Apr 25, north from Port Augusta to Coober Pedy

Today on the news they announced that the population of Australia is now 23 million and growing fairly rapidly through immigration.

Stopped in Port Augusta and looked at a long mural in front of the Catholic Church. It was made of 2500 handmade tiles and depicted the history of the area from prehistoric times to the present. Very nicely done.

Then we drove and drove and drove. The countryside quickly went to sparse trees and scrub. The road went by a few seasonal lakes, some dry and salty looking and a couple with some water in them. We saw emus in the land by the road and one very close to the road. We saw a lot of ravens and huge buzzards. The land is very harsh and animals die. They are also hit by the cars and trucks that race by, so the ravens and buzzards find them.

We stopped at Woomera, the base of the largest land-based missile and rocket range in the western world. The British and Americans worked at the site. NASA operated a tracking station here too. There are still some defense and space operations, but the town looked pretty deserted. The only gas station was on the highway 5km away.

At Glendambo we stopped for fuel and lunch, then drove on. The scrub became shorter and the gravely desert surface was covered with black desert polish (scree?). In some caves in Arizona, the native Americans scratched pictures by removing the scree to expose the red rock underneath.

At one point there was a sign on the road warning drivers that ahead was a stretch of highway that was designated as an emergency airstrip for the Royal Flying Doctors Service. The service flies people from remote areas to hospitals.

As we got closer to Coober Pedy we could see evidence of opal mining - piles of dirt around the desert. Now we're in Coober Pedy and will look around town tomorrow. Coober Pedy comes from the Aborigine meaning "white man in hole". The early miners found that they could dig homes underground and remain comfortable in the high summer heat. Now there are underground restaurants, hotels, and churches.

Pictures - Tile of girl attending school by radio, Working on train track, Missile at Woomera, Lake Hart, Road Sign, Coober Pedy Opal Mining Truck

Apr 24, Flinders Ranges to Port Augusta

Up early to see the sun rise. I went out to take a picture and heard a whoosh. Looked up and there was a hot air balloon. They must have been having a sunrise ride. It was so quiet there that a bird flew overhead and I could hear his wings flapping.

We drove back to the station to see the sheep shearing. They have about 2000 sheep and shear them in the autumn. A team of 4 shearers come around and each man can shear 150 to 200 sheep each day. Each sheep produces about 15 pounds of wool.
He demonstrated on 3 sheep, just sat the sheep down and started. There was a pattern to it, belly first, then over to the side and around. The belly and leg wool comes off separately, but the rest is one big piece of fleece. The sheep didn't seem to mind any of it.
Then he classed the fleece by putting it on a table and separating the really dirty, matted parts into one bin. He checked the rest, testing it for strength and put it in the wool press. It took about 50 fleece or around 770 pounds. Most Australian wool is exported to China, but some also to Italy and the US.
They also offered us morning tea with scones, jam and cream - an unexpected treat.

South of Hawker we came across the Yourambulla Cave. This was another hike up a hill, then up a couple of ladders to the cave drawings. The paintings tell stories, but its difficult to decipher them.

We've had a change of plans. We have many miles to go and our time is getting short, so instead of driving to the Eyre Peninsula, we're going to head north. So we headed for Port Augusta to prepare for the trip. I got a haircut, the first one since we've been gone. We had our tires and fluid levels checked, got groceries and did laundry.
We're at the town motorhome park. We arrived after dark and the caravans and motorhomes are packed in, so we squeezed between 2 of them for the night.

Pictures - Hot air balloon, Sunrise over the Flinders Range, Dog working sheep, Sheep shearing, Sheared sheep, Classing fleece, Youranbulla Cave painting

Apr 23, Flinders Ranges

There was supposed to be a Stobie Poles Mural in Murray Town and not only couldn't we find the mural, we couldn't find the town. Some of the towns here are really, really small, so it's no surprise that we missed it. Stobie poles are telephone poles. Some of the ones we've seen were made of concrete and had scenes painted on them.

At Melrose we took a 3 km walk in the hills to Cathedral Rock and the War Memorial. It was confusing because the area had extensive biking trails and hiking trails, but we managed. We saw a few kangaroos, but for the most part, they spotted us before we spotted them and they hopped away.
Outside of Melrose there was a memorial to the Goyder Line. "In 1865, Surveyor General, George Goyder, marked on the map of South Australia, a line delineating drought-affected country. The line became an important factor in settlement in the state, being regarded as an indication of the limits of lands considered safe for agricultural development." The line still holds true today.

In Quorn, we found that the train would run again in the morning and the camel tours are no longer running. So we drove up to Milpena Pound in the heart of the Flinders Range for a quick look. At that point we turned around to go back to Quorn and south. We took another hike to Arkaroo Rock and Aboriginal paintings. It was a nice hike up and down the rocky hillsides.

On the road again, Samson spotted a sign for sheep shearing tomorrow. He has been wanting to see that ever since we got out into the countryside. So we stopped at a lookout for the night and will go back to the sheep station in the morning.

Pictures - Jeanne on swing bridge, View from Melrose Track, Road to Flinders Ranges, Arkaroo Rock Paintings, Samson on Arkaroo Trail, Flinders Range

Apr 22, Yorke Peninsula to Murray Town

We drove around Wallaroo to the Cornucopia Hotel, having the same name since 1862, and the 1914 Railway Station, now the Council office and the library.

At Kadina, we drove by the Wombat Hotel. Wombats played a role in the copper mining here and in Moonta. Shepherds in both areas found copper bearing ore in wombat holes and the finds led to mining in those towns. Kadina was a lovely town, hotels with iron lace balconies, Cornish cottages, lots of history.

Port Broughton had a long, recently extended jetty with fishing boats and pleasure boats. On the jetty was a family fishing. The dad was encouraging his two daughters and son and exhibiting great patience, putting bait on the hooks.

Port Pirie was a larger, industrial town. Some of the things we wanted to see weren't operating, so we went on a tour of the lead smelter. It has been in operation for 123 years and is now Nyrstar, a Belgium company. The ore comes here from Broken Hill to be refined. The ore also contains zinc, silver, gold and cadmium and they get sulphuric acid from it too. What was impressive was that they send all the byproducts back through the refining process, so that the final leftovers are free of heavy metals and is used in making highways. It sounded as if the company and the government environmental oversight organization have put much effort into making sure no dust or gases get into the environment. That wasn't always the case and there is a big push to lower blood lead levels in children.
The workers all wear protective clothing and respirators on site and they are strictly monitored with lead testing every 6 months. There is random drug and alcohol testing. Also outside of the employee parking lot is a self testing station. If an employee has been drinking, he can test himself and report that to his supervisor. The supervisor can tell him to rest and retest later that day.

We drove north along the coast and then turned east to Telowie Gorge. The road to the gorge was not suitable for the motorhome, so we went on. The road we were on wound through narrow canyons on the way to Murray Town. We're in a community camping area, with about 6 powered sites and space for lots of unpowered parking. It has an honesty box to pay for the space, extra charge for showers and water fill ups.

Pictures - Cornish cottage in Wallaroo, Wombat Hotel, Victoria Square in Kadina, Off the jetty in Port Broughton, Greek Orthodox Church in Port Pirie, Hotel in Port Pirie with typical vehicles, Port Pirie RR Station with Nyrstar in the background, Road past Telowie Gorge

Apr 21, Yorke Peninsula, Port Victoria to Wallaroo

We were parked at a lookout above Spencer Gulf and strong winds came up. The motorhome was moving really rocked by the wind bursts. We moved down about 2am and it was better. Then the rain came pounding down. We moved again about 6am into town where buildings could shield us. Much better.

We waited in Port Victoria for wind and rain to subside. Then we tried to do a geology walk along the shore, but the rains returned. So we drove inland to Maitland. We stopped at the bakery for coffee and information. We got a nut slice and found out where the Anglican Church was. That was closed, and only holding services a couple of Sundays a month.

Further north in Moonta, we went to the information center in the former railroad station. The tourist train was not running because the tracks were wet and the train couldn't grasp them. We went to the Moonta mines Uniting Church. It was built when the copper mines in the area were working, back in the 1860's. The mine owner insisted that the miners attend church or be docked pay. The next Sunday, miners were lined up around the church to get in. So the owner had a balcony installed and the church could hold 1250 people. The organ had the original paint on it and was beautiful, as was the church.

We tried walking around the mine site, but the rain came again and the tracks were muddy.So we drove out to Hughes Bay and Moonta Bay for a view of the whitecaps on the gulf.

On to Wallaroo. This town, with Moonta and Kadina are considered Little Cornwall because so many Cornish miners came to work here. The three towns hold a joint Cornish festival every 2 years. Some of the events scheduled for it are Furry Dancing, Pasty Making Workshops, and drinking Swank. Don't know what Swank and Furry Dancing are.

We stopped at the Information Centre at the local museum. There were 2 gentlemen in there. One working and providing tourist info, the other visiting him. Samson had on his "Really Old Navies" sweatshirt from the Civil War Naval Museum in Columbus, GA. That attracted the attention of the second man who told us about more Confederate connections to Australia. A man from Wallaroo served in the Confederacy and when he returned and married, the first man's great great grandfather was his witness.

The weather still wasn't cooperating, so we decided to stay here and have pizza for supper. We opted for the vegetarian pizza at Best Pizza, but with only the olives, onions, mushroom and tomatoes. No pineapple.

Was talking with someone earlier about the Prime Minister, Julia Gillard. She has a boyfriend who lives at Government House and travels with her on government trips, just recently to China. I guess he has spoken out of turn and is not universally liked. They call him The First Bloke. Cheeky Aussies.

Pictures - Moonta Railway Station, House in Moonta, Moonta Mines Uniting Church Exterior, Interior, Moonta Bay

Apr 21, Yorke Peninsula, Port Victoria to Wallaroos

We were parked at a lookout above Spencer Gulf and strong winds came up. The motorhome was moving really rocked by the wind bursts. We moved down about 2am and it was better. Then the rain came pounding down. We moved again about 6am into town where buildings could shield us. Much better.

We waited in Port Victoria for wind and rain to subside. Then we tried to do a geology walk along the shore, but the rains returned. So we drove inland to Maitland. We stopped at the bakery for coffee and information. We got a nut slice and found out where the Anglican Church was. That was closed, and only holding services a couple of Sundays a month.

Further north in Moonta, we went to the information center in the former railroad station. The tourist train was not running because the tracks were wet and the train couldn't grasp them. We went to the Moonta mines Uniting Church. It was built when the copper mines in the area were working, back in the 1860's. The mine owner insisted that the miners attend church or be docked pay. The next Sunday, miners were lined up around the church to get in. So the owner had a balcony installed and the church could hold 1250 people. The organ had the original paint on it and was beautiful, as was the church.

We tried walking around the mine site, but the rain came again and the tracks were muddy.So we drove out to Hughes Bay and Moonta Bay for a view of the whitecaps on the gulf.

On to Wallaroo. This town, with Moonta and Kadina are considered Little Cornwall because so many Cornish miners came to work here. The three towns hold a joint Cornish festival every 2 years. Some of the events scheduled for it are Furry Dancing, Pasty Making Workshops, and drinking Swank. Don't know what Swank and Furry Dancing are.

We stopped at the Information Centre at the local museum. There were 2 gentlemen in there. One working and providing tourist info, the other visiting him. Samson had on his "Really Old Navies" sweatshirt from the Civil War Naval Museum in Columbus, GA. That attracted the attention of the second man who told us about more Confederate connections to Australia. A man from Wallaroo served in the Confederacy and when he returned and married, the first man's great great grandfather was his witness.

The weather still wasn't cooperating, so we decided to stay here and have pizza for supper. We opted for the vegetarian pizza at Best Pizza, but with only the olives, onions, mushroom and tomatoes. No pineapple.

Was talking with someone earlier about the Prime Minister, Julia Gillard. She has a boyfriend who lives at Government House and travels with her on government trips, just recently to China. I guess he has spoken out of turn and is not universally liked. They call him The First Bloke. Cheeky Aussies.

Pictures - Moonta Railway Station, House in Moonta, Moonta Mines Uniting Church Exterior, Interior, Moonta Bay

Apr 20, Yorke Peninsula

It was a leisurely day, driving around Yorke Peninsula. Most of the towns were very small, populations ranged from 350 to 1200.

At Price, we drove out on a causeway through samphire tidal flats. Not sure what samphire is, but the area was covered in low shrubs with the tide filling up between them. Further out there were mangroves. The causeway ended at mysterious Wells Creek. Not sure why it was mysterious, but it was tropical looking with the mangroves on the banks. There was a salt works outside of town with several evaporation ponds and mountains of salt. All of it, plus the brine is exported to Japan.

Ardrossan was the home of the Stump Jump Plough. It was developed there to enable the farmers to plow the land without clearing the low scrub that has deep roots. There were several variations, but the display did not explain how they worked. Some had hinges, some has springs. These towns are on the Gulf of St Vincent across from Adelaide. The area produces wheat and barley and ships it from the ports here.
Ardrossan had 2 jetties, one for fishing and crabbing and the other for shipping grain. Huge grain silos stood at the end of the jetty. We stopped at the bakery for coffee with donut and nut slice. The chocolate covered donut was huge and the nut slice was dough covered with a layer of chocolate and chopped nuts covered with a glaze. We then drove to a lookout that had views of a dolomite mine and the gulf.

At Port Vincent, we walked around the waterfront, then drove to the wharf and walked to see some erratics. These were glacial rocks that were carried from Victor Harbor on the southern coast to this area during the last ice age before the continents split.

At Stansbury, we walked along the top of the cliffs for views of the gulf and the shore. Yorketown was inland, but was surrounded by salt lakes. There is no salt production now, but the lakes remain.

Minlaton is the home of the Red Devil, the plane that took mail from Minlaton to Adelaide in 1919. It was the first air mail across the sea in th Southern Hemisphere. The plane has been restored and is on display. Minlaton is also the barley capital of the world!

Now we're on the other side of the peninsula in Port Victoria on Spencer Gulf.

Pictures - Samson at Wells Creek, Stump Jumper Plough, House in Ardrossan, Jeanne and Port Vincent, The Red Devil

Apr 19, Burra, Sevenhills, Clare

It was really, really windy last night. The wind rocked the camper and woke us up several times. And it got pretty cold, about 50. It is autumn here, so we're prepared.

We were up and out early seeing historical sights in Burra. There was an old gaol (jail), that held prisoners in the early days of the mining town and later it became a girls reformatory. The girls seem to have been quite a problem. One account of 3 girls who were on the roof of the building, said they were "dancing, singing low songs and swearing down right insolence, destroying government property and undressing and exposing themselves to all passersby in only their flannels and bloomers."

We went into the Market Square Museum and Lolly Shop. (Lollies refers to all sweets). The guide had some interesting stories about the exhibits and times. In the 1800's wedding dresses were not white. (Earlier, at the time of the song "Greensleeves", they were green. I didn't know the song was about being left at the altar.) Anyway, there was a black Lutheran wedding dress. Lutherans were very austere, but this had maroon ribbons on the sleeves as decoration. There was a lavender dress worn by the daughter of the Tetley tea founder. She brought Tetley tea to Australia.

Next was a tour of the mine's engine house. The engine was used to pump water out of the underground mine. The building was beautiful with 5ft thick walls and recently restored with 24" x 15" beams. We learned that this was the first metal mine in Australia and the ore was sent to Wales to be smelted because there were no facilities here. Oxen pulled wagons filled with ore to Port Adelaide, 100 miles away, taking 2 weeks for the trip. At any one time there were 5000 oxen on the road. Lots of facts to stress that this was the largest mine in the world at the time and the richest. It saved South Australia from bankruptcy.

We drove from Burra to Sevenhill, but went the long way around since I misread the map and GPS directions. Sevenhill is a winery established by Jesuits in 1851. There was a beautiful church there and a school also.

At Spring Gully Conservation Park and took a walk to the cascades. No water, but we did see a rare tree, the red stringybark gum. If we had been there in the spring we might have seen Australian orchids in bloom.

In Clare we drove up to Billy Goat Hill, a lookout over the town, then west to Blythe, where we took another walk. This one went beside a golf course, a very dry golf course. The greens were sandy and had rakes next to them, like our sand traps.
A kangaroo watched our progress and gulahs flew overhead, very nice walk.

Now we're in the small town of Lochiel. At the edge of town was a truck train staging area. They call trucks pulling more than one trailer "trains" and in the outback they can pull up to four. We've seen many with 2, but will be meeting the longer ones later.

Pictures - Miners Cottages in Burra, Samson at Burra RR Station, St Aloysius Church at Sevenhill, 5th hole on golf course, Gulahs

Apr 18, Kingston on Murray, Morgan, Burra

We met up with Carl at his boat on the river. It was a small pontoon-like boat that could hold up to 10 passengers, but today we were the only 2. It was a wonderful cruise down the Murray, into Loch Luna and around Snake Island. It was leisurely and incredibly peaceful. We saw snake birds, relatives of cormorants, who swim with their bodies submerged and only their long heads and necks above water - looking very much like snakes. We saw kites and yellow spoonbills, black swans, pelicans and parrots. There was a small blue kookaburra-like bird, herons and egrets.
We cruised, then stopped for tea and cookies, then finished the cruise.

Carl had been a banker in Adelaide and then in Barmera, but gave it up for more family time. He does up to 2 cruises a day and really loves what he does. He has 3 children and 2 of them attend the primary school in Kingston on Murray. The school has a total of 16 students, from kindergarten to grade 7. He said his son invited the whole school home for his birthday party!

After lunch we drove to Morgan, taking another ferry, and wandered around a little bit, looking at their 100 year old wharf and an old railroad turntable.

The drive to Burra was a bit longer. When we got here we stopped at the information and bought a Heritage Trail Passport. It's a unique way for visitors to see the sights. We got a key which allows us to visit 9 historical places, a booklet with a tourist drive to 50 interesting sites and entrance to 3 museums. We spent the evening going to see miner's dugouts. When copper mining was at its height, there wasn't enough housings so some miners dug rooms and homes out of the creek bank. A few of them remain.

We visited some of the mine sites and are now camped at a lookout point with views of the town below.

Pictures - Sunrise over the Murray, Murray River, Parrots, Pelicans on a Log, Samson in a Miner's Dugout