Friday, July 11, 2025

Australia - Part 5 - Adelaide to Darwin - May 2025

Early Morning View from Hotel, Adelaide

Sunday May 25 was our last day in Adelaide.  I got up early for run around the neighborhood near the hotel.  There was a nice park, Rymil Park, and many nice homes in this gentrified and obviously quite expensive neighborhood.  There was a beautiful sunrise view from the upper level of our hotel.

The Ghan

We took a Uber to the Parklands Terminal out in a suburb of Keswick.  At the terminal we joined our other passengers for the epic train trip through the center of Australia.  The train is called the Ghan, after the Afghan camel handlers that came to Central Australia in the 1800’s.  There was a check in procedure like at the airport and we were given our carriage and cabin allocations.  The train was impressively long - 39 carriages, 2 engines, almost a kilometer long. 

Our Comfortable Compartment

After drinks and snacks we were allowed to board the train around 12:00 pm.   Our compartment was quite nice - two bunk beds that fold away during the day to form a nice couch, a toilet and shower combination, a bit of storage and a table by the window. 

After we started moving and rolled out of Adelaide we went to the lounge car and enjoyed the view of the landscape rolling by - the appreciation of the view enhanced by the fine coffee and the McClaren Vale Shiraz wine.

North of Adelaide

As we left Adelaide there were many nurseries and greenhouses presumably supplying produce to the major city of Adelaide.  As we got further out this changed to agricultural land, primarily growing wheat I believe.  

Flinders Range

Further on we could see the Flinders Range mountains over to the east.

We went to the dining car for our lunch around 1:30.  A very nice light lunch and of course it was accompanied by the finest of wines.  This was going to be a difficult trip if we kept drinking wine, so we learned how to ask for a half glass of wine, or a low tide glass as they say there.  We shared a table with a couple of Australian ladies, Miranda and Jackie who were both delightful company at the table.

Wind Power Generation North of Port Augusta

We passed by Port Augusta, a fairly large and industrial town and then we were back out in the bush.  There was a  considerable amount of wind power being generated.

Sunset from the Ghan

Somewhere along the way we passed nearby Woomera, the British and Australian rocket testing facility during the Cold War.  Woomera was always being mentioned in my youth in England as progress was being made on various rocket systems.  Alas it must either of been dark or I wasn’t paying attention but I didn’t see any evidence of the Woomera base.

Before long it was 7:30 and time for dinner and more wine.  Another beautiful meal - I tried the Kangaroo loin and found it to be very nice and tender - very similarly to a beef steak.

We retired to our compartment where the bunk beds had been prepared and our nightcap drinks of Baileys Irish Cream had been delivered.  I had the top bunk and Diana the lower one.  It was all very comfortable.  The gentle rocking of the train made it quite easy to fall asleep.

Sometime in the night we passed nearby Coober Peedy, the opal mining area.  Coober Peedy is the town where all the residences are underground to shelter from the heat.  Coober Peedy in the local Aboriginal language means “man in hole”.  

Sunrise stop in Marla

At 6:30 we were awoken and the train stopped and we all got off to experience the sun rise over the outback.  It was quite chilly.  We were in the settlement of Marla, which is not much more than a siding on the railway.  The crew on the train had built wood fires and we warmed ourselves by them while drinking coffee and eating bacon and egg rolls.

After a beautiful sunrise we were back on the train and on our way again.  As far as you could see the land was flat red dirt low scrub.

Abandoned Car by the Road

There was a dirt road next to the railway.  Every now and again we passed the remains of a car.  Usually upturned or on its side and everything useful (tires, wheels, etc) stripped of them.  

Near Alice Springs

We rolled along through fairly monotonous red landscape.  Some areas had charred remains of trees from past fires.  We did see one cow, we passed a couple of water holes with hoof prints around them so there is life somewhere.  We even passed one car moving along the road but that was the only sign of civilization.  

We then gathered in the restaurant car for lunch.  We sat with a couple of Australian ladies, Rosalyn and Caroline.  They were most interesting, one an artist the other an academic lawyer.  They sold us on visiting Perth and Western Australia.  Sadly that will have to be another trip.

Around 1:20 we arrived into Alice Springs.  It is the biggest town in the “Red Center” but it is not really that big.  We were met by a taxi driver who ferried us to our hotel.  We were too early to check in so we walked down the road.  As we were passing an adjacent hotel we noticed our friends, Miranda and Jackie standing outside.  They were heading for an art gallery, so we tagged along.

The Archibald Prize Winner

My favorite from the Archibald Prize Collection

The Araluen Gallery was hosting an exhibition of portraits that is held each year in Australia for the best portrait.  The artist is awarded the Archibald Prize which in 2025 was $100,000 Australian.  The exhibition was actually very good.  One of the  best exhibitions I have ever seen. 

We bade farewell to Miranda and Jackie and set off walking into the center of town.  We walked down streets lined with walled and fenced homes - not a good sign.  Everyone was securing their property.  It was of course quite warm but not unbearable.  What was interesting was the number of flies.  Small black flies, they don’t bite but they are a nuisance.  The first thing we did in town was to buy fly nets.  Readily available and not expensive.

We went into a few Aboriginal Art galleries, of which there are many and then we went into a Woolworths store to buy food for dinner that evening and breakfast the next morning.

The next day we were picked up at 7:00 for our road trip to Uluru (Ayer’s Rock).  The tour company, Emu Run, had an entire bus for our trip to Uluru but only about a dozen passengers so we had plenty of space.  The driver and guide was a young English guy from Skipton in Yorkshire, quite the entertaining guide.

It was a 4 hour drive to Uluru with fairly monotonous red dirt scrub land.  The driver was good at keeping us entertained with stories - the Pine Gap US monitoring station, the Cannonball Run memorial to the 4 people killed in the last race, the Flying Doctor Service, Road Trains of 4 or even 5 trailers, Harold Lassiter’s attempts to find gold in the outback and his eventual death trying to find it, John McDouall Stuart’s many attempts to cross the Australian continent from north to south and his eventual success, the cattle station that is as big as Belgium.  All very entertaining.

Road Train

We stopped for a break and coffee at the Erldunda Roadhouse, allegedly in the center of the center of Australia.  There were emus wandering around at the Roadhouse and a  4 trailer road train in the gas station.

Feral Camel

We came across a camel crossing the road ahead of us.  Just the one camel casually walking across the road.  The driver had told us the story of Harry the camel, one of the first camels shipped to Australia and the only one to survive the journey.   Later larger quantities were shipped and they survived better.  When camels were not needed for transportation any more they were let free to roam and now there are some 1,500,000 feral camels.  Because only the fittest camels survived the journey to Australia their descendants are of such good quality that they are now shipped back to the Middle East

Mt Connor

Just before reaching Uluru we stopped and climbed up a huge sand dune to look down on a white salt lake.  Then in the distance there was a smaller version of Uluru, Mt Connor.

We arrived in the town of Yulara, the purpose built site for hotels and shops catering to the needs of tourists visiting Uluru.  It was sad to hear that all the hotels and concessions in Yulara were operated by an American company.  

We had lunch and stretched our legs before getting back on the bus to tour around Uluru itself.  

Uluru

It is truly a dramatic rock formation that looms above you for 1,000 ft as you peer up from its base.  Its circumference is 6 miles.  We visited certain sites around the base of the rock and did some short hikes - small caves, some rock paintings, a water hole.  The guide tried to explain various Aboriginal myths about different parts of the rock. Certain shapes on the rock represented different items (snakes, people, animals), each having a particular significance or telling a particular story.  To be honest I couldn’t follow the stories very well.  

Just a few flies

The flies were everywhere and for most of us, except some of the locals, it was impossible to bear them without a fly net over your head.  Everyone said that they were worse than normal and put it down to a recent rainfall that gave them a new breeding season.


There were areas on one side of the rock that we were not allowed to photograph.  These parts of the rock are particularly sacred to the aboriginal tribes of the area so restrictions apply.  


We could also see the pathway up the side of the rock where up to 2019 you could ascend to the top.  Since that time it has been off limits to tourists.

We left the rock and drove over to a cultural center that tried to explain some of the aboriginal myths.  There were also the obligatory gift shops where you could buy quite expensive aboriginal art and artifacts.

Uluru at Sunset

Later in the afternoon we drove some distance away to get a nice view of the entire rock.  This is where we were able to watch the sun set and observe the many different hues of the rock as the light diminished.  Viewing the rock at sunset is quite the thing to do.  There were many buses and vans and cars waiting for just the right moment to capture that amazing photograph.

Kata Tjuṯa

Off in the distance we could see the other rock formation in the area - Kata Tjuṯa.  This is a series of domed rocks also known as the Olgas.  

We were then provided with a barbecue dinner before boarding our bus for the long 4 hour drive back to Alice Springs.  We stopped at the Curtin Springs Roadhouse for a bathroom break on the way back - the toilets were labeled Blokes and Sheilas.  The road trip back was uneventful but we didn’t arrive until midnight.  

The next morning we were met at 7:30 for our next tour, a trip around the West McDonnell Range.  Our guide was Ben and we were the only two people on the tour so we had a lot of freedom to move at whatever pace we wanted.  

Simpson’s Gap

Our first stop was Simpson’s Gap, a narrow gap in the pre-Cambrian quartzites of the West McDonnell Range.  There is a permanent water hole in the bottom of the gap.  The flies were there of course so we had our nets that aside it was quite a beautiful site.

Leaving the Simpson Gap we saw a Euro.  We had not heard of a Euro before, but it is the smallest of the kangaroo family.

Standley Chasm

Our next stop was Standley Chasm or Angkerle Atwatye in the aboriginal language.  This is a narrow canyon also in the West McDonnell Range with towering walls on either side of the narrow path.  We walked up the path until the walls of the canyon came together in a waterhole preventing our onward passage with dry feet.  There were lots of Red Gum trees and the white barked Ghost Eucalyptus trees. 

Our guide told us that we could hear the water flowing below the trees or was it within the tree trunk.  We placed our ears next to the tree and we certainly could hear something like flowing water.

On the road out of Standley Chasm we were stopped by a herd of wild horses (Brumbies).  Unlike some of the wild horses in Nevada, these horses looked very fit and healthy.

Ellery Big Hole

Our next stop was the Ellery Big Hole, a permanent water hole.

Ochre Pits

From the Big Hole we drove on to a group of Ochre Pits, used by the Aborigines for decorative paint - orange, white and brown - a fairly limited palette.

Ormiston Gorge

Next stop was Ormiston Gorge where we had lunch in a small cafe before we set off up the hill to enjoy the views of the river and water hole below.  This was a nice hike, if a little strenuous on the way up.  The view down into the narrow canyon below was quite spectacular.  

Ormiston Gorge

Back down at the parking lot we walked out along the river for some distance.  The calm water of the water hole provided a perfect reflection of the trees and rocks as the afternoon sun got lower in the sky.  There was a nice heron fishing in the pond and a group of cormorants were sunning themselves on the water bank,  We walked through the undergrowth to get back on the path and we must have scared a snake from the area.  As we reached the trail we saw a fairly large brown snake sliding out of the undergrowth and across the trail.  Our guide said it was likely poisonous, likely a Taipan.

Back to the bus and then we set off back to Alice after seeing a great sample of the beauty of the West MacDonnell range.

Back at the hotel we cleaned up and then walked to the golf course behind the hotel where there was a restaurant. Beer and pizza for dinner.

The next morning we checked out of our hotel and stored our bags there and went off to explore Alice Springs.  This was our last day in Alice.

Black Footed Wallaby, Olive Pink Botanic Garden

We started by walking down the now dry Todd River to the Olive Pink Botanic Gardens.  The Botanic Gardens feature native plants of the Central Australian area.  It was initiated by a local anthropologist and indigenous rights campaigner Olive Pink.  It is a haven of vegetation in what is a very dry part of the world.  We walked up the trail to the top of the hill overlooking Alice.  There were several black footed Wallabies around the area - beautiful little creatures.

Aboriginal Galleries everywhere in Alice Springs

We walked further on into town (with our fly nets on of course).  In town we did a little shopping for aboriginal art - a nice painting that we will get framed back in the US from the Papunya Tula Artists Collective.  

Traeger’s Pedal Powered Radio

We went inside the John Flynn’s House, the first hospital in Alice Springs.  Not a very big hospital, it couldn’t have handled more than 2 or 3 patients.  The museum had examples of the early pedal powered radios.  These pedal powered radios were invented by Australian Alfred Traeger and they played an important role in communications from remote stations in the outback.  They subsequently spread to other remote regions of the globe.

Sculpture outside Museum of Central Australia 

We next made a trek out to the Museum of Central Australia.  Quite a way from the center of town in the heat and flies too.  Sadly the museum was closed.  Diana made up for it by going next door to the previously visited Araluen Gallery and buying yet another pair of ear rings from the gift shop.

The Ghan’s Two Engines

We took a taxi to the hotel for our bags and then caught the bus from the next door hotel Doubletree to the station for our train.  The Ghan travels twice a week in each direction from Adelaide to Darwin with a stop in Alice.  We broke our journey in Alice but many just carry on straight through - that is a shame as Alice and Uluru are quite unique.  At the station we had to wait quite a while for our train to come in.  We were finally on the way by 6:00 pm.  A new carriage, slightly older, but just as good.  

Shortly after departing Alice Springs we had dinner - Crocodile Dumplings and Barimundi.  We shared a table with an Australian couple whose name escapes me.  They owned an athletic shoe shop and they were serious travelers.  On the whole we met the most interesting people on the Ghan.

After a good nights sleep in our compartment we arose for early morning breakfast.  We sat with an American couple, Johnathan and Penny, an Orthopedic Surgeon and his wife, from Mammoth, California.  We hadn’t met many Americans on this trip, they are not usually good travelers.  Johnathan and Penny were avid bridge players.  They told us of their investment success in buying US Post Offices.  Who knew?

The train stopped in the town of Katherine mid morning and we were taken by bus to Nitmiluk.  In Katherine we learned that it once was a major meat exporter and it had a large meat processing plant.  Nowadays, it is more common to export live cattle so the plant has closed down.  We also learned that Katherine was bombed during the World War II.  I didn’t realize that the war impacted that part of the country.

Katherine River near Nitmiluk

Rock Paintings near Nitmiluk

In Nitmiluk we took a boat ride down the river to view the canyon and visit a site where there were some rock paintings.  The canyon was quite spectacular, but that’s not what we could say about the rock paintings.  They were interesting but not that spectacular.  However, the nature of one of the rock art paintings suggested that it might be one of the earliest examples of perspective drawing.

A Fresh Water Crocodile - a Freshie

We learned that if any salt water crocodiles got into this part of the river they are trapped and removed.  Salties prey on other animals and are also a danger to people so they do not want them to become established in the river where people often kayak.  They place small red floats in the river to detect salties.  Crocodiles are inquisitive, they bight the floats and then move on.  The salties leave big teeth marks, the freshies leave smaller teeth marks.  So long as all they see are small teeth then everyone is happy.  We did see a freshwater crocodile, lazily lounging on a rock.

The boat returned us to the Nitmiluk boat dock where we went ashore and had lunch.  A communal lunch with everyone from the train served in one big outdoor verandah.  Both crocodile and kangaroo were on the menu.  Kangaroo is quite nice but the crocodile tastes a bit like chicken and is not my cup of tea.  

We boarded the bus back to Katherine and boarded the train one last time.  We had about 300 km to go from Katherine to Darwin.  Most of the way it was dry scrub and grass land.  I had expected it to be more tropical.

Sunset on arrival in Darwin

We had a nice light dinner with Diana, a Welsh lady, and Jack her Dutch husband.  We arrived in Darwin at about 7:00 pm and we all disembarked and boarded buses for different hotels in the area.  We were dropped off at the Hilton in the city center, a short walk from our hotel, the Darwin City Hotel.

Central Darwin

The next morning we went for a walk around the city center.  It is not a huge city.  We had coffee and a scone outside in the Smith Street pedestrian mall then walked to the esplanade and the lagoon.  The lagoon is a man made salt water pool.  It is not wise to swim in the ocean in Darwin, the beaches aren’t great and there are salt water crocodiles and sharks in the sea so it is a bit dangerous.  There is a new cruise ship dock so they are allowing large passenger boats in the harbor.   

Beach in Darwin

Next we took an Uber to the Museum of the Northern Territory.  The museum was a little disappointing, it had a few stuffed animals and the like but not much in the way of art or historical exhibits.  I watched a documentary about the 1974 cyclone, Cyclone Tracy,  This caused great havoc and the loss of 66 lives.  It just about flattened the entire town and many thought it would never recover.

Diana’s cousin Mira and her daughter Bojana who live in Darwin met us outside the museum and took us for lunch at the Parap market.  We were had a great meal of Laksa - an oriental spicy noodle soup and Mango Lassi - a yoghurt drink.  We wondered around the market for a while and Diana managed to secure yet another pair of earrings.  We then drove over to Bo’s flat to cool down.

Sunset at the Yacht Club, Darwin

In the evening Mira and Bo took us to the Yacht Club to dine and watch the sun go down.  It was a lovely evening looking out over what is the Beagle Gulf and further out to the Timor Sea.  We had that Australian classic - Baramundi and chips.

War Memorial Toilet, Central Darwin

Next morning I was up a little early so I went for a run around the city.  Out to the Esplanade and around the government buildings.  As is common in Australia there were memorials to the war dead but here in Darwin things were a little closer to home as Darwin was bombed by the Japanese in WWII.  I didn’t realize that Japan was intent on invading Australia.

Darwin Murals

Of course, as is the norm these days with any decent sized city there were some nice murals in Darwin,

Back at the hotel we checked out and Mira picked us up and we went to pick up Bo, who was finishing her work shift at the hospital.  We all then went out for breakfast near Bo’s apartment.  A great breakfast of pancakes fruit and ice cream with the usual great coffee.  After that they drove us to the airport for our flight back to Sydney. 

It was a Quantas flight, a step above our cheap Jetstar flights.  We landed in Sydney around 6:00 and, even though we were leaving for the US the next morning, we decided to make one last trip into the city to view the bridge and the opera house.  We had a room at the same hotel as before, the Sir Stamford, near Circular Quay.  



Imagine our surprise when we got off the subway at Circular Quay when we found the whole area lit up with lights.  It was a festival known as Vivid Sydney.  Every building around Circular Quay was lit up, even the Opera House and the Bridge and the lighting was quite amazing - projections of all colors and patterns and stories with music and people everywhere.  It was stunning.  There was even a modest fireworks display by the Opera House.


A fitting end to a wonderful vacation in Australia.  Certainly one of our best ever vacations.  We stayed walking around for 2 or 3 hours until the crowds started to dissipate.  Then it was back to the hotel for one last night in Oz.

Departing Sydney

The next day, a Monday, we caught the subway out to the airport.  It was National Sorry Day, when the Australians apologize for their harsh policies towards their Aboriginal population.  Free trains and subway rides on National Sorry Day so we didn’t have to pay.

We had a shortish 8 hour flight to Hong Kong, a couple of hours in Hong Kong Airport and a 13 hour flight to San Francisco.  In SFO, Mr Trump allowed us back in the country, and we had smooth connections between BART and Amtrak and the Uber to our house.

We can’t wait to do it again - Western Australia maybe, New Zealand certainly.


Australia - Part 4 - Melbourne to Adelaide

We flew into Melbourne from Tasmania on a Saturday afternoon and picked up our rental car at the airport.  We didn’t go into Melbourne but headed straight out towards the coast to the west of the city.  After the relative calm of Tasmanian traffic the busier and more frenetic traffic in Melbourne took a while to get used to.  We bypassed Geelong, the major city to the west of Melbourne and drove to Torquay where we found a hotel for the evening near the beach.  We drove into town to dine.  There were lots of restaurants and we settled on an Italian one, Luigi’s - not bad, but not outstanding.

Bella Beach - Torquay

The next morning we were lazy and had a late start to the day.  We walked out onto the beach and park in front of the hotel to get a flavor of Torquay before we left on the coast road towards Adelaide.  We stopped at Bells Beach, a famous surfing beach (there is a long standing pro surfing competition held there every year).  There were many surfers in the water that morning - little black flecks in the ocean.

The start of the Great Ocean Road

We drove further on and we came to an archway over the road marking the start of the Great Ocean Road, the coastal road that runs from Torquay to Allensford in the north.  The road was built by returning soldiers after World War I, and it is dedicated as a memorial to the war dead.  

Beach near Lorne

The beaches along the way were truly spectacular.  There is a reason that this road is one of the world’s best coastal roads.  

Sulphur Crested Cockatoo

We stopped in Lorne for lunch.  Lorne has many restaurants and cafes along the main street with lots of outdoor seating.  As a result of all this outdoor eating the town has a real problem with the Sulphur Crested Cockatoos.  They scavenge at the tables and bins in town and harass people while they are eating.  Such a beautiful bird but ultimately it becomes a real pest.

Separation Creek Beach

We continued our drive north stopping at numerous beaches along the way and each one was spectacular.  We stopped at one called Separation Creek where there was a memorial for a shipwreck.  Apparently in 1891 the sailing ship W.B. Godfrey ran onto the rocks in poor visibility due to smoke from a bush fire.  All crew made it safely to shore but later in 3 separate salvage operations 5 people were drowned trying to reach the shipwreck.  

In the evening we arrived in Apollo Bay our destination for the evening.  We had a wonderful meal, an entire fish, a red snapper maybe, in a restaurant in the town. 

Early morning beach, Apollo Bay

The next morning I took an early morning run on the beach at sunrise.  A great way to start the day.  Outside the Post Office in Apollo Bay there is a memorial to another shipwreck.  The SS Casino had made 2,500 voyages in the treacherous waters between Apollo Bay and Melbourne.  It was due to be celebrated on its 50th anniversary when a week before it ran over its anchor, punctured its hull and sank off Apollo Bay with the loss of the captain and 9 crew members.  There have been a lot of shipwrecks on that piece of coast.  The waters must be quite treacherous.  

Cape Otway Lighthouse

We left Apollo Bay and drove north.  We took a detour to the coast to visit Cape Otway lighthouse.  The lighthouse is the oldest working lighthouse in Australia and it has been in operation since 1846.  We climbed up the 90 or so steps to the top of the lighthouse where there was an outside gallery with wonderful views of the coast below.

In the cafe associated with the lighthouse, we had a great latte (of course, it’s Australia), and a great scone with jam and cream (very decadent).

An injured Wallaby

Driving further on we came across a wallaby beside the road.  We stopped and looked at it.  It was our first real close up view of a wallaby.  When it didn’t move at all, we realized it had been injured, likely hit by a passing car.  The poor thing looked quite pathetic just sitting looking at us and not moving an inch.

Two of the Twelve Apostles

We then approached Port Campbell National Park where the 12 Apostles are to be found. The 12 Apostles are the 12 rock towers near to the coast that are a picture postcard sight that is in every guide book, tourist poster, picture book of Australia. 

Twelve Apostles

We first went down the steps to the beach just south of the main site.  This took us to the beach where we walked along to get a great view of 2 of the Apostles.   The surf was very dramatic and powerful. Then we climbed back up to the top and drove a little way north to a fairly large parking lot that was teaming with cars and buses.  From the parking lot there is a road to a viewing platform on the top of the cliffs where you can see the other Apostles.

It was so crowded.  Obviously this has become a must see location for anyone visiting Melbourne or Adelaide.  It was surprising to see that at least 90% of the visitors were Asian, likely Chinese.  There are droves of them visiting Australia. 

Twelve Apostles

We walked around the platform and took way too many photos.

London Bridge

Next stop, just north of the Apostles was another coastal rock formation, London Bridge.  This is a natural rock arch.  Before 1990 it was more impressive with two arches.  One of them collapsed in 1990 leaving just a single span.

We drove further on through more magnificent coastline - the Bay of Martyrs and the Bay of Islands.  Eventually we arrived in Allansford, the end of the Great Ocean Road.  From there we headed inland towards Hopkins Falls.  One of the guide books said that the waterfalls there were worth visiting.  I guess the autumn was not a time to see them, there was barely any water flowing.

Our Port Fairy Hotel Cottage

That evening we stayed in Port Fairy.  A small coastal town which in 2012 was voted as the world’s most livable community.  It has nice wide streets with many old buildings.  We stayed in a small hotel just on the outskirts of town, the Clonmara Country House - collection of small cottages in a nice grassy park area.  In the evening we went into town and dined at an old pub, the Oak and Anchor.  When we left the pub at 8:00 pm the streets were pretty much deserted - not a lot of night life there.

Griffiths Island Lighthouse, Port Fairy

The next morning we drove into the town took a walk around the small island, Griffiths Island, adjacent to the town.  We again saw a wallaby who posed quite nicely for us.  We talked to some birdwatchers that helped us to identify some of the birds.  They told us about the nickname for the White Ibises that we had been seeing - they call them Bin Chickens.  A most pleasant walk for a couple of miles.

Some ladies we met on the walk told us about an area we didn’t know about called Tower Hill.  Apparently there we could see lots of Koalas and Emus.  It wasn’t on our itinerary but after we aborted our attempt to drive into the Grampian Mountains (it was too far and would have taken too long) we decided to take a look.

Koala at Tower Hill Preserve

Tower Hill Wildlife Preserve is situated in a basin that surrounds a now dormant volcano.  We drove down to the bottom and parked the car.  Then immediately we saw people looking up into a nearby tree.  Right there in the parking lot was a koala bear sleeping in a tree.  Then we spotted another and another.  Then on the ground there were a couple of emus walking around, scavenging off the nearby picnickers.

Emu, Tower Hill Preserve

We walked around one of the lakes in the Preserve, looking for more koalas.  They are pretty well hidden and they certainly don’t move much so they are hard to spot.  We eventually got our eye in and we knew where to spot them.  We must have seen 9 or 10 of them.  One or two were munching on eucalyptus leaves but most were sleeping.  They sleep for 20 hours a day and eat leaves for the other 4 hours.  They are quite cute but you wouldn’t want to mess with their claws, the claws are quite scary.  

We left the preserve and drove on to Portland our destination for the night.  Portland is a larger town, part industrial part touristic.  We booked our lodging in a lighthouse cottage about 10 miles out of town.  As it was getting late we drove out to the lighthouse.  When we got there, there was no sign of anyone to let us into our room.  Fortunately there was a light in one of the other cottages and I went and knocked on the door.  A friendly chap (they are all friendly) answered and told me that we needed to go back to town and inquire in Mac’s Hotel for our key.  So it was back to town again and, sure enough, Mac’s Hotel was managing the keys for the lighthouse.  We actually dined in Mac’s Hotel before heading back out to the lighthouse.

Cape Nelson Lighthouse 

It was now late at night so we drove extremely slowly in case we encountered any wildlife on the road.  Fortunately we didn’t.  However when we reached the lighthouse and walked into the garden area there were two kangaroos grazing on the lawn outside our door.  They weren’t really bothered by our presence.  They watched us for a while and then continued eating the grass.

Our Lighthouse Cottage, Cape Nelson

I looked out of the door several times throughout the night and they were still there munching on the grass.  We got up when the sun came up and they were still there outside our room.

This was a great place to stay.  The cottage was very well equipped - TV, WiFi, Washing Machine, Fireplace. Bedroom, Bathroom, Lounge, Kitchen and reasonable well stocked fridge.  We would definitely stay there again.

Wallaby, Cape Nelson

In the morning we walked around the lighthouse and out for a while on what was the Ocean Walkway Trail - a hiking trail along the coast.  We found a wallaby by the trail who was quite happy to pose for pictures for us.  Not at all worried by our presence.

We drove north from Portland to Mt Gambier.  We had seen a lot of road kill in Australia.  Certainly we had seen more dead wallabies and kangaroos than live ones.  Until the drive to Mt Gambier we had not seen a dead koala, but this morning we did.  They don’t move very far in the 4 hours of activity each day and this poor one happened to move into the road and get killed - most unlucky.

The area we were driving through to Mt Gambier was primarily a conifer plantation.  Acres and acres of land planted with rows of coniferous trees.

Umpherston Sink Hole, Mt Gambier

In Mt Gambier we visited the Umpherston Sink Hole, a sink hole in the limestone rock that had been curated and planted with various plants and trees.  Sort of interesting if you like plants and Diana certainly does like them.

Blue Lake Volcanic Crater, Mt Gambier

From there we went to the Blue Lake Volcanic Crater.  This is a round crater filled with water.  The water appears different shades of blue depending on the calcium content of the water which varies with the season.

We went into the center of Mt Gambier for our usual mid-morning coffee and cake.  There was an art gallery across the street from our cafe so we went inside for a look around.  Not a very noteworthy gallery I am afraid.

Naracoorte Caves

From Mt Gambier we headed over to Naracoorte through the Coonawara wine country.  In Naracoorte there is a UNESCO World Heritage Fossil Site, the Naracoorte Caves National Park.  There was a small exhibit of the various fossilized animals that have been found at the site and one of the caves was open to explore, the strangely named Stick Tomato Cave.   The cave was relatively impressive, for a cave that is open for the public to freely walk around.  

From Naracoorte we drove to Robe where we were staying for the night.  We stayed in the very basic but quite adequate Robe City Motel and dined down the street at the rather nice Sails restaurant where we had garfish, another first for us.

Flinders and Baudin, Robe

The next morning, a Thursday, I was up early for a run around Robe.  There were some interesting things there - busts of Matthew Flinders and the French explorer Nicholas Baudin, the Customs House, the Marina, the Robe Obelisk, a very unimaginative sculpture called the Encounter Signal, the ruins of the old Gaol.  I finished my run in a light drizzle.

Customs House, Robe

During the 1850’s the government of Victoria imposed a 10 pound landing tax to deter Chinese miners.  Instead some 16,000 Chinese miners landed in Robe and walked the 200 miles to the goldfields of Ballarat and  Bendigo.  It was known as the Robe Walk.

For breakfast we visited a bakery near the hotel - a great meat pie, a great chocolate croissant, and as always a great latte.  I do enjoy Australian food.

Larry the Lobster, Kingston

We drove on towards Adelaide.  Past the Larry the giant lobster in Kingston, through the sand dunes and salt flats of Coorong National Park.  

The German Arms Hotel, Hahndorf

Just outside Adelaide we stopped in the very touristy German town of Hahndorf.  The busy main street was full of German bakeries, Sausage and Beer restaurants, and gift shop selling all manner of German trinkets.  We walked the length of the town, had a bite of lunch and a piece of Apple Strudel.  

Southern Brown Bandicoot, Mt Lofty, Adelaide

On the outskirts of Adelaide we went up to Mount Lofty, a park area on the top of a hill with nice views of Adelaide below.  The city doesn’t look that impressive but on Mount Lofty we did see a Southern Brown Bandicoot, and a beautiful Superb Fairywren.

We drove down the eucalyptus covered hills into Adelaide and our hotel, the Vibe Hotel.  After checking in we took the car back to the Europcar office in the city.  Somehow we had received a small scratch on the back bumper.  I noticed it but thankfully the Europcar guy didn’t.

Adelaide Arcade

We explored a little of the city walking though the old Arcades, Diana looked at Opals but didn’t buy,

Adelaide Railway Station

We checked out the main station where we expected to pick up our train to Alice Springs only to find that the train to Alice is too long to fit in the Adelaide station so they use a purpose built station out of town.  It was a good job we found that out before our departure.

There was a protest against Israel’s treatment of Palestine going on outside the government building near the train station.   A modest group of peaceful protesters with signs and a small number of police quietly observing.

Adelaide Central Market

On Friday morning we took a walk into town and went to the Central Market.  This was very much like Melbourne’s market but not quite as big.  Great produce of every kind and of course wonderful coffee and cakes.

National Gallery of South Australia

We walked on to the Art Gallery of Southern Australia.  Not quite as impressive as New South Wales or Victoria’s Art Galleries but still very good and, of course, free to enter. 

Pig sculpture on Rundle Street Mall

We walked back through the Arcades again and along the Rundle Street Mall, the main pedestrian street and then returned to the market to buy some supplies (persimmons and fougasse bread).  

Diana returned to the hotel and I walked around a little more.  Adelaide has a central business district and old center that is surrounded by four terraces - a North Terrace, East Terrace, South Terrace and West Terrace.  This makes the downtown area easy to navigate.

St Xavier’s Cathedral

I went around the St Xavier’s Cathedral.  A nice Catholic Church, one of many churches in Adelaide.  I then walked west to Hindley Street.  Hindley Street has a completely different vibe, it is full of bars and massage parlors, and it all looks a bit seedy and shabby.

An early Holden - South Australia State Library

Back on the North Terrace I went in the South Australia State Library.  There was an interesting exhibit there about the Holden car company.  Holden started making saddles in the 1850’s and from there advanced into making carriages, car bodies and then complete automobiles.  Interestingly the stopped making wooden car bodies some time in the 1930’s and they sold off their woodworking equipment to their employees enabling them to start furniture companies.

A quiet evening dining back at the hotel.

The next morning, a Saturday, we went to the market for breakfast, coffee, cake and Diana’s favorite bread, fougasse.

Aboriginal Art - Museum of South Australia

We then went to the Museum of South Australia - again free to the public.  They had an interesting large collection of stuffed animals that was surprisingly good and really helped with the identification of the marsupials down there.  There was also great aboriginal art along with a great collection of minerals, especially opals which of course is what central Australia is famous for.  I particularly liked the exhibit on the expeditions to the South Pole.  The exploits of Mawson (who we had first heard of in Hobart) were fascinating.  He was quite the heroic figure in Australian Antarctic exploration. 

Adelaide Botanical Gardens

A bit of shopping on a further visit to one of the arcades, then a walk out to the Eastern Terrace and into the Botanical Gardens.  The gardens are quite beautiful with all manner of exotic plants and trees.

Back at the hotel for Happy Hour wine - McClaren Vale Shiraz was the favorite.  We stayed at the hotel to dine and prepare for our departure on the train to Alice Springs the next day.