Short Trip to Adelaide - Day Seven

Woke up early at 06:15 to find the power had gone out again. Luckily the water was heated by gas so could have a shower.

Some light rain, we headed off aiming to get to a small town on the border of South Australia and Victoria.

Drove solidly for about 3 hours with a couple of stops to stretch, power out everywhere, shops and service stations closed but we'd filled up the previous night - Song's idea.
Just as well because we only saw one open and there was a queue of about 100 cars.
Got to Port Augusta, a supermarket was open but there was no fresh food but people were panic buying bread, batteries and water. It was like the apocalypse, I half expected to see a zombie.
Back in the car, headed out and it started to rain a lot - we were on the way to the small town but after looking at the map decided it was too risky - petrol would be tight and the road wasn't brilliant and I was worried about flooding.
We looked at going to Mildura or Horsham - Mildura was closer but Horsham would take us through Adelaide where they had power and petrol, plus it was the main road and less likely to flood. Horsham would also mean we were further away from another storm that was going to hit South Australia again.
The rain was coming down harder and we drove through a few large puddles before coming round a corner and hitting a huge puddle that I didn’t see. Up ahead was an even larger one that I was a bit wary of going through but it was ok. There was a police car in front of another huge puddle and the policeman said I should be ok if I kept to the middle and went slowly. If he hadn't been there I wouldn't have risked it because it was bloody deep, but I followed a van through. It was pretty scary.
Went through a few more, not as bad as that one, but the rain was still coming down and I was worried we'd come across a closed road and have to make a long diversion.
We stopped off for lunch at a town just outside Adelaide and also filled up with petrol.
Luckily we managed to get to Adelaide and through, but the rain was hammering down and visibility was appalling.
Drove on, through the rain and listened to the radio which said a worse storm was on the way and would also hit North Victoria near Mildura - so just as well we didn’t go there.
Driving was pretty hairy - dark, raining and trucks hurtling by on the other side of the road.
Eventually got to Horsham at 22:00 - 14.5 hours on the road and 1120 km.

Short Trip to Adelaide - Day Six

Woke up around 07:00, pottered about a bit and then went to the next hotel - still in Port Lincoln but on the marina. It was too early to check in, so drove back to where we'd just left and stopped off for a coffee.

Went for a walk along the beach, and it was very windy, the sea choppy and the promised storm was on the way.

Drove to a seafood outlet, number 2 on Tripadvisor but they didn't have much so back in the car and drove back to Coffin Bay for lunch. The weather on the way was good, sunny, although there was a tree down on the other side of the road.

Parked by the water and went for another walk, the only wildlife we saw was a hairy caterpillar. The wind was picking up by the time we got to the restaurant.

We ordered the seafood platter and a bowl of wedges but the waitress said we wouldn't need them so took her advice.

The platter was huge - it had the same tuna steak I'd had the day before, plus  prawns, calamari, scallops, mussels, King George Whiting,  kingfish , abalone, and oysters.
We asked why there was no lobster or crayfish on the menus and it's not the season.

It was also about 100% better than the one we'd had the first night, much better quality.

We just about finished it off. I was going to have dessert but couldn't manage it.

Drove back to Port Lincoln and walked along the beach again, the wind had died down but it was raining, and we got a bit wet despite an umbrella.

Got back to the hotel but couldn't get in the door - turns out the power had just gone out,  not just where we were but the entire state of South Australia had a power cut.

So we had no Tv, internet or heating in the room.

Decided to rush out to Bunnings to get some candles, found a kmart and bought an led lantern for $10.

The phones were still working, plus I'd brought along a portable charger. The tablet was fully charged so it was a minor inconvenience really.
Fired up the lantern (it was really bright) and settled in to watch something on the tablet. 5 minutes later the power came back on. Didn't get much use out of the lantern.
Turned the TV on and according to the news we were lucky, only a few places had power back.

Watched tv then sleep, getting up early in the morning to drive about 10 hours.

Short Trip to Adelaide - Day Five

Woke up at 08:30, had breakfast then a walk along the beach. It was a bit chilly and windy but not too bad.

Drove about half an hour to Coffin Bay, stopped at a lookout and went for a walk in the bush and saw a couple of goannas but they scuttled into the undergrowth.  Coffin Bay is famous for its oysters, and we stopped at the only restaurant there, but it was a proper seafood place. I had oysters Rockefeller to start, Song had oysters Russian. I had the blue fin tuna steak for main and a glass of wine (because I'm on holiday).

After a few minutes, Matthew Guy walked in. Small world.

The oysters were ok, I'm not a big fan, but the tuna was really, really good - it was crumbed, on a walnut salad with a cheese sauce. Song also liked her marinara.
While we were eating we saw an emu outside just wandering around, as you do.

We decided to book again for the evening but they didn't open, so made it a booking for the next day for lunch.

Went for a walk along the beach and saw quite a few pelicans, some on the pier, some on the water and a couple flying around, they were pretty big.

Went back to the room and watched some stuff I'd downloaded, watched the news and saw that the biggest storm in 50 years was going to hit the area from tomorrow  so might have a problem with the roads, although we thought the route home might be ok for the day after. Went for dinner at the number 4 restaurant in Port Lincoln in a hotel.

We had dips and bread to share to start, then I had kingfish steak and Song had salt and pepper squid. I also had a glass of wine because I'm on holiday and it's also my birthday.
Both meals were good, I couldn't finish my fish so Song had it.

We were a bit disappointed that Matthew Guy didn't show up, but we walked past the restaurant we went to the previous night and he was in there so we were happy.

Went to the supermarket again to pick up some more stuff then back to the room, watched tv then sleep

Short Trip to Adelaide - Day Four

Up at 0700 again, tried a couple of cafes but didn't like the offerings so went back to the same one as yesterday and this time we both had a bacon and egg muffin.

Into the car and started the drive to Port Lincoln, according to Google it was going to take just under 7 hours, but with stops probably nearer 9.

The weather was good, mostly sunny, and the road good. We passed green fields and saw some camels (not dead). There was a reasonable amount of traffic on the road, not enough to slow us down, but a surprising amount considering it wasn't a main road or school holidays.

Our first stop was Port Pirie after 2 hours for a walk and coffee, and we also had a piece of cake each because we're on holiday.

Popped into a book shop and Song bought a Michael Palin travel book (New Europe) because it was about some of the places we'll be visiting next year, and another on historic Australian towns. As I paid the woman asked if I was on their customer list and I said it was highly unlikely. She also asked if I wanted to enter the draw to win some books but I said not really, it would be a bit difficult to pick them up if I won.

Back in the car and after about an hour stopped off for lunch in Port Augusta. Song was hoping for some seafood but all we could find were some cafes, so she had a foccacia with salami and I had a gourmet sausage roll. I also had an iced chocolate because I'm on holiday (but that didn't stop my boss calling me. I asked Song if I should ignore it but she rightly said I'd only be wondering what he wanted, plus he'd probably keep calling till I answered.)

We were about half way to Port Lincoln and headed off down the coast. The traffic thinned out a bit but we still saw quite a few cars.

Called in at Whyalla to have a cup of tea and check out the ocean, and I got surrounded by seagulls who thought the teabag was food.

Another couple of hours and we arrived at Port Lincoln and drove past the accommodation which was an apartment one road back from the beach - it looked a bit dodgy as it was above a salvation army op shop, but was actually very nice, clean, spacious and comfortable.

Chilled out for about 30 minutes and then walked around the corner to the number 1 restaurant in Port Lincoln and ordered the seafood platter and a glass of wine, because I'm on holiday.

Sitting opposite us was Matthew Guy. After seeing Penny Wong in Adelaide it seemed we were on a politician sight seeing tour.

The meal was good - fish, chips, oysters (plain and kilpatrick, calamari, mussels and salad), and plenty of it.

Stopped off at the supermarket on the way home to get some milk and cereal for breakfast then watched tv before bed

Short Trip to Adelaide - Day Three

Woke up around 07:00, the hotel didn't have breakfast but the street (Melbourne Street) had plenty of cafes so we crossed the road and found a busy place. Song had a smoked salmon bagel and I had a toasted ham and cheese croissant. 

Drove across town to a Farmer's Market at the Adelaide Showgrounds and had a potter around there for a while, Song bought 5 KG of dried saltanas and I bought 2 oranges. We also saw Penny Wong, so there you go.

We were meeting our friends for lunch so drove to the restaurant but got there a bit early so drove a short way to the beach and had a walk, the weather was sunny with a bit of cloud around, and about 20C.

Drove to the restaurant, a Vietnamese with lots of award certificates on the wall as well as a photo of a horse which I hoped wasn't part of the menu.

The food was really good - we had quail, a rice hotpot, a seafood noodle salad and cold Vietnamese rolls - rice paper rolls that we filled ourselves from plates of noodles, mint, pork, lettuce and sauce. Very nice and too much, our friends ended up taking home 4 containers of left overs.

Drove back to the hotel and had a cup of tea before walking into the city centre. The city was very pleasant - clean, nice sandstone buildings, not too busy.

We walked through a few parks, and there were 3 Kookaburras on a balcony making a noise, plus lots of Lorikeets flying around. We walked past the football stadium where an AFL match was going on, we asked some guy and he said it was the local final and about 30000 people were watching.

Wandered along Rundle Mall and Song bought me some jumpers, walked around a bit more and along came some Hari Krishnas who stopped and banged on about Hari and his mate Rama - I hadn't seen the Haris for a while, didn't know they were still around.

Walked back to the hotel via the Botanical Gardens and thought about dinner but decided against it so just watched TV.

Tomorrow is a long drive to Port Lincoln.

Short Trip to Adelaide - Day Two

Up at 6 (6!), they had a kitchen and provided eggs and bacon so I cooked 4 boiled eggs for Song and a bacon sandwich for me - not exactly Heston but it's about my limit. 

Filled up with petrol and found a cafe opposite another sink hole so had a look at that while I drank my coffee. 

Drove round the corner to look at the other lake but it was closed off for an event so headed off to Naracoorte - Song wanted to see some caves.

The weather was grim, cloudy and raining. 

We found ourselves driving through vineyards, some of the biggest names - Wynn's, St Hugo and Penfolds. 

We arrived at the caves and had to wait for about 30 minutes for a tour. It was very interesting - lots of stalactites and stalagmites, including some very thin ones the guide called straws. 

The tour lasted about 30 minutes and was well worth it. 

Headed towards the coast, there was a road that follows the coast and I thought it would be spectacular. Unfortunately it wasn't - the road followed the coastline  but was about 1km away, so all we could see were fields, a lot of which were waterlogged, a hangover from all the recent rain. 

We stopped off at a place for lunch called Salt Creek which was basically one roadside cafe. I had a hot dog and Song had fish and we shared chips. This was not the gourmet part of the trip. 

The owner came and started to talk to the table next to us where 4 guys who had been fishing were eating and he started to talk to them and didn't stop for the 30 minutes we were there. I don't think the fishermen said a word.

Back in the car and headed off again, and the landscape opened up and we could actually see the coast and some islands, although the weather was still rotten, overcast, raining and miserable. Still very little traffic which was good, and the road was mostly good condition and there were some long, straight stretches.

Stopped off at Murray Bridge (and drove over it) to pop into the supermarket to pick up some flowers for Song's friends, then onto Adelaide. 

Had a very nice dinner at their very nice house and gave the kids a box of Lego we'd bought in Melbourne which did the job of keeping them occupied and quiet.
Drove about 10 minutes to the hotel and collapsed again, I'd done a lot of driving in the last 2 days, about 1000KM.

Short Trip to Adelaide - Day One

I wasn't going to write about this trip since it's a one-week away to Adelaide, not as epic as previous trips, but then thought why not?

So, took a Friday off from work (but they still called me about something), up early because my internal clock obviously thought it was a normal day.

Finalised packing - we are taking more with us than we did for our 5 week trips to Europe and Canada, mainly because we're driving, so in went the laptop and the tablet, food and drink.

Left the dog with the next door neighbours (we did ask them first), said goodbye to the cat and headed off at around 09:35. Turned around after 500M because Song did't remember locking the front door (she had).

Traffic wasn't bad and we were soon on the Freeway heading towards Geelong, took a left turn and set out for Mortlake where I reckoned we'd end up around lunchtime.

The road was a 'B' road, but I was surprised at how little traffic there was. We stopped for a leg stretch in Lismore where I got a coffee from a very chatty woman who wanted to know where I was from, where I was going, what the weather was like in Melbourne, did I have kids and would I like sugar.

Back in the car and on the country road, the scenery was very green - it had rained a lot, and in fact earlier in the week we were not sure if we could go because a lot of roads were closed due to flooding. The Great Ocean Road was closed in part due to a landslide.

The hills were very lush and there were tons of sheep - I don't know why they wanted to clone them, they all looked the same to me and there were plenty of them. We could have been in New Zealand or Ireland. There was also lots of standing water in the fields and some signs warning that there was water on the road, but it hadn't rained for a week and the roads were clear.

We arrived at Mortlake and looked around for somewhere to eat, and found a cafe that was very busy - because it was the only place there. It was a pretty average place and I had a meat pie, Song had a chicken sandwich and a Chico Roll (a deep fried thing filled with some grey stuff - very uncharacteristic of her). I can honestly say it was the best pie I've ever had in Mortlake. I can also guarantee that it will be the last pie I ever have in Mortlake.

Back into the car and onward, we passed a sign for a waterfall (Nigretta Falls), and decided to have a look. I figured that with all the rain it might be quite good. Drove down the small road and nearly missed the turn-off, but when we got there it was pretty spectacular. We've seen a few waterfalls this year, including Niagara and some amazing Icelandic ones. This wasn't on the same scale (obviously), but was equal to those we saw in Canada. Lots of water and noise. It was at this point that I realised I'd left my camera at home on the cabinet. Luckily Song took a few hundred photos with her phone to make up for it.

Drove another 10 minutes and found another waterfall called Wannon Falls, again pretty impressive.

Carried on to Mount Gambier where we were staying (getting to Adelaide in one go is do-able, but there wasn't any point in pushing it).

I kept my eye out for wildlife, there were loads of signs for kangaroos and koalas, and I did see 3 kangaroos and 1 koala. Unfortunately they were all dead by the side of the road so it didn't count.

However, as we drove through a forest I saw a mob of kangaroos (yes, that is the correct term, I looked it up), about 20 or so, sitting and laying down behind a wire fence just at the side of the road. I drove past so had to turn around and go back. As soon as I stopped they all got up and hopped off into the trees. Bastards. All except 2, who sat there looking at us. Song got out of the car to take a photo but they were just teasing and they bounded off as well. Bastards. So we didn't get any photos but at least we saw some.

We arrived at Mount Gambier and pulled in at an attraction - a sinkhole in a park. Yes, a hole in the ground counts as an attraction here.

Drove around the corner to Blue Lake - this was nice, a huge lake (blue) inside a volcanic crater. Unfortunately you can't get close because it actually supplies the town with water, but there was a lookout with a nice view.

Song had booked the Park Hotel which sounded nice, until we drove up and discovered it was a pub, complete with Pokie Machines. In 10 years of booking hotels Song had finally slipped up. However, the room was good - clean, comfortable with all the stuff, and to be honest was perfectly fine.

Decided not to eat at the hotel / pub and instead went to a Thai restaurant that was no 4 in Tripadvisor and was busy, a short walk from the hotel. I had Phad Thai and Song had pork. It was average at best.

Feeling pretty drained after the early start and the driving, walked back to the hotel and crashed.

Tomorrow we're getting up early because we want to visit Naracoorte (Song said there's some interesting things there) and drive along the coast.