The next leg of our travels took us just around the corner to the east side of the Eyre Penninsular to Port Lincoln. Then we headed back inland towards the desert of the Gawler Ranges. We went straight from Coffin Bay into the Lincoln National Park.
Lincoln National Park
Abby had chosen a quieter campground at Surfleet Cove instead of the more popular September Beach. It was a great choice; we had a beach front site, nice and private with a great view. It was pretty dry so we shared it with quite a few bees. Not to worry though as by the first evening, we had become seasoned professionals at letting the bees crawl all over us until they left of their own choice. Took the kids a while to get used to it, but nobody got stung.
Our private little beach was also pretty good. It was bounded but rocks at both ends with a sandy middle. It was shallow but we all had a dip at one point. We also had a section of the Investigator Trail going past us, so we followed it in a little loop to Surfleet Point. It was a nice trail and getting out to the point gave a good view of Boston Island, Port Lincoln and the Salmon cages.
The next day we did some more exploring, taking in the other parts of the Park; September Beach, Cape Donnington, Engine Point and Carcase Rock. Cape Donnington was a highlight, we spotted both dolphins and seals on our stop there. We were quite happy to sit and wait for them to finish before we left. The other prime spot was September Beach. It was longer and prettier than our beach, but far more popular. We spent the morning there before continuing our exploration.
The final effort in Lincoln was a solo hike by Christian. With no other willing takers, he set out on the Stamford Hill Trail alone. The first section to the top was easy enough, even if steep. The view from the top was pretty spectacular and had a monument commemorating Matthew Flinders. It was erected well over 100 years ago and it turns out people have been graffitiing monuments for at least that long. Making the walk a loop was far more challenging. The track was barely marked, rough, steep and uneven. Probably not the smartest solo hike, but it was enjoyable, even if it took 30 minutes longer than expected.
We had to miss the Memory Cove section of the park. It was a long drive in, not suitable for caravans and really required a few days to enjoy on its own. Better keep something for next time.
Port Lincoln
We didn’t really make the most of Port Lincoln, so we don’t know what we missed. Hannah was sick and our focus on her recovery meant we stayed very close to the caravan. We wanted her at full strength for the Gawler Ranges.
We went for a stroll through town along the waterfront, picked up some supplies and (yet more) caravan parts. Christian took his bike along a section of the Parnkalla Trail. Another outing was to see a couple of lookouts around town and get another view over the water.
One highlight though was a quiet stroll along the Parnkalla Trail to a quiet bay. It was a very pretty spot and we shared it for a short time with a seal. Despite the number of times we have found seals and sea lions, they still entertain us.
Gawler Ranges
The Gawler Ranges were something Abby and Christian had been looking forward to exploring. It’s a National Park less visited and that alone made it appealing. One other big attraction was the prospect of seeing a yellow footed rock wallaby. They inhabit this park and seeing one in the wild was high on our priority list. We had three nights booked and in that time we basically had the entire park to ourselves. We saw perhaps five other vehicles.
Our accommodation was booked at Waganny Campground, perching us right in the middle of the park. It gave us good access to the whole place and meant we would have no trouble seeing it all. On the first afternoon, we took it easy after a long drive, taking a walk out on the Waganny Campground Trail. It wound its way through the plains until it reached a rocky outcrop. A short climb gave you a nice and elevated position to see the ranges and park.
To explore everything, we broke the park into two halves; an Eastern loop and Western Loop. As we could use the 4WD tracks it made getting around easy, if not always quick.
Western Loop
On day one, we did the western loop as it had the most famous attraction of the Organ Pipes.
We cruised past and looked at Old Paney Station and Policeman’s Point, we walked to the old Stone Dam and Peterby Rockhole before arriving at the Organ Pipes. It was a surprisingly long drive into the Organ Pipes, but more than worth the effort. The hexagonal pillars of stone were certainly recognisable from a distance. The pipe organ formation was discernible too. The irony was that this section of the park, although nice, introduced you to the geology of the pipes. Once you knew what you were looking for, they are everywhere to see.
We continue on to Yandinga Falls, which is actually a series of five waterfalls. Despite the kids protests we walked to all five. They were certainly different, although the disappointment of repeatedly dry waterfalls was getting to Hannah. After being spoiled with huge, flowing fall earlier in the trip she just didn’t see the point.
Visiting one of the Five Falls we did see the elusive yellow footed rock wallaby. Unfortunately, this one had long passed away and was partly skeletonised. It was sad, but they certainly have some distinctive markings.
We continued onwards, stopping at Conical Hill, another high point in the park to take in the view before finally returning to camp via the Turkey Flat Track. It was a long, but very enjoyable day.
Eastern Loop
Day two was the shorter Eastern loop. We started by swinging by the Paney Homestead, which has now been converted into the Ranger Station before heading to the Shearers Quarters and Sheds. The information boards showed the life of the National Park, transitioning from many sheep stations, their consolidation before eventually becoming the park. The very dry plains meant the country was always marginal and particularly in the early days expectations were divorced from reality.
Next stop was the Kolay Mirica Falls, arguably the best of the dry falls in the park. The falls were bounded on both sides by more Organ Pipes and ran down a sheer face to a pool below. In the end we decided not to walk the Mattera Trail and returned back a little early. Christian went for his second solo walk, repeating the Waganny Loop for sunset. Unfortunately his timing was a little off, he barely caught the end of sunset and the clouds had rolled in. It was less pretty than hoped and he made the 2km return in the dark with a headlamp. This did not sit well with Laura who was anxious about his after dark return and almost demanded Abby go out in search of him.
Allalone
Our final adventure in the Gawker Ranges was to climb Mount Allalone on the way out. Its name gives it away as this peak sits alone from the rest of the ranges. The benefit is that the steep climb gives the best views of the National Park and the rest of the Gawler Ranges.
It was probably the most difficult walk we did in the park, but it was certainly the most rewarding. The view from the top was something else. We could see back across the plains and over to the ranges proper.
Doing this walk as we left meant that we left the park with a great final memory.
Rural Attractions
Leaving the National Park, we had decided to stay locally, planning three nights in the area. The original plan was three nights in Wudinna, but with no powered sites available where we wanted to stay, we decided to split our time. The third night was now going to be at Kimba.
Both were nice, quiet little towns. The big attractions around both were rock related. All around this are were big granite boulders, which seemed to emerge from the landscape. They were some of the largest rocks in the country and all were different. There was some mini–Wave Rocks, plenty of gnammas, incredible folds, gutters, hollows and colours. Admittedly though, by the time we had finished we were a little over the rocks. There were also some other great things, silo art, a big Koala, a free waterpark, plenty of history and that small town feel we have always enjoyed. It was a pleasant way to wrap our time in the area, a little more relaxed, low budget but still very enjoyable.
