26/3/2018.
Monday. Well! It was the wildest wind ever. The Hum secured the camper roof to the roo
bar and roof rack of the Ute.
Eventually, R & R slept when the wind calmed a little and they slept
heavily only getting out of bed at 7:30am.
It was a cool grey morning as they put the 18 lt jerry can in before
leaving at 9:35am. RL had checked out Adelaide fuel watch and found one with
diesel at 125.5 c/l which was on the way through. The closer R & R got to
Adelaide, the more intensive farming became including vegetable hothouses,
irrigation, olives, fruit trees and vines. After refueling at Pooraka, RL drove
along Portrush Rd which is an older, more established and grand part of the
city just east of its centre. Portrush Rd is always a surprise when it comes to
its end facing the wall of one of the hills, sweeping you round and up onto the
South Eastern Hwy (Princess Hwy).
Fortunately, RL was behind a slow moving truck (about 40kms/hr) so there
was no need to stress; just sit back and enjoy the ride. It is most picturesque
with the road cut out of, through, over and alongside the Adelaide Hills. The
edges of the road are lined with big eucalypts and pine. Curiously, there is a sign indicating that
koalas might be seen here. Heaven
forbid, for the poor koala who attempts crossing in this traffic. At one point the road goes through the Heysen
Tunnel about 500m so the Navigator told R & R he had lost GPS signal and displayed
a different view than they had ever seen before. R & R arrived at Home of
12 Volt, Mount Barker about 47kms south of Adelaide at 11:30am and it was
agreed that putting it on charge for a week would probably indicate that it
needed repacking, when repacking would only take a couple of hours. To fill in time, they walked to an op shop
they had seen just round the corner, had lunch and a coffee and ventured back
down town for some groceries and change.
Essential when you need $20 here and there for cash only camping fees
and $1 x ? for showers or $2 x ? for Laundromats! Just before 3:00pm, RA set the Navigator for
Strathalbyn which is about 30kms south.
This road runs through the Mount Lofty Ranges and is steep and windy
with tight bends flanked with railings and below them lovely big trees. As pretty as it is, you need to focus on the
road, not the scenery. Here there are
cattle farms with dams containing water.
In Strathalbyn, R & R stopped to look at some of the lovely
buildings and parks, pop into the information centre and had a coffee. Their daughter, S, rang and they chatted while
the Navigator directed RL the next 40kms through Currency Creek, Goolwa and
Middleton and to the Port Elliot show grounds where, earlier in the day, RA had
pre booked a campsite. By 6:00pm they were having coffee and looking at the
maps to create vague plans for the next couple of days. The evening was cool and still … cool enough
for them to need more clothing … and outside the sky was clear and only
crickets and some night birds could be heard
27/3/2018. Tuesday.
Having looked at the maps it was decided to leave the camper set up at
Port Elliot and spent the day driving without it. And … what a sound choice! R & R left about 9:00am and arrived back
about 5:00pm having spent the day roller coasting up and down hills like
driving up and down Greenmount Hill only steeper, tighter, longer; over and
over and once again. Sometimes there were guard rails on both sides of the
road, at other times signs warning of cross winds; and the wind, so windy all
day, everywhere. So much easier done without being weighed down by the
camper! The Hum took it in his stride
but there were times when his wife could barely look. Having said that though, the scenery
throughout the entire Fleurieu Peninsula is spectacular! Hills so steep with acres of farming (either
cattle, dairy or sheep), vineyards, olive groves or forest plantations up to
the top and down into the valleys with large native trees and water in creeks
and dams, not to mention the beaches and ports on the coasts where agricultural
activity meets the ocean. R & R saw the first sign of autumnal colour on
deciduous trees like the liquid amber. It was an amazing day’s drive. From Port Elliot they drove north-west
through the centre of the peninsula towards Adelaide and stopped off for a
while in McLaren Vale. While others may
find wine tasting the highlight here, RA was so aware of the smell of wine in
the valley that she believes people there must be happy just on the smell of
it. For RA buying some chocolates at the
Menz FruChocs (apparently this is a well-known brand here) chocolate shop was a
first, so now they would have some chocolate for Easter! From there, RL headed north to admire the
Onkaparinga River at its mouth, on to Christies Beach and then back down the
western coast popping into some of the beaches on the way down. Port Noarlunga
with its reef, jetty and totems provided R & R with a great entertainment
as there were classes of students snorkeling from the beach to the reef under
the watchful eyes of instructors and two rescue boats. Here also, there is a monument to Captain
Collett Barker after whom Mount Barker in WA is named. At Maslin Beach they sat
for lunch for about half an hour. Further down the coastal road, just north of
Myponga, RL turned back to stop for
photos at a Buddhist temple of a massive statue which looks out over the
sea, Here there was also a magnificent
building in the valley which was probably an olive oil production plant with
much the same grandeur as a winery. The view coming down the hill into
Yankalilla was breathtaking. It is a
very big service hub for the area and for Normanville a smaller seaside village
just nearby. Here R & R stopped for
a coffee and popped into an op shop where RL bought a CD. Just over 50kms south they were thrilled to
arrive at Jervis Bay at the same time (2:30pm) as a ferry returning from
Kangaroo Island. It was impressive
watching the catamaran, Spirit of Kangaroo Island, come in and do a U turn in
the shelter of the moll before backing up and dropping its gang way for the
vehicles including a truck full of sheep to drive off. RL had to back track 11kms to reach the Range
Rd for the drive to Victor Harbor. This
is a much better view of the windmills on the wind farm than on the way
in. Range Rd is generally a much flatter
road. Forestry SA features here with massive plantations of pine and lesser of
blue gums. Here R & R saw many zanthorea, bee hives and poplars. Once again the drive down into Victor Harbor
is spectacular. The Mount Lofty Rangers
certainly are lofty; high, aloof and majestic. At 4:30pm they wandered a little
round the harbor foreshore area, filled with excitement for tomorrow’s planned
excursions there. Shortly after 5:00pm they were back at Port Elliot (only 6kms
east) with the camper just as it had been left.
They read and wrote before enjoying dinner. It had been a really awesome day … and they
had another planned!
28/3/2018.
Wednesday. R & R were awake
and getting out of bed at 6:30 even though it was still dark outside, with
daylight saving here due to end soon. RL
drove to Victor Harbor and he parked on the Flinders Parade just before 9:00am
to walk over the jetty to Granite Island. It is a unique jetty in that it
accommodates the use of motor vehicles over the tram tracks that are used by
Clydesdale drawn trams – originating from the days when these gentle giants
drew wagons for moving bags of wheat and bales of wool. The walk around the island takes about an
hour going right round and over the top.
The island was just stunning, featuring artistic installations from
artists all over the world, some more appealing than others, but RA couldn’t
help feeling that nature had done its own wonderful job of sculpturing the
varied formations of rock, the shapes and types of plants and trees, not to
mention various birds, some of which she had never seen. Penguins can be seen
on Granite Island but it was not the right time of day. R & R were fortunate to see the horse
drawn tram on their return. About 10:30am, they were back at the car having a
coffee before going on a binge of op shops, no less than five in Victor Harbor.
It is a big town with lots of old buildings, many in excellent condition being
put to uses other than originally intended. Shortly after 11:30am, RL drove
back through Middleton and Port Elliot heading for Goolwa where the Hum
followed instinct and picked Beach Rd to get to the sea. It has a real surfing beach though the sand
is not white. A 4WD track can take those
adventurous enough over the dune and along the beach for miles with the warning
that knowing tides time is essential.
Above this track is a stairway to a look out, so high it almost takes
your breath away to see so much coast line in one direction and Lake
Alexandrina in the other. They ate lunch
and were on their way again before 2:00pm.
At Currency Creek, RA asked her husband to stop and let her take photos
of an old building which had vines growing over it, giving it the semblance of
a castle from a fairy tale. Turns out it
is called Kingsbrook Historic Inn est. 1852 and is still in use. Just magical!
From Currency Creek they turned right onto Winery Rd which winds through
some vineyards and has floodways over the Finness River and Creek and
billabongs. This river flows into
Clayton Bay which has a delightful little jetty where reeds grow in the
water. It is very near the mouth of the
Murray which has previously run into Lake Alexandrina about 40kms to the north
east and to the Corrong (a National Park for the preservation of coastal
wetlands habitat) which runs down the coast to Kingston SE. Milang was only a
few kilometers further round and again R & R walked the jetty to look out
over Lake Alexandrina. Here the lake’s
water made a slapping sound under the jetty and had a lovely green tinge with
reeds growing in little islands. Milang
is significant in that it was a bustling centre for the building of paddle
steamers and other boats between 1857 and 1924, the transfer of raw materials
like wheat and wool from up the Murray to places elsewhere and cream from
Narrung for its butter factory. About 3:00pm, R & R followed the lake’s
edge for about 8kms before heading north on Lake Plains Rd, a similar
distance. It was really busy with
massive vineyards and wineries (Matala, Bleasedale, Meechi) along both sides of
the road. RL pulled into Frank Potts
Reserve at Langhorne Creek to set up camper, go for a walk and prepare
dinner. It had been another lovely day,
this time a little warmer and more calm … and they contemplated the fact that
Easter was upon them … not only as a religious event but also for weekend
holiday makers and available camping spaces.
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