the road to Darwin

Well as can happen the best laid plans of all can go astray quite quickly.  At cuppa time we stopped at a rest stop and as I prepared the refreshments (and cake) Lawrie as usual checked around the van.  He became concerned with one of the van’s tyres as it had a bulge and was not the same temperature all round.  He decided that after the cuppa he would put the spare on for the 50km run into Katherine as he was sure that the tyre could blow out.  Our decision was then that we needed to see about tyres for the van in Katherine and not wait till Darwin.  The old were the original tyres that came with the van and he had never really felt happy about their durability so now it was bite the bullet time and make the change.  Beaurepaires had only one tyre to fit our requirements but could get 2 down from Darwin overnight so we decided to stay in Katherine and have the new tyres and spare fitted in the morning first thing. 

We had stayed here last year so knew our way to the van park near the hot springs so checked in and later in the afternoon I went and enjoyed a swim in the spring beside the river.  No crocs in there so quite safe.  The water was a little cooler than Mataranka but very refreshing.

Next morning after the early pack up and fitting of the tyres we are again off up the highway.  We could easily make Darwin today but why rush, we have plenty of time and the heat does build after lunch so again we decide to just drive for the morning and then set up and rest through the heat and complete the journey tomorrow. 

Our rest stop is just 134km short of Darwin so an easy drive the next morning and after checking out the reserve we had heard about (there was no room) we headed back to a park out of town for a cheaper rate per night than closer in to the city ($28 compared to $38).

Our visit to Darwin meant having the gas in the car serviced and the accessory belt fitted in Alice checked for tension.  All good, so that should do for all the ‘maintenance’ checks till we return to the Eastern states.  We visited the city and did a walk around and were amazed at the number of ‘eateries’ that we saw.  There is surely a great selection to suit every palate, spoilt for choice would be another way to describe it.  How do they all make a living?  The tourists are already leaving as the weather warms up.  We had many vans passing us heading south as we came north.  We are two months behind last year and there are empty spaces in the van park which was unknown last year.  Catching up with family has been good and having a great spot in the van park makes relaxing each day and just enjoying the surroundings a great way to spend our time whilst we wait for mail to come from home.