south australia: tanunda, barossa, nurioopta

We were lucky enough to have a somewhat unplanned stay in the Barossa - at Tanunda. Our solid Land Cruiser Workmate needed a service so we stayed in Tanunda so J could take it in to Adelaide city for the day.

The CP was great for the kids with a playground in view of the caravan and a short walk in to the pretty town. We love the original stone buildings in South Australia. 

I fell in love with an antique shop in town (there are a few) and packaged up some amazing green Pyrex dishes and sent them home. 

One morning Miss P and I had a drive, mainly to see Maggie Beer's Kitchen but P insisted I pull over when she spotted these horses feeding by the road. She loves horses. I think someone will be wanting riding lessons soon! 

The samples of Maggie's peaches didn't last long! Unfortunately (or fortunately depending on how you look at it) I left my wallet back in the caravan so when it came time to make a few purchases I had to go through the car to find some coins. 

Dear little P decided she'd like to buy us some peaches by herself. She came back to me on the verge of tears and i could see she was upset. The tears poured down as she said the man wouldn't let her buy any peaches. 

A few weeks later it occurred to me that poor P had taken the sample bowl to the counter, rather than a packet. I assumed she didn't have enough money! 

We made the most of the beautiful weather and rode the rail trail from Anguston to Nurioopta. This is a superb ride through the wineries. There were a few stray grapes (not in the wineries but creeping on to the verge) so we tasted a few grapes along the way. 

What a great way to finish a ride! Local wine and tapas at Home of the Brave, First Drop Wine Bar. The kids loved the Brie and the olives. The prawns were delicious. 

After tapas I took the kids across the road to the local library while J Ross back to fetch the car. 

There are various roads from Nurioopta to Tanunda past big properties so we took the dirt roads back. 

south australia: the easter bunny, adelaide

I was lucky enough to get a leave pass in Adelaide which gave me the opportunity to food-storm (a brainstorm over food) with a fellow foodie and family friend Sue. What better place to meet than the Adelaide Central Market. Being the Saturday before Easter the market was buzzing and good food was in abundance. I rode my bike in, which was a great ride through Adelaide parklands and streets. 

 

Sue and I met at the famous Lucia's and there was a loooong queue that inched towards the counter. It was over breakfast that we food-stormed just what we could do with the Coorong bunny from Shane. 

Sue has the same approach to fresh good food and being able to partner ingredients and flavours. If you've ever cooked rabbit before you'll know it is lean and needs to be cooked slowly over a long time. Sue suggested I buy some speck for fat (and Lucias was the perfect spot to grab some) and serve it with polenta. 

I rode in to town which limited what I could bring home but it didn't stop be stocking up on goodies - think really hippy low-go muesli, salami, Stephanie Alexander's curry paste, spray-free Aussie grapes, the list goes on. Needless to say my backpack was full. 

Sue and I decided that the bunny had to be cooked with the usual - garlic, onions, carrots, capsicum, water, a tin of tomatoes and a generous splash of wine. 

I'd add speck, pepper, salt, sage, native pepperberry (from Diemen Pepper in Tassie), two cinnamon sticks and yummy, yummy quinces from our host's tree right at the end. 

This bunny was cooked on 120°c over six hours. I threw in the quinces in the last forty minutes and cooked creamy polenta in the Thermomix (but you can do it over the stove). 

adelaide for Easter

We've just had the most relaxing few days with friends Christina and Will who we met Elizabeth Bay in Sydney when our oldest children were only a few months old. 

We used to swap babysitting and now we have 5 children between us. It was still enjoyable to just hang out and chat, play cricket, cook and read, while the kids played and played and played. 

We saw little of Adelaide really but sometimes you just have to stop racing around. Considering we've done a lot of sightseeing we appreciated the chance to relax. 

And what's an Easter weekend without a hunt? 

Christina raced down to her local fish monger in preparation for fishy Friday only to discover that people had put in orders and there was little to choose from. She settled on some pippies from Goolwa on the Fleurieu. We weren't sure what they'd be like but Will cooked them on the barbie before dousing them in a garlic, herb (all from the garden) butter and they were so, so tasty! 

This is a shocking photo. I dislike dinner pics as they're always dark and it doesn't do the meal justice.

south australia: fleurieu

Every day is a new adventure when you're on the road. You can plan ahead (we don't really) but you just don't know where the day will take you. 

Remember we mentioned staying at Old Mac's Farm in Launceston? It was there that we met a lovely couple who were travelling with a group of friends. They mentioned that their son loved with his family on the Fleurieu peninsula in South Australia and to drop in when we were in the neighbourhood. 

Well we got in touch with Andrew and he put us up for the night - in his olive grove! Andrew runs a small business - Seaview Grove Olive Oil - and runs a few cows on his property. When he and his wife bought the farm from the previous owner they'd initially thought they'd take out the hundreds of olive trees because they hadn't been a successful crop. 

We obviously talked about the amazing produce available in the Fleurieu and it was pleasing to hear so many small producers were getting their goods out there allowing people to buy fresh and local. It's a exciting time in the area. 

Andrew has done his research and has packaged his olive oil in casks. These casks ensures that the unused olive oil doesn't not come in to contact with air keeping it fresher anymore nutritious for longer. 

Not only that but Andrew can boast that he's selling a tasty all-rounder oil - beautiful for cooking and great for with bread and dukkah. It's also grown organically and is really reasonably priced $15 for a litre cask and is available online. Postage is free for orders over $40.  

http://www.seaviewgrove.com.au

Those gnarly old branches of the olive are beautiful. And the colour of their leaves. They aren't a showy plant for one that has so much to offer. 

It was a pretty amazing camp for the night and waking up with views to the ocean was special. Thanks again for having us!

south australia: limestone coast, coorong, kingston, parnca point

We spent the night in a campsite on the beach at Wright's Beach just out of Robe. It cost $13 for the five of us for the night and has basic toilets. The beauty of this spot is that it is a stones throw from the beach which is reef for almost as far as the eye can see. 

It used to be a great spot for crays but the word from fishermen is that there aren't as many fish of crays due to the winds.

Another afternoon of driving and we made it to the Coorong - a wilderness area like nothing we've yet seen on this trip. The place is famous for the setting of Colin Thiele's Storm Boy in 1967.  

There are a few free camps in the area but we chose to camp at Parnca Point 2 which cost us $8 for the night. There are no facilities and I'd urge visitors to take their rubbish and grey water with them. Given that you're right on the water it would be shameful if grey water seeped in to the sanctuary. 

We spotted another four emus on the way in to Parnca - two on each side of the car which was great for the kids to see. 

We slept by the river with the sounds of the pounding ocean over the dunes a kilometre or so away. The night was clear and waters sparkly. 

Just a few J's down the Princes Highway  and there's a shed where you can buy the famous Coorong mullet ($25 for a big kilo & caught a day prior) or a rabbit ($10 skinned and frozen) if you fancy. 

You simply need to buzz the door bell and Shane, "a real bushy," flies down the paddock in his ute, dogs in tow. 

It was here, at the shed, that we met two more new friends, grey nomads, who were returning to their home on the outskirts of Adelaide. We ended up crossing the Murray, by ferry at Wellington and having lunch with them in Strathalbyn. 

Just as we were coming in to Langhorne Creek, through the wineries, we spotted a gorgeous little free camping spot, Franks Potts Reserve. It was only a 100m walk to a cellar door and 200m to a little brewery too.

Strathalbyn had a great store, the Old Market Shed which has been there for years but which sells a great range of local produce- cheeses, milks, preserves & pickles, olive oils, fruit & veg and other nuts, seeds and flours in bulk. You can grab coffee grounds and beans and fresh coffee too. I resisted stopping for lunch or some of the amazing-looking homemade carrot cake though. 

victoria: port fairy

We've fallen in love with the quaint town of Port Fairy. As her name suggests she's perched on the water. Sailing boats line her shores and cows graze in paddocks a few blocks away. 

We spent a while deciding where we'd stay. There's a caravan park positioned nicely behind the dunes on the southern side of town (which has some sites that would be protected from southerlies) but we finally decided to stay at the Big 4. We think that it's important that the kids get time in these places socialising with other kids too. Plus there's a jumping pillow, mini golf, three playgrounds, a movie room, a games room and an indoor heated pool. The kids can ride their bikes within the park too. 

J treated me with some "me time" so i rode in to town - just as hundreds of road cyclists finished the final leg of a tour of Victoria. I felt like a bit of a fraud because it took me all of six minutes to cycle from the caravan park. 

A local gave me a tip for where to find coffee. As with some places it can depend on who is behind the machine but Slitti is known for producing consistently good coffee, not to mention homemade chocolates & raw/pales treats and tasty sandwiches. I treated myself to a particular good slice of chai cheesecake. 

The kids spent the morning making their way through the various activities at the CP but we jumped on the bikes to the little lighthouse on the point past the mutton bird colony. This is a pretty flat ride but a picturesque one. You can ride down the path by the water for a lot of the way.

It was magic weather for it. 

These two spotted some seagulls and they're signing "bird."

victoria: great ocean road

From Bimbi, Cape Otway, we headed west towards Adelaide along the Great Ocean Road. 

This country is quite remarkable. You can be driving through the dense coastal shrub and rainforest ten minutes later, through farmlands and back on the coast with views like the Twelve Apostles (of which there are now only eight). 

I feel so lucky to be seeing so much of Australia. We've already seen so much and there is plenty more to see. 

victoria: the great ocean road, bimbi park, cape otway

Where do you get your travel tips from? 

I've got a scrap book and we've written down suggestions from Facebook caravan and camping pages, from friends, from travel guides and we also use ideas of people we meet on the road. 

Our new friends (whom we met at Kennett River) suggested that we stay at Bimbi Park in Otway National Park - near Cape Otway. This was a magic place. And so interesting. 

What would you say if I told you that as you drive to the Cape you pass through acres of dying forest due to koala habitation? It's a skeleton forest really. 

Cape Otway grounds costs $20/adult to enter and it's a great day out for a family. The money is going towards the establishment of a permanent dinosaur museum on the site. Fossils were discovered nearby. While the lighthouse is the dominant structure, the headland also houses other buildings - a telegraph station, accommodation, cafe, bunkers. There is evidence of the site being used as a place where people have gathered to eat for thousands of years. As well as Indigenous links the place has a dark history of shipwrecks and (mis)adventure. The coastline is known as Shipwreck Coast for a reason.

Ever since I spent weekends at Greencape Lighthouse (near Eden) as a child I've been fascinated by lighthouse communities. What sort of characters worked in those isolated conditions? I imagine eccentrics and resilient people and families. 

I loved the book, The Light Between Oceans by M. L. Stedman and I've just picked up a secondhand copy of The Shipping News by E. Annie Proulx. 

Bimbi Park is a beautiful park which has sites for campers, caravans (water limited) and cabins. There's a camp kitchen, laundry, amenities and a playground for the kids. 

victoria: great ocean road, Otway NP, kennett river

Our kids are so lucky (though they don't quite appreciate it yet). We've seen more koalas in the past week than we've seen in J and my lifetimes combined. 

We had booked four days in Kennett River with dear friends but unfortunately they were unable to come at the last minute. It was something we'd all been so looking forward to but these things happen. 

We decided to go anyway. Kennett River CP is well protected in southerlies. The beach was great for our kids and we had the park almost to ourselves after the weekend. 

We also met some really lovely locals - who we ended up staying with for two nights! It's amazing being on this adventure. We just don't know what each day will hold and we know we'll stay in contact with our new friends. 

One eventful (and very wet) evening, on our return from Lorne for dinner, we pulled over because a koala was sipping from a puddle on the side of the road, and making its way closer and closer to the road. We hesitated but decided to move it. A few people stopped to help persuade it to move (unsuccessfully) but a local pulled over, grabbed it by its rump & the back of the neck and took it off in to the bush. Despite what we'd predicted the koala wasn't fazed at all and certainly not aggressive. 

victoria: torquay farmers markets

Another bit of serendipity lead us to Torquay. 

I'd remembered that Mamacino (food blogger extraordinare) had a stall at Torquay Farmer's Markets (which run every Saturday) so I planned around the markets. It suited us because we also needed to stock up on fresh fruit and veg, snacks for the car and a few frozen meals for when we arrive at a site in the afternoon. 

Mamacino has stopped her weekly stall but not her enthusiasm for good food and local produce so we met at the market anyway. 

With barely two dozen (lots of organic) stalls this little market is a gem! I had so much fun chatting with local farmers. And met Sarah who's running Eat Local Month in the area. They have so many fun things coming up in April so if you're in the area, look them up!

I also managed to pick up some great stuff including coriander, parsley, basil (huge branch) - all $2, the sweetest strawberries, dried bananas, hamburgers, homemade pies & pastries for the freezer, goats cheese, fresh bread, lamb shanks and lamb mince. I grabbed a big bag of apples for $5. We can't get enough after Tassie. 

Yesterday I transformed the mince, using my $2/kg tomatoes into a few pies - think moussaka/kafta filling topped with mashed potato. These will be easy to reheat and serve with salad or veggies. 

I couldn't resist these vego rice paper rolls with seaweed from the Tastes of Tibet stand. If you like this type of food you'd love these. Oh man. Smothered in house made chilli sauce. I'm still dreaming of them. She does dumplings too. 

And then I met Annette. She whips up some tasty treats for the markets. Our kids couldn't be dragged away from the samples. I don't blame them. Check out her Afghans! J and I sneaked a couple of Annette's finest homemade Monte Carlo's for the next leg of the trip. I'll be dreaming of those buttery, jammy delights for some time yet. 

It is so good to see the community getting behind local farmer's markets. I'm much happier knowing that our money went to farmers thriving to provide healthier food with safer farming practices for the long-term good of the environment. I'm pleased that our cash supports someone like Annette who bakes like a mad thing & gets to the markets early for the love of it. 

Our money was so well spent and the bottom line is that I'm pleased our $150 didn't go to either of the big two supermarkets that dominate the market. 

victoria: hepburn springs, sovereign hill

Many teacher friends of mine have taken school groups to Sovereign Hill which is hardly surprising. It's an enjoyable educational experience for kids and adults. The Sovereign Hill experience really is a step back in to the time of the gold rush. Characters from a town - a doctor, a sweet maker, a blacksmith, people trying their luck in search of gold and others - interact with visitors. 

Our kids loved visiting the blacksmith, the lolly shop and panning for gold in the creek which runs through the property. We also watched as gold was poured (all $140k worth), had a ride on a horse and carriage and watched a demonstration by red coats. 

This easier free camp for the night. We found out later that it was wrongly identified on a map and isn't a public place but we were able to stay.