Eating our way across South Australia
Sep 30th, 2009, 06:25 PM
#41
Thank you Bokhara2!
Day 11 – McLaren Vale
It was so dark in the cottage that I thought we were back in our Coober Pedy cave. The wind howled throughout the night so it was no surprise when we drew the curtains and were met with a gloomy wet day.
We had no specific plan, so we pottered along Tourist Route 60 hoping to find a winery that opened before 10 am, which is how we discovered Kay Brothers Amery. Lucky for us, owner Colin Kay was pouring the wine; we spent well over an hour chatting with him about anything and everything. It was both educational and entertaining, and once again we felt fortunate to have met and chatted up the winemaker. The wines were good too; we left with a 2006 Shiraz and a lovely tawny.
Our next stop was Rosemount, a huge sprawling monolith of a winery that screamed mass production. We were a bit overwhelmed by the numerous ranges of wine and the myriad regions. We sampled some of the Show Reserve range, bought a bottle of 2005 Shiraz and left a bit bewildered.
We had lunch at the Blessed Cheese in McLaren Vale, a recommendation from a TA member, and a good one at that. I had the Thai chicken coconut milk soup with rice, which was out of this world ($8.50). Bill opted for the baked Alexandrina ricotta smoked salmon and chive tart with fennel and orange salad ($16), which he said was very good, but he couldn’t seem to keep his spoon out of my soup. We also had very good flat whites.
We next popped into Yummy Nuts, a few doors down from Blessed Cheese on the main road. They carry all manner of snacks, nuts, candy, baking goods, etc. The proprietor was very friendly and helpful, offering us plenty of samples, which naturally led to a few purchases.
Then it was off to Chapel Hill, a winery suggested either here or on TA; I can’t remember which and I’m too lazy to look it up, sorry. We had a nice visit with the gentleman pouring the wine and met a young Canadian couple, living and playing Lacrosse in Adelaide. We also took a peek at their on site retreat and guest house, both look very inviting.
http://www.theretreatatchapelhillwin...n/guest_house/
We were getting seriously wine tasted out, so we drove to Maslin Beach, which I just this minute learned is South Australia’s first official nude beach. We didn’t see any naked people; in fact we saw very little of anything as there was a low fog that obscured our views.
We returned to the cottage, took a nice long walk, and just hung out. There was really no safe place to walk, so we kept to the road, which was deserted. When we reached the busier road above the cottage, we turned back, not wanting to risk our lives in the name of exercise.
As we approached the cottage, the owner from down the road was making her way up to see us. She suddenly shouted something about an accident, turned tail and fled back to her house, kicking poor Jess in the process, climbed into her car and sped away. Okay…. Apparently a car on the road above the cottage, the one we’d just been on a few minutes beforehand, had careened off the road at the turn and gone into the ditch, barely missing a tree. I didn’t hear or see a thing, but evidently she did. The driver, whom they suspect had been drinking (you think?) was fine. I don’t think his car fared as well.
Dinner that evening was at Magnums in the McLaren Vale Hotel. In an effort to recapture that fantastic soup I’d had for lunch, Bill ordered the Laksa, Malaysian coconut curry soup with Asian vegetables and noodles ($18.50). I opted for the tomato and spring vegetable soup ($7.90) and an order of bruschetta ($6). Our meals included a trip to the salad and vegetable bar, which I’m glad we passed on because our soup bowls were big enough to swim in. They say we have huge orders in the US, but I’ve never seen such a massive bowl of soup in my life…unless you count the one I had in Gawler. Good lord. The food was surprisingly good, but there was just too much of it.
Day 11 – McLaren Vale
It was so dark in the cottage that I thought we were back in our Coober Pedy cave. The wind howled throughout the night so it was no surprise when we drew the curtains and were met with a gloomy wet day.
We had no specific plan, so we pottered along Tourist Route 60 hoping to find a winery that opened before 10 am, which is how we discovered Kay Brothers Amery. Lucky for us, owner Colin Kay was pouring the wine; we spent well over an hour chatting with him about anything and everything. It was both educational and entertaining, and once again we felt fortunate to have met and chatted up the winemaker. The wines were good too; we left with a 2006 Shiraz and a lovely tawny.
Our next stop was Rosemount, a huge sprawling monolith of a winery that screamed mass production. We were a bit overwhelmed by the numerous ranges of wine and the myriad regions. We sampled some of the Show Reserve range, bought a bottle of 2005 Shiraz and left a bit bewildered.
We had lunch at the Blessed Cheese in McLaren Vale, a recommendation from a TA member, and a good one at that. I had the Thai chicken coconut milk soup with rice, which was out of this world ($8.50). Bill opted for the baked Alexandrina ricotta smoked salmon and chive tart with fennel and orange salad ($16), which he said was very good, but he couldn’t seem to keep his spoon out of my soup. We also had very good flat whites.
We next popped into Yummy Nuts, a few doors down from Blessed Cheese on the main road. They carry all manner of snacks, nuts, candy, baking goods, etc. The proprietor was very friendly and helpful, offering us plenty of samples, which naturally led to a few purchases.
Then it was off to Chapel Hill, a winery suggested either here or on TA; I can’t remember which and I’m too lazy to look it up, sorry. We had a nice visit with the gentleman pouring the wine and met a young Canadian couple, living and playing Lacrosse in Adelaide. We also took a peek at their on site retreat and guest house, both look very inviting.
http://www.theretreatatchapelhillwin...n/guest_house/
We were getting seriously wine tasted out, so we drove to Maslin Beach, which I just this minute learned is South Australia’s first official nude beach. We didn’t see any naked people; in fact we saw very little of anything as there was a low fog that obscured our views.
We returned to the cottage, took a nice long walk, and just hung out. There was really no safe place to walk, so we kept to the road, which was deserted. When we reached the busier road above the cottage, we turned back, not wanting to risk our lives in the name of exercise.
As we approached the cottage, the owner from down the road was making her way up to see us. She suddenly shouted something about an accident, turned tail and fled back to her house, kicking poor Jess in the process, climbed into her car and sped away. Okay…. Apparently a car on the road above the cottage, the one we’d just been on a few minutes beforehand, had careened off the road at the turn and gone into the ditch, barely missing a tree. I didn’t hear or see a thing, but evidently she did. The driver, whom they suspect had been drinking (you think?) was fine. I don’t think his car fared as well.
Dinner that evening was at Magnums in the McLaren Vale Hotel. In an effort to recapture that fantastic soup I’d had for lunch, Bill ordered the Laksa, Malaysian coconut curry soup with Asian vegetables and noodles ($18.50). I opted for the tomato and spring vegetable soup ($7.90) and an order of bruschetta ($6). Our meals included a trip to the salad and vegetable bar, which I’m glad we passed on because our soup bowls were big enough to swim in. They say we have huge orders in the US, but I’ve never seen such a massive bowl of soup in my life…unless you count the one I had in Gawler. Good lord. The food was surprisingly good, but there was just too much of it.
Sep 30th, 2009, 09:14 PM
#42
Day 12 – McLaren Vale
We couldn’t seem to take a step in the cottage without crunching a millipede or an earwig, so I slept in my socks, not wanting that unpleasant squish on my bare feet should I get up during the night.
It was another wet gloomy day, but we’re all weather types, so we drove up to the Onkaparinga River National Park, which we’d scoped out the day before while at Chapel Hill Winery which is right next door (and a belated thanks to stormbird for the Chapel Hill suggestion). We perused their information board and decided to take the two hour, four kilometer Hardy’s Scrub Hike, which begins at Gate 11 on Chapel Hill Road, so it was back in the car to seek out the trailhead.
http://www.environment.sa.gov.au/par...anp/index.html
What a great walk! It’s marked moderate, but it’s really very easy, with only one hilly section. The trail leads through native pine woodlands and intersects the Wine Dam Track. We had perfect walking weather, overcast but dry. We saw a huge number of millipedes, which seemed to just sort of ooze out of the ground in piles. We also saw lots of tiny delicate wild orchids and gobs of other wildflowers. We thoroughly enjoyed this loop, which took us 90 minutes to walk, primarily because I kept stopping to photograph the wildflowers (just over three miles).
Our first winery of the day was Samuel’s Gorge, suggested by Jacinta, owner of the Black Rabbit Cottage. The winery is situated in a gorgeous spot and specializes in Grenache, Shiraz and Tempranillo. We were caught off guard by their lovely 2008 Tempranillo, a wine we didn’t think we liked, so into the rolling wine cellar it went.
http://www.gorge.com.au/
Upon learning of our weakness for fortifieds, the wine pourer at Chapel Hill the previous day suggested we visit Settlement Winery, so off we went.
Here we go again. Settlement offered seemingly endless tasting options, so we had to pick and choose, share and tip. Yet it’s here that my notes get a little difficult to read, so I have to wonder if we tipped enough! Suffice to say we loved their wine and purchased a bottle each of their Red Dingo late harvest Cabernet, Liqueur Muscat and Black Pedro (black sherry). Good stuff.
http://www.thesettlementwineco.com.au/
It was getting on towards lunch, and lord knows we needed something in our stomachs. Settlement has an enticing pizza and platter menu, but we had our hearts set on a fancy meal at the Currant Shed at Hoffman’s Winery, which had come highly recommended by a TA member, so we took a pass.
Naturally we turned up at Hoffman’s early and without reservations. We visited the cellar door first, to ask if they could fit us in for lunch and to see what we might want a glass of with our meal if they could. Once again our strategy paid off, and we got a table. While wine tasting we learned about the history of the winery and former currant shed and were told the restaurant had two chefs. I mentioned that it had come highly recommended and that we were anxious to try it. I believe our wine was poured by owner Peter Hoffman himself, who reminded me of an old English professor; perhaps because the cellar door had the feel of a personal library, where one would sit back and have a brandy in a deep leather chair. I felt as if I were in someone’s home; it felt very personal.
http://www.hoffmannswine.com.au/currantShed.php
As for the restaurant, oh my god….
We shared one of their entrée specials; herb crepes filled with chicken and buttered leeks in provolone, served on a bed of sautéed baby spinach with slivered almonds ($16). It was absolutely fantastic…I’ve never seen Bill get so excited about a plate of food. For my main, I had another entrée, the potato and almond pancakes with buttered leeks, spring peas and a Stilton sauce ($14), also fantastic, and almost too pretty to eat. Bill had the bacon wrapped filet mignon on mashed potatoes, sautéed champignons and peas topped with Shiraz jus ($31), which he said was the best of the trip.
For dessert we shared the chocolate fudge mousse sandwiched between chocolate sable biscuits and salted caramel cashews ($12.50) accompanied with flat whites.
The entire meal was gobsmackingly good and looked like something right out of Master Chef. My dear husband, never one to wax poetic or linger over a meal, actually used the word ‘phenomenal’ to describe the relaxing two hours we spent at Hoffman’s (total $94.50).
We made our utter satisfaction known to the Hoffman’s, both of whom met us when we paid our bill. They wanted to know what we thought and where we’d learned of their restaurant. They seemed genuinely pleased that we’d so thoroughly enjoyed our meal.
After lunch we collected our wine from the cottage and returned to Hugo’s, where we bought some more Shiraz and took Pam up on her kind offer to ship our wine to Perth for us ($20 to ship a case, which arrived in Perth five days later).
Our last stop of the day was Wirra Wirra winery, another TA member suggestion, where we were greeted with an imposing post and rail fence (Woodhenge) that I couldn’t help but photograph. The wines weren’t too shabby either and we left with a bottle of their small volume release Sparrows Lodge 2007 Mourvedre, made from a grape I thought I didn't like. Who knew?
http://www.wirrawirra.com/default.aspx
Then it was back to the cottage for some serious relaxation.
We couldn’t seem to take a step in the cottage without crunching a millipede or an earwig, so I slept in my socks, not wanting that unpleasant squish on my bare feet should I get up during the night.
It was another wet gloomy day, but we’re all weather types, so we drove up to the Onkaparinga River National Park, which we’d scoped out the day before while at Chapel Hill Winery which is right next door (and a belated thanks to stormbird for the Chapel Hill suggestion). We perused their information board and decided to take the two hour, four kilometer Hardy’s Scrub Hike, which begins at Gate 11 on Chapel Hill Road, so it was back in the car to seek out the trailhead.
http://www.environment.sa.gov.au/par...anp/index.html
What a great walk! It’s marked moderate, but it’s really very easy, with only one hilly section. The trail leads through native pine woodlands and intersects the Wine Dam Track. We had perfect walking weather, overcast but dry. We saw a huge number of millipedes, which seemed to just sort of ooze out of the ground in piles. We also saw lots of tiny delicate wild orchids and gobs of other wildflowers. We thoroughly enjoyed this loop, which took us 90 minutes to walk, primarily because I kept stopping to photograph the wildflowers (just over three miles).
Our first winery of the day was Samuel’s Gorge, suggested by Jacinta, owner of the Black Rabbit Cottage. The winery is situated in a gorgeous spot and specializes in Grenache, Shiraz and Tempranillo. We were caught off guard by their lovely 2008 Tempranillo, a wine we didn’t think we liked, so into the rolling wine cellar it went.
http://www.gorge.com.au/
Upon learning of our weakness for fortifieds, the wine pourer at Chapel Hill the previous day suggested we visit Settlement Winery, so off we went.
Here we go again. Settlement offered seemingly endless tasting options, so we had to pick and choose, share and tip. Yet it’s here that my notes get a little difficult to read, so I have to wonder if we tipped enough! Suffice to say we loved their wine and purchased a bottle each of their Red Dingo late harvest Cabernet, Liqueur Muscat and Black Pedro (black sherry). Good stuff.
http://www.thesettlementwineco.com.au/
It was getting on towards lunch, and lord knows we needed something in our stomachs. Settlement has an enticing pizza and platter menu, but we had our hearts set on a fancy meal at the Currant Shed at Hoffman’s Winery, which had come highly recommended by a TA member, so we took a pass.
Naturally we turned up at Hoffman’s early and without reservations. We visited the cellar door first, to ask if they could fit us in for lunch and to see what we might want a glass of with our meal if they could. Once again our strategy paid off, and we got a table. While wine tasting we learned about the history of the winery and former currant shed and were told the restaurant had two chefs. I mentioned that it had come highly recommended and that we were anxious to try it. I believe our wine was poured by owner Peter Hoffman himself, who reminded me of an old English professor; perhaps because the cellar door had the feel of a personal library, where one would sit back and have a brandy in a deep leather chair. I felt as if I were in someone’s home; it felt very personal.
http://www.hoffmannswine.com.au/currantShed.php
As for the restaurant, oh my god….
We shared one of their entrée specials; herb crepes filled with chicken and buttered leeks in provolone, served on a bed of sautéed baby spinach with slivered almonds ($16). It was absolutely fantastic…I’ve never seen Bill get so excited about a plate of food. For my main, I had another entrée, the potato and almond pancakes with buttered leeks, spring peas and a Stilton sauce ($14), also fantastic, and almost too pretty to eat. Bill had the bacon wrapped filet mignon on mashed potatoes, sautéed champignons and peas topped with Shiraz jus ($31), which he said was the best of the trip.
For dessert we shared the chocolate fudge mousse sandwiched between chocolate sable biscuits and salted caramel cashews ($12.50) accompanied with flat whites.
The entire meal was gobsmackingly good and looked like something right out of Master Chef. My dear husband, never one to wax poetic or linger over a meal, actually used the word ‘phenomenal’ to describe the relaxing two hours we spent at Hoffman’s (total $94.50).
We made our utter satisfaction known to the Hoffman’s, both of whom met us when we paid our bill. They wanted to know what we thought and where we’d learned of their restaurant. They seemed genuinely pleased that we’d so thoroughly enjoyed our meal.
After lunch we collected our wine from the cottage and returned to Hugo’s, where we bought some more Shiraz and took Pam up on her kind offer to ship our wine to Perth for us ($20 to ship a case, which arrived in Perth five days later).
Our last stop of the day was Wirra Wirra winery, another TA member suggestion, where we were greeted with an imposing post and rail fence (Woodhenge) that I couldn’t help but photograph. The wines weren’t too shabby either and we left with a bottle of their small volume release Sparrows Lodge 2007 Mourvedre, made from a grape I thought I didn't like. Who knew?
http://www.wirrawirra.com/default.aspx
Then it was back to the cottage for some serious relaxation.
Oct 1st, 2009, 03:44 PM
#43
Day 13 – McLaren Vale
We’d allowed three full days in McLaren Vale so we could spend a day exploring the tip of the Fleurieu Peninsula, specifically Deep Creek Conservation Park.
Our hopes for a pretty day were realized and we were on the road by 7:30 am, taking B23 towards Yankalilla. We were soon zipping along squiggly roads, surrounded by vibrant green rolling hills and heavily treed countryside, reminded of Tasmania and New Zealand. The descent into the pretty little town of Yankalilla was particularly scenic, and I found myself wishing we had a few extra days to spend here. We were surprised to find yet more wineries; this country definitely has no shortage of those; wine drinkers really are spoiled for choice.
We passed a business named Seagull Droppings...I sure hope it wasn’t a restaurant…
Cliffs appeared to our left and we were suddenly surrounded by towering Norfolk pines as we approached the coast. We stopped at the Yankalilla Bay overlook noticing that the beaches we’d seen thus far weren’t very pretty. We passed a wind farm and reached our turnoff at Delamere, deciding instead to continue on to Cape Jervis first, as it was only another 10 kilometers further. We stopped at the ferry overlook and watched the 9 am ferry push off towards Kangaroo Island. Cape Jervis was windy, just like the tip of every other coastal landmass I’d ever visited, and rather cold.
We backtracked to Delamere and located the tree lined road to the park headquarters for Deep Creek Conservation Park, where we perused the information board for walk options. We paid the $8 park fee at an honesty station and settled on the 5.5 kilometer, three hour Aaron Creek Circuit hike which begins at the car park on Blow Hole Road and intersects the Heyson Trail.
This began as a gentle walk (don’t they all?) through impossibly green pasture and gum trees with distant ocean views. We were watched by four kangaroos from afar and we walked under a tree full of Rainbow Lorikeets, their cacophony of shrieks piercing our eardrums. The walk became more rugged with a steep descent toward the creek, and a steep ascent back up. The shores of the creek were lined with more arum lilies than I’ve ever seen in one place, some with blooms bigger than my outstretched hands.
We’d not yet seen a snake and I was looking forward to telling all we’d had a snake free visit to SA, but it was not to be. Bill drew to a halt on the path ahead of me and calmly announced “snake” as the creepy black thing slithered off into the bush. This is precisely why I prefer that he walk in front, to clear the spider webs and patrol for snakes.
The loop rejoined the path through the pasture and this is where we had our first ever Magpie swooping incident. We were walking along, minding our own business when this crazed bird appears from the trees and swoops down at us screeching like mad. The deranged thing came back a second and third time. While I ducked, Bill flailed his hiking stick in the air; the bird retreated and flew back to its nest, leaving our heads and eyes intact.
Despite the snake and the psychotic bird, we both enjoyed the hike, which took us about two hours to complete.
We returned to Delamere and picked up B37, where we drove the 50 km to Victor Harbor, yet another pretty drive with green rolling pastures as far as the eyes can see, winding roads, plenty of trees and ocean views.
We were both surprised at the size of Victor Harbor; I don’t know why, but I was expecting a tiny town, not a thriving community of some 12,000 people.
Someone on TA had mentioned the Beach House Café as a good place for Indian food, so I popped into the Visitor’s Center to ask about it. The woman who helped me confirmed that it’s a great place to eat, but she thought it was only open for dinner, which she then verified by phone. Thanks to the friendly helpful staff it was here that I learned quite by accident that there were whales near shore off Basham’s Beach, for which I got directions.
We walked through town looking for somewhere to eat lunch. I noticed Café Bavaria; it seems the German influence we’d discovered in the Barossa was alive and well down here too. Die Wursthaus in Tanunda still fresh in our minds; we both opted for the bratwurst ($8.50), and received a massive brat on a toasted bun with grilled onions and mustard – really tasty. The chocolate Bavarian cake in the display case looked so good that we had to share a piece of that too, over lattes this time ($10.90 total). Man it was good….airy fresh cream layered between light as a feather chocolate cake….I almost got stabbed with Bill’s fork as we fought over the last bite.
Back on the main road through town we turned on Port Elliot Road and located Basham’s Beach, between Port Elliot and Middleton. We walked to the beach and immediately saw 3-4 whales frolicking about 50 meters off shore. Very cool. We watched for quite a while, then backtracked to Victor Harbor Road and began working our way back to McLaren Vale. We passed vineyards galore, a cheese company, a berry farm, walking tracks…there was just so much left to do, but no more time! The view coming over the hill on our approach to Willunga was absolutely gorgeous; acre after acre of green, green, green, pastures and vineyards, all seeming to fall into the sea. WOW.
Jacinta had made a 6:00 pm dinner booking for us at Russell’s, a hugely popular pizza joint in Willunga only open on Friday and Saturday nights. We were told we’d have to vacate our table by 7:30. No problem. Willunga is tiny, but we had a devil of a time finding the place, stopping to ask directions twice. It’s tucked between two businesses on the main road, almost invisible behind a rustic fence, impossible to see until you’re right on top of it.
We wandered into the kitchen, by mistake we thought, but no, this is where we found the only menu, the blackboard overhead. We must have looked completely lost, because one of the girls making pizza explained we were to order and pay here, and then be seated.
This was like no other restaurant I’d ever been in and I couldn’t help but feel underfoot as we perused the menu in the kitchen, workers milling around us making crust, chopping vegetables, etc. We ordered, and then walked from the kitchen outside to a patio, barely missing the roaring fire on the ground in the center, past a wood fire oven and into a shed, which apparently served as the dining area. Quirky.
Russell’s makes life simple by offering a handful of pizza options, a few entrees and desserts and two types of wine, red and white; cleanskins both. They’re also BYO, charging $7 a head for what appeared to be unlimited consumption, judging by the eskys full of beer we saw coming into the restaurant.
We shared a large Napoli pizza ($27) and had a glass of mystery red wine ($7 each). The pizza was good, but we’d wished we’d ordered an entrée too, as we could have used a bit more food.
One last check of our e-mail and then it was back to the cottage for our last night in McLaren Vale.
We’d allowed three full days in McLaren Vale so we could spend a day exploring the tip of the Fleurieu Peninsula, specifically Deep Creek Conservation Park.
Our hopes for a pretty day were realized and we were on the road by 7:30 am, taking B23 towards Yankalilla. We were soon zipping along squiggly roads, surrounded by vibrant green rolling hills and heavily treed countryside, reminded of Tasmania and New Zealand. The descent into the pretty little town of Yankalilla was particularly scenic, and I found myself wishing we had a few extra days to spend here. We were surprised to find yet more wineries; this country definitely has no shortage of those; wine drinkers really are spoiled for choice.
We passed a business named Seagull Droppings...I sure hope it wasn’t a restaurant…
Cliffs appeared to our left and we were suddenly surrounded by towering Norfolk pines as we approached the coast. We stopped at the Yankalilla Bay overlook noticing that the beaches we’d seen thus far weren’t very pretty. We passed a wind farm and reached our turnoff at Delamere, deciding instead to continue on to Cape Jervis first, as it was only another 10 kilometers further. We stopped at the ferry overlook and watched the 9 am ferry push off towards Kangaroo Island. Cape Jervis was windy, just like the tip of every other coastal landmass I’d ever visited, and rather cold.
We backtracked to Delamere and located the tree lined road to the park headquarters for Deep Creek Conservation Park, where we perused the information board for walk options. We paid the $8 park fee at an honesty station and settled on the 5.5 kilometer, three hour Aaron Creek Circuit hike which begins at the car park on Blow Hole Road and intersects the Heyson Trail.
This began as a gentle walk (don’t they all?) through impossibly green pasture and gum trees with distant ocean views. We were watched by four kangaroos from afar and we walked under a tree full of Rainbow Lorikeets, their cacophony of shrieks piercing our eardrums. The walk became more rugged with a steep descent toward the creek, and a steep ascent back up. The shores of the creek were lined with more arum lilies than I’ve ever seen in one place, some with blooms bigger than my outstretched hands.
We’d not yet seen a snake and I was looking forward to telling all we’d had a snake free visit to SA, but it was not to be. Bill drew to a halt on the path ahead of me and calmly announced “snake” as the creepy black thing slithered off into the bush. This is precisely why I prefer that he walk in front, to clear the spider webs and patrol for snakes.
The loop rejoined the path through the pasture and this is where we had our first ever Magpie swooping incident. We were walking along, minding our own business when this crazed bird appears from the trees and swoops down at us screeching like mad. The deranged thing came back a second and third time. While I ducked, Bill flailed his hiking stick in the air; the bird retreated and flew back to its nest, leaving our heads and eyes intact.
Despite the snake and the psychotic bird, we both enjoyed the hike, which took us about two hours to complete.
We returned to Delamere and picked up B37, where we drove the 50 km to Victor Harbor, yet another pretty drive with green rolling pastures as far as the eyes can see, winding roads, plenty of trees and ocean views.
We were both surprised at the size of Victor Harbor; I don’t know why, but I was expecting a tiny town, not a thriving community of some 12,000 people.
Someone on TA had mentioned the Beach House Café as a good place for Indian food, so I popped into the Visitor’s Center to ask about it. The woman who helped me confirmed that it’s a great place to eat, but she thought it was only open for dinner, which she then verified by phone. Thanks to the friendly helpful staff it was here that I learned quite by accident that there were whales near shore off Basham’s Beach, for which I got directions.
We walked through town looking for somewhere to eat lunch. I noticed Café Bavaria; it seems the German influence we’d discovered in the Barossa was alive and well down here too. Die Wursthaus in Tanunda still fresh in our minds; we both opted for the bratwurst ($8.50), and received a massive brat on a toasted bun with grilled onions and mustard – really tasty. The chocolate Bavarian cake in the display case looked so good that we had to share a piece of that too, over lattes this time ($10.90 total). Man it was good….airy fresh cream layered between light as a feather chocolate cake….I almost got stabbed with Bill’s fork as we fought over the last bite.
Back on the main road through town we turned on Port Elliot Road and located Basham’s Beach, between Port Elliot and Middleton. We walked to the beach and immediately saw 3-4 whales frolicking about 50 meters off shore. Very cool. We watched for quite a while, then backtracked to Victor Harbor Road and began working our way back to McLaren Vale. We passed vineyards galore, a cheese company, a berry farm, walking tracks…there was just so much left to do, but no more time! The view coming over the hill on our approach to Willunga was absolutely gorgeous; acre after acre of green, green, green, pastures and vineyards, all seeming to fall into the sea. WOW.
Jacinta had made a 6:00 pm dinner booking for us at Russell’s, a hugely popular pizza joint in Willunga only open on Friday and Saturday nights. We were told we’d have to vacate our table by 7:30. No problem. Willunga is tiny, but we had a devil of a time finding the place, stopping to ask directions twice. It’s tucked between two businesses on the main road, almost invisible behind a rustic fence, impossible to see until you’re right on top of it.
We wandered into the kitchen, by mistake we thought, but no, this is where we found the only menu, the blackboard overhead. We must have looked completely lost, because one of the girls making pizza explained we were to order and pay here, and then be seated.
This was like no other restaurant I’d ever been in and I couldn’t help but feel underfoot as we perused the menu in the kitchen, workers milling around us making crust, chopping vegetables, etc. We ordered, and then walked from the kitchen outside to a patio, barely missing the roaring fire on the ground in the center, past a wood fire oven and into a shed, which apparently served as the dining area. Quirky.
Russell’s makes life simple by offering a handful of pizza options, a few entrees and desserts and two types of wine, red and white; cleanskins both. They’re also BYO, charging $7 a head for what appeared to be unlimited consumption, judging by the eskys full of beer we saw coming into the restaurant.
We shared a large Napoli pizza ($27) and had a glass of mystery red wine ($7 each). The pizza was good, but we’d wished we’d ordered an entrée too, as we could have used a bit more food.
One last check of our e-mail and then it was back to the cottage for our last night in McLaren Vale.
Oct 3rd, 2009, 06:55 AM
#45
Join Date: Apr 2004
Posts: 1,124
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Mel: continuing to enjoy your report - glad you liked the Flinders Ranges. We didn't have any dust or fly-related issues when we visited the park in early Aug 06. It was downright frigid on the top of St Marys Peak. A few weeks makes a big difference apparently. As I said before, we were happy staying at the Wilpena Pound Resort - the food was decent and we had no problem with drunken or noisy guests. Too bad you missed having a drink at the Craddock Hotel - I hope it was closed because of the time of day, not because it was out of business.
Oct 3rd, 2009, 03:57 PM
#46
JohnFitz -
Yep, definitely a magpie.
Hi Ralph -
Yes, the Craddock Hotel was closed because of the time of day. We'd have stopped otherwise.
I really liked what I saw of Wilpena Pound Resort. It's quite a bit more expensive than Rawnsley Peak (unless you stay in the RP Eco Lodges that is!). WP rooms range from $97.50-$110 PER PERSON per night, whereas Rawnsley Peak's holiday units were $112 per room. I peeked into one of WP's rooms and they looked nice - they were just refurbished earlier this year.
Wilpena Pound Resort is in a fantastic location and I probably would have enjoyed staying there too, but we sort of liked being off the beaten track at RP surrounded by like minded old farts.
Yep, definitely a magpie.
Hi Ralph -
Yes, the Craddock Hotel was closed because of the time of day. We'd have stopped otherwise.
I really liked what I saw of Wilpena Pound Resort. It's quite a bit more expensive than Rawnsley Peak (unless you stay in the RP Eco Lodges that is!). WP rooms range from $97.50-$110 PER PERSON per night, whereas Rawnsley Peak's holiday units were $112 per room. I peeked into one of WP's rooms and they looked nice - they were just refurbished earlier this year.
Wilpena Pound Resort is in a fantastic location and I probably would have enjoyed staying there too, but we sort of liked being off the beaten track at RP surrounded by like minded old farts.
Oct 3rd, 2009, 05:51 PM
#48
Day 14 – On the road to Adelaide
We’d washed a load of clothes the day before, hanging them out to dry as the cottage didn’t have a dryer. Naturally, it rained during the night, so we bundled the wet clothes in a bag and hoped we’d find a coin-op laundry somewhere along the way.
We bid farewell to our cozy cottage and left McLaren Vale just before 9 am, bound for the Willunga farmers market, which had come highly recommended by fellow Fodorite JohnFitz. And what a wonderful suggestion it was, I loved it! Families were out wandering amongst the stalls of bedding plants, fresh produce and bread, local almonds, dips and dressings, honey, seafood, etc. There was a kid trying play the didgeridoo for tips, a stall or two selling food and coffee; the atmosphere was fun and festive and it smelled heavenly. Oh how I’d love to have a farmers market like this near my home where I could do my weekly shopping! We bought cheese kranskeys with grilled onions from a food stall ($7 each – power breakfast) and stood munching our dogs, sauce dripping down to our elbows, watching the world go by. We then stopped at an alfresco café, a more comfortable way to people watch while sipping flat whites.
I learned a little bit about the local almond market from a man selling almonds and I just had to buy some of his salt and vinegar flavor – really good.
It was great fun, thank you JohnFitz!
We were in no hurry to get to Adelaide, so we took the advice of Lizzy101, taking A13 towards Mt Compass then following the back roads to Strathalbyn. We drove through Nangeta, a country town surrounded by vineyards, and on to Ashbourne. This was a pretty drive, past olive groves and orchards, trees and meadows. It was really peaceful back here, my kind of place. As we drove through Strathalbyn, we noticed a coin-op laundry right on the main road – perfect – so we tossed our wet clothes into a huge commercial dryer, chatted up a miner from Roxby Downs and were good to go in 10 minutes. We continued towards Mt Barker, and sat back to enjoy the scenic drive to Hahndorf. We stopped at Beerenberg Strawberry Farm and I went nuts in their shop, buying all sorts of jams and condiments to take home.
http://www.beerenberg.com.au/
Before we knew it, we were entering Hahndorf, Australia’s oldest German town. The streets were lined with tourists on this beautiful Saturday afternoon. I wanted to explore, but the crowds were a turn off, so Bill wasn’t as keen. He wanted to wait in the car and read, but I was able to lure him out with the promise of German food. We’d barely turned the corner onto the main road when we spotted the Hahndorf Inn, and saw huge platters of pork knuckle and sausages being served at outdoor tables. Bill was sold the minute he saw the big HB (Hofbrau beer), so we claimed an outdoor table, ordered a Munchner Hefeweiss, and the Trio of Wursts, a plate of Bockwurst, Bratwurst and Weisswurst with traditional German potato salad, sauerkraut and a German pretzel ($26.90), which we shared. While we waited for our food, we watched platter after heaping platter make its way to waiting customers, most of whom were Asian. I couldn’t believe the piles of pork being consumed; it was serious pig carnage. I was tempted to ask one of the customers if I could photograph his heaping pile of sausages, knuckle and all manner of pig, but I couldn’t bring myself to, so I gawked instead. Check out this link for some photos:
http://www.hahndorfinn.com.au/The_Ha...estaurant.html
After a beer, Bill was feeling better about the whole touristy Hahndorf thing, so he was easily talked into walking down the street to investigate a place that had caught my chocoholic eye on the drive in, Chocolate #5.
Well…….
As we stood at the display case, eyeballing the goods and toying with the idea of having a flat white, the gentleman behind the counter told us the shop specializes in hot chocolate made from real melted Belgian chocolate. That was all it took; I immediately ordered the dark chocolate, Bill opted for the milk. We were going to call it good until a brownie in the display case called out to us, so we decided to share one ($15.30 total).
OH MY GOD. From the first sip of that decadent hot chocolate I knew I’d never had anything so good in my life. It was absolutely fantastic, sex in a cup. Bill had the same reaction, and we got more than a few sideways glances from customers who heard our moans of pleasure. Then we dug into the brownie and moaned yet some more…..it was out of this world delicious, I kid you not. We practically licked the plate and were really tempted to order another one, but good sense prevailed, or was it my tight jeans?
We haven’t stopped talking about Chocolate #5 since that day; it was fabulous!
http://www.chocolateno5.com.au/
Completely and utterly sated, we waddled out of Hahndorf and detoured to Woodside, to sample the sparkling pinot noir at the Bird and Hand winery, on the recommendation of the young woman at Two Hands in the Barossa. She was right, it was lovely. We noticed that the vines were still naked, an indication of the cooler climate here than in McLaren Vale.
We then backtracked a bit and located the Mt Lofty Scenic Drive which led us by cherry orchards and eventually up the skinny arse road to the Mt Lofty summit. We saw a few koala crossing signs, so I began to search for koalas high in the trees. At Mt Lofty we paid our $2 to park, and then went to check out the views of the city, but it was too hazy; difficult to see.
We poked around the top a bit, wishing we had time to take a hike, but I wanted to make one last stop before 5pm, the much acclaimed Haigh’s Chocolates.
On our descent from Mt Lofty I spotted a koala high in a tree, so we pulled over to take a closer look, a bit dangerous on this busy, steep road. As we continued our descent from the hills into the city of Adelaide, we both commented on how much hillier and prettier they are than the Perth Hills. We followed Greenhill Road towards Glenelg to locate our hotel and the Glenelg branch of Haigh’s, when we just happened to drive right by the Haigh’s Visitor’s Center and shop. How convenient! It was too late for their tour, but we poked around the store for a bit and bought a few things. It was good, but certainly not worth the $98.50 per kilo price tag! Teuscher has nothing to worry about.
We got turned around trying to locate our hotel, my fault again, but we finally made it, tired after our long day.
Our lodging – Comfort Inn Haven Marina - $135 per night, free parking
http://www.haveninn.com.au/
I’d selected this hotel because it’s close to the airport and relatively inexpensive. I didn’t find out until after I booked that it’s spitting distance from a Haigh’s shop. Honest.
I suspected the hotel would be noisy as it fronts a busy road, so I’d requested a quiet room in the back, which they honored. It was a basic motel room, but clean and perfectly adequate with plenty of space and helpful staff.
After getting settled we walked down to and along Marina Pier and a really ugly seaweed covered beach. Adelaide may have the hills, but Perth has the beaches!
http://www.marinapier.com.au/main.html
We took a long walk and watched the sun go down. There were lots of people milling about and this looked like a popular spot with plenty of bars, restaurants, shops, etc.
The hotel gave us free drink coupons for their café when we checked in, which is how we ended up dining at Quattro that evening. Potato leek soup with grilled bread for me ($8.90), “seared scallops, double cheddar béchamel and wilted spinach with zested rocket served in a buttered puff case” for Bill ($27.90). Mine was good, Bill’s not so much.
Day 15 – Going home
We were up with the birds and off to catch our 8 am flight to Perth. We had no troubles finding the airport, reaching it by 6:15 am. Jetstar had no issues with the four bottles of wine we had in our carry on bags and surprisingly, we’d not gained much weight during our trip (ahem, our check on luggage that is).
We did a final mileage check; we’d driven 3,257 kilometers during our two weeks in South Australia.
We were checked in and sitting in Cocolat by 6:40 am, sipping lattes and hot chocolate with chili while grazing on chocolate blueberry muffins. Good, but not nearly as good as Chocolate #5!
http://www.cocolat.com.au/airport.html
Alas, our trip was over. We both thoroughly enjoyed ourselves; everyone was so helpful and friendly. We returned to WA a bit jealous of SA and its beautiful green rolling hills, its German influence and products, its fantastic food and chocolate, its seemingly endless shopping opportunities, extended hours and lower prices. Heck, even the Adelaide Airport was much nicer than Perth’s and it had a chocolate cafe! But, I’m still convinced we have the best beaches.
We’d washed a load of clothes the day before, hanging them out to dry as the cottage didn’t have a dryer. Naturally, it rained during the night, so we bundled the wet clothes in a bag and hoped we’d find a coin-op laundry somewhere along the way.
We bid farewell to our cozy cottage and left McLaren Vale just before 9 am, bound for the Willunga farmers market, which had come highly recommended by fellow Fodorite JohnFitz. And what a wonderful suggestion it was, I loved it! Families were out wandering amongst the stalls of bedding plants, fresh produce and bread, local almonds, dips and dressings, honey, seafood, etc. There was a kid trying play the didgeridoo for tips, a stall or two selling food and coffee; the atmosphere was fun and festive and it smelled heavenly. Oh how I’d love to have a farmers market like this near my home where I could do my weekly shopping! We bought cheese kranskeys with grilled onions from a food stall ($7 each – power breakfast) and stood munching our dogs, sauce dripping down to our elbows, watching the world go by. We then stopped at an alfresco café, a more comfortable way to people watch while sipping flat whites.
I learned a little bit about the local almond market from a man selling almonds and I just had to buy some of his salt and vinegar flavor – really good.
It was great fun, thank you JohnFitz!
We were in no hurry to get to Adelaide, so we took the advice of Lizzy101, taking A13 towards Mt Compass then following the back roads to Strathalbyn. We drove through Nangeta, a country town surrounded by vineyards, and on to Ashbourne. This was a pretty drive, past olive groves and orchards, trees and meadows. It was really peaceful back here, my kind of place. As we drove through Strathalbyn, we noticed a coin-op laundry right on the main road – perfect – so we tossed our wet clothes into a huge commercial dryer, chatted up a miner from Roxby Downs and were good to go in 10 minutes. We continued towards Mt Barker, and sat back to enjoy the scenic drive to Hahndorf. We stopped at Beerenberg Strawberry Farm and I went nuts in their shop, buying all sorts of jams and condiments to take home.
http://www.beerenberg.com.au/
Before we knew it, we were entering Hahndorf, Australia’s oldest German town. The streets were lined with tourists on this beautiful Saturday afternoon. I wanted to explore, but the crowds were a turn off, so Bill wasn’t as keen. He wanted to wait in the car and read, but I was able to lure him out with the promise of German food. We’d barely turned the corner onto the main road when we spotted the Hahndorf Inn, and saw huge platters of pork knuckle and sausages being served at outdoor tables. Bill was sold the minute he saw the big HB (Hofbrau beer), so we claimed an outdoor table, ordered a Munchner Hefeweiss, and the Trio of Wursts, a plate of Bockwurst, Bratwurst and Weisswurst with traditional German potato salad, sauerkraut and a German pretzel ($26.90), which we shared. While we waited for our food, we watched platter after heaping platter make its way to waiting customers, most of whom were Asian. I couldn’t believe the piles of pork being consumed; it was serious pig carnage. I was tempted to ask one of the customers if I could photograph his heaping pile of sausages, knuckle and all manner of pig, but I couldn’t bring myself to, so I gawked instead. Check out this link for some photos:
http://www.hahndorfinn.com.au/The_Ha...estaurant.html
After a beer, Bill was feeling better about the whole touristy Hahndorf thing, so he was easily talked into walking down the street to investigate a place that had caught my chocoholic eye on the drive in, Chocolate #5.
Well…….
As we stood at the display case, eyeballing the goods and toying with the idea of having a flat white, the gentleman behind the counter told us the shop specializes in hot chocolate made from real melted Belgian chocolate. That was all it took; I immediately ordered the dark chocolate, Bill opted for the milk. We were going to call it good until a brownie in the display case called out to us, so we decided to share one ($15.30 total).
OH MY GOD. From the first sip of that decadent hot chocolate I knew I’d never had anything so good in my life. It was absolutely fantastic, sex in a cup. Bill had the same reaction, and we got more than a few sideways glances from customers who heard our moans of pleasure. Then we dug into the brownie and moaned yet some more…..it was out of this world delicious, I kid you not. We practically licked the plate and were really tempted to order another one, but good sense prevailed, or was it my tight jeans?
We haven’t stopped talking about Chocolate #5 since that day; it was fabulous!
http://www.chocolateno5.com.au/
Completely and utterly sated, we waddled out of Hahndorf and detoured to Woodside, to sample the sparkling pinot noir at the Bird and Hand winery, on the recommendation of the young woman at Two Hands in the Barossa. She was right, it was lovely. We noticed that the vines were still naked, an indication of the cooler climate here than in McLaren Vale.
We then backtracked a bit and located the Mt Lofty Scenic Drive which led us by cherry orchards and eventually up the skinny arse road to the Mt Lofty summit. We saw a few koala crossing signs, so I began to search for koalas high in the trees. At Mt Lofty we paid our $2 to park, and then went to check out the views of the city, but it was too hazy; difficult to see.
We poked around the top a bit, wishing we had time to take a hike, but I wanted to make one last stop before 5pm, the much acclaimed Haigh’s Chocolates.
On our descent from Mt Lofty I spotted a koala high in a tree, so we pulled over to take a closer look, a bit dangerous on this busy, steep road. As we continued our descent from the hills into the city of Adelaide, we both commented on how much hillier and prettier they are than the Perth Hills. We followed Greenhill Road towards Glenelg to locate our hotel and the Glenelg branch of Haigh’s, when we just happened to drive right by the Haigh’s Visitor’s Center and shop. How convenient! It was too late for their tour, but we poked around the store for a bit and bought a few things. It was good, but certainly not worth the $98.50 per kilo price tag! Teuscher has nothing to worry about.
We got turned around trying to locate our hotel, my fault again, but we finally made it, tired after our long day.
Our lodging – Comfort Inn Haven Marina - $135 per night, free parking
http://www.haveninn.com.au/
I’d selected this hotel because it’s close to the airport and relatively inexpensive. I didn’t find out until after I booked that it’s spitting distance from a Haigh’s shop. Honest.
I suspected the hotel would be noisy as it fronts a busy road, so I’d requested a quiet room in the back, which they honored. It was a basic motel room, but clean and perfectly adequate with plenty of space and helpful staff.
After getting settled we walked down to and along Marina Pier and a really ugly seaweed covered beach. Adelaide may have the hills, but Perth has the beaches!
http://www.marinapier.com.au/main.html
We took a long walk and watched the sun go down. There were lots of people milling about and this looked like a popular spot with plenty of bars, restaurants, shops, etc.
The hotel gave us free drink coupons for their café when we checked in, which is how we ended up dining at Quattro that evening. Potato leek soup with grilled bread for me ($8.90), “seared scallops, double cheddar béchamel and wilted spinach with zested rocket served in a buttered puff case” for Bill ($27.90). Mine was good, Bill’s not so much.
Day 15 – Going home
We were up with the birds and off to catch our 8 am flight to Perth. We had no troubles finding the airport, reaching it by 6:15 am. Jetstar had no issues with the four bottles of wine we had in our carry on bags and surprisingly, we’d not gained much weight during our trip (ahem, our check on luggage that is).
We did a final mileage check; we’d driven 3,257 kilometers during our two weeks in South Australia.
We were checked in and sitting in Cocolat by 6:40 am, sipping lattes and hot chocolate with chili while grazing on chocolate blueberry muffins. Good, but not nearly as good as Chocolate #5!
http://www.cocolat.com.au/airport.html
Alas, our trip was over. We both thoroughly enjoyed ourselves; everyone was so helpful and friendly. We returned to WA a bit jealous of SA and its beautiful green rolling hills, its German influence and products, its fantastic food and chocolate, its seemingly endless shopping opportunities, extended hours and lower prices. Heck, even the Adelaide Airport was much nicer than Perth’s and it had a chocolate cafe! But, I’m still convinced we have the best beaches.
Oct 3rd, 2009, 08:03 PM
#49
All photos now up.
Photos for days 10-14 begin here:
http://www.worldisround.com/articles.../photo101.html
Photos for days 10-14 begin here:
http://www.worldisround.com/articles.../photo101.html
Oct 3rd, 2009, 08:45 PM
#50
Join Date: Dec 2005
Posts: 10,694
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
I really should be in bed by now! But I kept reading and reading...
I really enjoyed your trip report, thank you. What a wonderful journey!
Those swirly canola fields were something! Lots and lots of great pics.
I really enjoyed your trip report, thank you. What a wonderful journey!
Those swirly canola fields were something! Lots and lots of great pics.
Oct 4th, 2009, 12:10 AM
#52
Join Date: Jul 2005
Posts: 784
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
This has been an excellent report and thankyou so much .Enjoyed it all . Lovely photos , especially of the flowers.
So pleased you got to Willunga Market .It has in part been made popular by Gaye Bilson of Berowa Waters fame who lives there and encouraged it ,I believe . The pics are just as I recall it .
So pleased you got to Willunga Market .It has in part been made popular by Gaye Bilson of Berowa Waters fame who lives there and encouraged it ,I believe . The pics are just as I recall it .
Oct 4th, 2009, 06:16 PM
#53
Join Date: Jan 2008
Posts: 81
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
I have so enjoyed this report - thank you, thank you. What a wonderful opportunity you have to live in Australia for a while. Good to see that you and your husband are taking full advantage of that opportunity. What part of the country will you be going to next??
Oct 4th, 2009, 10:22 PM
#54
Thank you both.
Bgale - We're considering a 7-8 day trip north of Perth in November. We thought we'd drive as far as Monkey Mia and then work our way back down, making stops in Geraldton, Kalbarri National Park, etc. It really depends on the weather though - we may wimp out and head back down south instead.
We'd also like to travel way up north to Broome and the far north of WA, but we'll have to leave that until next winter, when the weather's tolerable - we're hot weather weenies.
Bgale - We're considering a 7-8 day trip north of Perth in November. We thought we'd drive as far as Monkey Mia and then work our way back down, making stops in Geraldton, Kalbarri National Park, etc. It really depends on the weather though - we may wimp out and head back down south instead.
We'd also like to travel way up north to Broome and the far north of WA, but we'll have to leave that until next winter, when the weather's tolerable - we're hot weather weenies.
Oct 6th, 2009, 07:38 AM
#55
Join Date: Jan 2008
Posts: 81
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Oh, can't wait for your report re: Broome. I recently read two Di Morrissey books (Kimberley Sun and Tears of the Moon) about the pearl industry in Broome and found it fascinating. I have added that area of the country to my list of places to visit on my next trip to Australia. Unfortunately, that next trip may not happen for a couple of years but I'm planning!!
Oct 6th, 2009, 08:33 PM
#57
Join Date: Aug 2008
Posts: 187
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Heavy sigh, Mel, what a wonderful trip and so well described, I felt like I was there! Lovely, lovely pictures as well, those flowers were heavenly. Do you or your husband have "issues" with pollen and did it bother you if so? I wonder if all those canola flowers would be troublesome. You did such an amazing range of activities, combining large quantities of calories with lots of activities. It is probably a good thing that you don't live there because of the high temptation factor! I hope you get to the north of Perth and get to see the stromatolites in Shark Bay, a real bucket list item for me. If you don't know what stromatolites are, check out this link:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stromatolite
If you do know what they are, you have to go see them, and revel in their ancestors' contribution to our atmosphere. I got very excited when I saw some in the Natural History Museum in Sydney. Anyway, back to the topic at hand: your lovely trip report. THANKS!
Sally in Seattle, just returned from Grandbabyland (otherwise known as east of Los Angeles)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stromatolite
If you do know what they are, you have to go see them, and revel in their ancestors' contribution to our atmosphere. I got very excited when I saw some in the Natural History Museum in Sydney. Anyway, back to the topic at hand: your lovely trip report. THANKS!
Sally in Seattle, just returned from Grandbabyland (otherwise known as east of Los Angeles)
Oct 7th, 2009, 04:22 PM
#58
Thanks again - I hope my long winded report can help others planning a visit to the area. It was indeed more calorie laden than usual and we're both now paying the price.
Sally, we both have the odd allergy problem, but usually only in Colorado... neither of us has yet to have a problem in WA or SA. We might have been bothered if we'd been rolling in the canola, but I settled for looking at it!
I've just this minute arrived in Colorado after 22 hours of plane time, so it's off to bed for me.
Sally, we both have the odd allergy problem, but usually only in Colorado... neither of us has yet to have a problem in WA or SA. We might have been bothered if we'd been rolling in the canola, but I settled for looking at it!
I've just this minute arrived in Colorado after 22 hours of plane time, so it's off to bed for me.
Oct 10th, 2009, 06:59 AM
#60
Join Date: Jan 2003
Posts: 1,283
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Hi Mel!
Congratulations on a wonderful trip report. You did a GREAT job!
I've printed it out and will probably refer to it as a reference from time to time. I learned about places I hadn't been, got to vicariously experience meals without gaining any weight in the process! A win-win all the way!
Best,
Melodie
Certified Aussie Specialist
Congratulations on a wonderful trip report. You did a GREAT job!
I've printed it out and will probably refer to it as a reference from time to time. I learned about places I hadn't been, got to vicariously experience meals without gaining any weight in the process! A win-win all the way!
Best,
Melodie
Certified Aussie Specialist
