In the early hours of the morning and with a minimum of fuss we passed into South Australia for the very first time. It's been a year since the van's last service & as we are heading into the outback, thought it prudent to get the wheel bearings replaced in addition to some minor repairs. We dropped the van off at Jayco Mount Gambier & spent the day attending to chores. In the course of completing our duties we stumbled upon some local attractions, the first being Blue Lake - a volcanic crater filled with bright blue water. We also found one of the city's sinkholes in the centre of town. The van was finished by mid afternoon & we booked into the town's show grounds for the night.
The following day was dedicated to reducing the kilometres between us and the Barossa Valley. There wasn't a lot to get excited about on this stretch of road although Tomoko did become quite animated as we entered the historic town of Penola & I sensed she wanted to stop for a look. The main street was brightened by yarn bombs, no item safe from being covered with colourful crochet. Tomoko rummaged through several gift shops & antique stores before resuming our journey. Soon we were in the Coonawarra wine district & we began to see two of Tomoko's favourite things - sheep & wine producing grapes, sometimes even in the same paddock.
After 6 hours on the road we pulled into the show grounds at Keith for the night & were off again early the next day. If we thought the previous day's drive had little to offer we were surprised to find an even sparser environment as we journeyed on. The roads became straighter, the passing trucks larger & more frequent. The first major town we reached was Murray Bridge & we stopped to fill our water tank, often a delicate procedure. A prerequisite for a successful operation is a flat surface but the car park with the potable water was anything but. I soon realised it would be an exercise in futility & we continued on to nearby Mannum & our camp for the night.
It was a breath of fresh air when we mounted a rise to see the blue waters of the Murray River come into view. After only a week in the country it certainly was a welcome site. We soon found our camp at Bolto Reserve, located on the opposite side of the river from Mannum. Stately old river boats paddle steamed by as we set up camp for the evening. There were plenty of water birds here - ducks & pelicans among the ones I could identify. There were a few other travellers here but in the main pretty quiet. The cost was $10 a night & had to be paid with $1 coins into a parking ticket machine.
The next day we visited the town. With the absence of a bridge spanning the river the local council has opted to go with two ferries. The setup is similar to the South Ballina ferry but differs in that it runs 24-7 & is free. First stop was the tourist info centre where we filled up our PET bottles with water & Tomoko delved through the op-shop next door coming away with a prized $1 pyrex milk glass. Feeling peckish we hit the bakery, one of the best around. I was taken with the vanilla slice in particular & could easily recommend it as Australia's finest. Being Friday night we weren't surprised the number of campers doubled, a group of young ones partying through the night & generally making a bit of a ruckus.
The following day required just a short 45 min drive to the Barossa Valley. I had chosen the caravan park at Williamstown as our destination. Tomoko repeatedly requested that I call ahead to book but in my laissez-faire style dismissed her concerns with a 'she'll be right'. Nearing the park we noticed an increase in local traffic as a game of aussie rules was in play at the adjacent footy ground. A glimpse into the caravan park itself revealed it to be quite full so after apologising to Tomoko for my lack of diligence, looked elsewhere for our accommodation.
I recalled seeing a caravan park next to the farmers market at Mount Pleasant & we headed back there. The market was nearing it's conclusion for the day so we stopped there first to pick up some fresh F&V. The caravan park was situated behind the show ground pavilion. I got out of the ute to look for an office when a kelpie cross charged at me with gnashing teeth & vicious bark. With the assurance of the dog's master that it wouldn't bite me I stood my ground warily as it slowed down it's approach, gave me a once over with his snozza before retreating to his home in one of the permanent vans. It wasn't the ideal introduction to the park & it was with some reluctance that I rang the caretaker and booked us in for a few nights.
During our travels we had passed through several wine producing areas & had yet to visit a winery much to Tomoko's dismay. On this particular Sunday we decided to visit Peter Seppelt's 'Grand Cru Estate' to sample one of their famous wood fired pizza's for lunch. As we walked towards the entrance a flash of gold appeared in our peripheral vision as an exuberant golden retriever bounded towards us. We were soon joined by another & we enjoyed some playtime with them, Shaka looking on with envy from the back seat of the ute. It seems we were a bit early for lunch so we decided to wait outside to where the dogs had retreated & were joined by yet another golden retriever & a border collie. We had 4 dogs to play with and before we knew it, an hour had passed and it was time to order. We devoured a meat lovers & caesar salad on the side before the piece de resistance. A 3 week old lamb named 'Vegemite" was introduced & Tomoko given the task of feeding her, the hungry little thing greedily gulping down the contents of a milk bottle. We spent the afternoon cruising through the Barossa Valley, passing through many quaint towns. We stopped at Maggie Beer's farm for a look before some organic wine tasting at Kalleske Wines. The Rose took Tomoko's fancy & she walked away with three bottles of the stuff.
On the Monday we drove the winding road into Adelaide. Tomoko wanted to stock up on Japanese groceries while I caught a movie - 'Jurassic Park' on the extreme screen at Hoyts. The CBD itself was described by Tomoko with the equation 'Brisbane + Canberra divided by 2'. Make of that what you will. We explored the suburbs afterwards in the process of completing some chores. One such duty was to search for a swag. I figured we would be doing some side adventures as we headed into remote Australia & having the ability to unhitch the van, load supplies in the ute & head bush for a couple of days had great appeal. We just needed somewhere to sleep. We didn't find what we were after at BCF but found a King sized Darche online at the right price & arranged for it to be delivered to the Adelaide Toll depot in a few days time.
We had a few days to kill till the arrival of the swag & it was a good chance to catch up on domestic duties. While walking Shaka late one afternoon I came across an injured/sick galah. It was unable to fly & put up a hell of a stink when I approached. Being a popular spot for unleashed dogs to stretch their legs I figured the sick bird wouldn't last too long so I contacted a wildlife rescue group & arranged for them to pick it up. I placed it in a box for safekeeping & it wasn't long till it was on it's way with it's new carer.
Later in the week I picked up the swag from Adelaide & with the open road beckoning we were on our way again. Until then...adios amigos.