Home

1 couple, 1 caravan, 1 4WD
4 states and territories
49 caravan parks
119 days
21,500kms

AND WE MADE IT!

Home

The End of Nathan and Alison's Caravan Extravaganza.

Mount Gambier

The last stop. Lovely blue lake, heritage limestone buildings, volcanic soils, sinkholes and caves in the middle of nowhere (and the city centre). Mt Gambier is pretty impressive and the second biggest city in South Australia. The blue lake is its wintery grey blue and will soon change to a turquoise blue where you can see many meters into the clear limestone filtered water. The lakes area, including the centenary tower at the top of Mt Gambier (highest point in the city), valley lake, blue lake and two dried up lakes are made from several explosions of molten lava and water that took out the side of the original volcanoes.

Blue Lake Holiday Park

Cave Gardens

Town Hall

Engelbrecht Cave entrance

Engelbrecht Cave

Umpherston Sinkhole

Valley Lake view from Centenary Tower pano



Blue Lake pano

Blue Lake pump station



Valley Lake picnic area miniature effect

Robe

Left the very windy Adelaide for coastal Robe. Lots of historic buildings in the town, a big lobster on the way, and of course more beaches. Could see how you would spend some time here just pottering about.

Kingston SE Giant Lobster

Robe Lakeside Tourist Park

Robe Customs House

Robe Obelisk at Cape Dombey

Robe Doorway Rock

Robe Long Beach

Adelaide

We have managed to pack a bit into our 5 nights here in Adelaide. It started with a driving test through roadworks, and even included an emergency stop thanks to an idiot that obviously doesn't get that you can't stop 4 tonnes doing 60km/h in an instant. Then we saw our caravan position only 15m from the beach which faces west for great sunsets.  We visited the zoo and saw pandas, reptiles, monkeys and meerkats. Whilst we were in town we came across a car rally with some old classic cars and some very new & expensive ones too.

Adelaide caravan driving test

Adelaide Shores Caravan Park

Adelaide Zoo - Panda eating bamboo

Adelaide Zoo - gotta love Meerkats

McLaren sports car at car rally

Also had a nice bike ride along the beach path to Brighton, past the mansions and followed the new pipeline that will make sure all the beaches have sand. Later rode along the nicely landscaped Torrens River towards Adelaide's CBD.



Brighton Foreshore

Glenelg Boat Harbour

Glenelg view from Adelaide Shores Caravan Park

Back into the city to check out the fresh food central market, yum, and the South Australia Museum which had a nature photography exhibition along with some other stuff.

Adelaide Central Markets

Adelaide Museum - Egyptian Mummy

Explored the Adelaide Hills - Hahndorf via some wineries..... and cheese....and chocolate....


Adelaide Hills wine country

Hahndorf old friend

Port Pirie

Here we are on the eastern shores of the Spencer Gulf at Port Pirie. Bit of a drive from the western side of the gulf at Port Lincoln, with many a wheat/barley silo and field viewed. Port Pirie seems a nice town, with the start of the Flinders ranges in the backdrop and some historic buildings.

Port Pirie Beach Caravan Park

Port Pirie Historic Railway Station

Port Pirie Solomontown swimming beach (background: grain silos left & lead smelter right)

Port Lincoln

Left the sleepy shores of Streaky Bay for Port Lincoln. Pulled into the middle of a wheat field to view Murphy's Haystacks, which of course are not hay but granite. Great spot here on the hill at Port Lincoln Tourist Park, also with its own foreshore and jetty. As usual, we have visited the local sights, mansions, boats and National Park. The National Park has some nice beaches, rocky points, a dismal lighthouse not even worthy of a pic and Stamford Hill, which you walk up to the lookout.

Murphy's Haystacks

 Port Lincoln Tourist Park

Port Lincoln - how the other half live

Port Lincoln fishing fleet

Port Lincoln from Winter Hill lookout

September Beach - Lincoln NP

Another lizard expecting car to give way - Lincoln NP

Stamford Hill Lookout -  Lincoln NP

Stamford Hill Lookout pano - Lincoln NP

Port Lincoln Foreshore from Jetty

Streaky Bay

Here we are in the Eyre Peninsula a short drive down the road at Streaky Bay. No streakers sighted yet (thank goodness given the average age), just seaweed in bands that make the bay look streaky. As you can see below, we can't complain about the position as we are parked right on the beach.

We had a great time touring around Cape Bauer and the Westall Way loop drives, which should be renamed the lizard loops. A record 39 lizards were spotted sunning themselves on the 90km of road we did. (no lizards were harmed in the counting)

Streaky Bay Foreshore Tourist Park

Streaky Bay smooth water adjacent to our site

Streaky Bay Foreshore Tourist Park view of caravan & Xoc

Cape Bauer

Blowholes

Whistling Rocks

Shingleback Skink \ Blue Tongue Lizard

Hallys Beach

The Granites

Speed Point looking back to shore pano