do the same.

The Eighth Gorge Trail is the longest of the Southern Walks that follow the sandstone escarpments and savannah woodlands around Katherine Gorge in Nitmiluk National Park. The national park is managed in part by the Jawoyn Aboriginal people, the traditional owners of the Katherine region, and detours around a rock art site, croc-free swimming holes and pant-shitting lookouts.
 
Unless you’re driving up from Alice, you’ll have to start this trip in Darwin. Fistfight your way to a car rental joint on Mitchell St, get yourself a Yaris and head for Katherine. The Nitmiluk National Park Visitor’s Centre is about a half-hour drive from town. Register your walk, pay camping fees and give the Yaris a farewell kick right in its stupid face.
 
The Southern Walks are a network of trails that begin with easy day walks and lookouts, and extend deeper into the national park for overnighters. Following the general rule in the top end, most of the grey nomads bail out after about 1 kilometre, and you’re almost certain to have the track to yourself after 5.
 
The trail is mostly a sandstone path that winds through savannah grasslands and stone country, through groves of pandanus and cycad palms. The first campsite is at Dunlop Swamp, although it’s probably better to stay here on your return. The swamp is a marshy pocket of melaleucas and grevillea trees, and if it’s early enough in the morning, you can slurp the dewy nectar on low-flowering grevillea blossoms while being eviscerated by one billion mosquitoes.
 
We continued along the path to set up camp at Smitt Rock, a clifftop camping spot near the fifth gorge of the Katherine River. There’s a drop dunny and an emergency call device here. The views across the high sandstone ramparts will make you make a sound like those groan tube toys. You can take a short rock scramble trail down to the water’s edge and a little sandy swimming beach. Freshwater crocs, turtles and overnight kayakers stop by, but they’re pretty chill.
 
The next part of the trail winds up into tablelands, where levees of sandstone wick up water from the last wet season and the woodlands stay green for months. Passing some of the taller stringybarks and Darwin woolly butt trees, you can see pods of interlocking leaves stitched with green ants’ silk. The nests are good for making a curative drink that tastes a little like lime.
 
There’s an option to follow a loop trail that leads past Jawoyn Valley rock art sites. We ditched our backpacks by the water tank and ate sangas under the paintings in a weathered sandstone grotto.
 
The last campsite, Eighth Gorge, is the top end’s zion. We pitched our tents by a small sandy swimming hole backed by a cliff and shaded by melaleucas. There’s a toilet, emergency call device and resident cormorant here, as well as a path that leads to the gorge and a terrifying vertical precipice where you can cook dinner and take rap squat photos. Another path skirts the cliff and brings you down to a sandy shore of the Katherine River.
 
The return leg of the trip is about 17 kilometres and can be split into two days with a stopover at Dunlop Swamp. We slogged it in one day and replenished our fluids with beer and Frosty Fruits at an emotional reunion with the Yaris at the Visitor’s Centre.
 
For a side trip, head to Leliyn (Edith Falls), about 42km north of Katherine, and eat barramundi burgers and scones with the deadliest legends who run the campsite. There’s an easy overnight trail from here to Sweetwater Pool, the last stop on the 5-day Jatbula Trail, where you can swim in tiered waterfalls and mostly crocless rockpools.

2015

by Pip Jones & Ed Gorwell
 

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edgorwell.com

LFRF acknowledges all the Traditional Owners of the land [or country]  and pay our respects to the Elders, past and present of all of The Northern Territory and urges you to please do the same.