We left Mildura on Dec 1 with our border permits approved, passing through Renmark and heading to Burra.
It was a lengthy drive and we stopped at Morgan to have a late lunch by the Murray river, and decided to stay in Morgan for the night. The afternoon was spent walking to the lookout
visiting the towns museum which also had a DVD on the 1956 floods which lasted for 3 to 6 months , the peak taking three months to subside.
Then relaxing with a game of pool at the pub.
Off to Burra the next morning
scenery crossing across the hills near Burra
and the afternoon was spent exploring the historical township , visiting the art gallery where John brought me a silk scarf and later chatting to our neighbours in the van park, Carol and Jim.
The next part of our journey is back to the Eyre Peninsula and this route was via Spalding and north through Laura back through Wilmington over to Port Augusta and onto Kimba.
Just outside Burra we stopped at a wheat paddock to take photos of a old house that was a photo taken by Ken Done and used by Midnight Oil for the album cover Diesel and Dust.
midnight oil album cover picture.
Morning tea we stopped at a little place called Stone Hut to buy pies as we had heard they were the best. We had them for lunch and they were great pies but very filling so only had half for lunch and the rest for dinner. John had lamb and rosemary and I had chicken and camberet cheese.
After arriving at Kimba we set up in the free camp. Stayed the night and left the van there to go to Mt Ive for two nights.
Mt Ive is at the base of the Gawler ranges just east of the national park and a 130 kms north of Kimba on a very red dusty road. We had tried to go here earlier but pest control and rain had meant travelling to the ranges wasn’t ideal.
The scenery in the Gawler ranges was amazing , the colours , the hills and scrub at times were breathtaking.
scenery on the way to Mt Ive , the colours beautiful.
We stayed in a donga room at Mt Ive homestead with air conditioning and a bathroom , the room small but the use of the kitchen and rec room with a darts board and pin pong table it was a nice place to relax and keep out of the flies. It was relief from the heat the first day and gusting wind and cold the second night. Such a change of weather conditions.
The first afternoon we 4wd half way up Mt Ive stopping because the rough track just too stony. I was concerned for the tyres on the car. The view over the airstrip and farm of Mt Ive below.
And drove out to a dry river bed and the wombat holes
The second day we drove out to Lake Gairdner the third largest salt lake in Australia.
It had rained last night so John had to wade thru water to get out on the salt lake where the salt is metres deep in parts
On the way to the lake we stopped to see the organ pipes , rhyolite rock formations
And
The embankment, a stone wall, built in 1892 for retaining water for sheep and still in tack today.
On the way we had our first near encounter with a roo, jumping out in front of us , John stopping just in time to miss it. Just near the homestead is a gas tank made to look like a submarine, John hopped on it saying” he was going down with the ship”. Also we saw wild Sturt pea growing.
The next morning it was back to Kimba to retrieve the van and off to Wudinna on the Eyre Highway west of Kimba.
Wudinna (wood-na)
A day of visiting granite rock formations
1/ Polda rock and dam, we walked to the top for views of the surrounding rock formations and farmlands
MT Wudinna where John climbed to the top and Debbie part way till it got to steep for me to descend.
Then out to Poondanna rock where you were on the edge on the National park with views of the Gawler Ranges and more salt lakes in the distance.
On to Pildappa rock similiar to wave rock and it had various large boulders hanging and one looked like a snakes head
John climbed up and me only a part way and there were great view to the Gawler ranges.
And near Minnipa was Tcharkulda ( charcoal-da) hill
Then it was the highway back to Wudinna.
Off to Venus Bay
We took the Port Kenny road to the west side of the Eyre Peninsula and had two nights by the water in Venus Bay
Spending the afternoon driving north to the Murphy’s Haystacks, more rock formations of granite and limestone. They are known as the haystacks as they sit out on farmland that once belonged to man called Murphy. We walked around the formations
And looked around the shores of Port Kenny on the way back to Venus Bay.
The following day we had booked a little fishing tinny for three hours but the wind came up more windier than predicted so that was cancelled so we decided on a 2 km walk around the headland.
The sun came out and the wind dropped so we were disappointed we had cancelled the boat hire but after our walk we drove south to Talia to the Tub, Woolshed Caves, the rock pools and monument lookout.
Elliston
A one night stop with the afternoon driving the scenic cliff drive around Anxious Bay and viewing some amazing scenes of the Australian Bight and art sculptures. Then drove around the headland of Waterloo Bay including a 1 km walk on a headland over looking the bay. (last pic)
Elliston art at the info centre
Finishing the Eyre Peninsula
We crossed over the middle of the Eyre Peninsula via the tiny community of Lock where everything in town was closed down but the “big thing “ was well done showing luggers loading wheat.
Then over via Cleave for another two night stay in Cowell, the second day getting more blue swimmer crabs of the jetty, seven in total.
The following day north to Port Augusta. The Eyre Peninsular finished and now off to the the Clare and Barossa Valley wine regions.
