Parham

I reckon Parham is one of the secret hidden pleasures of SA. It is within a short hopping from Adelaide. It is right on the coast in a tiny small village that truly unspoilt. The people are very friendly and the campspot is FREE. You are encouraged to go to the social club around the corner which offers basic club fares and we can recommend it. We liked to sit out in the 'beer' garden. It was a bit quieter, easier for the kids to run around and we had a couple who were smokers!
In fact we were so taken with this place we decided to stay an entra night.
The tide here goes out (& in) a long way and boy it comes in fast something like 10m in 30seconds... actually I can't remember now ...one of the problems of writing this a long time after the holidays have concluded. Another thing is the seaweed bed is very thick and this prompts some unusual boat craft!



This is the only photo we have of our time in Parham and we didn't have the camera working when this amphibious vehicle was coming out of the water. Sorry!

South Australia's beautiful Yorke Peninsula


We well well on our way down Yorke Peninsula after stopping at the lovely Black Point where some shacks are truly waterside with the tide coming right up to the foundations. So on we go south along some lovely coastline and we stop at Port Vincent for lunch and then on through Stansbury and then onto Edithburgh where the huge wind farms are. We stopped and looked at them just from the road since we already saw them in great detail at Snowtown.

Now we start to go inland to Yorketown and Warooka Dam and straight onto Innes National Park. After such long distances in the west between points of interests or even just towns, it is amazing to us how quickly we are at the southern most peak of Yorke Peninsula in just a few hours driving.

Another we are noticing as we travel Australia, is that national parks are NOT really national. You still have to pay per state at least to visit national parks. There is no national park fee that covers all national parks. Innes is actually an expensive park to visit considering there is very little conveniences and such available for your buck.We paid $24.50 entry and 1 nights accommodation which only included a dump toilet - no water, no shower, no anything else! very disappointing. After settling the Robbiebago into its spot, we went walking to the nearest beach but first we have to walk through what is basically a private dump. Actually if you were a tourist brochure writer you would describe it as a quaint old fishing village.

These old shacks are in poor condition and the yards surrounding them are dumps with rusty old cars and water tanks and stuff strewn around the place. on top of all this, these places are privately owned... since when do people own prime beach side property inside a National park. Surely the government should buy them out and revert the land to nature and allow everyone to enjoy this area, not just a few 'privileged fisher folk'! There is a sign on the beach proclaiming it to be the nesting area of a rare bird... but the locals are allowed to drive for nearly a kilometre along the beach! I just don't understand the national parks thinking!

As we were only staying here the one night and there was only one other camper at our camp spot, we decided to unhitch the Robbiebago and go driving and exploring the other beaches of Innes asap the next morning. The many beaches are lovely though and some with great lookouts.

The shipwreck part is fascinating and one can still clearly see 2 shipwrecks without having to even go right down to Ethel Beach. Soon it is time to hitch the van back to the car and head out. Dunns Point and Warooka are stopping points. We didn't hug much of the west coast at all. We decided to camp at the Maitland Showgrounds. The trip is often smokey as many farmers still burn the stubble in preparation for the next part of farming. All that smoke must be bad for the environment and the carbon release in the area. I have no idea how this method compares to the alternatives. I leave that to someone else who is more knowledgeable in this area! So onto the little copper town of Moonta with its potholed roads for a wonderful pub lunch and then a visit to the delightful and very interesting Wallaroo Museum and the Moonta Pier which is basically our last stop in Yorke Peninsula.

We are glad we went and we truly loved our stay in Black Point, but it is not a place I would aspire to visit a second time.

Crafts on the road

 An Explosion Box

Yoo Hoo I am back!

Not only did I have the 'flu for a whole month, our eldest daughter had to borrow our laptop with all the trip photos on it as JetStar were foolish enough to move her cabin luggage further back out of her sight and hence gave the opportunity for it to be stolen along with all her stuff and they wont pay more than $150 compensation. Grrr bad dog - JetStar. Enough of the whinge.

New online craft shop

So along with everything including setting up my very own online craft shop, see my blog Inkspirational Designs for more info, I have been procrastinating finishing these entries. It is hard to garner enthusiasm to write after the event, no matter how terrific the events were...at least it is for me. However I made a commitment and I intend to follow it through!

So let's move on!
And just 'cause I hate to have a blog entry with no picture, here is a lovely one of one of my fabulously popular Explosion Boxes that are in my online craft shop! Click on the photo to go straight to the shop! This design might not be there anymore but there are many more to choose from or I can custom make one for you.