Murray Bridge, South Australia

 When we left Victor Harbour yesterday, we took the scenic route to Murray Bridge that took us past Lake Alexandrina. We stopped at the small township of Milang where we read of the importance of Lake Alexandrina as a river port in the mid 1800's.  In fact it was South Australia's busiest port connecting Adelaide (47miles) with the thriving river trade.  Both wool and wheat were exported through the port.  The jetty has decreased in length over the years and standing proudly at the end is South Australia's oldest hand crane.  I loved the small colourful fishing huts along the banks of the lake just south of the jetty.

Back in the car and the next township we pass is Langhorne Creek.  This area's rich soil is perfect for wine production as seen by the hundreds of acres of vineyards on either side of the road.  I truly love this area of South Australia, i.e. Fleurieu Peninsular, and would gladly return here.  It is not far from Langhorne Creek to Murray Bridge.  We have arrived too early for our check-in at the caravan park so we make our way to the Visitors Centre to gather some information about the area.  The brochure showing us "The Discovery Trail Walk" has us interested so we plan that for our second day.  The caravan park is called the Murray Bridge Marina Camping, & Caravan Park and when we take a walk late in the afternoon we wander down to the marina.  Literally dozens of houseboats are moored here each and every evening.  There are also houseboats for hire and we recall our time with our friends, Lynn & Graham, when we spent a week on a houseboat on the Murray River.  Philip and I were laughing our heads off thinking about the near misses we had with that jolly boat!

So, today was the history walk.  The weather has turned very rapidly from cold to hot but we are pleased to put the warm clothing away and pull out our shorts and t-shirts.  We started our walk around 9am knowing that the day was going to be warm.  The 4.5k walk begins and end at the Information Centre.  Actually it supposed to be a lot shorter walk but we tacked on a lot more by heading off in different directions.  There are several precincts that we enjoyed walking.  First is the Bridge and Sixth Street with a very fine Town Hall built in 1911 that hosts a range of events and concerts throughout the year.

The next area that we walk is the Railway Precinct and it was a very busy area from 1880 until the 1970's.  There are a number of restored cottages here but sadly not open today.  I loved the "dunny" with its "out of order sign".  The toilet has a distinct lean......

Next place we come upon is the Round House.  This hexagonal shaped residence was build in 1876.  It was exceptionally grand for the time when most people were living in small pine cottages.  There are magnificent gardens surrounding the home with sweeping views of the Murray River.  We pay for the tour inside the house and told that we can pick up any of the items that are laid out.  We are told we can write on the old slate, dress in top hat and tails, or even write a letter using nib and ink as we wander around.  We didn't do any of those things but how terrific that they allow it!

From the Round House it is a walk down a path to the rivers edge where the Murray Princess is docked.  She really is a grand old paddle ship and we waited until she set sail so we could watch the giant paddle turning and churning the water.

Our walk now takes us under the bridges.  We read that the bridges were such an important link between Adelaide and Melbourne back in the early 1900's that they were guarded 24 hours a day seven days a week during World War Two.  Its is sad to see so many signs pointing to sunken vessels.

We have the choice here to continue along the riverfront or end our walk.  We decided to extend the walk because it is just so lovely walking through the Sturt Reserve on the riverbank.  There are families setting up places for lunch, fisherman casting their rods, rowers entering the water for their morning paddle, all types of watercraft on the Murray including water-skiers.  It gives us an insight into the lives of the people living in Murray Bridge.

The last place we stop is Wharf Hill where we enjoy beautifully landscaped gardens and admire the view from the Gazebo sitting proudly at the top of the hill.  

Murray Bridge has been a bit of a surprise really.  It is much larger than we anticipated but still has a country town feel.  Although the town sits on the banks of the Murray River it looks like a very dry place.  There are certainly areas of lush green areas as seen in the Sturt Reserve, but there is not a blade of grass anywhere in our caravan park (the owners did warn us) and the same can be said for most of the homes in Murray Bridge.  This seems surprising to us.  

Tomorrow we move further north to the Riverland where we are booked into one of the caravan parks in Berri.  I am looking forward to seeing this area.

Victor Harbour, South Australia

Victor Harbour, without a doubt, is one of the loveliest places we have visited so far on our journeys around Australia.  It has the feel of a country town but it has all the services.  It is just over an hours drive to Adelaide so that makes it the perfect place for retirees.  We are staying at the G'Day Park in Victor Harbour and it is very quiet here at the moment and our van looks quite lonely.   But it will be a different place from tomorrow as the South Australian school holidays commence.  The park is booked out completely and we know this because we asked for an extension of our time here in Victor Harbour.  No such luck.  It doesn't help that it is a long weekend this coming weekend.  So tomorrow we start heading north and our first stop will be Murrays Bridge for two nights.

But let me talk a little bit about Victor Harbour. A place that we have come to love.  The first day we arrived we went for a long walk into the town centre.  Actually it is not that far - around 1.5k - but we went the long way via the esplanade.

The whole point of walking into town was to see the famous Horse Drawn Tram that runs from the town centre to Granite Island.  Unfortunately it had finished running for the day but I have stolen some photos from their website so you can have a look.  We did go and watch one of the Clydesdales being fed.  They are magnificent.  

The next day we drove to the Mouth of the Mighty Murray River that is about a 30 minute drive from Victor Harbour.  We have to cross a very high bridge to reach Hindmarsh Island where the mouth of the Murray is located.  It is so high that you cannot see the other side until you are at the halfway point.  The river mouth is a little underwhelming and you can just see in the distance the waves breaking at the point of entry.  The mouth of the river almost completely closed a few years ago from sand build-up,  but now there is a sand dredging scheme in place that will keep the mouth open.

Another very beautiful place that we stop at is Port Elliott.  There is a terrific lookout here and the views below to Horseshoe Bay are just so beautiful.  Of course it helps that the day is sunny with hardly a cloud in the sky!

Today we decided to do the Granite Island hike.  We were tossing up whether to walk to Granite Island, but it would add around 5km to our 3km hike and as we have a few things on our list today we make the decision to drive into the town centre.  We arrive at the causeway that joins the mainland to the island around 8.30 and we have once again struck an absolutely beautiful day.  The ocean is like a millstream and it would not surprise us to see Dolphins as this is the sort of ocean they love.  You can start the walk in either direction, clockwise or counter but we decide clockwise will give us the best views even though we have to tackle the 100+ stairs.  This hike is so worth the effort.  Every turn of a corner is another magnificent view from our high vantage point.  The path is wide and well worn and we pass many people enjoying the track.  

Once we have finished our hike we head into the town centre to find the information centre.  I have decided (a bit late) to purchase a T-Towel from our favourite destinations. It doesn't open until 10am so we have time for coffee and muffin.  Yes, I know.  We said no more but we felt we deserved it.  It was a battle of the muffins today to see who had the best and I have to say that Philips Lime and Poppyseed was superior to my Blueberry!

We took a short walk around the town centre before heading back to the car.  There are some beautiful old houses in Victor Harbour that was first settled in 1863.  I particularly love this Colonial Residence that was built in 1866 and how about the first public toilet that was built in 1867.  

Victor Harbour is so picture perfect in every way although winter here might be a different matter with its windy conditions.  But if Philip and I have to move into a nursing home in our latter years, this is the place that I want it to be :-)

Kangaroo Island Day 3

It really has been a wonderful three days on Kangaroo Island and three days is not nearly enough to explore the Island in depth.  I mean, it is a really big Island! It measures 145km x 35km and is Australia's third largest island.  It is roughly the size of Bali. Today, our last day we explored the north west side of the Island that included Emu Bay and Kingscote (the hub of KI).   

We had a delicious hot breakfast before we left Penneshaw this morning and checked out of our accomodation before leaving.  I can't tell you how much we enjoyed our glamping tents.  They were beautifully appointed and the decor was better than any hotel we have stayed in (apart from the Burj-Al-Arab in Dubai 😜). I have promised that I will leave a very positive review on TripAdvisor.  

We were on the B23 highway heading north around 8am and arrived at Emu Bay an hour later.  Our destination was the Lavender Farm but we drove around the township before heading to the farm.  What a gorgeous little town it is.  It is most definitely a tourist town with just about every house along the beachfront had a sign at the front with rental details.  

Our stop at the Lavender Farm didn't take long.  I wanted some sleep lavender and Philip liked the lavender lip balm.  We also picked up a bottle of Pinot Grigio from a winery that was unknown to us (it's a bit like a lucky dip) and I found some Port Lincoln seafood products that sounded interesting.  We will see. The lavender is not year flowering and I guess we will have to wait until we get to Tasmania to see it in full flower.

It was back into the car for our next stop at the Kangaroo Island Bee Co for some Ligurian Honey that we have heard so much about.  As soon as we tasted it we knew we had to purchase some.  It was so tasty and not too sweet.  We talked to one of the beekeepers about the bees as there is a terrific visual display inside the building with a glass front over a vertical hive of bees.  The bees are able to exit the hive and collect pollen that they then bring back to the hive to make the honey.  Watching them is mesmerizing.

We now head into the township of Kingscote and we take the tourist drive around the peninsular. The Silo Art is striking and one of the best I've seen to date.  The weather has really turned it on for us today and it is a glorious day with warm sunshine and the ocean is like glass.  We see many pods of dolphins frolicking in the ocean and of course the seals are always present. This really and truly is a beautiful island with a diversity of nature that is rarely seen.  

 It is now time to return to Penneshaw as we are booked on the 2.30 ferry back to Jervis Bay.  But we have time on our return, for a walk around the Sculpture Trail.  It is only 800m in length but quite a lovely walk with many steps and even a swing bridge!

We also have time to drop into the famous Penneshaw Pub for lunch.  The menu is extensive and there are so many delicious dishes to choose from but we settle on Fish and Chips and Steak Sanga.  I know. It is  not adventurous but so so delicious.  The only problem I had with my Steak Sanga was trying to work out how to eat it.  In the end I cut it into four.

As I said, we have had a really lovely time on Kangaroo Island and the only wish is that we had a few more days.  There is a lot to explore. I was a little sad as we said goodbye.  I don't think we will be returning anytime soon but you never know......