MOUNT GAMBIER TO ADELAIDE

Mount Gambier was a real surprise for us. The showgrounds where we stayed were pretty ordinary at $25 a night but the town itself has heaps of really interesting places to visit, many of which are right in the middle of town. The information centre itself is very well done, with an excellent local history display. It includes an informative section on the unusual geology of the region and a replica of an old sailing ship, the Lady Nelson. At $4 a head it is good value and of course there is plenty of other informational material about the rest of South Australia available.

Right in the centre of town are the Cave Gardens, which are surrounded by lovely parklands, an art gallery and the local library. The garden itself has been planted in an old sink hole and is a real novelty, especially considering its location. They also have nightly light shows here which are free.

The Cave Gardens

Rose garden and library in the Cave Garden precinct.

A similar attraction to the Cave Gardens, is the Umpherston Sinkhole. It is a much larger sinkhole which was first developed as a recreational area for locals to go picnicking, swimming etc. Today, there are gas barbies, lawns and gardens all easily accessible down a series of stairs.



The Umpherston Sinkhole



This beehive in the sinkhole was dripping with honey - very tempting!

Of course the big drawcard at Mt Gambier is the Blue Lake, which is one of four  crater lakes in the precinct, only two of which still hold water. “During December to March, the lake turns to a vibrant cobalt blue colour, returning to a colder steel grey colour for April to November. The exact cause of this phenomenon is still a matter of conjecture, but it is generally considered likely that it revolves around the warming of the surface layers of the lake during the summer months to around 20 degrees Celsius (70 °F), causing calcium carbonate to precipitate out of solution and enabling micro-crystallites of calcium carbonate to form. This results in scatter of the blue wavelengths of sunlight. During winter the lake becomes well mixed, and recent research indicates that during this phase of the colour cycle the lake is somewhat murkier due to the redistribution of tannins and calcium carbonate particles throughout the lake. Solar elevation has also been found to influence the perceived colour of the lake. The movement of planktonic life-forms within the lake during the seasons and during the day may additionally play a part in the colour change.” (Compliments of Wikipedia)

The second lake, Valley Lake has been developed as a lovely parkland picnic area and is also worth a visit, as is the lookout at the western end of Keegan Drive. There is also a great walking track which goes right round both lakes, taking in Centenary Tower which overlooks the town.

If you want to go a little further afield, you can visit Penola to the north and see where the Mary MacKillop story began. Just 20 minutes south of Mount Gambier is Mount Schank, an extinct volcano rising abruptly from the plains to 158 metres above sea level. Here you can take a couple of walking tracks around the rim or into the floor of the crater. All of the unusual landforms around Mount Gambier are part of Kanawinka, a volcanic province which is considered one of six sites of significance worldwide for its scientific, geological, archaeological, ecological and cultural value.

From Mount Gambier we drove north-west along what is called the Limestone Coast to Millicent and on to Beachport where we pulled up at a lovely spot on the foreshore and had some lunch.

Looking across to Beachport from the beach just south of town.

Then it was on to Robe, past Lakes George, St. Clair and Eliza, which are all large salt lakes with an abundance of birds, although the lakes themselves are anything but picturesque. There were plenty of beach shacks scattered along their shores so obviously there must be seafood of some description to be caught there. The locals told us that Coorong mullet are the best eating fish around. The countryside continued to become drier as we headed west.  Most of the camp spots along this coast were in Little Dip Conservation Park and dogs weren’t allowed. We called in and took a look at Wrights Bay Camp between Robe and Kingston SE. It is OK with grassy sites but the beach isn’t much so we continued on to The Granites but this turned out to be a bitumened parking area behind the dunes and since the weather was very warm it was less appealing than Wrights Bay. We decided to bite the bullet and continue right up The Coorong, the name for the system of coastal lagoons and waterways where the Murray-Darling system empties into the sea. This area was the scene for Colin Thiele’s famous Aussie novel, Storm Boy. Again, it is not particularly scenic but full of birdlife.

Part of the very salty and shallow area called "The Coorong".

At Meningie we turned left and headed around the western shores of Lake Albert to Narrung. Here we found a beautiful little campground called Narrung Jetty Reserve. It is on the Lake Alexandrina side of The Narrows beside a 24 hour ferry which is free and takes vehicles up to 19 metres across to the other side. We didn’t know about the ferry so were really happy as it saved us backtracking to Meningie, a 40 klm trip.

We would have stayed longer at Narrung but we had arrived just before the opening of the local duck shooting season, and on Friday morning they started arriving, complete with camo clothes and camo painted punts etc. I know many people are anti duck shooting but it seems the season, bag limits etc. are very strictly regulated and there certainly appears to be no shortage of ducks. The shooters  were  generally a nice lot though. We met a really friendly fellow called John who gave us a lovely feed of whiting and invited us out snapper fishing if we called in to his place at the bottom of York Peninsula. It would have been a great place to get out in the tinny to look around and apparently there were bream etc. to be caught off the jetty there.

Narrung camping reserve.

Driving off the ferry.

This lighthouse at The Narrows is the only 'inland' lighthouse in Australia.
You can't drive up there but you can walk.

After catching the ferry at Narrung we drove up to Wellington where we caught yet another free ferry across the Murray River and then headed west through Milang and then across to Alexandrina Road.

Taking the ferry at Welliington - our first glimpse of the 'Mighty Murray' in South Australia.

We bypassed Goolwa and continued along the coast to Victor Harbour where we pulled up on the esplanade for lunch and watched the horse-drawn tram saunter across the Causeway to Granite Island.

Granite Island, Victor Harbour. The causeway is on the left.

The double-decker tram is obviously a hit as it had plenty of passengers. Felt a bit sorry for the horse though. Victor Harbour is very much a tourist town and must do a roaring trade in the early summer with whale watching. There are pictures of whales everywhere.

We arrived at Rapid Bay about mid-afternoon on a Thursday afternoon and it wasn’t too crowded. By the time we left on Saturday morning it was packed and this was just a normal weekend. Apparently over Easter it isn’t unusual for them to have 900 campers there. It’s not surprising as the campground is lovely and green with plenty of shady trees, nice toilets and a cold outdoor shower The countryside driving into the bay is made up of very dry and very steep hills.

The bare hills surrounding Rapid Bay.

It was pretty warm while we were there and we really enjoyed being able to wander down the beach and have a dip. The water was beautiful and so clear.

The beach was a popular spot with the campers.

Rapid Bay campground is a lovely green oasis and very popular.

Rapid Bay is a rather strange place. There used to be a lime quarry there which was on land leased from the local grazier. When the quarry closed they offered to sell the lease back to the grazier but he didn’t want to buy it. So there are several houses there which are just sitting empty. It looked like they had been let out to holiday makers occasionally but as you drive in it’s like a ghost town. There is a small school and a small community behind the campground but they are on private land. The old jetty is very popular these days for fishing and squidding.

These lovely stone cottages overlooking the beach and jetty were all
well maintained but empty.

The old jetty and a new one stand side by side and are a popular fishing spot.

John just keeps getting new ideas for our next dream-van!!!

Since we had arranged to visit friends in Adelaide on Sunday we drove into McLaren Vale and spent a night in the caravan park there then on to Adelaide on Sunday. As you drive down onto the Adelaide plains you get a fantastic view of acres and acres of vineyards. We had seen quite a few grapes growing on the Fleurieu Peninsula but now we really knew we were in grape country. We stayed at the Windsor Gardens Caravan Park which was the usual city park - very crowded. The amenities block was very clean but there was no pool and most of the sites are crusher dust so we spent all of our time there in the van with the air-conditioner on. It is handy to town and the northern suburbs though and there is a bus stop just down the road.

On Monday we took a drive out to the Barossa Valley through Lyndoch and Tanunda but instead of doing the usual wine tour we only visited the Seppelt winery on Seppeltsfield Road, as it had been recommended to us by local friends. It was a good choice. Since we were the only two wanting to do the tour that morning we were lucky enough to get access to the processing shed and see first-hand where the whole process begins. It was really interesting and our guide was very knowledgeable as she had been with the company for eight years. Many of today’s wineries are computerised and push button, but it is a very intensive business when carried out in the old fashioned way as it is at Seppelts.

This building started off as the family dairy but was eventually used to make the first wines produced at Seppeltsfield.

The present day winery is housed in a building which was deliberately constructed on a steep slope so that gravity could be used to move the grapes, juice etc through the winemaking process.

Aerating the crushed grapes after yeast has been added.



This old truck is still carting away the dregs.



The storage cellars were also built into the side of a slope,
helping keep the wine cool.

The company is no longer owned by the Seppelt family. Three Sydney businessmen have bought it and seem to be doing a good job of maintaining some very old traditions e.g. Seppelts are the only winery in the world to have a continuous collection of fortified wines dating back to 1878. The winery itself was started by Joseph Seppelt in 1851.  We thought it would be a bit extravagant to buy a bottle of the 100 year old 1912 port at $999 so we opted for a 30 year old one instead. It is a very nice drop. It was also interesting to learn that port, or fortified wine, isn’t just aged wine, but wine with a spirit added. At Seppelts they add brandy.

The Seppelt family mausoleum is also located on Seppeltsfield Road.
The colonades of palms are repeated along the road itself and were planted
by the family during the depression to provide work for the
employees of the vineyard.

Since we couldn't afford the 100 year old port, we treated ourselves to a famous South Australian delicacy on the way home. The Pie Floater!!! Yum!!!

Tuesday was also a very enjoyable day. We jumped on the tram in the city with some close friends from Townsville and off we went to the seaside at Glenelg. The tram ride was more like a train ride but very relaxing and we had plenty of time to catch up on all the Townsville goss.

Glenelg foreshore.

First up at Glenelg we wandered through the visitors information centre in the local shire chambers. The volunteers there are very helpful and friendly and there are some unusual old artefacts to be seen including a huge and diverse collection of items found in the water under the old pier. A collection of old funfair memorabilia from the old Luna Park at Glenelg provided us with much amusement as well. Of course there was also some interesting information about the discovery and development of the area.

In front of the visitors' centre & shire chambers.

Once inside Pav kicked off the entertainment.
You should have been in front of the camera mate!

Luna Park memorabilia including the magicians box, complete with knives, swords etc. Check out Zorita's poster for the "Dance of the Balloons".

After a stroll down to the new marina, which is obviously for those with plenty of money or big overdrafts, we found a nice little pub with a kerbside dining area and had lunch while doing some people watching and of course more catching up on Townsville etc.

Local high schoolers were doing their lifesaving training on the beach.

Adelaide is full of artworks in the most unexpected places.

This is just a few of the "very nice" boats moored at the marina.

We finished the day with a drink in the casino back in the city before jumping on a bus at a stop just up the road. The casino is housed in the old railway station with a beautiful high domed roof and some pretty spectacular chandeliers. The city centre of Adelaide is a very pleasant precinct with lots of old buildings, parks etc. so I imagine it would be nice to just wander around there for a while as well.

The state parliament building is just one of many in the city centre.

We were also in town when the local “Fringe Festival” was getting under way, so a lot of the caravan parks etc were pretty full. There seem to be lots of artistic activities to be experienced in Adelaide for those who love galleries, the theatre etc. and this time of year seems to be excellent for most of the. They were also getting ready for WOMAD (World of music and dance) and the V8 supercar races which were on the following weekend. Would have been nice to stay and watch Casey Stoner on his first foray on four wheels but it was obvious that the place was going to turn into a bit of a rat race and we wanted to see Yorke Peninsula before heading off to Venus Bay.