Tuesday 13th July 2004 - Day 303/366 - Katherine, Northern Territory to Mataranka, Northern Territory.
 
Kayaking the gorge

We had a 7 am start for Kayaking up Katherine Gorge.  The Kayaking was awesome.  We went 6kms up the gorge and had to drag the kayaks up 3 sets rapids.  Some of the girls struggled with the dragging of the boats over the slippery stones and didn't appreciate being helped by a bloke.  I really don't get it. 
 
Canoeing the 6kms back downstream should have been easier, but clearly wasn't.  It felt like the flow and breeze against us, maybe it was just the lactic acid.  To be fair to the girls they all got there and back with in the 4 hours.
 
The gorge is stunning. 
 
On the way out we stopped in Katherine for shopping.  Immediately noticable is all the drunken aborigines.  I actually feel a bit sorry for them.  So what if they are struggling to adapt to white mans vices of Alcohol, gambling and soap.  Up until a generation ago we took there babies away from them to give them a PROPER education  Never mind the fact that they have been successfully living on this land for tens of thousands of years and could probably teach us a thing or 2.  Unfortunately a lot of the children were abused which no doubt causes mental difficulties now. 
 
The skills they used to live on the land were very basic.  It was only in 1978 when the last 2 nomadic aborigines walked out of the outback.  Imagine how they coped with seeing planes and cars etc.
 
If they take a while to adjust then thats fine with me, but we need to remember that we can learn from them too.
 
We ended the day setting up camp in Mataranka.  We were able to soak our aching limbs in the hot springs.  The only problem being the smell from the huge population of flying foxes and the aerial bombardment.
 
A few of us had a drink in the bar where the resident band 'Coal Train' entertained us.  I'm not sure that's the right words for it.