Ayre Peninsula
Ayre Peninsula in South Australia
One of our goals was to visit the Aridlands Botanical Gardens in Port Augusta which had a reputation having having a fine collection of desert plants on display.
After filling up with diesel and groceries we shot out to the edge of town to have a look. The temperature was about 35 degrees which meant we wilted pretty quickly as we tried to wander and take in some of the display gardens. The gardens had a number of "themed display beds" which helped us understand different soils types and plants associated with each of them. The highlight was however the rammed earth visitor centre building which was a great eco design that looked wonderful in the red desert setting and very practical in such hot temperatures.
Over the next day or two we made our way down the main highway towards Port Lincoln stopping at Cowell and Tumby Bay along the way. We were hoping for cooler temperatures after the roasting we had in the deserts. It got steadily cooler as we moved south and we began to see more grain crops growing in fields that need the rain. We loved some of the deserted coastal beaches but the cool westerly wind keep us well rugged up.
We enjoyed visiting Cowell which has a small greenstone industry based on a deposit just under the surface about 50 kms inland. We were told the farm has just been sold in Chinese interests, so guess the locals will be paying alot more for the raw stone in future. Some of the greenstone was very dark and polished up beautifully. Maria made a request and bought herself an early Christmas present.
Port Lincoln is a town built on grain exports and tuna fishing. We were interested in going to Lincoln National Park that occupies a very extensive Peninsula south of the port. We bought a three day camp pass for the campsites at Surfleet Bay which included a entry fee on top of the camp fees. So we headed off for a few days exploring this windswept place taking in the sea, surf, sand dunes and walking trails. Did a few neat MTB rides to some remote beaches which was cool. However the weather was not that flash and generally pretty cool. In summer the temperatures much get up a bit and the water warms up for swimming. Most visitors were just camping as it was school holidays but the park was never very busy.
Later that week we drove over to Coffin Bay National Park to stay a night in the campground at Yangie Bay. Again the coastal scenery was pretty stunning but it remained cool, windy and showery.
We decide it was about time to head inland once more so we drove to Cummins in the centre of the peninsula. Our last bit of exploration was to drive from Kimba through an unsealed road to Whyalla. The drive was through malle forest and scrubland. Visited a place called Secret Rocks which are a group of three granite outcrops high above the forest with stuuning views.
We spent a couple of days on the beach at Lowly Point before we said goodbye to the Ayre Peninsula. It's a place worth visiting especially in summer when the temperatures are likely to be a higher and more settled.
Our next challenge is to visit the South Flinders Ranges and scoot over to Renmark before crossing into Victoria for the first time.
All for now
Rudy and Maria.
One of our goals was to visit the Aridlands Botanical Gardens in Port Augusta which had a reputation having having a fine collection of desert plants on display.
After filling up with diesel and groceries we shot out to the edge of town to have a look. The temperature was about 35 degrees which meant we wilted pretty quickly as we tried to wander and take in some of the display gardens. The gardens had a number of "themed display beds" which helped us understand different soils types and plants associated with each of them. The highlight was however the rammed earth visitor centre building which was a great eco design that looked wonderful in the red desert setting and very practical in such hot temperatures.
Over the next day or two we made our way down the main highway towards Port Lincoln stopping at Cowell and Tumby Bay along the way. We were hoping for cooler temperatures after the roasting we had in the deserts. It got steadily cooler as we moved south and we began to see more grain crops growing in fields that need the rain. We loved some of the deserted coastal beaches but the cool westerly wind keep us well rugged up.
We enjoyed visiting Cowell which has a small greenstone industry based on a deposit just under the surface about 50 kms inland. We were told the farm has just been sold in Chinese interests, so guess the locals will be paying alot more for the raw stone in future. Some of the greenstone was very dark and polished up beautifully. Maria made a request and bought herself an early Christmas present.
Port Lincoln is a town built on grain exports and tuna fishing. We were interested in going to Lincoln National Park that occupies a very extensive Peninsula south of the port. We bought a three day camp pass for the campsites at Surfleet Bay which included a entry fee on top of the camp fees. So we headed off for a few days exploring this windswept place taking in the sea, surf, sand dunes and walking trails. Did a few neat MTB rides to some remote beaches which was cool. However the weather was not that flash and generally pretty cool. In summer the temperatures much get up a bit and the water warms up for swimming. Most visitors were just camping as it was school holidays but the park was never very busy.
Later that week we drove over to Coffin Bay National Park to stay a night in the campground at Yangie Bay. Again the coastal scenery was pretty stunning but it remained cool, windy and showery.
We decide it was about time to head inland once more so we drove to Cummins in the centre of the peninsula. Our last bit of exploration was to drive from Kimba through an unsealed road to Whyalla. The drive was through malle forest and scrubland. Visited a place called Secret Rocks which are a group of three granite outcrops high above the forest with stuuning views.
We spent a couple of days on the beach at Lowly Point before we said goodbye to the Ayre Peninsula. It's a place worth visiting especially in summer when the temperatures are likely to be a higher and more settled.
Our next challenge is to visit the South Flinders Ranges and scoot over to Renmark before crossing into Victoria for the first time.
All for now
Rudy and Maria.
Check out the Stones Ginger Wine factory in Renmark (lots of tastings)
ReplyDeleteLake Mungo was also an interesting place