The Katherine River is a mighty 328km stretch of fresh water that runs south-west from Nitmiluk National Park, Northern Territory, through Katherine – where some 10,000 residents tap its water – to merge with the Flora River, at the eastern tip of Flora River Nature Park.

During the dry season (May to October), the Katherine River is spring fed by the Tindall limestone aquifer in the ­Katherine region and the Oolloo Dolostone aquifer of the Daly River basin. During the wet season (November to April), monsoon rains fill the river and supply the aquifers.

This whole area is the Jawoyn’s beat; they are the custodians of the Katherine region. Their traditional lands, which sprawl across about 50,000sq.km, include ­Nitmiluk NP, southern parts of Kakadu NP and western Arnhem Land.

The Katherine River is intersected by rock bars and the elevation drops by up to 2m between each bar, causing a very manageable, yet exciting, whitewater experience.

The twisted trunks of submerged eucalypts along the bank play an important role in supporting the river’s large and varied aquatic ecosystem; 38 species of fish are found in the Katherine. The fish include barramundi, sooty grunters, and freshwater long toms, which have long arrow-shaped bodies and jaws like miniature billfish.

Jesse Trushenski, a fisheries and aquaculture professor from the US state of Illinois, relaxes by the river during a lunch break.

Kayak guide Matt Leigh prepares to set-up camp for the night.

Early each morning, the landscape is transformed as an eerie mist cloaks the river. Over the mist, sunlight streams through the silver-leaved and weeping paperbarks.

One narrow, fast-moving stretch of the Katherine, dubbed “pandanus alley”, is covered by a canopy of leaves stitched together by the webs of Saint Andrew’s Cross spiders.

A night sky jammed with stars is the backdrop for the riverside campsite.