Adios Adelaide

We woke up soon after sunrise on Monday 2nd September; our swag bags were ideal for watching kangaroos walking around near us! We soon got the fire roaring again ready to cook our bacon and eggs, and (slightly more Australian) damper. Having eaten our fill we followed a trail down to a nearby waterfall where we decided it would be a good idea to swim, having been convinced by Ben it was not too cold! It was hands down the coldest water I had swum in in Australia - it chilled through to the bones and while I did not stay in the water very long, Ben did and got out with numb hands! After our walk we relaxed a while, soon realising we were in fact camped under a magpie nest; we ate lunch and sat around a while before heading home...

Ice cold swimming location

We took it easy on Tuesday, sorting things out and cleaning camping gear. As an interlude we all decided to jump in the swimming pool. It was (a bit) warmer than the waterfall...

Swimming, with Franzi and Bene

I travelled up to North Adelaide in the morning to meet mum's friends from her days in Perth, Tim and Joy. We chatted and they took me to a Thai restaurant for lunch. I wandered around North Adelaide and back through the Botanic Gardens before meeting a prospective future travel partner. The evening meant birthday celebrations for Angus with the customary ice cream cake with a picture drawn using sweets. Thursday was largely spent doing not much...

With Tim and Joy

With my awesome Belair hosts

I prepared my things the following day for a roadtrip with Cherina, Melanie and Camille in a rather nice car acquired in a relocation deal (it even had cruise control). After a supermarket stop at Murray Bridge we made a further short stop at Christmas Rocks before we proceeded on to Mt Gambier to spend the night in the gaol (converted into a hostel a few years ago). After check-in we made dinner and took the recommended trips to Cave Gardens and Umpherston Sinkhole, where we fed an awesome friendly possum!

Going directly to gaol

My new pet (I wish...)

We went for a short walk around nearby Blue Lake (an extinct volcano crater) the following morning and took a look at the sinkhole by daytime before continuing on our way to the Grampians, stopping en route at several places including Wannon Falls.

Impressive Wannon Falls

After a quick stop at the information centre to devise a strategy offering the best viewing opportunities (given current low cloud conditions) we motored on along picturesque mountain roads to Halls Gap. A fair way into the Grampians, there were fields full of kangaroos and hills all around so we opted for a walk up a recommended hill; after climbing past many strangely shaped boulders the pinnacle at the top gave excellent views over the surrounding area in spite of the grey sky.

Kangaroo with Joey

Ominous clouds up top

We decided to turn in at a nearby hostel with the living room fire a deal-maker considering the wilderness chill factor. The tricky part was finding someone to book the accommodation through - there was noone at reception, the phone number provided did not work and there was noone across the road (where it had been suggested we look). Eventually we found someone who knew the hostel owner and sorted everything out for us; we are still unsure whether the owner is fictional...

Dinner by the fire