SA - Tour Down Under

After having spent a wonderful couple of weeks at home in Newcastle for Christmas, we flew back to Adelaide, picked up our caravan and were ready to head west. We decided to spend the first night back on the road in Clare (one of our favourite places). We discovered that the Tour Down Under was beginning from Clare in a few days so we spent the next 4 days enjoying the festivities of the area waiting for the beginning of the race.
While here, we had several bike rides on the Riesling trail which is a walking and bike track that winds its way over thirty kilometres through this picturesque valley passing by many wineries on the way.
On Sunday there was a 60 kilometre road ride from Clare to Tarlee which would be the first part of the “Tour” beginning on Tuesday. Mike joined the group of over 100 riders and rode the hardest ride he has ever done. The wind was unforgiving but he hung in there and I picked up an exhausted but elated man three hours after he had left Clare. It certainly makes you appreciate the fitness of all the professionals on the tour. There was a street party in Clare the night before the race and the roads downtown had been closed and set up ready for the race start. There were several bands, food and wine stalls and we had a fun night celebrating with the locals.
Tuesday morning was buzzing with excitement. We rode our bikes into town, had breakfast and watched the riders and the “circus” arrive from Adelaide. We then rode the bikes back to the caravan park and watched the tour from beside the road.
The Tour brings a lot of excitement to the area and we enjoyed being part of it. We would definitely consider returning another year and following the Tour around the area.

SA - Victor Harbour

The Fleurieu Peninsula has so much to offer. In the beautiful Adelaide Hills we spent a day in the very touristy German town of Hahndorf. There are loads of german style restaurants, shops and no shortage of places to purchase brautworst and bakeries filled with the most incredible Barvarian cakes, also some of the best wineries are in the Adelaide Hills-YES!! The main street is tree lined with beautiful old buildings with many dating back to the late 1800’s when the area was first settled by Germans.
Driving south through many picturesque valleys you arrive at Victor Harbour and beautiful Port Elliott, both of which in the past were vying to be the capital of South Australia.
Granite Rock is an island just off shore at Victor Harbour, which is connected to the mainland by a bridge which serves as both a carriage ride pulled by clydesdales and a walking track to the island . Mike and I spent a morning walking out to the island and then walking around it taking in the stunning granite formations. One of our favorite coffee stops was in Victor Harbour at the Cafe Bavaria-couldn’t resist the cakes at this place!!YUMMY!!
There is 9 kilometre walk/bike track from Victor Harbour to Port Elliot which hugs the foreshore and has wonderful coastal views along the way. We had found a great little restaurant on the beach at Port Elliot, the Flying Fish, so we biked this track a couple of times during our stay. Delicious Fish and Chips!!
Throughout the Peninsula many of the homes are made from local rock and boulders and have a charm all their own, many of the gardens are now full of drought resistant plants due to the very dry periods in this area. We stayed at Victor Harbour but found a great Caravan Park at Port Elliot, right on the beach, but due to school holidays it was booked out-maybe next trip? Definitely come back to this area again!!

SA - Kangaroo Island

Kangaroo Island is a 45 minute ferry ride from the tip of the Fleriueux Penisunsula at Cape Jervis( which is 110 klms south of Adelaide), to Pennishaw on the northern end of the island. We had placed our caravan in storage and repacked our camping gear in the Pathfinder ready for our week on the island. Mike drove the car onto the ferry and I was fascinated watching the semi trailers full of sheep driving off the ferry and empty ones replacing them for the return journey.
KI as it is known to the locals, is an island of contrasts and stunning scenery.

The island is 45klms at its widest point and 150 klms long which makes it easy to explore. There is one sealed road which circles and crosses the island, all others are dirt but we found them well maintained.

There is a bit of everything here. You can go from calm bays to surf beaches within a very short distance and all with crystal clear water. From the majestic cliffs along the south coast and the many stunning white sandy beaches all around the island to the rolling hills of grain or grazing sheep and cattle, make it extremely picturesque.

While driving around the island we have seen a large amount of wild life - echidna’s, koalas, heath goannas, Kangaroo Island kangaroos, possums, Tammar wallabies, Australian Sea-lions and New Zealand fur seals and many beautiful birds. Unfortunately there was also a lot of road kill.

There were so many bays and inlets that we fell in love with. The first was Stokes Bay where you have to squeeze your way along a pathway through huge rocks that open up to a stunning hidden sheltered beach. We were often the only ones on the beaches which always makes it feel special. Hanson Bay was another favourite, where we rented a cabin overlooking this idilic beach. We stayed here for two nights as it was raining and cold. The cabin had a fireplace so we sat by the fire and watched the waves. Unreal. Mike went fishing off the cliffs, caught two cod which he threw back. From the top of the cliffs you can see to the ocean floor the water is so clear. Magic!
Vivonne Bay is noted as one of Australia’s most beautiful beaches and we would have to agree. It is a large bay with fine white sand, transparent water, and a jetty. We spent time watching one of the lobster trawlers unloading their catches, and then the captain gave us some freshly caught snapper which fed us for two meals. Nice guy. Most of these fishermen spend at least five days at a time out at sea. We bought one of these lobsters as a treat and savoured every delicious mouthful.
There are two areas here to watch seals. Seal Bay has the Australian Sea Lions where you can get quite close and watch them lying and “hanging out” on the beach. The second area is Admirals Arch where the New Zealand fur seals spend their time on the rocky coastline. We watched them getting on and off the rocks in pounding surf and playing in the water where they are so agile. While on land they seem to spend most of their time sleeping, unless of course you are a young male who has to fight and annoy the others all the time
The island runs on a very slow pace which is perfect for a holiday. There are bountiful amounts of local produce including honey, cheeses, jams, oils, wine, delicious meats, sea food, eucalyptus products and I’m sure much more that we didn’t see. We visited a sheep dairy farm where we watched the sheep being milked and then sampled the cheeses and yoghurts made from it. The haloumi was delicious.
Our time on the island was so enjoyable we would recommend it to anybody.

SA-Clare,the Barossa and McLaren Vale

These three areas at this time of year provides a picturesque contrast between the golden fields of grain ready to be harvested and the lush green row upon row of grape vines.
The Jesuit priests planted the regions first grapes in 1851 in the Clare valley and today are still making wines at Sevenhill, which is one of the areas oldest wineries.
The Clare, Barossa and McLaren Vale have huge contrasts in the size and age of the wineries. You can visit a small family run winery producing beautiful limited quantity wines and right next door may be one of the larger castle like buildings with acre upon acre of vines.
We spent several days in these three areas and found each one beautiful. The Clare township is charming, has some wonderful old buildings, and for the bicycle enthusiast you can cycle the 30 klm riesling trail which takes you to a large number of the Clare’s 41 wineries. Both days that we were here it was very windy and rained which dampened our enthusiasm to ride it.
Unlike the Clare, the Barossa has several towns that make up this rather large area in which there are 60 or so wineries. This area was originally settled by many different Europeans so there is a great variety of foods and traditions. We stayed at Tanunda which has a population of 4000, with many of the dark ironstone cottages and barns that have been lovingly restored. While here we visited the very impressive, Wolf Blass and Chateau Tanunda wineries. Chateau Tanunda has a croquet green and a cricket ground.
Some of the original old homes in these three areas were built by wealthy families who had done well from the mining and farming.
McLaren Vale was our last wine stop heading south to Kangaroo Island. We were here about 10 years ago and the area had expanded noticeably. Many wineries had built new, stunning cellar doors and even one of my


favourite, Wirra Wirra had updated theirs.
The huge fence out front still remains, and after sampling a few wines one afternoon( giving myself a little extra dutch courage) climbed on it to see if it would still support me. It Did. Whew! It would have been a hard landing if it hadn’t.
As you drive through these areas you can’t help but fall in love with them. The wonderful old buildings, the vines, the surrounding countryside, the locals and the shops give them a feeling that makes you want to return.

SA - Yorke Peninsula

On the map, the Yorke Peninsula looks very much like Italy except there is no heel on the boot. With ocean on three sides, it is only 2 1/2 hours drive from top to bottom and 25 minutes from coast to coast. Mike and I being the slow travelers that we are, spent two weeks in this beautiful area. When here, you feel that you have stepped back in time and life seems to move much slower. It is wonderful.
We started our travels on the western side of the peninsula, down to the southern tip and then up the east coast. We stayed at many beautiful little sea side villages on the way, each having a jetty as so many people come here to fish. Garfish is a popular local fish, so after watching the fishermen for a while Mike decided to give it a try. He visited the local store, purchased all the right “stuff” and found his spot on the jetty. His second cast produced a garfish and that was his one and only for the morning. What use is one garfish, especially when there are two of us, so Mike donated it to the people fishing next to him who were delighted.
Many of the beaches here have blue swimmer crab and we watched people walking up and down with their “rakes” digging the crabs out of the sand. Those with boats take crab nets out to sea.

Years ago the Peninsula supported limestone, copper and gypsum mining and with over 200 salt lakes in the area, salt mining was also popular. Now a days, you can visit some of the old mines and there are many museums to catch up on the local history.
Wheat and barley are now grown on almost every square inch of the land. While here, it was harvest time so there were golden fields everywhere and the farmers were working around the clock trying to beat the forecasted rain. There is also a windfarm which has 55 giant turbines spread amongst the wheat fields.
As there have never been big trees on the peninsula for building, the early settlers homes were made from limestone which is found everywhere. There are hundreds of these homes throughout the area, many were built in the mid 1800’s, and you never tire of their beauty. The owners take pride in their up keep and they certainly add a uniqueness to this part of the country.
The Yorke has something for everybody- fishing, snorkelling, surfing, scuba diving, sailing, walking and bike riding.

SA - South from Coober Pedy

When we left Coober Pedy we were heading south in search of cooler weather. Unfortunately, that was not to be, as the next place we stopped at was Roxby Downs where the temperature was 43 degrees. This town was purpose built by BHP Biliton for the massive Olympic Dam mining plant which produces copper, uranium, silver and gold. The town is very well planned, neat and tidy with some lovely new homes and good infa structure. A small shopping centre, great swimming pool and recreation centre, walking and riding paths all around and through town, make it very peasant out here in the middle of nowhere. Grass is rare so those few homes that have lawns make you look twice as “green” out here is rare. This small area uses 10% of South Australia’s electricity.
We also stopped at Woomera and walked around the museum and saw some of the rockets that Australia and Great Britain had used on the rocket range. The range is flat, barren and takes up 127,000 square miles. Long range missiles and rockets were tested here during the cold war and the launch and tracking of spacecraft in the early days of the space age.
We then drove straight through to Port Augusta which took us about five hours. Port Augusta is at the top of the Spencer Gulf, on the water and we were sure that finally we would find a break in the heat. No such luck. Our two days there were in the low 40’s.
Down town Port Augusta has some beautiful old brick and stone homes.
The area has a power station and a very busy rail yards and is known as “the crossroads” as this is where the major north/south and east/west highway meet.

NT - Coober Pedy

Coober Pedy is 685klms south of Alice Springs on the Stuart Highway. About 40klms out of town we started seeing mounds of white dirt dotting the landscape. As we got closer to town these mounds were everywhere and looking very much like a lunar landscape.
After taking a tour in Tom’s Opal mine we learnt that these mounds are called mullock heaps. They are formed by the ground up rock being sucked out of the shaft and blown up to the surface. The rock is ground up underground by “tunneling machines” with revolving cutting heads. The shafts are left open so you need to tread carefully when walking out in the fields. Many people have died over the years by falling down a shaft.
We spent quite a bit of time “noodling”. This is where you search through the piles of mullock for pieces of opal that the miners have missed. We spent a few hours in the heat noodling and found lots of potch which is opal without the fiery colours and worth very little. About 90% of the opal found is potch, but it is the other illusive 10% that keeps the miners digging.
About 50% of the towns people live in “dugouts”. These are mostly excavated into the side of the hills and have a constant 23 - 25 degree year round temperature. Some of these homes are up to 450 square metres. We visited a church, motel and a home which were all underground and it was definitely more comfortable than the 35 - 40 degrees above ground.
About 30klms east of town is The Breakaway Reserve. These are a group of hills that change colour during the day as the sun hits them at different angles. We were wishing that it was cooler as there were some beautiful places to walk. Somehow the air conditioning in the car was more inviting than the 40 degrees outside.
Beside this set of hills runs the dog fence. This is 2 metre high wire barrier structure that runs for 5,600 klms across three states. This fence was built to protect the sheep country in the south from the dingo.
We were fascinated by the area and can understand the passion that the locals hold for this place, its almost spiritual, we would have loved cooler weather to do more noodling. it certainly hooks you in.