Feeling Poorly

Friday 10 November

We had a reasonably restful night, although the air conditioning work us up a few times as it clanked and clanged on and off – but it was too hot to turn it off altogether – apparently the temperature through the night never dropped below 25 degrees C – very warm for sleeping.

This morning Colin was feeling a little better, not so achy and not sick, so after a light breakfast and lots of tea to drink, we made our way on to the coach. By this time my stomach was beginning to feel quite sore too. But another eight men were also feeling poorly – some more so than others. It was a very quiet party which left Tennant Creek this morning, despite it being Christine’s 65th birthday (lady from Essex) – we had sent her a 60th birthday card, as we are sure that’s what her husband had said!!!! (He is 60 next year, so perhaps we got the wrong end of the stick.)

We had been told it would be another long day in the coach – over 700 kms to cover to reach Katherine, with the usual roadside stops. Our first stop was at Elliot, which was a staging post for troops in the second World War. It now has a population of a little over 300. The Packer family (of Kerry Packer fame) own a large sheep and cattle station a hundred or so kilometres away and it is one of the wealthiest stations in the Northern Territory. This was just a brief stop so we were soon on our way again, towards the second stop at Daly Waters for an early lunch. Here there is a bar, which when you enter, you are accosted by underwear, flags, Tshirts, paper money from most countries in the world and driving licenses, most signed and dated by previous visitors, all hanging from the overhead beams and upright posts. We added our names to an England flag, which already had signatures dated June, September and October this year. The bar also acts as the local police station and jail. Still not feeling at our best, we devoured some iced tea and a chocolate bar each (to give us some energy, in the sapping heat). The temperatures were again over 40 degrees C and it was still only midday. Although these bars and cafes have fans whirling from the ceiling, they have not advanced to air conditioning, so the hot air is just circulated round and round – but at least its moving, more than can be said for outside. Bob became another victim of the “virus” at lunch, it’s strange how I am the only woman it has affected.

Before lunch the landscape had changed to scrubby grass tussocks again, but this time with large trees, looking like never-ending orchards. Those nearest the road were scorched and brown, but a little further away, the trees looked healthy and green. After lunch, the ‘orchards’ thinned out a little, and the intervening spaces were filled with termite mounds – all shapes and sizes, some tall and thin, like models of the Empire State Building, others round bubbles clustered together. At one stage there seemed to be more termite mounds than trees, all terracotta coloured from the soil.

We continued on our way to Mataranka – a watering hole, near the Katherine River, with a thermal spring pool, the size of a medium sized swimming pool, that maintains a temperature of over 30 degrees all year. If that was too hot, the other option was a dip in the river – cooler and refreshing. I had been looking forward to a swim here (I had packed my swimmer in my hand luggage this morning just in case), but still not feeling my best, I decided reluctantly to give it a miss. Those who did don their swimmers, all enjoyed the experience in the spa pool, and most tried the river too. We stopped here about an hour, during which time Bob was becoming very unwell, similar to Colin last night, and when we at last returned to the coach, he moved to sit in the front – just as well, as the coach had to stop for him, just a few kilometres from our motel for the night.

In 1998 this area suffered a major flood, and one the wall of the café was a plaque recording the height of the water – up to the top of the roof in the café, and probably about 30 feet high altogether. Needless to say a lot of damage was done, and many of the buildings at the surrounding stations were washed away. We also passed several areas where the bark of the trees and the ground were black from burning, and in one area the grass was still smouldering for a few kilometres. The other fires may have occurred up to a couple of years ago, but left the trees and earth scorched and scarred and still black. But the top branches had recovered and new green leaves were sprouting healthily.

Tonight we are staying in the Paraway Motel in Katherine, the third largest city in Northern Territory, after Darwin and Alice Springs. It was, of course, named by James McDouall Stuart, this time after the second daughter of one of his benefactors. It was originally spelt with a ‘C’ but somewhere along the line it was changed to a ‘K’. In 1926 the railway was pushed through from Darwin to facilitate easier transport, and during the World War II the town suffered some severe bombing by the Japanese, who were attempting to extend their coastal occupation inland.

We gathered our luggage and made tracks for our room – unfortunately opposite the bar and restaurant entrance, so it may be a noisy night. They are very fond of motels over here, and most are of a reasonable standard – a clean comfortable room, usually with television, iron and ironing board (washing machines are in a laundry area and free to use), hairdryers, etc. But one of their best features is the drench showers – and this one was no exception – if turned on full, you were battered by this downfall of water, nearly strong enough to knock you over.

Colin, although not feeling absolutely right, felt he should try something at the buffet, but my stomach was still very sore, so I stayed in the room. When he returned he had eaten a small amount of soup, roast chicken and shepherds pie, but Rod (husband of Christine from Essex – birthday girl) was the latest victim of this bug. Anna, a lady traveling on her own from Switzerland, was also not feeling at her best. No-one knows where this sickness is coming from – it turns out that some people have been poorly since Coober Pedy. Just hope it goes away fast. Tonight will be an early night, as we have to be up at 05.15 for a 07.00 start. Just time to post a couple of blogs and catch up on the emails.