After many aborted attempts due to COVID-19 lockdowns, we finally managed to do our long-awaited road trip to South Australia in March 2022 for 3 weeks.
Our route took use from:
- Melbourne –> Robe
The Robe Obelisk, an icon of Robe
- Robe –> Port Noarlunga
Summer Vibes at the Onkaparinga River Mouth
- Port Noarlunga –> Ardrossan
Paradise found – Flaherty’s Beach, Point Turton
Walking down to Pondalowie Surf Break, Innes National Park
- Ardrossan –> Flinders Ranges
Outback skies from Pugilist Hill. An easy 10 minute drive from our accommodation at Rawnsley Park Station. We were lucky enough to see a couple of wedge-tailed eagles soaring on thermals around the hill as the sun went down – can’t beat that!
- Flinders Ranges –> Hahndorf
- Hahndorf –> Port MacDonnell
- Port MacDonnell –> Melbourne
In summary, if you are thinking of doing a road trip through South Australia, do it! We found 3 weeks was insufficient to see all this beautiful state had to offer and still need to come back to explore places like Kangaroo Island, the Eyre Peninsula and Coober Pedy.
General highlights:
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- Driving on beaches in South Australia, something you can’t do in Victoria! Good fun, just make sure not to get bogged down.
Southport Beach Sunset – had this beautiful beach all to ourselves for our evening stroll. No need to drive onto this beach, it was an easy walk from our accommodation. In fact, our accommodation had ocean views which really added to the experience.
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- The amazing Flaherty’s Beach on the Yorke Peninsula. This feels like something out of the tropics with beautiful aqua water and pristine sand. The added bonus is that the beach is very shallow and the water gets trapped between the numerous sandbars. The results is that the water has a chance to get heated up by the sun – so the water temperature was tropical too. The kids loved it here – the water clarity was amazing with schools of fish and stingrays all able to be easily spotted. Due to the water temperature we were able to spend all day there splashing around and having fun.
- Walking around on Lake Bumbunga – a giant salt lake.
Lake Bumbunga – no pink algal blooms when we were there, but it was still spectacular to see such a vast salt lake
Lake Bumbunga – it was an awesome feeling to wander around such a vast alien landscape
Lake Bumbunga – the drone aerials really allow you to enjoy these natural wonders from a unique perspective. The birds-eye perspective really highlights the natural patterns left by the salt in the lake.
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- The stunning vistas and ancient landscapes at Flinders Ranges National Park. Make sure to take a scenic flight in order to truly appreciate the grandeur of the landscape. Also don’t forget to visit the brilliant Wadna Shop (authentic aboriginal artefacts and guided tours) at Blinham.
Moralana Scenic Drive with Heysen Ranges in the background. The outback skies somehow seem so much more vast than those in the city. The drive itself is well worthwhile, with plenty of nice landscapes to be seen from the car (good if you have young kids!). Some parts do get bumpy so having a car with some ground clearance is useful.
Outback landscape around Wilpena Pound – we did a 30 minute scenic flight with Chinta Air and thought the scenery was spectacular, as was the pilot’s knowledge of the area and its history.
Flying over Wilpena Pound – for when long hikes with young kids just aren’t an option!
Stokes Hill Lookout. One of the many drive-in lookouts at the Flinders Ranges. Maximum views, minimum effort. An important consideration when travelling with 2 young kids!
We also went to the Prairie Hotel at Parachilna for the Feral Grill, as you do when you are in the Flinders Ranges. I thought this was probably one of the more overrated experiences at the Flinders Ranges – the food was overseasoned and oversalted to the point where it was difficult to discern what you were eating. This was a consensus that was shared by other travellers I met in my travels around the Flinders Ranges. Since I was at Parachilna, the Nilpena Ediacara National Park has opened which includes a visitor hub with a fossil experience – sounds it would be worth a visit.