Day 216 Port Lincoln (Coffin Bay), SA

 This glorious weather has sure put a smile on my dial.  It is simply perfect with mild nights and daytime temperatures in the mid 20's. Looking ahead to our destinations in the coming week the weather app seems to have warmer drier weather at least for the next week.  I might be tempting fate, but today I packed away all our winter clothes and brought out the summer clothes.  

We are still struggling a little with the change of time as well as daylight saving.  We are not turning the light out until well after 10pm each night and then not waking until after 7am.  Our bodies are all muddled.  We will no sooner get used to South Australian time and then we cross the New South Wales Border to another time zone again!

Coffin Bay was on our radar today where I have made lunch reservations, but before we head down there we want to walk the Parnkalla Trail in the opposite direction towards the town centre.  It is a much longer walk - just over 8km's return - but the morning is brilliant and very conducive for a long walk.  There are many people out and about on this Sunday morning as the trail is popular for the locals as well as the tourists.  The trail hugs the waters edge for the entire length even though we come to the grain transfer terminal.  The path goes straight through it and under the long conveyor belt.  We stopped for a photo of Makybe Diva and of course walked the length of the town jetty.  The water is crystal clear and I have never seen anything like it where we live in the tropics.  It is all the colours of blue once again and there is barely a ripple in the water.  There is an enclosed swimming area that runs alongside the jetty and many people are taking advantage of it.  Brrrrrr.  Still too cold for us.

Once we had finished our walk, eaten breakfast and showered we were in the car and heading towards Coffin Bay that is 40km away.  We got a little lost as we left Port Lincoln.  There is quite a bit of roadworks going on in the area and we followed a detour sign that lead us in a big circle.  Anyway we saw things we hadn't seen before.  Back on track and it is an easy drive to Coffin Bay.

Coffin Bay is a really lovely place that is well loved by the locals and in fact the whole of South Australia.  The Coffin Bay Oysters have a very good reputation and it is the oysters and seafood that we are here to sample today.  After yesterdays disastrous meal we have our fingers and toes crossed that today will be better.  

As soon as we pull into the carpark of Oyster HQ and see that it is packed with cars we know that we are onto a good thing.  It was also a blessing that we had made the lunch reservation because all tables were filled and as soon as one table left it was replaced with yet more people.  We were shown to our table that is exactly as I asked - inside window seat.  The waiter shows us the QR code on our table for us to order our food or we can go to the bar and order from there.  We chose the QR code because from previous experience it is much faster and you can order courses as you want them.  The menu is extensive but we hone in on a couple of platters that suit our taste but first we decide on entrees.  Philip ordered the soft shell crab with asian salad and I ordered the "special of the day" Scallops with a spicy sauce.  The dishes arrived at our table very fast and we tucked into them as share plates. It was so good.

Surprisingly neither dish was over filling so we didn't wait too long before ordering our main meal platters.  Philip ordered the Aqua

and I ordered the Skippers Catch

The seafood on both platters was outstanding and compared to yesterdays disastrous platter, well there is no comparison.  The oysters were freshly shucked, the prawns were crunchy fresh and I opted for grilled King George Whiting for my fish and it was cooked to perfection.  The only thing I didn't eat on my platter was the fries!  We shared each others dishes and the Tuna Sashimi Spoon on Philips platter was outstanding.  The little morsel of tuna was served on a bed of wakame that I absolutely adore.  In fact there is not a single thing that either of us could fault in this meal and I have left a 5 star review on google for the team at Oyster HQ.  It is well deserved.

Oh yes, we had to finish off on a sweet note and Philip and I can never go round the Churros if they are on the menu. These were also cooked to perfection and perfectly crunch with a chocolate sauce to die for.

I should be in a food comma after all that food but it was actually a pretty light meal, considering the quantity.  But I have come away a "happy Chappy" and can now leave this area of the Eyre Peninsular by saying that we have eaten some of the best seafood possible.

Tomorrow we pack up and head to a little place called Cowell that is halfway between Port Lincoln and Port Augusta.  They also claim to have the best oysters in South Australia so we will wait and see.....