Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Nambara Arts & Crafts Aboriginal Gallery
(Melville Bay Rd, Nhulunbuy)
sells art and
crafts from northeast Arnhem Land and often has artists in residence.
Buku Larrnggay
Mulka Art Centre & Museum
(
www.yirrkala.com
; Yirrkala; museum admission $2;
8am-4.30pm Mon-Fri, 9am-noon Sat)
, 20km southeast of Nhulunbuy in Yirrkala, is one of
Arnhem Land's best. No permit is required to visit from Nhulunbuy or Gove Airport.
Overland travel through Arnhem Land from Katherine requires a permit (free) from
the Northern Land Council (
Click here
). The
Dhimurru Land Management Aboriginal
ation permits ($35/45 for seven days/two months) for visits to particular recreation areas
in Eastern Arnhem Land − check the website for details.
8
Getting There & Away
Darwin to Gove (for Nhulunbuy) daily from $355 one way. Overland, it's a 10-hour
4WD trip and only possible in the Dry. The Central Arnhem Hwy to Gove leaves the
Stuart Hwy (Rte 87) 52km south of Katherine.
KATHERINE TO ALICE SPRINGS
The Stuart Hwy from Darwin to Alice Springs is still referred to as 'the Track' − it has
been since WWII, when it was a dirt track connecting the Territory's two main towns,
roughly following the Overland Telegraph Line. It's dead straight most of the way and
gets drier and flatter as you head south, but there are a few notable diversions.
TOP OF CHAPTER
Katherine
POP 9187
Katherine is considered a big town in this part of the world and you'll certainly feel like
you've arrived somewhere after the long trip up the highway. Its namesake river is the
first permanent running water on the road north from Alice Springs. In the Wet the river
swells dramatically and has been responsible for some devastating floods − the worst in
memory was Australia Day 1998, when rising waters inundated the surrounding coun-
tryside and left a mark up to 2m high on Katherine's buildings.
Katherine is probably best known for the Nitmiluk (Katherine Gorge) National Park to
the east, and the town makes an obvious base, with plenty of accommodation and some
