Portland: Point 186, March 23 to 25 (Click for Pictures)

We stayed two nights in Portland, VIC, on the Southern Ocean coast looking toward the Antarctic. The town has an aluminum smelter. Some of their power comes from a wind farm out in the ocean. When the weather cleared we could see the wind turbines turning slowly in the sunrise. This is also an old whaling port. There is a whale skeleton in the maritime museum.

The 2^nd day, Cheryl set up for some sun bathing by our little A-van trailer. But as soon as she got out there, even though the sun was shining, it started to rain. (“So much for that idea.”) We had squalls and sun breaks with a fairly steady breeze while we were there. We did get out for some sight-seeing. There is a popular surfing beach near Yellow Rock that offers spectacular views of the bay and beaches. Further along the coast, we walked the trails at the “Enchanted Forest”. This was a special reserve of Melaleuca Lanceolata, or Moonah trees. Most of these had been cut down for fuel when Europeans first arrived. They grew well in these limestone cliffs. Some trees had a wonderful scent.
We moved on to see the Cape Nelson Lighthouse, a striking building made of local limestone. Waves pounded the foot of the cliffs and left fanciful outcrops on the rocks above. Back at the caravan park, we rested up, had a lamb chops and veggies BBQ and watched a DVD on my laptop while the wind blew and squalls passed through that night. The next morning was the coldest we have experienced here, 5 degrees Celsius, about 41 degrees Fahrenheit. We drove a rural route through state forest and saw grey kangaroos and emu on our way to Mt Gambier, our introduction to South Australia. We stopped there to see their famous Blue Lake. It formed in a crater left by a small volcano that broke through the limestone and left layers of ash, basalt and limestone that combine to produce an intense blue color. Further up the coast we found Larry the Lobster, one of Australia’s giant roadside attractions. Notice Cheryl at the base of the lobster in the photo gallery to gauge the size. The owners are 76 years old and looking to sell, so the place is a bit run-down. We had lobster sandwiches there, and then we headed for the Windsor Caravan Park in Adelaide. Just after we set up our A-van, the Basehart family (here on a Teacher Exchange from Colville) “rang us on our mobile”. They came over for a visit with some snacks (“nibbles”) and wine and we had a great time talking with them about both of our adventures and taking a walk through the Torrens River park just on the other side of a fence from our spot.