Kangaroo Valley . Braidwood . Cooma . Cape Conan . Mick and Sue’s at Leongatha . Great Ocean Road . Ottway National Park . Grampians National Park . Dimboola . Nhil . Big Desert . Sunset Murray National Park . Mungo National Park . Mildura . SA Border . Renmark . Murray Bridge . Narrung . Coorong . Victor Harbour . The Pines Private Campground . Hahndorf . Gawler . Barossa Valley . Maggie Beer Farm Shop . Greenock . Rapid Bay . Kangaroo Island . Simon and Hills place . Adelaide . Lunch with Cate and Phil . Bowman Park . Murninnie Beach . Port Lincoln . The Whalers Way . Coffin Bay . Ceduna
Perentie Wandering
Hello, we are Ana and Bob.
Why did we call our blog Perentie Wandering? That’s because our motorhome is built on an ex army Perentie Land Rover. A Perentie is also a type of Goanna, hence the Perentie Goanna which features on our blog.
We hope that you enjoy reading about our adventures as much as we enjoy experiencing and writing about them. We also hope that you will be inspired to explore our great country yourself.
To start, let me show you around our motorhome. It is very compact, but has everything we need to be comfortable.
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Day 1: Sunday 6th February, 2022
Well we finally started our long anticipated holiday on Sunday the 6th of February 2022. We left home about 10am waving goodbye to our wonderful neighbours, then off to a farewell family picnic at Warragamba Dam, the weather was quite average but the company was fantastic. We said our final somewhat teary goodbyes and off we drove promising to keep in touch and post in this blog regularly.
We are spending our first night in Bendeela Recreational Reserve in Kangaroo valley. This is a lovely little campsite and as you can see in the pictures, Kangaroo Valley is an appropriate name. We had quite a few diverse natives come to say hello, the Kangaroos are so friendly, not in the least perturbed by the humans. Two boisterous boys even decided to have a bit of a blue.
Day 2: Monday 7th February, 2022
We decided to drive to Berri, where we stopped and had a donut and coffee at the iconic donut van and had a look around town.
After that we drove down through Kangaroo Valley, where we drove over the Hampden Bridge.
Hampden Bridge is a heritage-listed single-span suspension bridge that carries Moss Vale Road across the Kangaroo River. The bridge was designed by Ernest de Burgh and built by Loveridge and Hudson.
(Wikipedia)
After driving down to Nowra, then onto Braidwood Rd, we stopped to have a look at the very pretty Tianjara Falls where we were able to take some nice pictures
We decided to set up camp for the night off Tollwong Road, which comes off Braidwood Road. It is quiet and secluded. It continued to rain, so any real exploring was not possible
Day 3: Tuesday 8th February, 2022
As we drove out of our campsite we noticed an amazing canyon, which we stopped to explore, don’t know what it is called, but it was beautiful.
We drove past a little town called Nerriga, which had a tribute to Ned Kelly.
A little place along the road called Majors Creek offered a unique type of tourist accommodation at the Elrington Hotel. I wish I could have seen inside.
We free camped again just off the road, and found a little river nearby when we went exploring. We were also able to light our first campfire for the trip, first of many. Something special about a camp fire, always relaxes me.
Day 4, Wednesday 9th February 2022
We drove the rest of the way to Cooma today, the countryside was beautiful and quite diverse. The damage caused to the bush in the 2020 bushfires was very evident. The resilience of the Australian bush always amazes me, the trees regenerating after the fires. Having said this, there was also the devastation on display, 2 years on and some of the trees showed no evidence of coming back.
Day 5, Thursday 10th February, 2022
We drove from Cooma, via Bombala to Cape Conan in Victoria, our first border crossing.
We stopped at a little campsite in Cape Conan called Banksia Bluff for the night. A really nice place to camp, suggested by Bob’s mate, Mick.
Day 6, Friday 11th February, 2022
We decided to stay at Banksia Bluff Campsite for another night, we have earned a rest day, and it was such a gorgeous little campsite. It was a dog friendly campsite in the national park. We had the bush on one side and the beach on the other.
We had a lovely relaxing day, doing some of the walks and ending the day with a very Portuguese dinner.
Following are some pics of the campsite, some of the scenery and some of the locals. You will note the Lace Monitor, a type of Goanna who decided to wander through out campsite. She was huge and magnificent, she was not bothered by us, nor did she show any aggression, just went along minding her own business, silently reminding us that we were the guests and she was the resident. At one stage as we were sitting and chatting, she just casually walked up past Bob’s feet and continued into the bush.
Day 7 and 8, Saturday 12th and Sunday 13th February 2022
On Saturday we drove to Leongatha to catch up with our friends Mick and Sue, where we stayed Sunday as well. They are great hosts, Sue is a fantastic cook and we ate like kings.
On Sunday they drove us out to see Inverloch, a pretty little town on the ocean. It was a beautiful day and we had a great time.
Day 9, Monday 14th February, 2022
Happy Valentines day everyone.
We enjoyed catching up with our friends but today it was time for us to say goodbye and continue our adventure.
We drove to Sorento, where we caught the ferry to Queenscliffe, Port Lonsdale then drove on to the start of the great Ocean road. We stayed the night in a local camping spot.
Sorrento and Port Lonsdale are beautiful, with gorgeous beaches and fantastic views, I am not sure how many pictures I took, but here are some of them.
Days 10, Tuesday the 15th February, 2022
We travelled along the great ocean Road till we got to Apollo Bay, the scenery was amazing (I am running out of adjectives). I will let these photo’s speak for themselves.
The Great Ocean Road is 241 Km long and was started as a project to create work for the returned servicemen from WW1. 3000 returned servicemen worked on the road which was built as a tribute to the Australian soldiers of World War 1. The first section was started on the 1st November 1919, completed in 1932 and handed over to the government on the 2nd October, 1936.
We visited the Chocolaterie and Ice creamery near Anglesea on the Great Ocean Road. It was a great place to visit. They are having an ice cream festival at the moment, with 144 flavours in 12 days. I tried the dill pickle flavoured Ice cream and the gin and blood orange Flavour. The dill pickle actually tasted like dill pickle (Funny that), not my favourite, but the gin and blood orange was quite nice.
I bought some chocolate covered freeze dried strawberries, my favourite, and yes they are good.
When we arrived at Apollo Bay, we veered off to Otway National Park.
We stopped to check out Beauchamp Falls. The walk to the falls was downhill for 1.25km, then back uphill for 1.25 Km. the return trip was quite challenging for those of us who are not as fit. Having said this, we did not regret the walk, the falls were spectacular, surrounded by lush vegetation including beautiful Tree Ferns.
The track follows Deppeler Creek, surrounded by Mountain Ash, ancient Myrtle Beeches, Blackwoods as well as numerous ferns.
We ended the day at a little camp site in the national park called Aire Crossing Campground. It is quite secluded and is situated next to the Aire River.
Days 11, Wednesday 16th February, 2022
Our day did not start too well, as we travelled back to Apollo Bay, we managed to wedge a large tree branch into the middle wheels of the Perentie when we crossed a deep and very slippery mud bank. Bob had to cut it out with the chain saw. Unfortunately it damaged the shocks and the tyre inflation system. Bob will have to fix these when we get to a larger town, he is not happy.
We stopped to look at the Californian Redwoods that were planted over 80 years ago as a special project to plant softwood trees for building. These Redwoods can grow to be one of the tallest trees in the world, there have been specimens in America that have grown taller than the Statue of Liberty.
Once out of Otway National Park and back onto the Great Ocean Road, we stopped at many of the viewing areas and we were both in awe of the sights we were seeing.
This is Thunder Cave, read the pictures from right to left, you will see the sea comes into the inlet, then into thunder cave, it then come out the other side of the mountain from another cave, and goes into yet another cave at the other side of a canal. I am not sure how far the sea can continue into the mountain, if there is another opening or if it just ends and comes back out.
Day 12, Thursday 17th February, 2022
This is our last day on the Great Ocean Road. We travelled quite slowly the last 3 days as we kept stopping at lookouts.
The “12” Apostles were quite amazing. Apparently there were only ever 9 Apostles and one collapsed on the 3rd July 2005.
Day 13, Friday 18 February, 2022
We drove to the Grampians National park. The Grampians is very different to the Otway National Park, it is very rocky and mountainous, also much dryer.
There are a number of families that allow campers to camp for the night on their property for a price. At this time of the year especially, there are no free camp sights available so these come in quite handy. We spent this night at one of those places, which was a farm.
Day 14, Saturday 19th February, 2022
Today is my Fathers birthday, so happy birthday Dad, sorry we could not be there with you, we hope you are having a great day.
Today we reached the Grampians and visited Bellfield Lake reservoir, Silverband Falls and The Bilimina Shelter
We spent the night in a free camp spot called the WP Campsite, was near a local watering hole for the animals in the park, so we had lots of visitors. It was a great camp, we were the only ones there, it was very peaceful, and I loved all our little visitors.
Day 15, Sunday 20th February, 2022
We left the Grampians today and travelled to Dimboola, where we are camped in their Recreational Park, which is open to motorhomes and caravans who are self contained.
Before we left the Grampians however we visited Broken Falls and Mackenzie Falls. Both Falls are on the Mackenzie River, and Broken Falls is further upstream from Mackenzie Falls.
Day 16, Monday 21st February, 2022
We are driving from Dimboola to Nhil today.
We stopped at the Pink lake just outside of Dimboola. It was actually quite pink. Apparently the colour is not permanently pink all year round, the environmental conditions have to be just right. The colour comes from a combination of Algae and Bacteria.
The lake is very salty. At the moment the lake is dry and only the salt is in the lake.
We booked into the Nhil Caravan park for a maintenance day, washing and fixing anything that needs doing. The caravan park is only small, but it is has the cleanest facilities I have ever seen in a Caravan park . It is next to Nhil Swamp Wildlife Reserve, an important wetlands area for the birdlife. At the moment the swamp is dry, as it is for long periods of time. The boardwalk takes you through the wetlands area and leads to a lake. There were many birds around the wetlands and lake, predominantly Long Billed Corellas, there were hundreds of them. The baby corellas were all sitting in the trees, awaiting their parents return.
Day 17, Tuesday 22nd February, 2022
Today we drove to “The Big Desert State Forest”. The landscape changed dramatically from farm, to gravel to sand. The roads in The Big Desert were all quite good and well maintained.
Along the way, we climbed up a sand dune with a Trig Point marker (tallest point in the area), the track up was very steep, with deep sand, but the Perentie climbed it easily.
We stopped for the evening at the Big Billy Campground. It is a free camp area, which is impressively well appointed. It has a fireplace and picnic table at each campsite, along with a communal BBQ area with gas BBQ’s and BBQ Tools for the campers to use.
The campsite is beautiful and we are the only people here. We climbed to a nearby lookout and watched the sunset, afterwards we lit a campfire and watched the stars, we could see all of them from here. We saw shooting stars and even a distant satellite cross the skies.
Day 18, Wednesday 23th February, 2022
On our way to the Sunset Murray National Park, we drove to the Big Sand Dune. It was interesting looking at the terrain and landscape, it was obviously very sandy, but we were surprised at the amount of vegetation. When we typically think of a desert or sand dune, we think of lots of sand, not plants.
Along the way we came across a Perentie on the track. He just sat on the sand and posed while he allowed me to photograph him, he was just gorgeous.
We ended the day in the Murray Sunset National Park at Lake Crosbie Campground, one of the pink lakes.
It was also a very well appointed campground, right on the lake. This lake was also a salt lake and did not have any water either.
We watched another spectacular sunset and enjoyed the night.
Day 19, Thursday 24th February 2022
We spent the day exploring the Sunset Murray National Park. We climbed sand dunes and enjoyed the beautiful day. Along the way we came across some bee hives, put there for the gum blossoms that are everywhere.
We came across Lake Kenyon, another pink lake.
These pink lakes are 800 times saltier than the water in the oceans. One of the only things that can live in them are the tiny algae that secrete the red pigment (the same pigmentation that gives carrots their colour) that makes the lakes look pink. The best time to see these lakes is at the end of Spring, when there is still water in the lakes. Small shrimp feed on the algae which then become food for wetland birds.
We stopped at Rocket Lake campground for the night. Another great campground and watched yet another spectacular sunset. the sight was beautiful, except for the thousands of flies.
Day 20, Friday 25th February, Day 21, Saturday 26th February and Day 22, Sunday 27th February, 2022
We stopped at the Riverside Caravan Park in Gol Gol, Mildura, back in NSW, which was recommended to us by other travellers we met. Mildura is on the Murray River, part of it is in Victoria, and the other part is in NSW.
It is a nice little caravan park right on the Murray River, great facilities, really nice little pool, which comes in handy on these hot days, average 33 degrees at the moment. Victoria is on the other side of the river.
Again, we were able to do the washing, do any necessary maintenance and cleaning. We will be here till Monday morning, Bob has booked the truck in for a wheel alignment Monday morning.
Rains finally hit Sunday evening.
Day 23, Monday 28th February, 2022
We headed off to Mungo National Park today, the sun was shining. We had booked and paid for 2 nights in the national park campsite.
We were very excited to see Mungo as we had heard a lot about the Aboriginal cultural significance of the site, Mungo Man and Mango Woman (the site where the oldest human remains were found) , provides record of 50000 years of Aboriginal occupation and a natural land feature called “The Wall of China”. Mungo National Park is also part of the Willandra Lakes Region, which was one of the first sites to be added to the World Heritage List.
We drove all the way there, stopped at the visitors centre, where the attendant told us that the rains were coming and that the roads to and from the national park would be closed as soon as the rain hit and remain closed until they dried. The roads are all sand roads and are easily damaged if driven on when wet. We did not want to be stuck for any length of time, so we left immediately. We could see a dust storm already and the rain in the distance.
It was very disappointing, after reading the information in the visitors centre, we really wanted to visit even more. We will definitely be coming back one day.
Back in Mildura, we found a little free campground on the Victorian side of the Murray River. It was not too bad except that it was a bit muddy after the rain and there were others there who insisted on speeding their cars up and down the mud tracks. It was nice once they settled for the night.
Day 24, Tuesday 1st March and day 25, Wednesday 2nd March, 2022
We crossed over the South Australian border. We had to be careful with our fruit and vegetables due to the quarantine regulations. Tuesday night we checked the website to see what we could or could not take into the state. We had some fruit and a few veg that we would not be able to take in fresh so I stewed all the fruit – nice to have with ice cream in the coming days for dessert. We also grilled some eggplant, capsicum and some sweet potato. the sweet potato was not an illegal vegetable, but we grilled it anyway. I had one avocado which I mashed and added lemon juice, thinking that it would be OK, but the gentleman at the border did not allow it and we had to dispose of it. Luckily we did not get a fine as they could see that we had made an effort to do the right thing.
We drove to Renmark, which has a direct link to its sister town, Mildura. Renmark has the biggest house boat fleet on the Murray.
Whilst in Renmark / Paringa, we visited the painted silos, had coffee and hot chocolate at Arrosto Coffee Roasters, Looked at “Industry”, one of the first Barges which bacame a river boat in the area, originally used to clear the river for trade river boats, Lock 5 and we went to Headings Lookout which had some spectacular views over the Murray.
Lock 5 is one of 9 Locks where the water levels are regulated on the Murray.
Day 26, Thursday 3rd March, 2022
Today we travelled to Murray Bridge. Along the way we stopped at a little town called Kanoondra which had some beautiful silo art.
Tonight we are camped on the property of Harry, who allows travellers to camp for $10 per person per night. Harry is a great character, Bob and I chatted with him and another traveller for a couple of hours over drinks and listened to him talk about his adventures, amongst which, he has done 3 epic trips, 2 of them to raise money for charity. All 3 trips he has done in a cart drawn by his 2 beautiful Clydesdales.
The first trip he did from Murray Bridge to Lightning Ridge raising funds for the Craniofacial Foundation. The second trip he did following the steps of Burke and Wills from Melbourne to Flinders River. The third he did from Pooncarie NSW to Tibooburra, raising money for rural aid. I could not get a picture of the horses as they were in another paddock.
Day 27, Friday 4th March, 2022
We left Harry’s place in Murray Bridge and travelled down to Narrung. The day started grey and a little drizzly, but ended with blue sky’s and light clouds.
Harry had told us about a free camp spot right next to the Narrung Ferry. The campsite is right on Lake Alexandrina, he was right, it is a lovely place to camp, it is also very popular, lots of people camped here. It was a nice change to be amongst people again, time to chat and compare notes and travel experiences.
Day 28, Saturday 5th March, 2022
We left Narrung and travelled to the Coorong.
The Coorong is a beautiful place, it has huge lakes and the southern ocean, the best of both types of bodies of water.
The lakes are fresh water, right next to the salty ocean.
We stopped at a Pelican lookout along the way.
We spent the night at a little campsite right on the Coorong called 42 Mile Campsite. We drove to the campsite, by driving across a lake which is dry at this time of the year, then along the ocean beach. We got lots of amazed looks and comments from fishermen along the beach, as they watched this big motorhome drive along a very sandy and challenging beach, some of the fishermen even ran to get cameras to film and photograph us.
The campsite was lovely, well appointed, each campsite was private and there was plenty of wildlife.
Day 29, Sunday 6th March, 2022
Today we drove from the Coorong, back to Meningie and around the lakes to Victor Harbour where we had booked 2 nights in a caravan park, we needed to do washing and cleaning. We thought we would base ourselves there for the 2 days and do day trips from there.
We stopped in Meningie to pick up some supplies and look around.
Day 30, Monday 7th March, 2022
From our caravan park base we did several day trips today.
The first was to the Murray Mouth, where the great Murray River spilled into the sea.
We then visited the town of Goolwa.
We then visited another little town called McCraken
We then visited Granite Island, just off the coast of Victor Harbour, a “Little Penguin” sanctuary. No unfortunately we did not see and Penguins. We walked the loop road around the island.
Day 31, Tuesday 8th March, 2022
Today we drove to a private campsite on someone’s farm called “The Pines”. It was on a large dam, very pretty.
Along the way we crossed a larger dam, which was the Myponga reservoir servicing the area from Yankalilla to the metropolitan area and from the coastline to Willunga and McLaren Flat.
The trip was quite scenic, travelling through farmland with rolling hills, grapevines and olive trees.
Day 32, Wednesday 9th March, 2022
Today we drove to the Pink Gum Campground in the Ongapringa River National Park. It is a nice and very popular campsite, hard to get a site here, and obviously lots of people here.
The site has lots of hiking tracks, short and long with varying levels of difficulty as well as mountain biking, horse riding trails and rock climbing. Something for everyone.
We did the River Hike, which takes about 2.5 hours, but took us about 3 hours, as we lingered around the river when we reached it.
Day 33, Thursday 11th March, 2022
We drove to Hahndorf today. Hahndorf is Australia’s oldest surviving German settlement and still has a strong German flavour. It was founded in 1839, settled by 19th-century Lutheran migrants, it’s known for its original German-style architecture and artisanal food. It is a pretty little town, we had lunch at the Hahndorf Inn which was first established in 1863.
Days 34 and 35, Friday the 11 to Saturday the 12 March, 2022
We spent these 2 days at the Gawler Tourist Park, here Bob was able to replace the shocks to the 4 back wheels and other work on Perentie.
Day 36, Sunday the 13th March, 2022
Today is our wedding anniversary so we booked lunch at the St Hugo winery restaurant. We have always enjoyed St Hugo wines and Gabby had recommended this place to us. The meal was delicious, the wine was also delicious and the service was exemplary. The young lady who looked after us offered me a glass of Mumm champagne when she found out it was our anniversary.
We camped at the Greenock Recreational reserve for the night, open to all self contained motor homes and caravans for a $5 donation. This is a terrific spot, lots of pine trees to camp around and under, a communal fire place, playground if you have kids, very clean toilets and potable water. Needless to say, this is a very popular camp site. We chatted to some of the other campers, discussed our trips, our vehicles and swapped stories. We met a young family also doing the lap of Australia with their 2 young boys, they had also built their caravan and a great job they did.
We decided to walk around the town and discovered a little brewery shop where we stopped to try their beer and cider. Bob had a stout that he said was very nice, I had a pear and apple cider, that was very nice also.
Day 37, Monday the 14th March, 2022
We had lunch at Maggie Beer’s Farm Shop today, we always go there for lunch when we travel to South Australia, however it has changed a lot since the last time we went. Their café has been downgraded and they only offer coffee cake and a couple of nibble type dishes, as opposed to the delicious numerous dishes before. We had the Pate and Meat Platter, which as always was delicious. They are now making wine, cider and gin. The restaurant is now offering 2 set menu’s for dinner. We enjoyed our lunch and had a good look around her store, she is such an Icon in Australia.
After lunch we visited Simon and Hills and their very large but handsome dog Duke. Simon and Bob met on the Overlanding Trucks forum, and when Simon saw that we were coming to SA, he and his wife Hills invited us to visit and come see the expedition vehicle he is building, he was also interested in seeing what Bob had done. Their vehicle is amazing, I am quite envious of all the space they have. The quality of the make is incredible, such a great job.
They were incredibly hospitable, lovely people and lovely to talk to, they invited us to camp on their property that night, which we were happy to accept, then we shared our dinners and chatted late into the night.
Day 38, Tuesday the 15th March, 2022
We decided to see the “Whispering Wall” as it was close by in Williamstown. One of the other campers in Greenock Recreational reserve had told us about it.
The Whispering Wall is in fact the dam wall of the Barossa Reservoir. Built between 1899 and 1903, the dam was a revolutionary engineering feat for its day and attracted attention from all over the world, even making its way into the pages of the journal Scientific American.
But what is amazing about the Whispering Wall is its unique acoustic effects: words whispered at one side can be clearly heard by the other person on the other side of the wall, more than 100 metres away. The whispers can be heard thanks to the parabola effect. The wall creates one part of a perfect circle. This causes sound waves that hit it to bounce in a number of jumps to the other end – meaning sound travels really well.
Bob stayed on the closest side of the dam, I walked to the other side of the dam and spoke to Bob in a normal voice, then I heard him speak back to me. Were were both amazed that we were having a conversation 100 metres apart without raising our voices. If you ever have the opportunity to visit, it is well worth the effort.
Afterwards we travelled back to Anguston to see the cheese factory, which was unfortunately closed. So we just looked around town and found a little museum in a working blacksmith shop and a butcher who smoked their own meat.
We then took the opportunity to go back to the Barossa Fresh supermarket in Nooriootpa for some bread. We had stocked up the day before, and it was a great place to shop.
After an eventful day, we found ourselves near Greenock again, so we decided to spend the night in their recreational park again.
Day 39, Wednesday the 16th March
We drove to Rapid Bay campground today. We had heard that it was a great place to camp, and it is very close to Cape Jervis where we catch the ferry to Kangaroo Island tomorrow.
The campground is beautiful, gorgeous beach, nice level campground with toilets and bins.
We were able to watch the sunset, it was spectacular, the colours kept changing, we even got a rainbow at one stage
Day 40, Thursday 17th March, 2022
We woke early and it was a much nicer day, so we went for a walk to the pier and I took a few more pictures, it is such a lovely place.
Afterwards we drove down to Cape Jervis to catch the ferry to Kangaroo Island.
We spent the night at American River camp site on Kangaroo Island. They are self managed camp sites, there is a ticketing system similar to the parking meters in Sydney you pay your fee, get a ticket and put the ticket inside your windscreen. There are even powered sites which cost a little more. There is also a toilet and shower, no potable water however.
Day 41, Friday 18th March, 2022
We started our trip around Kangaroo Island.
The first place we visited was the Emu Ridge Eucalyptus Oil distillery, which is the only eucalyptus oil distillery left in Australia. We learnt about the distilling process and how the company started.
Kangaroo Island Cider company tastings were available in the café at the back. We decided to do a tasting, We thought they were OK, but still like the Bilpin cider more.
We then visited the town of Kingcote. We walked around the town then picked up fish and chips for dinner. It was a cute little seaside town, with grocery stores, hardware and everything else that could be needed.
After Kingcote, we visited Kangaroo Island Spirits distillery. It is quite famous for their gin. We decided to do a tasting of their gin and their liqueurs.
We ended the day at the Duck Lagoon camp site. When we first drove in, we almost drove back out, it looked very sterile, very small and not appealing at all. We decided to have a look around as it had a picnic area right next to it.
As we walked around, we started to like the site, especially when we started seeing Koalas in the trees, and the lagoon was absolutely full of all different bird life, including numerous types of its namesake, ducks. so we decided to stay.
I will apologise now, I became obsessed by the Koala’s, they were so cute, and this is the first time I had seen one in the wild, so yes, I did go slightly mad with the Koala photography.
Day 42, Saturday 19th March, 2022
We drove to the Flinders Chase National Park, along the way, we came across a Koala, in a tree on the side of the road, just looking at the traffic as it went by.
We drove through the Flinders Chase National park.
We could see where the 2020 fires had been, some trees had survived, others did not.
We could clearly see the regeneration in most of the trees and shrubs, and National Parks had clearly put measures in place to aid the regeneration.
Facilities that would have been burnt down had been rebuilt and as a result modernised.
First place we visited was Remarkable Rocks, and yes they were in fact remarkable.
I have tried to capture this site from all angles, so you can see how remarkable they actually are.
After the Remarkable rocks, we visited the Admirals Arch.
To our surprise, not only did we see an amazing natural phenomenon, but a colony of Australian fur seals. Now I am seal mad as well as koala mad, so again apologies for all the seal photo’s. We loved watching them, you could literally watch them for hours.
We looked at the Cape du Couedic light house.
We looked at the Weirs Cove ruins, which is the house occupied by the 3 original lighthouse keepers and their families.
There was a communal Kitchen and living area, and the 3 doors seen at the end of the house was the partitioned sleeping quarters for the families, they are very small.
Deliveries were about 3 months apart and very arduous in the beginning as there was no overland access, all deliveries were by sea, then had to be carried up the very steep cliff. In 1907, a flying fox was built to haul the supplies and any visitors up the cliff, it revolutionised the process and made it very much easier
We spent the night at the Vivonne Bay camp ground.
It was quite crowded, with separate bays for camping, powered sites available, a paid shower, toilets and a camp kitchen.
There was access to the river and the beach.
Day 43, Sunday 20th March, 2022
We visited Vivonne Bay itself today.
We then travelled to Stokes Beach. Stokes Beach looks quite unremarkable when your first arrive, it is very rocky with large rocks instead of sand.
Then you walk down the rocky beach and through a type of cave corridor to a beautiful sandy beach. I have tried to capture the walk through the cave back to the stony beach so you can see. I asked Bob to walk through so you could see the perspective.
We spent the night at Antechamber Bay camp site, run by the National Parks, rather than the councils, like the other campsites.
Great campsite, each bay was well partitioned and separate from the other. You had to ring and book the bay, so there were no issues with availability, and it was almost half price. Facilities were good and clean, toilet, camp kitchen with BBQ’s.
Day 44, Monday 21st March, 2022
It is our daughter, Hannah’s birthday today, Happy birthday Hannah, have a wonderful day. This is the first year that I did not make her birthday cake and help her celebrate, next year….
We caught the ferry back to the mainland today, had a look around Peneshaw before we left.
Tonight we sleep back at Rapid Bay.
Day 45 to Day 49, Tuesday 22nd to Saturday 26th March 2022
We camped at the Levi caravan park in Adelaide for this time, we had our maintenance time and also took time out to look around the city.
The Caravan park is quite nice, the only downer was that we are under a flight path, having said this we did not seem to be woken up with airplane noise.
Adelaide is quite lovely, very flat, easy to walk around. We took the bus in over 2 days and then just walked around the city. It is very much like Sydney with its mix of lovely old buildings and interesting modern buildings.
We visited Rundle Mall, one of the iconic places in Adelaide. It reminds me a little of Martin Place in Sydney, lots of shops, places to sit, things to look at….
My favourite place was Central Market, the food and produce is amazing, I could have bought so much, but unfortunately no room in the truck.
We had lunch at the iconic Asian Gourmet, we had been told that they do the best Laksa’s, so we went there to see if the hype was correct, the Laksa was great.
We also bought some buffalo mozzarella, vine ripened tomatoes and fresh basil. We added some red onion, pine nuts and extra virgin olive oil that we had in the truck, that was lunch on Saturday – yum.
Friday was my gorgeous husband’s birthday, we celebrated with a Yum Cha Lunch at Citi Zen, bought a delicious nut tart from the markets, which was Bob’s birthday cake, and our dinner. It is all we could fit in after a huge lunch. Bob said he had a great day, he deserves it.
Day 50, Sunday 27th March 2022
We caught up with Bob’s sister Cate , her husband Phil and some of Cate and Phil’s friends for lunch. We ate at a place called Osteria Oggy. We had a lovely meal and an even better catch up, the company was so lovely that we stayed till late, chatting so long that we ran into the dinner crowd, I am sure that the restaurant staff thought that we would never leave. We had such a great time that I forgot to take photo’s of Cate, Phil and our new friends Andy, Pam and their daughter, kicking myself.
We then started our drive to the Eyre Peninsular and drove to Bowman Park camp site. Bob had heard that it was a great place to camp. We arrived after dark, so did not do any exploring.
Day 51, Monday 28th March, 2022
When we woke up in Bowman Park campsite, we were enchanted. The campsite is beautiful, and when I say enchanted, what else do you say about a site that has wild peacocks running around, lots of colourful parrots and birds, a self risk assessment kids playground (like when we were kids), ruins to explore and beautiful gardens as well as a green park.
Bob and I agreed that so far, this has been our favourite camp ground.
We then travelled to Whyalla, a larger town which is currently known for its BHP steel plant.
BHP was approached by the commonwealth in 1939 to build ships in Whyalla for coastal defence. The shipyard was closed in 1978 after building a total of 66 ships. There are 4 anti aircraft guns put on the hill from 1942 to 1944 to guard the shipyards from enemy fire, including Japanese planes, during the war.
In 1960, BHP started building it’s steel plant, the plant went into production in 1968, with it’s first shipment going to Japan.
We spent the night at a free camp called Murninnie Beach Camp Site. We could camp right on the beach.
Murninnie Beach is a fishing community, the beach has mangroves, but is quite shallow and very calm. There is a lot of birdlife.
The sunset that night was gorgeous.
Day 52, Tuesday 29th March, 2022
We woke early and watched the sun rise over the ocean, then watched as the birds started their day
We then travelled to Tumby Bay. Tumby bay is a lovely coastal town which is known for its street art.
Each year it has a festival and more street art is created. It also has one of the largest Silo artworks
After Tumby Bay, we travelled to Port Lincoln, it is also a lovely coastal town
We took the opportunity to do the Whalers Way, just off Port Lincoln. It is on the southern-most tip of the Eyre Peninsula, it is a privately owned conservation area property with spectacular views. The area had been used to hunt southern right whales from 1839 to 1841, hence the name, The Whalers Way.
The first spot we visited on the Whalers Way was Pelamis point. It is situated on a 46-metre cliff overlooking the popular Fishery Bay Right Point Surfing spot
The next spot we visited was The Swimming Hole. A natural rock hole of crystal-clear water, ideally suited for sheltered swimming and sunbathing on calm days. A steep climb day, and you would have to be very keen
The Whalechaser Crevasse was next. A remarkable fissure and overhang of some 61 metres above sea level, named after the fast-sailing ships used to hunt the whale
The Try Works Cliff was the next place on the list and also where we decided to spend the night. 91 metres cliff overlooking the blue water of Sleaford Bay, named from the boiling down method of “trying out” the blubber. Very gruesome.
Day 53, Wednesday 30th March, 2022
We woke up to our second day on the Whalers Way.
We were excited to see the rest of the spots on the Whalers Way, well worth the $40 in park fees we paid, which included 1 night’s camping.
Our next stop was Carlson Cove.
Sperm whale Cliff, a sheltered spot for fishing boats. 106 metre limestone cliff, capped with basalt, overlooking a sheltered inlet and named after the only toothed whale. This type of whale, of Moby Dick fame, is caught in deep water but was on occasion caught by by shore based “Bay Whalemen”.
Cape Wiles is our next stop.
On the southern tip of the Eyre Peninsula, named by Matthew Flinders on 19th February, 1802 after his friend Wiles who was the botanist on Bligh’s Bounty.
106 metre cliff and unique rock formation. We also saw a fur seal colony here.
Pioneer Lookout, was named in honour of the early settlers in the district, it is also the highest point in Whalers Way, 128 metres.
Blue Whale Bay, has sheer cliffs 122 metres high. Named after the largest mammal on earth.
Moonlight Bay, also known as Groper Bay by local fishermen, A beautiful spot overlooking the Southern Ocean, Groper can be caught in this area.
We were delighted when a family of Emu’s crossed the road right in front of us, Dad emu lead his 4 teenage chicks across the road, then waited on the other side till they had all crossed before leading them up the hill. Male Emu’s hatch the eggs after the female lays them, then he raises the chicks to adulthood.
Cape Carnot, the most south westerly tip of the Eyre Peninsula, named by Nicholas Baudin, who followed Flinders to this area. Named after a general and statesman and mathematician of the Napoleonic era. The waves in this cap are so strong that they often end in a huge spray. The area is very dangerous and 6 people so far have lost their lives by getting too close to the sea.
Redbanks are tall red cliffs towering 152 metres above the sea. Redbanks Beach is surrounded by metamorphic headlands and inlets. Good swimming and exploring can be done at the beach if you dare climb down the ladder and cliff face.
The last place on the Whalers Way we visited was The Sink hole happened in 1970, while the road was being constructed with heavy machinery.
A cave was discovered under the sink hole, 30 metres deep and 91 metres across, but, owing to the highly dangerous nature of the roof, portions of which can collapse at any time, it is forbidden for anyone to enter
From the Whalers way, we drove to Coffin Bay. It is a lovely coastal town, renown for its oysters, in fact Coffin Bay oysters are sold all over Australia. We bought some oysters from Pristine Oyster farm.
The event that sticks in our minds about the town however are the Emu’s, they just wander around town, no-one bothers them and they bother no-one.
We spent the night at a place called the Shelly Beach Lodge camp site. It is on Rob’s olive farm, he allows self contained caravans and motorhomes stay on his land for $10 per night.
It is very quiet and peaceful, surrounded by olive trees and there is a little beach as well. Rob also sells olive oil by the bottle, we bought a bottle, very nice olive oil.
Day 54, Thursday the 31st March, 2022
We stopped at the Cummings Memorial Monument on the way to Elliston, and very glad we did, the view was worth the detour.
Leo Cummings was killed when his fishing boat sank off the cliffs in 1959, his 2 crew men managed to swim to shore, but Leo’s body was never found
We then set out to Elliston to see the Elliston Mara Sculptures on the cliff.
The sculptures were lovely, but the views were spectacular.
Bob had read about the Colyton bakery, which was a private bakery with a wood fired oven. The bread was sold from a little purpose built shack on the side of the road. Payment was under the honour system, which meant that you took the bread and left your money.
We bought a loaf of whole grain bread and some sticky buns.
We ate the sticky buns for lunch and the bread over the next 2 days, they were truly delicious.
I had heard about some rock formations called Murphy’s Haystacks. We veered off the main road to take a look.
The name of Murphy’s Haystacks came from a passing Scottish agriculturist, who advocated that a farmer must harrow his land to produce good crops of hay, passing through Murphy’s farm and mistaking the rock formations for hay stacks, he said that Murphy must be harrowing his land to produce so much hay. The name stuck.
The rock formations are actually Granite Inselbergs left standing after the other rock around it eroded.
Streaky Bay was another lovely coastal town.
Please click on the April 2022 link at the top of the page to see the continuation of our travels in April.
Perentie Wandering 
Make sure you give us advance notice of when you will be in Perth😊
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We definitely will, very glad that the border will now open on the 3rd March. Looking forward to catching up
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Thoroughly enjoying reading your blog, Ana. Disappointed you didn’t get to Mungo but as you say “you will return”
Hope you get an opportunity to use the info Gary gave you at Gol Gol. Looking forward to seeing the great night shots. Travel safe and enjoy everything. Thanks for the company at Gol Gol. Mary and Gary.
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Thank you Mary and Gary, I have been itching to use the techniques Gary showed me for star photography, but I have not had a clear night yet. Thank you for the friendly company and for sharing your extensive knowledge, it is very much appreciated. We hope that you stay safe also, hope also that the rains back in Sydney don’t affect you too much.
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We’re fine here, thanks, just wishing we were still out on the road. Ana, your photos are amazing, so beautiful and descriptive on where you are travelling. Enjoy.
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Thank you Mary, we are enjoying, hope you can head out soon too.
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Keep up the great stories. You sound like you are having a ball out there.
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Thanks Dave, we are definitely having a blast.
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Awesome photo’s Ana, enjoy following your travels, stay safe both of you 😘💙
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Thanks Leisa, I appreciate the feedback. We will stay safe and you and James stay safe as well, we look forward to catching up later this year when we are round your way.
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Ana, your photos are beautiful, such amazing scenery. Enjoy Kangaroo Island. Looking forward to some great pics over there. Mary.
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Thank you Mary, very excited about Kangaroo island, still waiting for the clear night that I can use the skills that Gary shared with me. I might have to wait till we get to the Anne Beadle Hwy, definitely no light pollution there, then I just need a cloudless night.
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Looks like you guys are having an amazing journey. Happy belated birthday Bob. Loving reading about your adventures Ana. Enjoy 😉
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Thank you Sue, we are.
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Hi ana and bob.
Fantastic pictures looks so relaxing and peaceful. Happy birthday Bob. Looks like a wonderful adventure. Looking forward to see the rest of your trip.
×××ooo
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Thanks Monica and Steve, we are having a great time, and slowly learning to relax again. It is funny when we just sit of an evening, we both feel that we should be doing something. Hope you both and the kids are well. XX
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Am enjoying the photography….wow…I’m going to have to pick up my game!
Enjoy the little things Xx
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Wow Deb, I feel very chuffed, this praise coming from a great photographer like you. I am enjoying the photography, the camera is now an extra appendage, I take it everywhere – you never know where the next photo opportunity might be.
I am enjoying the little things and the big things. You too, enjoy the little things xx.
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