The weather cleared up and turned out very nice at Ceduna so we extended our stay to 4 nights. The doggies loved running on nearby Shelly Beach which was covered in sea rivulets when the tide went out, and even little Ian and Muffin galloped through the shallow warm water.
Ceduna Foreshore Caravan Park was a friendly little place and we had a good evening in the camp kitchen with other travellers all cooking up their fishing hauls from the day. Paul had dug up some cockles on the beach and used them in tasty looking pasta. Others had caught crabs and oysters. Dinner under the stars was washed down with a glass or two of wine and some very congenial conversation with Colin, Jill, Ben, Lee and others.
A lady guest at the caravan park found a tiny little male puppy crying with no owner to be found and he had no tags, registration or microchip. So she contacted the local Ranger and after the puppy had endured a few nights in the local pound she retrieved him and decided to give him a home with her and her husband. Then when she took him out for a little walk, a family group of Aboriginals saw the puppy and claimed him as theirs. We were not sure of the final outcome to this as we were leaving Ceduna, but we do hope that the puppy ended up in the safest and best home.... (Postscript: good news - the puppy did end up with the lady and will be much loved)
We left Ceduna feeling quite rested and made our way down the Flinders Highway for lunch at Smokey Bay - a very quiet and relaxed fishing village on a huge beautiful bay, 40km south of Ceduna on the Eyre Peninsula. There was a long jetty, one general store and a caravan park. We walked along the beach and spoke to the fishermen on the jetty. There was a strong consistent wind blowing along the coast that apparently doesn’t often let up, so even though it was summer, the locals had woollen beanies on! We spent the night at a rest area off the main road, on the coast at Haslam – a real ‘one horse’ town, with only a part-time post office and a few small homes.
It was an easy 60km drive to Streaky Bay the next morning, made famous in the 1970's movie Blue Fin. Captain Matthew Flinders named Streaky Bay in 1802 for the bands of colour in the water, which were made by oils given off by seaweed! Oysters, abalone and scallops are all very popular, but the town has a history as a wheat and wool port in the 1880’s and agriculture is still the major industry today. The town was a little more substantial that the previous couple we had passed through and had TWO hairdressers, which tells you something I suppose. Our three dogs disgraced us by barking ferociously at another ‘dog for the blind’ which was just passing by with blind owner doing his job. Oh the shame of it!
We parked the van in the shade while we decided which tourist attraction to visit....the National Trust museum, the oyster shed tour, the restored engine museum or the replica ‘Great White Shark’ weighing 1,500kg caught on a 24kg line in 1990...
We stayed the night in a rest area that was OK except for a horrible smell from the bin – what was in there we wondered? We moved off early the next morning to visit Murphy’s Haystacks – an outcrop of pink granite boulders set in fields of wheat. We were the only ones there as we wandered amongst the beautiful structures taking photographs. The sun was still low and the light on the rocks and the breeze blowing across the golden fields was stunning. Murphy’s Haystacks are ancient wind worn granite ‘inselbergs’ purported to be over 1500 million years old. We found it very scenic indeed.
We stopped at a tiny village called Port Kenny just a bit further along the Eye Peninsula and found ourselves back in a time warp – nothing had changed since about 1940! The few homes, the old store and the hotel were just like the old photos you sometimes see of a different era. We noted that the hotel did some good seafood and drove on towards Venus Bay but suddenly spotted a couple we knew (Colin and Jill) with their caravan, Ute and boat in a rest area. We had met them at Ceduna so we pulled over to say hello and ended up spending the rest of the day relaxing and chatting to them.
Paul and I did a quick excursion to Venus Bay in the late afternoon to walk the dogs and discovered it to be an idyllic fishing village with a great little jetty surrounded by scores of Pelicans and fishing boats and a sandy beach with warm shallow water for the doggies to run in. It reminded us both of a tiny Icelandic or Scottish Isle village – except the weather was warmer! We drove back to meet Colin and Jill at the Hotel in Port Kenny for a very pleasant evening of seafood and sticky date pudding in a typical Aussie Hotel of yesteryear! The landlord Alan and his wife (the chef) had just taken over the place a month ago and were trying to make a go of it. They were having an event the next night of ‘all you can eat’ prawns, so we decided we would go back the next evening too.
We all spent the night in a rest area just outside Port Kenny and got a little spooked by some rabbit shooters who were driving in the scrub just across the road from us, firing a .22 rifle from the back of a Ute by spotlight in the dark. At one point we felt they were getting a little too close for comfort so we shone and waved our torches to alert them of our presence and they gradually moved away.
The night proved to be windy and stormy with a little rain and quite grey so we moved in a convoy to a campsite at Venus Bay that we had seen the day before. It was situated right on the edge of the bay and we had a fantastic view from our van of the islands and the sand banks in the distance and the boats and Pelicans at our doorstep. The weather improved and the sun came out but there was still quite a wind. We were happy enough to get out our computers and do a bit of work and the laundry while watching the beautiful scenery from the comfort of our van.
We booked our trip on the ‘Spirit of Tasmania’ over to Tasmania from Melbourne and back. The fare is fully flexible and includes 2 allocated reclining seats with ocean view, 3 kennels for the doggies and the motor home, there and back for $890. Not a bad price for a 9-11 hour sea voyage really. We will leave on 28th January and return on 25th February 2010, so we should have plenty of time to enjoy Tassie. Then Paul cooked up an excellent porridge with blueberries and apple puree and yoghurt, and along with a coffee it made a perfect brunch.
Later in the day we took the dogs for a walk along a cliff edge track round the edge of the little peninsular. Parts of the walk were nerve-wracking as the path had been undermined and fallen into the sea, the wind was blustery and the waves were crashing and pounding against the rocks beneath. We decided it was safer to keep the dogs on the lead. It certainly blew any cobwebs away! That same evening we went back to the Hotel at Port Kenny for their special Prawns and Beer night – all you could eat in two hours for $20 a head. The prawns were fresh and delicious and huge - just off the boat. We again enjoyed the company of Colin and Jill who travelled there and back in our motor home, with Colin and Paul in the back with the three doggies and Jill and me in the front. We didn’t pass one car either going or coming back as the road was completely empty except for one rabbit that made it through to safety under the wheels of the van.
It blew a right gale all that night and the noise and rocking in the van was amazing. The next day was again very windy and stormy, but we took the dogs on the beach anyway and they had a great time chasing all the huge seagulls and other birds that were resting on the sand. We got back to the van quite exhilarated and ready for some French Toast and coffee, and to read, doze, listen to music and just enjoy the magnificent view on our doorstep. It doesn’t get much better than this you know.
To see our photos, right click the following link and 'open in a new window': http://picasaweb.google.com.au/paularcher001
