Glenda spotted this message on a T-shirt, and for some reason thought it would be suitable for me! I can’t imagine why!!
We now have a few days on our own and have rented an apartment in Crafers in the Adelaide Hills.
Our first evening meal out in the Hills was at the Bridgeport Tavern. But to work up an appetite, we first walked the Heysen Trail.
Although, to be fair, we only covered about five kms of the 1200 km total. It’s a long distance walking trail in South Australia. It starts at the Parachilna Gorge, in the Flinders Ranges where we visited the Prairie Hotel many years ago. It then snakes south via the Adelaide Hills to Cape Jervis on the Fleurieu Peninsula. Apparently, hardy walkers who walk the track from beginning to end typically do so in about 60 days. We only had an hour before our fish and chips supper! So just the five kilometers!
We have fond memories of the beaches south of Adelaide. So we spent a day in that direction. There’s one beach after another down here. And all crowded … with … with … us really!
From Christie’s Beach, heading south, we tried Port Noarlunga, Southport, Moana, Willunga and Aldinga Beaches. Looking for a really quiet one! Two of the beaches officially allow cars to drive and park on the sands, so we skipped those and ended up at Maslin Beach. Walking along under the cliffs, we discovered, quite by chance, obviously, that we were on a nudist beach – or should that be naturist beach? We later learned that Maslin was declared Australia’s first nude beach in 1975. The beach is three km long and is allegedly signposted so you can stay clear away from it if you prefer to swim with your clothes on. I’m sure we didn’t see the signs till after we left. Honestly!
But, it’s true to say the resident bathers were well spaced out (geograhically, not psychologically). They were hard to spot! Enough of that!
Chris and Di West were colleagues of mine at ICI sometime during the last century. Chris was a vet. We kept fish at the laboratory. So, we needed a fishy vet. Chris filled the bill. He was, and still is, a bit fishy!
Anyway Chris left the nasty chemical industry to join Chester zoo which allowed him to follow his real interest in conservation issues. Successive, transfers and relocation took him to, London, Adelaide and Edinburgh zoos.
They have re-re-located back to the Adelaide Hills and now have lovely property where they rear chickens, and grow fruit and veg. …
… and have koalas visit on a regular basis!
That’s by far the closest we have been to a wild koala!
Another day we met my cousin Clare in the eastern suburbs of Adelaide …
… and later, spent some time in the area near Port Adelaide where we inspected some interesting old ships. Like the square rigger, the “One and All”, which was built in North Haven, Port Adelaide and is now owned by the South Australian Government.
… and the clipper ship the City of Adelaide which is under restoration …
… hopefully to look more like this …
… but in full colour, obviously!
The City of Adelaide was purpose built in Sunderland, UK in the 1860s, to carry passengers and cargo to and from Adelaide. She undertook 23 return voyages between London and Adelaide. She’s the only surviving sailing ship to have given regular service between the United Kingdom and South Australia, and only one of two surviving composite clipper ships in the world – the other is the famous, but younger, Cutty Sark.
Today it is said that almost quarter of a million Australians can trace their heritage to passengers and crew of the City of Adelaide.
That’s enough history! Or is it? The next day we visited Hahndorf, a small town in the Hills. Settled by 19th-century Lutheran migrants, it’s known for its original German-style architecture and artisanal food. North of town, “The Cedars” houses the studio and art of German-born landscape painter Sir Hans Heysen. He of the walking trail fame.
For us, the place was immensely over-rated by the huge numbers of visitors. In fact it was the huge numbers that spoilt the place. Very touristy – not for us. A far cry from the sleepy little place we first visited 30 years ago. We need koalas and kangaroos!
At the Jurlique flower farm, about five kms southwest of Hahndorf, pink roses are harvested by hand and then dried. They are then converted into expensive perfumes and toiletries. As we rolled to a halt in their parking lot, a mob of maybe 20 kangaroos bounded across the field ahead of us and into a wooded area. Like I said, we needed kangaroos – and we got them. We also found one lone juvenile female relaxing amongst the rose bushes. Not exactly tame, but quite tolerant of onlookers!
There was a remarkable reunion while we were staying at Crafers. The last time Glenda had seen Chris Rawlinson was in the Geography Department of Newcastle University … in … 1970. To be fair, I don’t think either of them would have known the other if they passed each other on the street – or on the beach.
It should be noted that 1970 saw the introduction of the Boeing Jumbo 747! Other notable inventions of that era included: cell phones; hand held electronic caculators; the bomb disposal robot; Post It Notes; hybrid cars and digital cameras. To be fair they all came into being in the 1970s, not all in one go in 1970. And it should be noted that the cell phones in those days were as big and heavy as bricks with an extendible aerial and a battery life of about 10 minutes! Also, Glenda and I got married that year.
Anyway we had a lovely time exploring the rural areas of the Adelaide Hills. An area we really, really like. We needed more time here!
On the last day in the Hills, we met Vicky, Neil, again, and Gloria and had Sunday lunch at Auchendarroch House in Mount Barker. Sadly, we couldn’t dine in the old house because there was a wine tasting event in progress. We ended up in the more basic café area. Followed by tea and cake afterwards at Gloria’s place.
For the duration of our stay in Adelaide our hire car refused to connect to our phone. Navigation was limited to using Google maps on the mobile. And Europcar were delightfully unapologetic! For six days we were reliant on Glenda’s map reading skills!
Time to head off north to what was going to become “cyclone-land”. As we were pushed back from stand 44, our neighbour at 42 was moved in unison. We were reversed to the left and they to the right. We ended up facing each other on the taxi-way. Stalemate!
After ten minutes staring each other down, our captain chickened out. The opposition was bigger than us, after all. We did an about turn and scooted off to the runway – just ahead of the opposition!
And just a few minutes later, we were flying over Glenelg. That’s the interestingly named Patawalonga River and boat haven in the centre foreground.
The only disasters left to encounter would be a cyclone and a nasty snake. Surely they can’t both happen!
I am sure that quote on the t-shirt is made for my John also
They made a movie about Maslin Beach in the 1970s, and it was full-on, or should I say, full frontal, for most of its duration.
1970 – my last year at High School, and the year I met ‘The Queen’. But that’s another story.