26/5/2022 – Thursday – 86km

The Edithburg cemetery is on the way out of town with a view over the ocean. We stop & visit the graves of the sailors of the “Clan Ranald” lost when the ship sank off Troubridge Hill. There are 31 sailors buried in a mass grave (the largest in Australia) out the back of the cemetery. Five officers from the ship are buried next to each other in another section of the cemetery. It is very sad to see so many people taken by a single tragic event.

The road hugs the coast north & we pass through the small township of Coobowie, then the large group of grain silos & ground storage next to the jetty at Port Giles, with a ship anchored out waiting for the tide to rise so that they can come into port.

Wool Bay is only a little further north & we stop to have a look at a lime kiln built into the cliff looking over the Wool Bay wharf. Of course we take a walk out on the wharf & have a nice chat with a young couple with two children that recently bought a house & moved to this small town. The fishermen at the end of the wharf are not having a lot of luck, though the concrete is black from past squid captures. The production of lime was a big business for Wool Bay & the town was busy with six lime kilns in operation in the early 1900s. The wharf was one of the busiest on the Yorke Peninsula in its day. Now it is only used for recreation.

The next town of note is Stansbury with a mural painted water tower marking the entrance to town. Stansbury is a nice little town with some beautiful old stone buildings & a corner café in the main street covered in an amazing mural, the artists have done a fabulous job on it. We have a short drive around town admiring the scenery, ocean & murals before stopping for lunch looking over the water at the Dalrymple Hotel (this place has been recommended by several people at different camp sites as a great place to eat King George whiting fish).  The King George whiting plus salt & pepper squid were delicious.

After lunch we continued north stopping next at Port Vincent, driving the length of the waterfront along Marine Parade admiring the ocean views & some of the nice old stone houses. There were a lot of big modern house in this town. The caravan park here is right on the point with water on three sides, it looks to be very exposed when it gets windy.

Ardrossan is our next destination & we drive slowly through town admiring the old stone buildings then find the van park, book in then set up for a couple of nights. Only some fruit for dinner, we are still full from lunch.  Another great day.