Travelling Around Australia: Menindee to the Eyre Peninsula

8^th February 2013 to 5^th March 2013

After we left Broken Hill our next destination was to the Menindee Lakes area about 110 kms east. There are a number of free camps around these lakes but this time we elected to go to a caravan park due to the forecasted weather which was to be really hot. We chose the Menindee Lakes Caravan Park about 5 kms from the township of Menindee mainly because of the telephone manner of the park host Tim. It turned out to be an excellent decision. Sammi and Tim along with their sons Tyson and Braxton welcomed us very warmly. It is not a busy time of year for them so they chose a premium spot for us where we were sheltered from the sun with some beautiful trees and still had a great view of the lake.

Menindee is the first town on the Darling River and the lake is fed by the Darling. When Sammi and Tim first took over the park, the lake was empty and although it is not full now, due to it being emptied back into the Darling by the authorities, it still had plenty of water in it for us to enjoy. The weather was very hot while we were here so the lake was a welcome respite. On our second day here another couple from Muswellbrook in NSW arrived. Rob and Emma and their 3 children Taneika, Lily and Jake camped next to us and we enjoyed a fabulous few days and nights together, particularly the star gazing. They are travelling for a year or so and the children are being home schooled. Hopefully we can catch up with this wonderful family in Darwin later in the year.

Tim and Sammi took us all fishing by the river on the edge of the Kinchega National Park. It was a successful outing with about 11 yellowbelly being caught and all of us can claim catching a fish, although for some it was only a crappy old carp. Tim cleaned the fish for us and then we all enjoyed our feast on fish that evening.

We drove out and had a look at all the other spots around the area including Copi Hollow, Lake Pamamaroo and the Main Weir which holds back the Darling River. Sunset Strip, nearby, is a small holiday community which houses some permanent residents but mainly consists of holiday homes. It also has a great view of the lake and is enjoyed by people who like all types of water sports.

Two days before we left Menindee, there was a huge storm and the rain bucketed down. Mister of course was very frightened and it was very hard to calm him down. Because this area was in drought condition, the rain was a welcome relief for the locals who hadn’t seen rain like this for 3 years, but it left a bit of damage around the area and particularly in the caravan park. All the roads were washed out as well as the path down to the lake, the rain left behind huge ditches and muddy waters. Tim had to work very hard the next few days grading all the roadways around the park. Greg gave him a hand, which is what Greg does, but he was very happy to do it. Unfortunately because of the rain we couldn’t get into the Kinchega National Park as the roads were closed, so we missed out on seeing some sites in there including the old Homestead, the Woolshed and the wreck of the PS Providence. That little tour will have to be put on the bucket list for future travels as we will definitely give Menindee another visit.

We left Menindee on 16^th February to head to Port Augusta and then ultimately around the Eyre Peninsula in South Australia. We drove as far as Olary to an outback pub on the Barrier Hwy to stay overnight before moving on to Port Augusta the next day. From the publican and his partner to the local barflies and the American tourists it was an experience not to forget. There was no how do you do’s in this pub; everything was straight down the line. We had lunch at the pub and a few drinks, so we could stay for free, and then we set up the van for the night. As it was extremely hot, we went back over to the pub for some more refreshments, as you do. We chatted with the locals and the mine workers from around the area who came in for a drink; even South Australians call us Victorians ‘Mexicans’! The publican was an ex mine worker and mechanic by trade from Broken Hill. He told us stories of people driving out this way who always run out of petrol and call in to him to get some. “It is not a [insert expletive] petrol station” he tells everyone. While we were there two American tourists came in requesting mechanical help. The publican gave them a decent dressing down in no uncertain terms, if you know what I mean, for driving in the outback, not knowing what they were doing and not carrying spares and then went on to not only help them but offering the driver of the vehicle free soft drinks. We all then enjoyed a great chat together about Australia and the USA. It was an interesting and insightful afternoon and evening.

The next day we left about 7 am to get to Port Augusta because once again it was going to be very hot and we wanted to arrive early. We chose to stay at a caravan park for a couple of days as we were moving on to some free camp spots and wanted to wash all our bedding and stock up with supplies. Port Augusta is part of the Flinders Ranges and the outback and is not technically a part of the Eyre Peninsula, but it does sit atop the Spencer Gulf. It is also where the Sydney, Perth, Adelaide and Darwin rail lines meet. We saw the Indian Pacific passenger train go through as well as a number of goods trains. We drove through the Flinders Ranges to get here from Olary. The Caravan Park is situated right on the tip of the Upper Spencer Gulf, so we were able to enjoy beautiful salt water swimming for the first time since we left home. My skin appreciated the salt water very much and I hope to have much more if it as we explore the Eyre Peninsula.

After doing all we needed to do in 2 days at Port Augusta we set off down the Peninsula towards Whyalla. Our destination was the Point Lowly Camp site, 32 kilometres north of Whyalla. The Eyre Peninsula is ‘where the outback meets the sea’. Whyalla, originally known as Hummock Hill is now a big tourist destination and houses a Maritime museum and the Arrum/Onesteel steelworks (formerly BHP). Point Lowly is a free camp spot adjacent to a boat ramp and has toilets and showers, rubbish bins, fresh water and a dump point which are all extremely important for the self sufficient camper. I guess this is the reason this particular site is so popular. There is a limit of a 14 day stay, which we enjoyed and there was no less than 20 vans each night, sometimes over 30. Most people stay for as long as they can, not only because of the facilities, but it is a very popular fishing spot and across the road is a beautiful swimming beach.

We had a perfect spot right on the water’s edge facing the break wall and the boat ramp, about 10 metres above the high tide mark. It was the perfect position to witness the beautiful sunrises and also all the activity on the water. It was also a great spot to have a chat to people as they made their way to and from the water. We had some fabulous neighbours; Jenny and Ray from Donnybrook in WA, Bill and Janelle from Bundaberg in Queensland and some fellow Victorians, Peter and Gail from Melbourne. We all got along really well, sharing meals, card games and of course happy hour (or two) every day. After all our friends left, we met Ash and Liz from WA who were into the first month of their around Australia journey. They are a young couple who enjoy fishing and possibly we will catch up with them on our journey up the centre.

Most days we had perfect weather although it did get a bit windy at times. Apart from 3 days we swam every day on the beautiful beach. Early in our stay we took the Hobie out but it tended to get a bit rough in the afternoons, so unless we went early we missed the calm conditions. The last 3 days we were there the weather turned it on again and we were able to Hobie everyday and try our luck with the crab pots and fishing, but as is always our luck, we never caught anything apart from crabs which were too small to keep and shitty fish. Luckily for us, our new friends Jenny and Ray gave us a feed of crabs and Bill and Janelle shared their bounty of blue swimmers with all of us.

We very much loved staying at this particular spot and it was very hard to move on, but rules are rules and we needed to make way for others to enjoy the area. Hopefully we can go back another time. We left on Tuesday 5^th March to head down the coast to a place recommended by Gail and Peter, Redbanks. This spot is only about 5 kilometres north of the fishing village of Arno Bay on the Spencer Gulf. It is where we are now and intend to stay until after the weekend. It is really lovely, almost right on the beach and protected from the wind by the sand dunes. Not many people camp here, mainly overnighters, but we found this spot at the end of the car park just at the top of the path to the beach. We were lucky no one was around when we arrived so we had a walk around and found the perfect spot.

My next blog will give you a further account of Redbanks (if the Scorpions don’t get us first, he he) and the remainder of our journey around the Eyre Peninsula.

Cheers til next time.