Day 9: Tue 21 Feb 23 - Mount Gambier To Beachport

Tue 21 Feb - Mount Gambier to Beachport (Towed 89 km)

14 Deg, felt like 10 Deg in the morning at Mount Gambier reaching 25 feeling like 18 Deg at Beachport on the coast. Fresh southeasterly winds reaching 35km on the coast made it feel very fresh, it was so gusty it became uncomfortable outdoors. With only a short distance to drive today, we packed and left Mount Gambier a little later at 0930 passing through some beautiful countryside including vast pine plantations, stopping about half way at the small town of Millicent. This lovely little town with some colourful murals is a major service centre for the surrounding farms and timber industry. After a stroll through town, we continued to Beachport and checked in at the Southern Ocean Tourist Park where we were set up and having lunch by 1230. After lunch we went for a short reccy drive around the area but the wind was far too uncomfortable to be outdoors, so we went back to the van for the afternoon. Where's the predicted heatwave we asked? Apparently arriving tomorrow - today we need to add layers of clothing. It was a quiet afternoon and evening in the van, but a nice change.

In Millicent, at the Information Centre, the Ash Wednesday Memorial commemorating the volunteers who served during the Ash Wednesday fires in Feb 1983. 


A lovely mural in Millicent

Millicent

Mural in Millicent


Colourful mural in Millicent

Colourful mural in Millicent

Main Street Millicent

Mural in Millicent

Mural in Millicent


Mural in Millicent

War Memorial - Millicent

Nice old church Millicent

Colourful mural in Millicent

A windy afternoon on the coast at Beachport

A windy afternoon on the coast at Beachport - the Jetty


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Day 57: Mon 10 Apr 23 - Port Augusta to Flinders Ranges (Wilpena Pound)

Image
Mon 10 Apr 23 - Port Augusta to Flinders Ranges (Towed 165 km) 11 Deg overnight reaching 23 Deg through the day. It was a beautiful morning and it remained so all day. We packed and drove away from Port Augusta at 0800, and our first stop was a short 42km later at the historic township of Quorn. This was our original destination, instead of Port Augusta, but everything here was booked out over the Easter long weekend. We parked, and walked around town for about an hour and decided we would not have been disappointed to stay here. Luckily our stop also coincided with the Pichi Richi Steam Train tour which was also about to depart on one of its daily tours. Quorn is a lovely town, and we would be happy to return for a longer stay some time in the future - even just for an overnighter, and maybe even a steam train ride. From Quorn, we continued to Hawker - the gateway to the Flinders Ranges. There is not much to see here, so we had a wander around, refuelled to make sure we had a full tan...
Read more

Day 48: Sat 01 Apr 23 - Elliston

Image
Sat 01 Apr 23 - Elliston 9 Deg and very still this morning reaching 22 Deg throughout the day. The strong SW wind arrived mid morning making it feel very fresh, and didn't let up until the late evening. This morning, I went for a 5km walk to the Jetty and along the town beach and back. It was a little fresh, but a beautiful morning with sun still rising and providing a little warmth. Back to the van and after breakfast, Dale (next door neighbour) and I went for about a 12km bike ride half way along the hilly Clifftop Drive around the Headland Sculpture trail with more spectacular views over the Great Australian Bight and the amazing coastline. Meanwhile Noeleene went for a walk into town and back. We all met back at the van, had lunch, then Noel and I drove the full loop of the Clifftop Drive and sculpture trail stopping several times. Watching surfers clamber down the steep rocky cliff face and paddle out 100s of meters into massive surf, captivated our attention for quite a while...
Read more

Day 13: Sat 25 Feb 23 - Robe

Image
Sat 25  Feb - Robe Another mild night; 15 Deg with steady rain falling from 0300, easing in the morning and reaching a very moderate 18 Deg throughout the day. It was nice laying in bed listening to the rain falling on the roof, and thankfully it cleared early by 0800.  I headed out for my morning walk, around the headland and back to the van past two very stale and smelly lakes - Lake Charra and Lake Fellmongery. Lake Charra is also known by locals as the smelly lake and looks like a dirty cesspit. There is conjecture about what causes the smell - some suggest its from acid sulphate soil in the lake when it dries and is exposed to the air, giving off the smell. Others believe it's a plant or weed giving off the smell, but I'm just glad we're not staying in the caravan park that backs onto it. We are however staying in the park that backs on to the larger albeit less smelly Fellmongery Lake. This lake has an interesting history in that a fellmongering business (the process ...
Read more