Admittedly the motivation to finally make the big trip up north to hike the 62km Jatbula Trail in the Northern Territory during July was initially more motivated by escaping the Melbourne winter, than tackling the hike itself.
But once we got off the Greyhound bus in Nitmiluk National Park, the excitement to enjoy the trail ahead couldn't have been higher. I was joined by my partner Farris and our friend Joanna.
There are a tonne of great guides out there that give you the full rundown on this hike, like this one about walking the Jatbula Trail in five days over at We Are Explorers, but this post is more my journal of the experience than a how-to, so let's crack on!
Psst! I've popped a few FAQs at the end for the more common questions I've been asked about this trail – scroll down!
What's Hiking the Jatbula Trail Like?
Day #1: Katherine Gorge to Biddlecombe Cascades
Hike Stats: 8.8km Day Highlights: Ferry ride, waterfall at lunchtime, arriving at first campsite
We'd originally planned to do the afternoon safety briefing on our day zero – the same day we caught the buses – but the Greyhound broke down so we ended up being a couple of hours late and missing it. This worked out fine because there was a briefing at 8am the following morning anyway.
After tuning in to the briefing we walked our bags down to catch the 9am ferry. This was very exciting but the ride is all of three minutes, so if you want to snap a photo, don't dilly dally.
On the other side of the river, the trail starts immediately. It's mostly flat, slightly undulating with minimal shade. If you'd managed to catch the early ferry it'd be great walking. For us, even at 9.15am, it was already hot.
Thankfully after 3.4km we reached Sweetwater Pools, a barely distinguishable waterfall and swimming hole with a sandy bank and plenty of rocks to sit on.
Most of the second half of the trail was a sandy 4WD track in full sun, with two small river crossings. It was hot and slow going. Joanna hiked on ahead towards the end, leaving us to plod into camp about half an hour after her. She lives further north than us and is a lot more acclimatised to hiking in the heat – that's my excuse anyway!
Biddlecombe Cascades was a great campsite. Plenty of shade and the same trees provided a nice breeze. The afternoon was spent relaxing in camp watching lizards, listening to birds, and brushing termites off our tents (from the termite mounds!).
The river itself was quite hard to take a dip in as it was fast running and the bank chockas with trees. Joanna managed it of course, there's nothing keeping her from the water.
The sunset was pretty standard but then the sky continued to morph into a divine, deep purple. I've never seen it that shade before and it was gorgeous.
Day #2: Biddlecombe Cascades to Crystal Falls
Hike Stats: 11km
Day Highlights: Rock art, red dragonflies, sunset over the water
After the heat of the day before we were keen to get an early start, packing up in torchlight and walking out of a sleeping camp at 7am. The start of the trail is alongside the river, and this was tricky in the dark as it was all slippery mud and small watery crossings. That aside, the morning terrain was mostly flat and forgiving.
The scenery was a lot more interesting and varied today. We traipsed through recently burnt sections, saw a few isolated billabongs, and even came upon rock art in clusters of boulders. It was a really special moment and I'm so thankful to Fazz and Joanna for paying such great attention and spotting them!
I took the opportunity to fall face-first down a rocky section, which left me a bit nervous for the rest of the day but otherwise uninjured.
We arrived at Crystal Falls Campground around 11 am. The last hour of hiking in the sun was extremely hot, and the relief to be at camp was huge. The last twenty minutes were on a fully exposed, hot rock section down to the river.
This part of the river was wide with a rapid flow. We set up our tents beside it then set about planning how we would make the crossing in the morning without getting our gear wet or falling in.
We washed our clothes then put them back on to stay cool, lazed around watching vibrant red dragonflies and green ants, then enjoyed dinner on the riverbank with the rest of the hikers.
Fazz and I saw a group of seven large spiders fighting in a giant web over the water – the only thing missing was Attenborough's commentary. It was a magical night.
Day #3: Crystal Falls to 17 Mile Camp
Hike Stats: 10km Day Highlights: The Ampitheatre, lookout from waterfall, socialising
We loved the early start the day before so much that we left even earlier today – 6.30 am. While it was quite cold on the bank, the water in the river was wonderfully warm. We crossed with our shoes and socks off, pants rolled up or off, then got dressed again on the other side.
We covered the first 6.7km in about two hours, and enjoyed wandering through a large open meadow dotted with purple flowers. Not too long after that we came to the side trip to the Ampitheatre to see more rock art. Out of the three of us, I'm not sure who loved it more – we were entranced. The flock of stunning black butterflies drifting through the leafy canopy was a surreal moment.
In our absence, the birds had managed to get into some snacks in Joanna's pack. Thankfully it wasn't anything major and after picking up the packaging we were on our way again. The last three-ish kilometres were flat with a lovely breeze taking the edge off the sun.
The next campsite was immediately after a final river crossing, which thankfully was a piece of cake compared to the one the day started with.
The site was very exposed so we set up our tents, grabbed our essentials, and set ourselves up beside the river for the rest of the day. We ate through all our uneaten snacks, swam in the river, let tadpoles nibble our feet, and talked about nothing and everything.
We cooked our dinner by the river, did a little rock exploring to look at the giant 17 Mile Falls, and got ourselves organised for the following morning.
The toilet was far from camp, but the animals tended to frequent it more and we saw two kangaroos there just before we headed to bed.
Sunset was fairy floss pink and it was one of those days that no one wanted to end.
Day #4: 17 Mile Camp to Sandy Camp
Hike Stats: 16.8km
Day Highlights: Washing my hair in the river, walking under the stars
Earlier again today! We were up at 4.30 am so we could hike to the toilet and back, and pack up camp in time to leave by 5.30 am. It was COLD today. Walking with the light of our head torches was a little tough on the first uphill, but once we hit the flat, it was nothing short of incredible.
The amount of stars overhead was insane and it was more than frustrating having to look at my feet instead. Wolf Eye spiders blanketed the ground, reflecting the light of our torches so at times it looked like the stars had fallen to earth.
We were on a flat plateau and it felt like sunrise happened all around us, all at once, in every direction. This is obviously impossible but I'm not sure how else to describe it. The horizon was gorgeous hues of pink and purple, and there was a lot of short stops to take it in. Red-tailed Black Cockatoos wheeled overhead, and the whole morning felt positively wild. Loved it.
At 6.45 am it was light enough to see without torches, and we set a cracking pace. The trail was a lot wetter today, with plenty of tall cold grass to pass through.
At 8.50 am we arrived at Eden River for our first break. This is a river crossing, but in July it was more like a step! We relaxed, cracked open some snacks, and rehydrated. Fazz had a moment and somehow managed to drop and submerge one of his hiking boots in the water. Naturally, we all cackled. Highlight for everyone except Fazz.
At 11.30 am we strolled into Sandy Camp – and what a spot! It was stunning. Conveniently, large rocks have been scattered around and can be used as makeshift tables and chairs. We saw our first snake here, but it was more than happy to leave us alone.
Our afternoon went the same way as those previously. We swam, we ate, we washed our clothes. Fazz took a nasty fall on a rocky cascade near camp. Joanna and I were holding our breath, waiting for the worst, but he was fine.
He bragged that he was actually more concerned about the welfare of the rocks while we rolled our eyes. He easily could have cracked his head open so it was a great moment to cash in some luck.
We had an early dinner and then zipped ourselves away from the mosquitoes.
Day #5: Sandy Camp to Sweetwater Pool
Hike Stats: 11km
Day Highlights: Relaxing at Sweetwater, rainforest walk
Finally a slow morning! We left camp at a lazy 7 am and enjoyed watching the sun rise over the cascades before we left. The walk through the partially burnt rainforest was stunning and moody, with plenty of Pandanis snagging on our boots.
The sun was still hot but we had plenty of canopy to protect us and walking was quite pleasant. We had two short rest stops, sitting on old logs and chatting in the sun while we reapplied sunscreen and chomped down on trail mix.
The approach to camp was very rocky and all of a sudden we saw strangers – what?! As it turns out day hikers can walk to Sweetwater Pool so you might see an influx of people when you get here. There weren't many and everyone kept to their own section of the river so don't let this put you off.
After setting up camp in sheltered sites surrounded by tall grass, we grabbed our tiny lightweight towels and headed for the water. Fazz and I lazed in shallow cascades letting the water flow around and over us as we absorbed the heat from the rocks. It was bliss. Joanna went for a swim in the deep pool below.
As the evening drew closer we noticed a lot of helicopters circling but didn't think much of it... until Fazz noticed the sunset was quite smokey. Yep - there was a fire nearby. We'd been warned about the potential of wildfires in our briefing so we didn't panic.
We were at a campsite, we had a PLB, and Parks rangers knew where we were. An off duty ranger had actually been on the trail with us, but walked out that day rather than staying the extra night.
We went to sleep a bit more alert than normal but mostly sad the hike was coming to an end.
Day #6: Sweetwater Pool to Leilyn Falls
Hike Stats: 4km
Day Highlights: Not burning to death, celebratory burgers, comfy bus
I misjudged my hydration timing yesterday which resulted in a very frustrating toilet trip at 5.20am. The hike to the toilet here is over higgledy piggledy rocks, which aren't fun to navigate in the dark when you're positively busting! I made it, then returned to the tent to not sleep for an hour until it was about time to get up for sunrise.
We all moseyed sleepily to the rivers edge to watch the sunrise, but it was a non-event. Ah well. We had our brekky and were almost finished packing up when a helicopter arrived in camp with a ranger on board. Turns out the bushfire smoke we'd noticed before bed was from an out-of-control bushfire in Nitmiluk National Park, and overnight NT Parks rangers had backburned the remainder of the trail to keep us safe on our way out. Thanks guys!
The trail to the end of the hike was stupidly short so we dawdled and enjoyed looking at the flowers, and taking extra photos of the river.
Along the way we ran into Marcus – the off duty park ranger we'd been hiking with – now in uniform and putting out warning signs about the fire and smoke. After a quick chat we continued on, the smell of smoke getting heavier.
At the lookout from Upper Leilyn Falls we could see flames in the mountains, and as a Victorians who nearly lost our house in the 2019/20 bushfires, it felt surreal to be in the bush looking at a fire and no one was panicking. Pretty normal up here apparently.
Joanna had one last glorious swim, then we headed down to the kiosk for celebratory burgers and waited for Dennis from Gecko Transfers to pick us up for our ride to Katherine.
The return to civilisation was as jarring as it always is, and we were bleary-eyed by the time we arrived in Darwin after a Bodhi bus trip from Katherine to Palmerston, and the quick taxi ride from Palmerston back to the CBD.
Fazz and I were staying on in Darwin for a few days, but Joanna had to fly home. We quickly got changed at The Cav, then enjoyed another celebratory meal (dinner!) at Moorish Restaurant. It was divine.
The Jatbula Trail was a stunningly relaxing hike with even better company. Loved it. It's a great trail for novice overnight hikers, and a good one to experiment with nutrition as the terrain isn't too arduous and the heat easy to deal with if you start walking early.
Jatbula Trail FAQs
How easy is it to get passes for the Jatbula Trail?
Just like the Overland Track, registrations are required on the Jatbula Trail to keep numbers low and preserve the unique environment. And they're hard to get. Once you're out there though, you fully appreciate the restriction on numbers.
If you want to hike the Jatbula Trail, keep track of registration dates and plan on applying for your desired dates the moment registrations open. When I secured our tickets, the season booked out in 9 minutes. You can sometimes snag cancelled tickets on the Jatbula Trail Facebook Group.
How many days do you need on the Jatbula Trail?
You can hike the Jatbula Trail in four nights and five days, or take an extra day and finish in six. We opted for the longer route because we're not sure if we'll get the chance to hike it again and wanted to soak it all up! We were extra glad of that decision when the last campsite ended up being out favourite! (If you opted for four days, you don't stay there.)
How do you get to the Jatbula Trail?
This has got to be the most commonly asked question about the Jatbula Trail. And no wonder, it's an annoying one to get to – even if you've got a car! We flew into Darwin airport around 1am, then took a taxi to catch some sleep at the Cavanagh Hotel in the CBD.
In the morning after a quick brekky we jumped on the Greyhound Bus from the Darwin Bus Interchange a five-minute walk away. The Greyhound deposited us in Katherine at the Visitor Information Centre, where we were collected by the team at Gecko Transfers and taken to our campsite for the night at Nitmiluk Gorge. In theory this would have landed us there in time for the evening briefing, but our bus broke down and delayed us by a couple of hours. This meant we missed our initial Gecko Transfer but they were absolute legends and came back to collect us once we'd arrived.
You can attempt the reverse of this bus arrangement on the way back but we found the timing of the Greyhound quite inconvenient and opted to return on the Bodhi Bus instead. It was much cleaner and more reliable than the Greyhound so I'll be taking it both ways if I go up there again.
Aren't there crocodiles on the Jatbula Trail?
If you're wondering about all the mentions of swimming in a part of Australia well known for crocs, the hike is on a plateau, NT Parks surveys the waterways before hiking season, and crocodiles can't climb up waterfalls.
Rangers patrol the waterways and you'll be advised in your briefing where it is and isn't safe to swim.
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