Arriving in Kingston we drove through the Will’s Beach Shack – a ‘free camp’ ground on Will’s beachfront property.
On our arrival we were greeted by a very friendly Will, who was a lot shorter than I envisioned, who directed us to our site location- and gave us some good advice as to where to eat in town.
Two Willys marching to the same tune
The Crown Hotel Bistro in Kingstown was the place to eat according to Will as the fish and chip shop allegedly had given him diarrhoea – better to eat where the locals do so we drove back in to the pub.
Kingston is the home of the Big Lobster – love those big Aussie icons – so we were hoping for some great seafood.
The sun rose over Will’s Beach Shack the next morning, as we packed up and attempted to leave early.
We drove past some interesting scenery in Coorong NP – salt pans, lakes including a pink lake, sand dunes and scrub – a real wetland area.
Through Meningie and past Lake Albert, we turned off to Wellington and waited to catch the vehicular ferry across the Murray into Wellington itself.
Waiting to cross on the car ferry
More beautiful old SA buildings lined the banks and were scattered across the farmland as we drove south toward Victor Harbour.
The land was increasingly fertile with vineyards, cattle and sheep farming making a change from the more arid area between Coorong and Wellington.
Arriving in Victor Harbour, we had a quick lunch at a bakery in town and then continued to Rapid Bay.
By this time, it was starting to rain, and the area was increasingly hilly with windy roads.
The view looking toward Rapid Bay would have been spectacular if it had not been for the rain and mist.
Wayne, the caretaker at Rapid Bay Campground, instructed us over the phone to park in a grassy spot in a wagon train configuration.
The campground looked great despite the weather and the bay was beautiful with high hills on either end and a long jetty at the south end.
Sunset arrived as the rain stopped and a spectacular rainbow appeared down the north end of the beach – which brought out all the cameras.
Set up at Rapid Bay
The water was a beautiful aqua blue which contrasted with the pink and orange sky. We had dinner and Rose went to wash up – she suddenly reappeared clutching her hand – she had dropped the stovetop cover down on her finger (very heavy!) and it had cut her finger deeply and bruised the nail – extremely painful.
Into the Loveday van and out came the first aid kit…Rosie was regretting wearing her white shorts which now had a lot of red on them – even though she was in pain she managed to make a joke of the shorts and was very brave.
On closer inspection it was deemed the cut would need some stitches, so we Googled the nearest hospital – back at Victor Harbour a 40min drive – so after some Steristrips and a pressure bandage Trev drove Rose and Dave to the ED.
The hospital was great – after 4 stitches and instructions on how to care for the wound they were on their way back to camp.
After an eventful evening everyone had a slow start to the day. The sun was shining – not a cloud in the sky – a real contrast from the day before thankfully.
We decided to make the most of the sunny day and headed out to the surf beaches of Parsons Head and Waitpinga in the hope of Trev and Gordie getting a surf.
Arriving at Parsons Beach we were greeted with a breathtaking vista of golden beach, clear turquoise waters and waves (albeit small!). A carpark discussion with the lone local female surfer there revealed that the surf was not expected to pick up any time soon so we decided to drive around to Waitpinga for a swim and a surf.
Waitpinga was also very beautiful but much longer – and the waves were no better. Trev and Gordie had a paddle anyway.
We ate lunch at the Castaway Café near the jetty at Victor Harbour.
After some food and beverages we walked out along the jetty to Granite Island where there is a penguin colony.
A quick walk around to take in the sights and some pics. It had beautiful views over the harbour and rocky islands and there was even a rock that looked like Mr Magoo!
The penguins return to the island at dusk and head into their nests, but we were not planning to stay that long so we walked back across the jetty.
A late walk on the beach at Rapid Bay to investigate what looked like a cave at the end proved fruitless. There was one section that looked like an entry to a cave but it was too high to get to. The day ended well with no serious injuries or incidents!
Another beautiful day dawned at Rapid Bay and Gordie thought he would break out the ring of fire for breakfast. Fortunately experience makes for wiser decisions as he has a custom-made board to sit it on now to prevent any fire damage to the table below. Unlike his first attempt with it.
As the day was beautiful, we planned to head north to a few different beaches. First stop Second Valley where we had heard the snorkelling was good.
The area is known for the Weedy Sea Dragon and we were keen to see it in its natural habitat. Trev and Clare grabbed snorkelling gear and jumped in from the beach while the others went for a walk around the rocks.
The water was a good temperature and very clear.
As they swam over towards the jetty the seabed was pretty with fine white sand and a huge variety of underwater plants as well as colourful fish.
They snorkelled for quite a lengthy time but unfortunately did not see any sea dragons.
The next stop was the lookout where the HMAS Hobart memorial was. The warship was deliberately scuttled a few KMs off the coast here after it had completed its service and was now an artificial reef and well-known dive site.
Memorial to HMAS Hobart, which lies just offshore
Everyone was pretty hungry by now so we went back to the local café and grabbed some lunch.
After lunch we swam out to a pontoon about 50m out and climbed onto it. I soon realised that I couldn’t swim as far or as fast as I used to be able.
Normanville was a lovely location and once we swam back to the beach we decided to stay and relax for a while. The others arrived and we spent some time sitting on the beach.
It got so hot that we found some shade under the jetty.
It was time to leave but Dave decided to quickly fill up his jerry can of water as security, from the beach shower! Seems he needed some insurance on water usage due to Rosie and the shower?
After a windy night we woke to a beautiful sunny day, which was great as we had planned to drive to Deep Creek Conservation Park and go to Blowhole Beach, where there may have been some surf.
Entering the Park, we hit dirt roads and came to the turnoff to Blowhole Beach – a steep descent on dirt roads – with a warning at the start.
The Ranger and the ‘cruiser handled the descent well and the views were spectacular.
Blowhole Beach was smaller than expected but beautiful nevertheless. Some of us made the final walk down to the beach for a swim.
Unfortunately the surf was small, but the water again was clean and clear, and we enjoyed the swim. Well, apart from the sand crab that grabbed Trev’s big toe and drew blood!
After exploring the beach, we made the trek back up the hill, my Landcruiser making quick work of the steep ascent!
The surrounding farmland with velvety hills rolling down towards the beach were picturesque. Grass trees were dotted everywhere – the species here is large, rounded with very tall and thick flowering spikes.
We stopped at the top of the hill to take in the awesome view.
A mob of kangaroos were resting in the shade. Kangaroo Island could be seen in the distance.
We drove on to the Trig Campground where the walk to Deep Creek Waterfall started.
Before starting the walk, we had some lunch in the shade then headed up to start the walk.
Trev deciphered the description of the walk as ‘easy’ to the group, but it seems he misread it and it was far from easy.
The walk started out easy, but it was quite a warm day with very little breeze. As we got into it, the track became a little rocky and uneven and we started to descend into the valley.
After walking for about 30 mins, we met another couple coming back who informed us that the waterfall was still about 15mins away.
The track was very challenging ahead with steep steps so Kerry decided to stop and wait.
Gordie decided to stay with Kerry so Trev gave them our car keys so they could go back to the car.
Dave and Rose were machines racing ahead, while Trev, Clare, Beryl and I brought up the rear.
The walk did get very steep, but we finally made it to the bottom…and the creek and waterfall.
The waterfall only had a trickle of water running over it into a deep dark pool.
The rockface was unusual with a large white limestone rock protruding out the middle of the waterfall surrounded by black rock. The falls would have been great if there had been rain.
What goes down must come back up…and so we started the long haul up the track in the heat, with Dave again leading the pack.
Trev held back and we both gave Beryl inspiration and moral support.
It took us 2 hrs plus to get back but we all finally made it.
A great butt and thighs workout some may say!
Trev then revealed what was actually written on the sign. Some people may have been ready to strangle him after the harrowing experience however on reflection it was a good walk to have done.
It was time to leave Rapid Bay and make the journey to Kangaroo Island.
We were leaving our caravans at the caravan park at Cape Jervis where the ferry for KI leaves.
As we drove toward Cape Jervis, the sky over Kangaroo Island looked threatening and the wind had picked up, so we were anticipating a rough ride across the Backstairs Passage, which is the strait that divides KI from the mainland.
The caravan park at Cape Jervis was happy to store two of our cars and our 4 vans for the 6 nights we would be on KI. Beryl and I opted for the luxury storage package which came with power and an ensuite. True Australian dunny style.
The rest of the crew were assigned the povo pack in the back stalls.