Billy's Blog

16/4/2012

G'Day All,
I arrived at the camp near Waitpinga beach, in The Fleurieu Peninsular, on Weds 28 March, it is about 20 k's South of Victor Harbor SA. Not a long drive, I traveled via Narrung, Wellington, Milang and Goolwa. I used two ferries along the way, quite funny as google maps does not recognise ferries in its directions, so its a long trip if you were to trust google.
It is now 2 months on the road and 5500 k's ( not all with the camper in tow ) I cant wait for the next 10 months and ???? k's :)
Its been a longer than normal camp due to a rat eating his way through wiring in the engine bay at Coorong. Luckily a Toyota dealership was at Victor Harbor for repairs, also I had to bunker down for the Easter break to avoid getting caught out by full camps had I moved.
Its possibly the best area to date for constant relaxing scenery and facilities, fishing has been different and interesting also. The locals target yellow eye mullet on the beaches, legal length is 210mm, and each fisho has his own bait preference and berley receipe. Although the fish are small 3 will give you a good feed and the taste when fresh is good, the fishing for them becomes a challenge. They also target Salmon Trout, ie juvenile Australian Salmon, apparently they are best smoked.

This is different birds working together to herd the bait fish to feed on at Coorong

The road in

Floor plan B, ensuite at front

Another sunset....looking towards Kangaroo Island

Seagulls meeting place ?

A walk near the camp, recently burnt out

Same walk, looking back towards The Bluff

A shadow of my former self...bearded or not ?

Secret Womans Business Bridge to Hindmarsh Island

It was built during a court appeal by the local Aboriginal tribe to stop it being built, by time the appeal was over the bridge was finished, white mans law.

The River Murray mouth.....just a trickle on Hindmarsh Island

The River Murray mouth is pumped to maintain flow

Any questions !

Goolwa Barrage on the Murray, 630m long

Simple...... blocks of concrete are dropped in to reduce the water flow...built about 1930

Feeding time....

......as fingerlings pass through the barrage

Light house at Cape Jervis... the departure point for Kangaroo Island...I think they should have kept the original shape when rebuilding

Ficaflora or something...a type of eucalypte

An old inn at Currency Creek

Adare House in Victor Harbor, now owned by the Uniting Church

Check out the fire escape.

Apparently a private property on a HUGE block close to the CBD of Victor Harbor

Yellow eye mullet, the smallest is just legal at 210mm

More black bream :)

A private house in Port Elliott

Sorry about the shadows

It would drive you mad wouldn't it JK

Good shot Billy

"The Bluff" near Victor Harbor, looking back at Granite Island

This guy did a dive bomb off the edge and came up vertical with his wings tucked in...showing off I thought

Breakwater wall on Granite Island, looks like a typical modern day breakwater until you read the plaque below..

Bream from the estuary and mullet from the beach

Someones house coated in pebbles at Sellick Beach.

Bad hair day Steph :)

I also did a town walk in Strathalbyn, there are a lot of 1850 buildings, the whole area has a distinct Scottish history.
There is alot more of the Adelaide area I could have visited, but may do on my way through again in 12 months time after WA.
Tomorrow, I do my turn to head up North, I will stop at The Flinders for maybe a week and head over towards Cooper Pedy via an almost full Lake Eyre traveling in part along the Oodnadatta track.

catch ya's later

Bill(y)

27/03/12

Hi All,

I'm at The Coorong National Park, I came via Mt Gambia, Millicent, Kingston SE, and Miningie. Great little town Meningie, it has everything.
Coorong, home of Mr Percival (RIP) of The Storm Boy film, and home, supposedly of the Coorong mullet , aka, yellow eye mullet, apparently its famous for its flavour, but for some reason the fishos arn't catching any at the moment. Nor am I.
Its the first time weather has affected my plans and on this occasion it was wind. The first night I arrived a front moved thru and nearly blew the camper away, the rain was horizontal, and the wind persisted for 4 days. At least the camper and awning saw it thru.
The Coorong lagoons and surrounding lakes are noted for about 200 different species of birds. It was great to watch the pelicans "working" the bait fish schools.
The "River Murray" not the "Murray River" flows into Lake Alexandria and then to the Southern Ocean. Lake Alexandria is connected to Lake Albert by a narrow channel where the lighthouse below is. These lakes were apparently a sad sight until the rains of recent years. Coroong Lagoons are salt water but the connecting lakes including the two above have isolating "barrages" to stop the salt water entering them for farming reasons, these barrages have been in place since the 30's. I will have to wait for my next camp to see them, I was greeted by a locked gate on this side of the mouth.
Lake Alexandria is up to 23k's wide and the River Murray is only 0.8 m above sea level at Murray Bridge. From a previous visit I know Mildura is 50m above sea level and the River Murray takes 800 odd k's to reach its mouth just to be met by barrages, not to mention all the locks along the way, its a slow moving river.