Port Augusta - 30 June to 2 July 2009

From Burra our next stop was Port Augusta. We travelled there on a very windy day. On the road we saw a road train blown into a paddock, fortunately the driver was not injured. In Adelaide a semi trailer was blown over.

Port Augusta has a lovely old Hotel called the Standpipe Hotel. This is where the water pipe that came under the Spencer Gulf ended and there was a standpipe for the bullock drivers to water their bullocks. Naturally a hotel was built for the Bullockies. It has been renovated and is now a fine Indian Restaurant.

Port Augusta is a cross roads of Australia and the beginning of the Outback. We visited the Royal Flying Doctor service which is very impressive. Their brief is that Isolated People should receive the same standard of care as city people. They evacuate people in emergencies but also conduct travelling clinics and take Specialists around for Consultations.

A lot of their day to day work is done over the phone and people have a full medical kit in their homes for treatment. We saw the School of the Air but they do not run tours.

Then we went up the water tank for the views and drove around the town.

We saw the new Ghan which goes from Adelaide to Darwin. It looked beautiful.

The second day we went on the DekyZane to the head of the Gulf.

Our guide was very informative. The Spencer gulf is a reverse saline Gulf as no Rivers run into it. It also is one of two places in the world where there is a dodge tide. This is when the Sun and the Moon are directly opposite and the forces cancel each other out so there is no change in water levels.

Some Dolphins swam with our boat they like the low pressure area near the bow.

We briefly visited Whyalla, a steel town and visited the Wadlata Outback Centre. This takes one through the History of the Outback from primeval Soup to present day and I think is a must do as it gives one an understanding of what one sees later.

Back to Melbourne - 25 to 29 June

From Burra we went back to Melbourne by plane to attend a function for one of our friends who was retiring.

Burra - 21 to 24 June 2009

We drove to Burra on 21 June. Burra is an historical Copper mining town. Mining began in 1845 and saved the new state of South Australia from possible bankruptcy, a familiar story even today - with different mines and including some other states.

There were a few smaller mines but the big mine was the Monster Mine which averaged returns of 400% per annum over its productive life. Burra was settled by the Cornish diaspora.

The National Trust here rents you a key and you can let yourself into the historic sites. This frees you from time constraints although some sites are still only open at certain times. The first day we rode our bikes and saw the Bon Accord Mine and various historical sites including Redruth Gaol, which became a reformatory for girls and is now used as a function centre. Is a gaol the best place for a wedding?

 

The second day visited the Monster Mine site and the tower built to house the steam pump which kept water out of the mine. Cornishmen were the techo's of their era, doing a lot to perfect the steam engine and mine engineering. The copper was below the level of the Great Artesian Basin and over 3,000,000 gallons of water had to be pumped out every day.

The Monster Mine closed in 1877 . It was re opened in 1981 as an open cut mine when the price of copper rose but is closed at present . Now the refining capacity is used to recycle copper.

  

  The town is full of historic buildings. Cornish cottages and the cellars of the old Unicorn brewery.

 

It even has its share of historic people - like this local in his 1913 Newton Bennet - which he learned to drive  in 1936. Condition of the car and driver - both original.

Port Vincent - 14 to 20 June 2009

  We left Adelaide for the Yorke Peninsula.

Port Vincent - after traveling around the Peninsula seems one of the best spots to stay - and by luck we found it on the first day. It has a great coffee shop and the Ventnor Hotel. We met many locals there.
The Yorke Peninsula is one of the worlds biggest barley growing areas.

It was also a copper mining area and is part of the Cornish Diaspora as many Cornish miners came to settle. 

Driving around the Yorke Peninsula allowed us to see both the Wind Farm Ballet and the Cormorant Ballet with a well executed "pas de deux"

 
 






 
But we think the Cormorants won the day with their finale - "hear no evil, see no evil, speak no evil" 

 

We had days of perfect sunshine, and then moody skies and rain, very welcomed by the local farmers. John went to the local football as a guest of one of the locals - a great community experience, particularly as the local team won.

 
Jupiter rising over the St Vincent Gulf with the lights of Adelaide illuminating the clouds
 
The Pelicans were a continuing source of amusement as they either sunned themselves or huddled in a group - reluctant to spend too much energy in flying.

Around Adelaide - 6 to 13 June 2009

We spent this week visiting friends in and around Adelaide.




We stayed on a Prize winning Belted Galloway stud farm at Echunga in the Adelaide Hills near to the German settled town of Hahndorf.









and then at a beachfront caravan park at Seacliffe - a small seaside suburb of Adelaide - originally designed to be like an English fishing village - complete with narrow streets and dead ends.

Port Elliot and Fleurieu Peninsula - 3 to 6 June 2009

 

On 3 June we drove to Port Elliot on the Fleurieu Peninsula.

Another absolute beach front location, with a well developed bike trail going from Victor Harbour to Goolwa. We became committed whale watchers , it is quite addictive - two Southern Right Whales came into the bay, probably so one of them could have its baby. One whale has the baby and the other pushes it to the surface so it can breathe. At times they were within 150 meters of the shore, so close you could hear them breathing.  
 

This is also the home of Maclarenvale, and there are many excellent wineries with a thriving and sophisticated food culture.  It was here we ate at Locavore, as in local eater. Everything served at this Restaurant is sourced from within 100 miles, a statement on food miles and a luxury of a rich and varied food producing area.

Robe to Coorong - 31 May to 2 June 2009

On 31 May we drove to Robe, via Beachport, home of South Australia's second longest jetty.

Work on the Jetty began in early 1878 but in August 1878 it was stopped and a Royal Commission set up, part of the then lawyer led recovery. It was then built by the Government and has been somewhat controversial ever since. It was meant to be 4000' long but is in fact now 2536' and is still much longer than is needed for the Port now - but it is just in the process of being refurbished.

No doubt the less than 10 Cray boats moored in the lee of the pier appreciate it being in tip top condition, and once you have the second longest pier you need to keep it up!!




We drove on to Robe, another fishing Port, the best of a bad lot according to the histories. They must have been desperate for a Port in this area. Robe is nice, it has very sophisticated eateries and is an attractive town that has made the most of its old buildings.








There is a nice hotel called The Caledonian dating from the 1850's which serves lovely meals and is also full of atmosphere and wood fires. Robe was the seaside escape for the local graziers as well as a Port. These ports were mainly to get the wool clip out, now the towns seem to export sea food.

We then moved on to the Coorong camping at the aboriginal owned and run Coorong Wilderness Lodge.

It is very pretty except for the cloud of mosquitos that descended at twilight.  Even the cold did not seem to deter them.

We were the only people there - it was quiet and later on the skies cleared and the stars shone and you could hear the sound of the distant surf. 
 
For those in financial markets looking for "black swan" events there were plenty to see in the Coorong.

Mt Gambier - Princess Margaret Rose Caves - 29 & 30 May 2009

From Port MacDonnell we visited Mt. Gambier with its Blue Lake and other crater lakes in the cone of extinct volcanoes. Mt. Gambier is a substantial town in the center of good agricultural country.  


  
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Saturday we saw the Princess Margaret Rose Cave, which is an underground cave with very striking limestone formations. 

 

 

 

It is in the Glenelg National Park.  The Glenelg River is very beautiful, quiet and serene.

 

 

Narrawong to Port MacDonnell - 26 to 31 May 2009

On May 26 we drove to Narrawong, stopping at Port Fairy for lunch.

Port Fairy has been "discovered" and almost every shop is a Gourmet Cafe full of happy retired people. Its kind of sad that it is no longer the fishing village it was when we first stayed there. We couldn't get fresh fish for dinner, the men on the boats said all the fish goes to Melbourne.

 

We stopped at Narrawong a delightful camp site on the River and two minutes from the sea beach.

The beach was deserted except for a few townsfolk walking their dogs.

We drove into Portland expecting a graceful old town. Although it had some lovely buildings it seemed miserable and dominated by the smelter.

 

On Thursday 28 May we finally crossed the border into South Australia and drove to Port MacDonnell the Rock Lobster Capital of Australia. The season ended that weekend so we got two Lobsters out of the last batch heading to China.

Port MacDonnell is a pretty town with a lovely white sand beach facing straight on to Bass Strait.

Apollo Bay to Warrnambool - 21 to 26 May 2009

The day was beautiful, foggy early and hazy by the time we were driving. The Great Ocean Road was beautiful in the haze.

We camped at Marengo Point in Apollo Bay and walked part of the Great Ocean Walk which goes from Apollo Bay to the 12 Apostles - over 100 kilometers.
 

 

 

 

Some sandy beaches but most the country is similar to Cornwall - rugged headlands - crags and mists.


The next day we drove to Warrnambool. On the way we stopped at the Lighthouse at Cape Otway.  It was the first sight of land most of our ancestors had since their Port of Embarkation. They would have been 100 or more days at sea.  The Telegraph station was originally for the link to Tasmania, but when that failed it was mostly used for giving information on ships which passed the Cape Otway Light.

We took a helicopter over the Twelve Apostles which was wonderful. What a great view from the air.
 

 

 

 

 

 

Then on to Warrnambool where we rode on the Promenade a bike/walking track on the sea shore. The Promenade is a great ride. They are reforesting the coast which means that views are limited but when you see them they are great.

Setting off from Healesville - 21 May 2009

Healesville is a beautiful Victorian country town in the heart of the Yarra Valley wine region



with a gracious tree lined main street
some great restaurants and cafes





surrounded by the Great Dividing Range. It narrowly escaped destruction in the Black Saturday fires












We set off from Healesville on 21 May 2009