Trekkin

25/5/2022 – Wednesday – 7km

It rained & was very windy last night but we woke to a clearing sky & the wind abating. This morning we are at the Edithburg Museum just after it opens & stay until it shuts at 1pm. The museum is very interesting with part of the museum devoted to shipping, shipwrecks & the industry that Edithburg was built on, the shipping of salt, gypsum, wheat & barley from the port. Other parts focus on agriculture & personal stories, there is one lady with nearly 5,000 prize certificates from exhibiting at shows all over Australia. Her paintings & her needlework were extraordinary. Two old Edithburg fire trucks have been lovingly restored to working order & are a credit to the men that did the restoration, an amazing labour of love. There are also pieces of equipment from the saltworks plus photos of what the town looked like in its heyday, vastly bigger & busier than it is today.

Next was lunch at the Location café on the corner, formerly the butcher shop, the food was delicious & filling. The craft shop in the museum grounds was next on the agenda & the amazing work by the locals is extraordinary with all the proceeds going to charities, flying doctor, museum & fire brigade.   We spent a fair bit of time looking at all this lovely work as well & bought a couple of pieces as the donations are going to good causes.

A walk down onto the Edithburg jetty helped settle lunch down & we chatted to a few of the locals fishing, some with success, others not so much. It is hard to imagine this jetty was such a hive of shipping activity all those years ago. The Edithburg Tidal Pool is close by & the locals have made a great job of creating a safe swimming environment & taking care of the pool so well. The murals along the wall look great.

Our next visit is to the water tower on the small rise behind town to view the seascape mural, the artists have done an amazing job, particularly the weedy sea dragon & the cuttlefish. We drive through town past the large nature park & drive out along Sultana Point, site of the wreck of the ship “Sultana”. There are lots of houses built along the seafront along here, some shiny & new, others have been there a very long time.

Back to camp & a bit of repair work on the Karavan stone guard with a piece of broken elastic cord needing to be replaced. Another great day.

24/5/2022 – Tuesday – 170km

Marion Bay disappears into the dust behind us as we follow the coastline of the York Peninsula north on a dirt road in reasonable condition. Unfortunately the coast & the water is not visible as the tree & shrub growth hide the ocean from us, but there is plenty of very dry wheat & barley farmland stretching away on the other side with the odd old farmhouse & cluster of machinery sheds. We have a few little unplanned detours on rough dirt roads as I head the wrong way & have to turn back.

Port Moorowie is our first look at the ocean after around 60km of driving. We stop & get out at the visitor car park & a sign tells us the story of this old port town, established in the 1870s & shipping grain from here until the 1940s. The jetty was destroyed in storms & only a few stumps are left near the boat launching ramp. In 1908 the ship “Sir Wilfred Lawson” was wrecked on a reef nearby.  

More straight dirt roads through farming areas & more missed turns until we get to our next stop at Troubridge Hill Lighthouse, a tall brick structure staring out to sea marking another tragedy site with the loss of the “Clan Ranald” in 1909 & 40 lives taken. The road here is right on the cliff edge with uninterrupted views of the ocean & this dirt road continues hugging the clifftops until we get to the Wattle Point wind farm. These wind turbines are huge & there are so many of them as the dirt road takes us through the middle of the huge swinging blades.

Edithburg is the town we plan on staying for the next couple of nights & we book in to the van park & set up on a front row site overlooking the waters of St Vincent Gulf, it is very pretty. There are about half a dozen other travellers camped here. We drive down to the main street shops (very few) looking for a place for lunch & find one takeaway/general store/fuel. The fish & chips are disappointing after all the great seafood we have been eating.

We go for a scenic drive out through Yorketown to Warooka, around 40km. More of the same vast plains of empty wheat & barley fields with the odd salt lake here & there. Farmers are busy planting seeds as rain is forecast for the next few days, good for them, not for us. Some of the salt lakes have water with a pinkish algae tinge to them, most are dry. Warooka is a small quiet town with not much happening, there are a few old small stone houses & a small main street with a school. We turn & head back to Yorketown.

At Yorketown, (the biggest town we have come across for a while) we stop & have a short walk around town, it is a nice old town with some nice buildings & some history signs on the street explaining some of the story of Yorketown & its buildings. We call into the grocery store to replenish supplies then head back to Edithburg & camp as it is getting dark. Cheese & bikkies with some red wine for dinner finishes another great day.

23/5/2022 – Monday – 70km

Today we plan spending in Innes National Park all day & we paid the park fees online last night. As we topped the rise & started descending towards Chinamans Hat Bay the spectacular scenery unveiled itself with the islands of Investigator Straight & the steep cliffs rising sheer out of the sea. Our first stop is Ethel Beach with the anchor from the wreck of the ship “Ethel” (wrecked 1904) on display at the carpark overlooking the wreck of the Ethel on the beach far below. Nearby is the remnant boiler from the wreck of the “Ferret” (wrecked 1920) rusting in the sand. I walked down the steep set of stairs & looked at the “Ferret” boiler first, it is a very large piece of rusting steel with all the boiler elements clearly visible. The wreck of the “Ethel” is a lot more prominent with the large pieces of frame & ribs of the steel boat sticking out of the sand, it is amazing that so much is still visible after more than 100 years rusting away & being exposed to the fury of the wind & the sea.

The West Cape Lighthouse is our next stop with absolute stunning views in all directions looking out to sea at the distant Wedge Island then along the coast looking over Pondalowie Beach with North, South & Middle Island providing protection to the beaches. The cliff faces are amazingly steep & as we walk back from the lighthouse we bump into Peter, Di & Garth, Kimberley owners we met in Melrose.

Then onto Pondalowie Beach with a great wide boardwalk most of the way from the carpark to the beach with a great long wooden platform overlooking the beach. Apparently it is a good surfing place when the conditions are right. Again it is very pretty & a beautiful warm day, it is very pleasant, with not another person in sight. In the distance along the beach is an old fishing boat washed up on the sand, a sad sight.

As we keep driving along we pass a large flock of emus, both large & small. We stop & they are very curious & come towards us, it is so good to see such a large number of emus together in the wild. We continue to Browns Beach & soak in the view looking along the coast, before turning back & calling into Dolphin Beach, a nice sheltered beach. The road back gives us views of the many small salt lakes dotting the national park, mostly dry.

The Cape Spencer Lighthouse has fabulous views all round with Althorpe Island in Investigator Straight in the near distance & the mass of Kangaroo Island visible in the far distance stretching away in both directions. The cliffs stretching away either side of Cape Spencer are steep & spectacular with some sandy beaches exposed at low tide. It is stunningly beautiful.

Chinamans Hat Beach is our next stop with the lookout directly above the wreck of the “Marion” from 1862, though no wreckage is visible. There are a few fishermen along the beach trying their luck. Again beautiful scenery in all directions. Our next stop is a new lookout with views back over Chinaman Hat Island & the beach as well as more great views out to sea.

Stenhouse Bay is absolutely beautiful, the old jetty is nestled in near to the cliffs to give it protection from the weather. The jetty was originally built in the early 1900s for shipping gypsum & closed in the 1970s. This also must be a great squid catching jetty, there are lots of black ink marks staining the timber. It is a slow walk back up the slope out of Stenhouse Bay & we look back again to admire the beauty. Back to camp & dinner, another great day.

22/5/2022 – Sunday – 125km

As we were packing this morning another Kimberley Karavan pulled up to say hello, it was Peter & Di whom we met at Melrose & had dinner with on the last night. They were driving past, saw our van & decided to drop in, we exchanged a few thoughts on where we plan going then headed off.

Driving south from Minlaton we took it easy, around 80km/hr along very straight & good roads. On either side vast empty paddocks, that (hopeful) will soon have barley or wheat growing in them.  It is very dry here, could do with some of the rain from the East coast.  It is a pleasant drive & before long we reach Point Turton, a beautiful little town (I mean very small). We drive along the ocean front road with great views out over Spencer Gulf. As we pull up at the Point Turton wharf we spot Peter & Di setting up the van in the caravan park next door so we wander over & have a brief chat & Garth is there as well, set up in a prime position looking out over the sea. Next we walk down to the wharf & walk out along it, chatting to the fishermen & fisherwomen as we walk, they are having mixed success. We are surprised at the number of houses in this small locality, most with great ocean views.

We then follow the coast on a dirt road through Point Soutar & along to Corny Point, more vast plains of cultivation on the inland side & great ocean views the other, with hardly a vehicle & with the road in good condition. From Corny Point settlement we drive out to Corny Point & the lighthouse, a silent sentinel looking out over some nearby rocky shoals. We park at the side of the road & walk out to the lighthouse about 200 metres, there must be a lot of strong winds here as a pine tree planted in the 1890s is growing very low & parallel to the ground. All the vegetation is low shrubs. The views up & down the coastline are pretty, with cliff faces as we look south & low rocky beachfronts as we look east.

The drive to Marion Bay is on bitumen with empty cultivation fields again stretching away from both sides of the road. It doesn’t take long to reach our destination & find the van park where we set up near another Kimberely Karavan. As we are starting to set up a couple started chatting with us as they are interested in an off-road van so we showed them how it is set up & then showed them inside. Afterwards it is clothes washing time & we take a short walk over to the beach, it is cold so we head back & hang the washing out. Next we take a drive around this small town & end up at the jetty where we put our coats on & walk out to the end of the Marion Bay Wharf. There are huge piles of seaweed heaped on the shore, more than a metre high, as far as we can see in both directions along the beach. There must have been very strong winds recently.

Back to the van & time to prepare dinner. Another great day.

21/5/2022 – Saturday – 0km

A short walk across the road from the camp to see the red Bristol monoplane on display that was owned & flown locally by Captain Harry Butler, a renowned local pilot from the early 1900s. His story is very interesting, a clever young man. He joined the Royal Flying Corp in World War I & trained pilots in England. A short walk up the street & by the time we get there the Minlaton Museum is open. The lady inside is very friendly & helpful & the museum is full of memories of the old days of Minlaton, including a section on Captain Harry Butler including his life story & memorabilia & broken parts from his other crashed plane, an Avro.  We spent a fair time in the museum, again it is really interesting.

Off up the rest of the main street looking at shop windows (very few) before crossing at the nursing home & walking back down the other side, past the council chambers, in an old movie theatre building. The locals are all voting in the federal election & there are people accosting the voters on the street with the how-to-vote leaflets. Again there are some beautiful old buildings, some past their prime & others lovingly restored. Some people are proud of their gardens, others not so, it is very dry here. There is this wonderful big craft shop with lots of clever, beautiful & unusual items created by talented people from the district. 

Back to camp for a nice lunch then we walk over the road to the town conservation park for a walk around & it has a gaggle of very curious emus & half a dozen kangaroos lazing in the sun. We don’t see any other animals in the compound.

Next is a short walk to the Minlacowie Brewery and we sample some of the craft beers sitting with our backs to the sun & snacking on some more salt & pepper calamari with chips, all very tasty. Then back to the van & a quiet afternoon of reading & playing a game of 5 Crowns before dinner. Another great day.

20/5/2022 – Friday – 163km

A leisurely start this morning & we leave Wallaroo around 10am. This time we head inland south through Kadina & drive through the centre of the Yorke Peninsula to Maitland through endless wheat or barley fields (it is so dry, they need some of the rain from the East coast where there is too much falling). We then turn back towards the coast & Port Victoria where we drive along the shore to the boat ramp for a view up & down the coast before turning back towards the wharf & parking. We went for a walk out the length of the wharf & the breeze was a bit cold so we didn’t stay long. There were a few hardy souls fishing for squid & not catching much.

The shop & post office looking over the Port Victoria wharf (the only place other than the pub, we didn’t like the look of that. That is it, Port Victoria is a very small town) had very nice fish & chips that we ate for lunch whilst sitting in the sunshine inside enjoying the view. We were the only customers there. After lunch we continued on to Minlaton & set up camp before heading into town for a few groceries.

Next we drove the short distance out to Port Rickaby, a very small town on the coast with only a handful of houses (with only 35 residents) & a caravan park. Again we walk out along the wharf & have a good chat with a local couple fishing. They now own the house that Captain Rickaby & his wife lived in & raised 12 children, although it has now been renovated & added to since then (now the original house remains in the front & attached to it a big two story house is built). They were very friendly, 12 people (1/3^rd of the population) were out on the wharf fishing, must be the only entertainment. If you ever want to get away from the hustle & bustle of the big smoke this is the place to move to live.  This town is so small that they have no shops or fuel station. Back to Minlaton, refuel then camp & a coffee.

19/5/2022 – Thursday –

Off to Moonta this morning, only a short drive & we head to the Moonta Mine Museum, bad luck, it opens at 1pm.  The little train that takes you around the old mine only works on Wednesdays, Saturday & Sundays, bad luck, we missed out! So off to Kadina, another short drive. Kadina is a very nice & well-kept town. We stop & walk around the main shopping area, full of beautiful old stone buildings built mainly in the late 1800s when the area had lots of wealth from copper mining. There are some beautiful murals painted on some of the walls around town & on the old rail water tower. The park opposite the town hall is beautiful & well maintained with a nice rotunda, built in 1897.

Moonta Bay is our next destination.  The local council decided to do road maintenance & closed the roads that would lead us to the bay. After some driving around some streets we ended up at Port Hughes.  A real treasure.  There is a long jetty, if there is a jetty we have to walk out on it.  There are a few people out fishing but it seems that only the Chinese family are lucky, they caught some red looking fish, we are not sure what they are, but they are excited.  This jetty is apparently a mecca for catching squid, the evidence of ink stains are all over the jetty.  We walked back to the Port Hughes café on the beach & for lunch sampled their freshly caught squid. Yum, it is delicious.  When we are anywhere near the sea we mainly eat seafood – it is healthy, the only problem is that they always serve it with chips.  Potatoes are potassium rich, so they are healthy too.

Time to return to the Moonta Mine Museum, formerly a school for the mine worker’s children.  At one time the school had 1,100 children enrolled. The school closed in 1968 due to low numbers of students & was taken over by the National Trust. On arrival we see the little train with people sitting in it.  The driver hurries us up, while explaining that it is a special train for a group, but they didn’t all turn up.  Well, we lucked the train in! Very pleasant informative way to see & hear all the stories about the mine & mainly Cornish people who emigrated for free to work in it.  Moonta had the most Cornish people living outside of Cornwall in England.  On arrival back at the Moonta Mine rail station we rushed in to see some of the museum, once again very interesting, we wish we had more time but we could not let the poor stay too long behind his closing time.

After the museum closed we drove out onto the mine site & looked at some of the scattered remnants of the mining site. At the old Crusherhouse from 1869, which is next to a giant tailings heap, it has a rough walkway to the top, we walked up & enjoyed a great view over the former mining site. There are still relics of stone structures scattered around the landscape. We then had a look at the Methodist church built for the miners, it could hold 1200 people, they had to build an additional mezzanine to accommodate everyone. It was compulsory to attend church (unless you had a good excuse). Next we drove around some of the old miner cottages that are left & some are still inhabited today. Life was very hard for these people. Back to Wallaroo & we watched a beautiful sunset over the ocean from the beach in front of the van park, a great way to finish a great day.

18/5/2022 – Wednesday – 145km

Today is leaving day after a week at Melrose, we pack & say goodbye to all the friends of KKOG. We end up getting away at around 9.30am & head south through the surrounding wheat country. We drive through Crystal Brook, a lovely well-kept town and stop at Port Broughton on Spencer Gulf for morning tea. We walk out the wharf & spot a few stingrays lazing around the shallows. Then on to Wallaroo.

Wallaroo caravan Park is on the beach & we book in then set up before heading in to town & have a look through the local museum. It has a great display of the maritime history of the area as well as the mining & railway history. The museum has so much information & the volunteers are very friendly & helpful.

Grocery shopping next before it is back to camp & an early dinner so that we can get down to the wharf & watch the light show on the side of the wheat silos at 6.00pm. This is pretty to watch & we see the half hour show until it starts over again. Back to camp, shower then bed. Another great day.

17/5/2022 – Tuesday – 45km

This morning is washing day, we are nearly out of socks & undies, we are 2^nd in the queue at 8am & have to wait. I drive out to Boolaroo Centre to look at the farm machinery & traction engine display at 10am.  This is an amazing collection of old farming equipment, old tractors, trucks & steam engines, all working & all housed in huge sheds. The man who took us through was a font of knowledge & very interesting as his family had farmed in the area for generations. Some of the items on display were from his family. The next shed housed all the stationary engines, a combination of diesel, petrol, oil & kerosene. Again, they all worked & and impressive variety of models & sizes. Next was another shed with some big power generation engines, one big enough to power the whole town of Boolaroo Centre. Back at Melrose for lunch by 1pm & Tereza has all the washing on the line under the van, she is a sweetheart.

After lunch we go into town & have a walk over the swing bridge & explore the other side of the dry Willochra Creek near the town camping area, then book into the North Star Hotel for dinner. Back to camp then shower followed by dinner with another 74 Kimberley Karavaners & a few others. The pub was packed & one chef had to prepare 104 meals, it was a bit slow getting dinner but the food was good & the company great. We shared our table with another 5 fellow KKOG travellers whom we had not met before & had a great time chatting waiting for dinner & afterwards. We were some of the last to leave the pub. Another great day.

16/5/2022 – Monday – 125km

This morning we are off to Quorn, 62km away, for a ride on the Pitchi Ritchi Railway from the old Quorn Railway Station. We arrive in plenty of time & have a look around the station & chat. Unfortunately the steam engine we were to have pulling the carriages blew a steam gasket & had to be replaced with an old diesel, older than the steam engine. We departed on time at 10.30am in old restored railway carriages, a real rattler but a treat with 100 plus other Kimberley owners. We had the train to ourselves.

The old narrow gauge line wound through the hills & slowly climbed to an old siding called The Summit before winding slowly down through the Pitchi Ritchi Gorge & ending at Woolshed Flat. We stop & wander around, look at another small museum & have morning tea while the engine is uncoupled & shunted around to the front of the train for the return journey.  We had nice chats with the other people in our carriage & a few nice chats with the conductor as he came & sat with us for a while. The trip back was also slow, the countryside is interesting & we get another perspective of a landscape feature called Devil’s Peak, very distinctive. The countryside is very dry, with lots of spinifex & bare dirt.

Back at Quorn we lunch at the Transcontinental Hotel, a grand old relic of better days, however the meals were very good & the staff did a great job in feeding all of us. More chatting with fellow travellers as well.

Our next venture is a special invitation for a tour around the railway workshops, a large collection of old train engines & carriages in all states of repair. Clive, our guide, is a wonderful source of knowledge. We are shown the part that failed in the steam engine & while we are there the volunteer mechanic replaced the part. It is all so interesting, the volunteers have done an amazing job with all the train stuff they have.

We are back at camp around 5pm just in time for happy hour & more standing around the fire chatting with fellow travellers, all very pleasant. At 7.30 it is time for some knowledge sharing on the KK Forum, again, very informative & interesting.  No diner tonight as these country pubs make really good fresh food & so much on the plates. Then shower & bed, another great day.