Billy's Blog: March 2012

Tuesday, 27 March 2012

Billy's Camp No.6 Coorong National Park S.A.

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.

Sunrise

Looking back at camp, you can just see the camper

No need for the trailer today.

1 of about 12 free 24/7 ferries in the area, this one near the lighthouse, others cross the River Murray

The only inland lighthouse in Oz.

Someones gorgeous country home

Murray Bridge, named so because...............

Under neath

His other footprints were 4m away.

The church on your $50 note...circa 1850

Its at an Aboriginal community named Raukkan, near Narrung, its pristine.

Inside..go full size

Sunset..

Unfortunately I didnt realise the moon was visable beside the sunset until it was too late

I'm off tomorrow to just South of Victor Harbor, and then maybe the Flinders...and then up North..yeah baby...

catch ya's later

Bill (y)

Thursday, 22 March 2012

Billy's Camp No.5, Wilson Hall, Lower Glenelg Nat Park, Vic.

22/03/2012

Hi All,

I left the Grampians on Weds 14th and traveled to a Vic parks campsite named Wilson Hall, on the Glenelg River in the Lower Glenelg National Park. I traveled via Cherrypool, Cavindish, Hamilton, Digby, Dartmoor and Drik Drik, about 350 k's.
Not a lot of pics taken and not a hell of a lot to do, bar fishing, but still very enjoyable, lots of wildlife. I fished the river by boat and by bank at the camp, and the mouth estuary in Nelson. Nelson has a pub, a garage, a general store and an info centre. Thats it !
I was camped about 10 k's as the crow flies, 25k's by road and the river takes a lazy 50 k's to get to Nelson, I didnt explore all of it but apparently it is as per the video most of the way to the mouth.

I decamped on 20/03/12 and I have now moved on to the Coorong Nat Park near/on the Murray River in SA, about 25k's from Meningie, a great spot and will be very scenic when the wind dies down in a day or so.

Total k's to date, about 3800. On a windy day all up its about 19 to 20L/100k's on a flattish SA road. The wind is about 3 litres per 100 k's regardless of its direction, the boat atop is worth 3 and the trailer is 3.

The road in

If this dosnt work its google not your settings or my uploading :)
The video is typical of all the river I saw, I have another without the mist and the swallows are everywhere working the water. The mist in real life is much more pronounced. Also looks great in full screen.
The time this video takes, Brockie has done a lap of the mountain :)
And I notice Jas and Roddo are no longer............Billy n Zac strike !

Any guesses ?

Reminded me of "The old man and the sea"

Glenelg River mouth, Nelson

Two meals in this black bream

Mt Gambier's water supply, the Blue Lake

It changes colour quickly in November from grey to blue and stays blue until late March and then reverts back to grey.

Kingston SE Jetty

Typical SA Limestone Coast coastline

Flat...

New campsite outlook, Coorong Lagoon

The ocean is on the other side of the dunes

I couldnt get the video to up load, will try again for next blog.
I did it, yes, not a luddite afterall :)

ooroo for now,

Bill(y)

Tuesday, 13 March 2012

Billys Camp No 4. Smiths Mill Campground, Grampians Vic.

13/03/2012

Hi Guys,

I decamped at The Sawpit Campground on Thurs 8th March and went via Portland, Cape Nelson, Cape Bridgewater, Heywood, Hamilton and Dunkeld to the above camp near Halls Gap in The Grampians National Park on the same day. If you havnt been to the Grampians put it on your bucket list now. Ive spent a lazy week here you could do it in 4 days and see most common sites. The pics dont show the formations for what they are, nor the depth in the scenery. I could have put up more pics, but you ( I ) cant duplicate what the eye sees.