Saturday 11th February 2012 - Mt Remarkable

We packed up early and whilst it was still cool we headed off on the Daveys's Loop walk. There was a number of fabulous looking walks, however they were all too long for the kids so we had to stick to the short loop walk for 1 hour. It was a nice walk through the bush. We saw emus and kangaroos along the way. I'm glad we went early to avoid the heat.

We continued on a took a detour of the hwy and headed to Adelaide via the Clare Valley.
We stopped and did some wine tasting at Seven Hills (Charlotte was quick to notice it is where the communion wine comes from!) and another little shop close by to Seven Hills which represented several smaller wineries in the region. Ed and I enjoyed some wines and bought some to bring to Sharon & Peter's in Adelaide.
We arrived in Mile End (Adelaide) with great relief at Sharon & Peter's. Showers!!!!!!!!!!
We were treated to yummy wood fired pizza's cooked by Peter in the wood fired oven. YUMMY!!!!!

Friday 10th February 2012 - Flinders Ranges

Can you believe it! We had thunder, lightening and rain today!
Here are some shots from the walk yesterday....

We decided to pack up and head towards Bunyeraroo Gorge for a walk and a drive on the way back to Wilpenia.
Before we headed to the Mt Remarkable we stopped an did a 1 hr climb up to some Aboriginal paintings which Thomas became a rock hopper again!

We continued onto Mt Remarkable for a nights camp on the way to Adelaide.
It was a pretty drive through a beautiful gorge (I can't remember the name!) Much to Ed's disgust the Mt Remarkable National Park charged $17 a night to camp. He was not happy!

Thursday 9th February 2012 - The Flinders Ranges

HAPPY BIRTHDAY ED!!!
Some beautiful cards and 2 new t-shirts. Happy days!
After breakie we got organised for a long bush walk. We drove up to the top of the park (Aroona Campground) and followed a goat trail up around the park. We stopped at Heysen Lookout for a great view of the ranges.

We walked for over 2 and a half hours. What champions the kids were!
We retired back to the campsite for a much needed rest break and a late lunch.
In the afternoon Ed took us all off on another walk to find some stromatalities! Another 2 km walk and the kids made it.
We had a BBQ dinner for Ed's birthday followed by a surprise - Blueberry Pancakes!
A yummy end to the day!
(I will leave it to your imagination how much fun Ed and the kids had chasing bunnies and cats!)

Wednesday 8th February 2012 - Fitzgerald Bay to the Flinders Ranges

Here is the view of the bay from our campsite last night.

This was a a lovely view last night as we ate our dinner and the kids enjoyed a post dinner ice-cream and walk. Lovely. The moon over the water almost looked like the 'The stairway to the Moon'(??) in Broome. I'm sure the photo doesn't do it justice.
We took off and drove up to the Flinders Ranges via Port Augusta. Normally it would be too hot to go up there, however the weather has been reasonably mild so we decided to go for it.
In Port Augusta we stopped for fuel for the car and for the generator. While I was paying for it I grabbed 2 small cokes. When I got into the car I gave one to Ed which was named 'Brad' and mine was named 'Nicole'!!!!! Too funny - you Ralph's are following us!!!
Unfortunately the fuel ferry can had a leak so we were detained while we bought another one. We finally took off and headed for the Flinders Ranges. (And out of range for our mobile)
We bypassed Wilpenia and headed to the northern part of the park and camped in the Trezzona Camp grounds with know one else around us. Very peaceful.
This is our camper set up and the view we had of the ranges.

And here is our view.......

On the way here the kids made birthday cards for Ed...tomorrow 42 years old!!!!
A bit disappointing....the first animals we saw were bunnies and cats! Bloody feral animals!!!

Tuesday 7th February - Port Lincoln - Whyalla

Last night Charlotte, Olivia and Thomas played with Annalise (9) & Danny (11) from America (Megan's kids). They all had fun chasing each other around the park while Ed and I enjoyed some squid. The kids enjoyed a change of company for a short while.
Ed and I packed the camper up ready for an early start today.
Well, what a wonderful start to the day. The boat ride took about an hour and a half hour and then we suited up and spent 45mins - 1hr swimming with the sea lions. It was an amazing experience! Thomas didn't last that long and Olivia got in and out a bit. Charlotte, Ed and I had a great time playing with them.They are so playfull. Ed called in some of the sea lions from the shore and we played with them in water that we could stand in. It was great. On the way back we saw a White Belly Sea Eagle.
We left Port Lincoln around 1pm after a feed of fish and chips and a visit to the sea food store for some yummy prawns. I wanted some Coffin Bay Oysters however they were frozen in packs that wouldn't fit in our freezer.Bummer!
We hit the road and Charlotte and Ed (thank God!) were the only ones who didn't fall asleep in the car. We are camped at Fitzgerald Bay which is just out of Whyalla.
We are heading to Port Augusta tomorrow and if the weather stays mild up into the Flinders Ranges. Otherwise we will make our way down to Adelaide to visit our friends Sharon and Peter.
Ciao

Monday 6th February - Port Lincoln

Another late start to the day! Ed and I were awake earlier (just!) than the kids so I updated the blog while Ed went fishing on the jetty and caught 7 squid! Yummy all for us for dinner!!!
We had our first formal day of school for the kids. Charlotte completed some maths, Olivia worked on her writing skills and Thomas did some 'spot the difference' charts. He didn't last that long. The girls also updated their journals.
We made our way into the Information Centre and booked a swim with the Seals tomorrow which the kids are looking forward to. I have been assured that they have never had a shark problem, however I am still a little nervous! Jen assured me that all the Vances had a great time so I am hoping it will be ok. Thomas was a little unsure until I said that Ava had done it and she had loads of fun. He is now really keen to do it! It is happening already to our little man....he is persuaded by a another woman!
We spent the afternoon exploring the Lincoln National Park. It was beautiful. There were several lovely little bays to explore. Ed wasn't successful on the fishing front but who cares! He's just about to cook me squid for dinner. Yummy!!!

Sunday 5th February 2012 - On the Road down the Coast

Another sleep in followed by a pack up that is still not efficient enough for Ed! We are all covered in some huge mossie bites, especially Charlotte, and very tired from the strong winds last night.
We decided to do a late breakie in Streaky Bay to try to get away from the wind. Before we could get there we got bogged in some very soft sand which had moved during the night with the high winds.
Lucky ed got to dig us out while I let the tyres down. All the while the kids are saying, 'We're hungry!' No pressure Ed!
We pulled into Streaky Bay (it was still windy) and paid a visit to the Bakery. We continued down the coast exploring all the little towns along the way with some spectacular coast lines. Stopped at some Caves (the Woolshed & the Tub and saw the sculptures near Elliston. The kids loved the Easter Island heads - it remind them of the movie 'Night at the Museum' and they were running around saving 'Dumb dumb you give me gum gum!' Olivia was also doing her best to pick the noses of the statues!
I was keen to stop at Coffin Bay for a caravan (shower/washing) stop however it was still blowing a gale so we decided to drive around to Port Lincoln.
We meet a nice young couple also travelling (back home to NSW) so Ed and he were talking fishing for a while over dinner. I finished washing after 11pm. We all had clean sheets, bodies, hair and clothes. HAPPY DAYS!!!! Whilst I was washing I met a lovely American woman, Megan (she's a Nurse), who is here in Port Lincoln for 3 weeks whilst her husband is working on tuna research relating to the large oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico and how it affects the long term well being of the species. (I so hope I got that right!) That's what I love about travelling. You meet so many interesting people.