The plan for the day was to explore Coffin Bay National Park and its famous beautiful beaches. After doing some research it was determined that we would head straight for Sensation Beach as it was very remote and required a specific time frame due to the beach drive that was impassable at high tide. We set out early to ensure we had enough time to get to the beach and have about an hour there for lunch before driving back – high tide was at 345pm, and we needed to get back over the beach well before then.

Most of the drive was 4WD only, over very rocky and sandy tracks and a long beach drive along the full length of 7-mile beach. The distance was not that great, but the drive time was estimated at about 2hr one way…

Entering the National Park we drove at the speed limit 40km per hour which also slowed the journey and arrived at Yangie Campground – the end of the tar – and stopped to let down the tyre pressure on our vehicles.

Once sorted, we started out and realised straight away that the track was indeed pretty challenging – but a great 4WD!

The track became very sandy so we stopped to drop the tyre pressures further….

Not too far into the journey we rounded a corner and stopped for a 4WD coming in the opposite direction. They had stopped too, but after we indicated for them to go ahead they didn’t move – it was then that I realised there was no one in the driver’s seat. We assumed they were taking a toilet stop, but after several more minutes and no movement, I got out of the car and went up to the passengers’ side and spoke to the woman sitting there – she apologised for not getting out as she was holding her young baby. It turned out that the car behind them (which had her parents in it) was bogged and they were trying to get them out – she reassured me they would be out in about 5 mins, so I went back to the Ranger and relayed the message back to the others. We waited a bit then Trev got out to go and lend a hand…. It turned out to be more difficult than expected – the extraction finally worked when the guy winched them out…. They were eventually on their way after spending about another 10 mins trying to find the MaxxTraxx which had been buried deep in the sand.

This delayed us about 45 mins, so we were a little concerned with the time of the tide but continued on….

We finally arrived at 7-mile beach and got onto the sand – the beach was beautiful – white sand and the bay waters were turquoise – no swell as it was part of Coffin Bay – but gorgeous, nevertheless.

We drove along 7-mile beach – it was deserted – a huge whale skull was washed up on the sand…

About 2/3 the way along we came upon the dune area where the sand dune comes sheer down to the beach close to the water – at high tide this section is impassable as the seawater meets the steep face of the dune…. We got passed it with a metre to spare but the tide was now coming back in so we knew we would only have time to have a quick look at Sensation Beach before having to turn around and come back.

So, we decided to risk it and pushed on over the cross-country track to the other side of the peninsula. The drive was certainly worth it – Sensation Beach was breathtaking – huge white sandhills and sparkling blue waters – do remote and deserted – we were the only ones there.

After some pics and a few bush toilet visits we started back along the track, reached the beach and flew along it as we could see the tide coming in.

As we rounded a curve in the beach the huge dune came in site and the water was almost up to it. We raced along the beach and just made it past – partially having to drive through the water – but made it!!

At the end of 7-mile beach we stopped for lunch and a swim….as Dave pulled up he was not happy as the Pearl had gone over a bump at one point, setting off an alarm in the car – the crash avoidance system was alarming and telling him to go to the nearest dealer…. Sometimes cars can have too many fancy techno systems that drive you nuts!!!! Anyway, after much googling, reading of manuals and disconnecting the battery nothing solved the issue. Even Branch checked the sensor but to no avail!! The car was perfectly drivable – and probably just needed a computer reset.

Gordie found an “old mate” to talk to while we all ate lunch…

Everyone enjoyed the time on the beach – the day was warm and the water lovely and clear for a swim….

Gordie got out his portable shower and had a rinse off after the swim….Klaus assisting to a certain point with Gordie finishing off the job…

We started back, hoping that no one got bogged where we had stopped as the sand was pretty soft… despite the sign, we had no issues and Dave did not need to engage the famous “Crawl”.

The drive back along the rocky, sandy track was still over an hour in length so I did a bit of driving for Trev – great fun over the rocks, holes, and sand…. It was a tight squeeze for the Titan in some bushy areas… resulting in a few scratches…

When we reached the spot that the people had been bogged in Trev stopped to have a go at finding the MaxxTraxx that had been buried – the others went on back to the caravan park. Trev actually found one of the 2 MaxxTraxx buried deeply, and we brought it with us planning to give it back to the people if they were in the same campground as us.

Once we reached the tar, we decided to go on to Golden Island Lookout and Almonta Beach which were the last stops planned for the day – the delay earlier in the day had put us behind schedule somewhat and the others were happy to go home.

The drive to the lookout was only 20 mins on tar and we were so glad we made the effort – the views were amazing over to Golden Island and the cliffs and rocky outcrops were spectacular. Another wild and captivating vista!

We drove the 500m dirt track to Almonta Beach which was as beautiful as Sensation Beach!! The huge sandhills surrounding it were pristine and glittered in the afternoon sunlight. We walked over the dune and down onto the beach – the surf was great, and, in the waves, we could see huge schools of large fish!

After taking some pics we walked back to the car, and I stubbed my little toe a beauty on a piece of limestone jutting out from under a bush in the sand – ouch – no blood but it really hurt!!

Arriving back at camp we found Rose scrubbing the Pearl clean after her dusty trip…. Dave then appeared a bit later to take the blower to the inside and blow the sandy dust all around the inside and outside of the car…. The Pearl gets treated like a Queen (or should that be Princess??)

I iced my toe which was looking pretty swollen and feeling sore…

That night we had our service at the Hunters as it was Sunday and did the 4^th sermon on Titus Ch 2 11-15 – God calls us all to follow Him – and He gives us the grace to do so – we cannot do it ourselves…

The destination for the day was Coffin Bay down the south end of the Eyre Peninsula. We were on the road early planning to have morning tea at Tumby Bay to take in the famous “artwork” in the town.

The Iron Duke Mine at Moonabie was easily visible on our right as we drove south.

We spotted a painted silo in Cowell so stopped to take a pic – The star of the silos is local identity Lionel Deer and his camel Diamantina. Mr Deer is most known in the Cowell community for bringing his camels to the Cowell Christmas Pageant for over 30 years. The mural also features a Port Lincoln Parrot and a nearby farmhouse ruin.

Gordie and Kerry took the opportunity and went in search of a loo – they disappeared for a while and Trev went looking for them….

Tumby Bay is home to a JETTY and a lot of street and silo art…. we did a walk around the town and took in the beautiful artwork…and had a coffee in the local takeaway.

On the way out we stopped at the silo art at the entrance to the town. Argentinian mural artist Martin Ron was commissioned to paint the mural. During his time in the town, he watched the locals jumping off the JETTY – which is captured in his mural representing the towns past, present and future…The mural was finished on 12^th April 2018 and has been cleverly painted to be viewed from a certain angle creating a complete view rather than a view disjointed by the gaps in the silos – very clever!

Our lunch stop was Port Lincoln – with its huge grain loading dock and JETTIES…. And beautiful sculptures including one of Makybe Diva on the foreshore.

It was quite difficult to find caravan parking for all 4 vans together, so we split up, grabbed some lunch, and supplies and then headed out to meet at Coffin Bay Caravan Park. Trev and I had a great fish and chips lunch from “The Pantry” – very fresh with great chips and salad….

We arrived and set up in Coffin Bay Caravan Park….taking a leaf from Rosie’s book and adding ambiance to the van with some local foliage…

….. then went for a bike ride along the Oyster Walk…Gordie getting side-tracked by an old mate who also owned a Titan camping in the Caravan Park…. Meaning he was still talking to him when we arrived back from our ride!!!

The dawn broke over Marion Bay with the gale force winds still howling making packing up interesting!

Rose tried to secure the deteriorating bike covers they had purchased in Goulburn with little success…. getting a major blow dry at the same time.

We drove north up the Yorke Peninsula and stopped in at Moonta for morning tea at the Cornish Bakery who are renowned for their Cornish pasties. Moonta has a Cornish element including the Cornwall Pub as there were a lot of miners who came out from Cornwall to work in the mines in the area in the early days. From 1861-1923 Moonta was the centre of the copper mining industry that formed SA’s largest mining enterprise.

Continuing on, we drove though farming area and arrived at Port Pirie for lunch. Wikicamps had located a “beach” area in Solomontown that we could stop at, so once we had all found a park nearby (sometimes challenging with 4 caravans) we had lunch sitting in the park next to the beach. The council had done a great job landscaping the area and although it overlooked the JETTY and huge granary storage tanks it was a lovely area. The “beach” consisted of some very hard sand and once in the water it was a soft mud underfoot but nevertheless it would be nice for the locals on a hot day to have somewhere to swim.

There was a take-away cart at the park and Trev, Gordie and Klaus treated themselves to a thick shake – Gordie declaring that it “rated” as up there with the best – so he went and complimented the guy who made them.

We continued our journey north with the Flinders Ranges now in sight….

…. then turned west toward Port Augusta. Along the road were huge wind farms and solar farms which were not there the last time we passed through this way. Apparently, they generate enough electricity for over 180 000 homes – although they do add an ugly element to the natural landscape!

A quick fuel stop and we drove through Port Augusta – over the bridge and past a JETTY…

Google Maps was wanting to take us through some side streets but as we had been caught before we chose to take the more direct route along the highway – BIG mistake as we got stopped and breathalyzed, and then had to go through a large number of roadworks which slowed our journey somewhat…. and created an issue for Klaus.

It seems that the thick shake had the unusual effect on Klaus creating an urgent need for a pee stop during our queuing to get through the multiple roadworks to the point he considered driving through the cones, over the new bitumen and to a nearby bush – however he just managed to hold on and pulled over just after one set of works, jumped out of the car to go into the van but only made it as far as the front bumper…. Fortunately, he made it look like he was checking something on the car, so no one was the wiser – privacy and dignity was maintained – although when he told the story later it did create a lot of laughter!

The Eyre Peninsula looked less arid than the Yorke in the area we were driving through – more shrubs, farmland and mining activity were dotted across the countryside.

We drove through Whyalla which is the fourth most populous city in South Australia and is known as the “Steel City” as it has a large steelworks and shipbuilding industry, and has been exporting iron ore since 1903. Port Pirie, Port Augusta and Whyalla are the 3 towns which make up what is called the Iron Triangle.

Our stop for the night was a free camp at Moonabie Hill rest area – the wind had abated, and we all slept well that night!

The day started slowly as it had blown a gale all night….and was still blowing and the skies were overcast…. Everyone took their time having brekkie then we all met in the Hunter van for devotions led by Trev on Mark…. everyone that is except for Rose and Dave who unusually had slept in. Seems Dave had been bitten by several March flies the day prior – the bites had blown up and were very itchy, so he took a Phenergan to help him sleep – which worked extremely well – and resulted in a Phenergan hangover for most of today….

After much discussion it was decided to have an easy day as the weather was so foul and we had a couple of long driving days coming up. Some of us walked up to the local art Gallery and café “Studio Surf” which looked great on the internet but was disappointingly closed when we arrived. We continued our walk around the Marion Bay area – some unique and interesting houses most of which looked like holiday homes.

Along the beachfront the tide was up, and the wind was relentless – there was a wreck – the “Willyama” which was just visible above the water not far from shore – another boat that had been a victim of this savage coastline. The Willyama had been carrying a cargo of coal from Newcastle to Port Pirie in 1907 when it ran aground in Marion Bay.

We had a look around the west end of the beach and then headed back to the vans for lunch.

The afternoon was spent reading, blogging, repairing (Branch and McGyver were at it again – this time putting in a more “permanent” temporary repair to the Loveday water tank bracket) ….

Gordie went out to see if there was some surf and despite the wind had another good surf at Pondalowie – with Phil and the dolphins again!

The Marion Bay Caravan Park has a fantastic camp kitchen so we decided to cook our roast dinner in the large oven there and have dinner together out of the howling wind – an added bonus was the TV so Dave could watch his beloved Swannies play…

The roast dinner was delicious, and Beryl made a legendary apple crumble for dessert – not a crumb was left!!

The wind had picked up even more – it felt cyclonic and so we all hibernated in the vans and tried to sleep – the wind was rocking the vans all night – sleep was only intermittent for some of us….

Today we had decided to spend exploring Innes National Park which is renowned for beautiful, rugged coastline, surfing beaches and lots of historic sites. Those who had not already bought their National Park passes did so online…. but Gordie had an internet glitch with his – the payment page was fixed on “Processing your payment” and would not go through…. Gordie felt like a “Glass Half Empty Gordie” as nothing seemed to be going right…no surf…too much wind…weather predicted to worsen … and now this!! Everyone tried to cheer him up with positive comments – which always works, and positive Gordie reappeared…

The Hunters stopped at the National Park Office and went in to sort the NP pass issue out and planned to meet up with us at our first stop. The rest of us drove to Pondalowie Bay – place of great surf and lots of dolphins…. we walked along the long boardwalk from the carpark to the beach and alas when we arrived the surf was small and no dolphins to be seen. However, the views and beach made up for this – it was a beautiful location.

Up along the beach we could see in the distance a shipwreck on the sand so while waiting for Gordie and Kerry we all walked up to have a look. Trev stayed behind to wait for the Hunters.

The wreck was not particularly old but gave opportunity for a great pic – Klaus nearly doing his almost healed knees a further injury climbing into position!

We walked back along the beach and met Trev – the Hunters had still not arrived, so we started walking back along the boardwalk to the carpark….and met them halfway along. It seems that they had still not fully sorted out the issue and had to spend half an hour on the phone to their bank to work out if the payment had gone through. The ranger was OK and said they could pay later if it had not worked.

We left Pondalowie and drove towards West Cape Lighthouse – and around the corner came across baby emus with their father walking across the road – no wonder the speed limit in the park is 40kms/hr!

West Cape was absolutely stunning even though the weather had started to become more overcast and windier.

The large beach on the left side of the headland was pristine – it looked deserted and untouched. The huge cliff faces were rugged and colourful with reds, ochres, whites, and yellow tones – they reminded me a lot of some of the places we had visited in W.A.

At the end of the cape stood the lighthouse – again a different structure this time of stainless-steel sheets. The lighthouse was built in 1980. In front of the lighthouse was a small Helipad – it was hard to imagine landing a chopper in such a small location with the winds as they were – it would take an expert pilot to do so.

The view to Pondalowie Bay and its rocky islands was commanding – you could even see the fishing shacks on the hill.

Below the cliff were rugged rocks with the powerful surf swirling and breaking on them creating maelstroms of water which were fascinating to watch.

The cape had an abundance of native flowers and bushes which made a beautiful ground covering over the otherwise rocky and barren area.

We stopped for lunch in a shelter at West Cape that conveniently faced the right way and got us out of the wind. Gordie decided to go back to Pondalowie after lunch for that elusive wave…. Kerry came along with us to explore the rest Innes NP had to offer.

Next stop was the Ethel Wreck on Ethel Beach. We arrived and looked down over the cliff to see huge pounding surf – biggest waves we had seen so far… and the iron bones of the Ethel sticking up through the sand.

Carefully making our way down the steep staircase we got down to the beach and walked along to the wreck. The Ethel was a three masted iron barque built in Sunderland, England in 1876. On 2nd January, 1904, after damaging its rudder at nearby Cape Spencer in a south-westerly gale, it was driven ashore, with the loss of one life. The coastal steamer S.S. Ferret attempted to aid the Ethel without success and notified authorities. Ironically the Ferret ran aground on the same beach 16 years later on the 14th February 1920

The strait between the Yorke Peninsula and KI is known as the Investigator Strait. Since the establishment of the colony in SA in 1836 it has played a crucial role as a natural thoroughfare for trade and communications. Over 26 vessels have been wrecked in this strait with a loss of over 70 lives.

Down the road a bit further were the historic Inneston Ruins, so we stopped in and did the 2km walk around them learning about the early life on the Yorke Peninsula. Gypsum was mined and plaster produced in the village of Inneston – and transported down to Stenhouse Jetty firstly by horse and cart then later rail.

Inneston was a mining company town with more than 36 dwellings that was built in 1913. The village thrived in the early days but once the Depression hit in 1939 the building industry collapsed, and the town died. Today some of the houses have been restored and are available for holiday rent.

Cape Spenser Lighthouse was the final lighthouse for the day and again we were greeted with spectacular coastline views. A stunning beach lay to the right of the headland and was completely inaccessible – to the left were harsh, heavily eroded cliff faces with deep but clear water below.

Our last stop for the day was the Stenhouse JETTY – which was where the Inneston plaster was loaded onto ships for transport.

By this time the wind had become gale force and icy so we returned to the caravan park and gave the idea of a communal roast the flick. Trev went up to the Marion Bay Tavern and booked us in for dinner that evening.

Gordie returned just in time – he had an amazing surf at Pondalowie with a pod of dolphins coming in so close they touched his leg. The dolphins apparently breed there so make it their home and are very human friendly. Gordie met another surfer whose name was Phil. He had had a difficult life and was still struggling. Gordie was able to share his own story and the Gospel with Phil – and gave him some things to read including Luke’s gospel. Phil was grateful for Gordie’s openness and encouragement – and was happy for Gordie to pray with him…. hopefully he will put his faith in Jesus and see a great change in his life.

Dinner at the Tavern was great – the place was very busy, and food excellent. Back home we had coffee in the salubrious Hunter Lotus – the club lounge and 2 poufs being able to accommodate 8 guests!

The day started with Gordie getting lowdown on the surf conditions and places from a “young mate” camped behind them.

We had looked at the map of the area and decided to use the day to explore the northwest coast of the Lower Yorke Peninsula starting at Daly Head which has been dedicated as a surfing reserve.

The roads out from the main road were all dusty dirt roads – the Pearl was back behind eating the dust again….

On the road out to Daly Head there were enormous sand dunes which sparkled in the sunlight – and had what appeared to be rocky points sticking out of the top – on closer inspection with the zoom lens they were pointy hillocks of bushes.

We stopped at the first carpark at Daly Head – a spectacular area to view the multiple surf breaks in different directions – a few surfers were out catching some waves. The rugged coastline with multiple reefs and rocky islands was beautiful and wild – so unspoilt and remote.

There were several vantage points along the road, so we drove to the next one – the Pearl came in too hot and missed the turn – so the Titan jumped in first!

The beaches along this stretch looked untouched and the views were amazing. The surf looked OK, but Gordie decided to continue on with us to check out come more spots before making a final decision as to where to have a surf. He contented himself with a quick practice surf on a wobbly rock.

As we drove on further a fat Sleepy lizard aka Shingleback was crossing the road. The Sleepy lizard is the Yorke Peninsula’s most common reptile. We stopped to take a closer look and Klaus managed to pick him up -he was very relaxed…. Trev like his sister enjoyed the opportunity for a pat. Klaus released him back into the scrub and we continued on.

Out next stop was Gravel Bay which was far more attractive than its name. The beach was quite protected from the wind but there was no surf, so we moved on to the next location Berry Bay.

Unfortunately, the south end of Berry Bay was playing host to a large surf school – the water was full of learners, so the next stop was the north end and Corny Point Lighthouse

The rocky headland upon which the Corny Point lighthouse is built as well as the submerged reefs nearby were a hazard to the sailing ships trading in Spencer Gulf. The 15-metre-high lighthouse was first lit in 1^st March 1882 and was manned for 37 years until 30^th June 1920 at which time it was automated.

From the headland you looked north towards Horseshoe Bay and out to sea the rocky reefs were easy to see.

Close in was a particular lone rock that disappeared under the water with the swell which the locals used to call Peeping Tom – now known as Shark rock for obvious reasons. I am sure it has startled many a swimmer!

The wind was cool and had picked up a bit, so we decided to go back to Gravel Bay to have lunch – we walked down to the sheltered end of the beach and spent some time there eating and relaxing.

Gravel Bay was very picturesque with aqua water, white silky sand and large outcrops of granite rocks at either end. The rocks had an orange colour in parts much like what we had seen on Kangaroo Island. The orange hue comes from lichens, a combination of algae and fungus that live together in a symbiotic relationship.

We walked around the rocks, looking in rockpools and enjoying the unspoilt nature of the area. Trev, Rose, Dave, and I all went in for a swim in the crystal-clear water – it was not too cold and very refreshing!

Walking back to the cars we noticed the unusual formations of the cliff face – it was very weathered and had multiple small caves and sections that looked like stalactites and stalagmites – I am sure the holes would have been home for many and varied animals and insects.

Trev had taken a leaf out of Dave’s books and was carrying all the bags while I took photos – what a great husband!!

Gordie decided to go back to Daly Head for a surf and so, while Klaus and Beryl headed home, we did a quick tour back to Daly Head via Swincer Rocks hoping to drive the track from there back to Daly Head. Swincer Rocks were not particularly interesting, and the track was blocked by a gate going onto private property, so we returned to the main road and went on – meeting Gordie coming back from Daly Head – apparently blown out and no good…. so back to Marion Bay it was.

We checked out Marion Bay JETTY on the way home – the jetty was built in 1889 to aid with delivery of supplies and transport of gypsum mined in the area.

Seems the only one who got a surf today was Branch….

The pack up went like clockwork and we were on the road by about 0930 heading towards the outskirts of Adelaide where we were going to stop and pick up supplies.

We had decided to take the scenic route to avoid the busyness of Adelaide city driving so headed north from Hahndorf through the vineyards and orchards through Cudlee Creek and One Tree Hill into the back of Northeast Adelaide to do our shopping at Munno Para West shopping centre.

The drive was through very picturesque farmland with apple-laden trees, cherry orchards, vineyards as well as sheep and cattle farms.

As we entered suburban Adelaide, we heard a loud bang and metallic sound coming from the rear of our van via the speaker connected to our rear camera. We pulled over immediately – fortunately on a flat street that was wide enough for us to park safely and jumped out to inspect the cause of the noise….

Looking under the van we could see the water tank half hanging down, dragging on the road – the metal bracket had broken at the bend – fortunately we had pulled over quickly and it appeared that the tank had not ruptured. If we had gone on any further no doubt, we would have destroyed the tank!! Branch was in his element – at last an interesting and challenging repair!!

Everyone had pulled over to see what had happened – we decided that the Wells and Weiss group should continue to the shops (less than 5 min away!) and we would work out what to do about repairs… Gordie and Kerry were great, insisting on staying with us to assist – it’s always great travelling as a team – everyone supporting each other!

We rang a local caravan repair place who told Trev that the brackets were easily replaced with a metal strip that we could get at Bunnings. Providentially not only did we break down in a perfect place to stop, the Bunnings was only 10 mins away – 5 minutes past the shops we were going to for groceries.

Kerry and I were watching as Gordie was unhitching his van so we could drive to the shops when an old lady came out of her house that we were in front of. We though she was coming out to see if we were OK or maybe offer us a cuppa, but nothing was further from the truth. She abruptly said “I have already called the council – you can’t park here – I can’t see to get out of my driveway “etc etc…. Kerry politely explained the breakdown situation, but she would not have a bar of it – very rude!! Gordie explained we would not be there very long – she was still not happy, so Gordie moved the van further down the street…. Looking at her place it looked like Fort Knox on a bad day so probably explained why she was so aggressive….

Trev stayed with the van to empty the water tanks, remove the broken brackets etc while Gordie dropped Kerry and I off at the grocery store and went on to Bunnings to get the spare bits needed for the repair.

While we did all this, McGyver and Branch managed to do a temporary repair using some tough webbing straps that we had in the Ranger so when we arrived back with the groceries, Trev was ready to go, planning to do a more permanent fix at Marion Bay our next stop.

Beryl and Rosie had kindly done a coffee run while we had gone to get Trev, so we met back in the shopping centre carpark, picked up the coffees and continued on. Driving out of Adelaide there were a lot of new subdivisions going in – some with very expensive landscaping using huge date palms, still in among the farmland on the city outskirts.

Marion Bay is down at the southern end of the Yorke Peninsula, so we still had about 3 hrs drive to get there. A quick stop for lunch at a rest stop and we continued south down the peninsula.

The terrain was very dry, flat, and windswept with cattle and sheep farms as well as mining areas. Copper was mined at Moonta located on the Yorke Peninsula. Today there is a large copper deposit near Ardrossan which is said to be the largest in South Australia that a company has put in a proposal to mine.

We passed the dolomite mine at Ardrossen. Salt is also produced on the peninsula, and gypsum and lime were also mined down in what is now Innes National Park.

We arrived at Marion Bay Caravan Park, set up, then Branch and Trev went to work on checking the repairs more thoroughly. The tanks appear intact, and everything else seems undamaged – McGyver’s strapping held well!! A more permanent repair maybe in store over the next few days…

Our sites were beachfront – we had a water view from our van – but the scrub in front was great for protection from potential wind!

We all relaxed once set up, then went for a quick walk down the short track to the beach – Marion Bay is a large bay with – yes – a JETTY at one end, blue water, and white sand – although there was quite a bit of seaweed on the beach. The water was surprisingly warm!

Beryl kindly invited us to dinner after our eventful day – delicious mushroom risotto cooked in her Thermomix – it was awesome!!

We all had coffee/ supper together – great to kick back after an eventful day.

The day started out really cool but soon heated up for a beautiful autumn day. We had our open air service listening to the next installment of Titus which was very encouraging on the roles for older men and women and the value they bring to the younger members of the church and community.

After some discussion we left Gordie and Kerry to do a few things in the van – and Gordie wanted to try out the salubrious swimming pool – so we went into the township of Hahndorf. It was full of beautiful historic buildings that Germans had constructed on their arrival to South Australia.

Between 1838 and 1839 four ships arrived carrying German Lutherans who had escaped the persecution in Germany by the then King, Wilhelm IV. From 1837 to 1900 about 18 000 Lutherans emigrated to Australia from Germany.

The captain of “Zebra”, one of the ships, Dirk Hahn, was so impressed with the industriousness of his passengers he advocated on their behalf for newly surveyed land near Mt Barker and as a gesture of thanks the Lutherans named their village Hahndorf.

We enjoyed browsing the shops – Rosie picking up a few purchases as always supported by Dave managing the bags and cash….and he didn’t even falter and go into the only “man’s shop” in town!!

Beryl and I also picked up a couple of items at the German Village shop…. and Trev got into the German spirit practicing his best German look….

In the middle of the town was a restaurant named the Haus – which Klaus’s daughter had recommended so we booked us all in for dinner at 6.

After a bit more browsing, we stopped for “lunch” at the German Bakery to sample some strudel, beestings, and cheesecake – delicious! The bakery was decorated with so many German memorabilia there was very little wall space left.

Klaus and Trev decided they needed a Kransky for lunch as well (!!!) so we stopped at the “best Kransky” in Hahndorf shop – run by an Italian who was very friendly!!

We made some final purchase at the German Pantry and the Gingerbread shop, then returned to the vans for a relaxing afternoon prior to our dinner at the Haus.

Due to COVID we had to be there at 6pm sharp for an hour and a half sitting….which really was unnecessary as the place was not busy at all.

The beer is bigger and better in Germany….or so it looked by the order Klaus received…

Klaus, Trev, and I opted for the authentic German experience – Klaus ordering the trio of Wursts and Trev and I sharing the Bavarian tasting platter – which was HUGE and consisted of a crispy pork knuckle, 3 different sausages plus a smoked pork chop with creamy mash and sauerkraut!!

The meals were pretty good, but Klaus was disappointed – nothing matches Mum’s cooking!!

After dinner we went in search of more strudel – alas the shop where Gordie had “the best strudel ever” was shut…..back home to get organised for the journey tomorrow to the bottom of the Yorke Peninsula.

We were up predawn to pack up and clean up as we had to be at the Penneshaw wharf by 0800 to load the cars onto the vehicular ferry. It was a 30 min drive from American River to Penneshaw so we left just before 7 as we had planned to ring through a brekkie order to Millie May’s café near the wharf for it to be ready at 730 when they opened.

The drive to Penneshaw was uneventful and we arrived at the café just as they opened. Gordie was unusually a glass half empty – must be missing the surf and the Titan – so he opted for no café brekkie and just watched Rosie with arms folded while she ate her delicious bacon and egg panini!!

We boarded the ferry and took in the last views of Kangaroo Island…. as well as the JETTY!! The time we had spent on the island was enjoyable – so much to see and do!!

The Pearl and the Weiss cruiser ended up just behind a huge logging truck with 2 trailers – actually they were fortunate to be behind and not beside as the trailers were fully loaded and rocked and rolled alarmingly as we traversed the Backstairs Passage. So much so that halfway across the crew decided to add in some extra chains to anchor the load to the floor of the boat.

We made it safely to the mainland and watched as the logging truck left the boat – finally Klaus and Dave drove off the ferry and we hightailed it to the caravan park wondering if our vans and vehicles would still be there…. or the bikes…or fishing rods…. or would there be some foul odour emanating from a van from food mistakenly left behind (Rosie had this experience last trip with a banana left for 14 days in the cupboard at Wyndham WA).

All was good when we arrived at the vans – no issues at all (admittedly Branch was slightly disappointed)! We unpacked the cars, rearranged our luggage, and headed off north on our way to Hahndorf.

The road wound through farmland, beachside townships, and wineries. We reached the McLaren Vale area by lunch time and pulled in at the d’Arenberg Winery – home of the d’Arenberg Cube. The Cube is a 5-story cube-like structure which houses wine tasting, artwork, exhibitions, and eateries – a very unique venue with very unique décor!!

The design concept for the building was developed by d’Arenberg’s chief winemaker, Chester Osborn, who is of the fourth generation of the Osborn family who founded the vineyards in 1912. It was completed in 2017 and has a distinctive geometric design largely resembling a Rubik’s cube.

We wandered around the grounds first – Klaus finding a trusty steed to rest his legs….

and then went into the Cube for a wine tasting which was held on the top floor with spectacular views over the McLaren Vale area.

The artwork and furnishings throughout the Cube were colourful and unusual to say the least.

The wines we sampled were good and the food at Eat@Pollys was delicious. We ate lunch and wandered around taking in the ambience….

On our way out we found the toilets (highly recommended by Fiona W as the place to visit) – again they were nothing like we had ever seen before…. And one of the female staff let us have a look in the male toilets quickly as they were also one of a kind!!

We made our way through McLaren Vale and the Adelaide Hills district to Hahndorf, our stop for the next 2 nights.

After setting up the vans, Gordie (whose skylight replacement had been delivered here for him) set to work with Branch and McGyver to install the new skylight cover – what a relief to have that fixed!!!

A quick trip to IGA to restock our foods supply and an easy night in before we hit the quaint shops of Hahndorf tomorrow!! Everyone has high expectations of our tour guide Klaus – being German he should be able to ensure we have an as near-German authentic experience possible outside of his homeland Germany! Achtung everyone!!

Our last day on KI had arrived – tomorrow we were catching the early ferry back to the mainland. We had brekkie and Trev led us in a devotion centring on the apostle Paul and his unswerving commitment to Christ and the gospel message – very encouraging!

After some discussion we decided to drive to the lookout at Prospect Hill and walk up the massive staircase for some butt and thigh exercise…. and to see a bird’s eye view of much of KI.

We were just about to get in the car when “glass half empty” Gordie came out and decided he wanted to stay behind and go for a walk – on further investigation Kerry revealed he was keen to go and have a look at the boatbuilding that was going on down near the American River jetty – they were in the process of building a replica of the “Independence” – the first schooner built here on KI by the Americans in 1803.

All Gordie needed to do was communicate this to us – we were all happy to go and have a look – and so we made that our first stop.

The guys at the boat shed were more than happy to give us a tour and tell us the history of the Independence which was built by Captain Andrew Pendleton and crew here in American River. The schooner was 45 feet in length and took 3 months to build. It was used for sealing in the area and then left for Port Jackson in Sydney in 1804 never to return to KI.

There was a model on display of the original Independence. The replica being built has been under construction for 3 years already – a slow process as it is locally funded and being constructed by retirees relying on donations.

We then drove to Prospect Hill and commenced the 512 stair climb to the top. The “hill” is actually a large sandhill which Matthew Flinders had climbed when he was on KI mapping the area – to his surprise he saw sea on the other side – he had assumed it was part of the mainland… He named the hill Prospect Hill.

The steps were excellent, and the climb was not too challenging – everyone made it up with no issue (though an AED was noted to be ¾ of the way up).

The views from the top were awesome – and gave a good perspective on the shape and differing landscapes of KI.

Making our way down the 512 stairs, Trev was left behind…. He had started talking to an “old mate”, George from Gippsland who also owned a Ranger and a caravan….

We made our way to Kingscote for lunch at the Aurora Ozone Pub and a look around – there was a beautifully painted silo at the entrance to Kingscote….

We walked along the foreshore…. Another JETTY, some old buildings including the courthouse, police station and jail…. Klaus also made an unusual find of a dillybag left on a park bench – on closer inspection it disappointingly only contained a pair of socks.

Lunch at the pub was delicious. After a coffee we stopped to get fuel and Trev decided the Pearl was looking a bit shabby so did some swift cleaning. We then travelled home to get organised before our early start tomorrow.

I noticed a local art gallery a couple of doors up from our place and so we went up for a quick look. They had some lovely pieces on sale, and we all bought something – Trev the bargain hunter nabbed a lovely glass vase….

The afternoon was spent relaxing, packing then having a light dinner of leftovers, cheese, and bikkies. Dave was keen to watch the Swannies play tonight so everyone settled in to either watching the footy (aka yelling at the TV) or reading, sewing, or writing the blog……

A flock of black cockatoos perched outside made great subjects for some last-minute wildlife shots – as did some bin chickens (aka ibis) in the bay….