South Australia Murray River and Kangaroo Island

Our coach was ready for our morning ashore after breakfast. Taking a route through the town, then following the line of the escarpment to a spot overlooking the river. Here are the now disused, beautifully decorated silos. Part of the Silo Trail.  Near the cliff top cafe. Silos clearly seen in the distance Further along we stopped at an unusual spot. Two quaint shopping opportunities and a cafe with an outside terrace overlooking the river, capping off the morning. Our floating hotel Pelicans are a constant on the river A cormorant trying to stay cool Lots of parakeets at our mooring in Morgan This former river transport boat is being restored So much of the river has a history dating back to when the river was the most efficient means of transporting goods. Then came the railway and river transport died. We reboarded Proud Mary and continued on down the river to Morgan. It's such a relaxing trip having half a day exploring ashore and half a day cruising to our next stop. We did ha...

  Day 4: What better way to start than some beautiful pancakes for breakfast! Literally a cruisey day, following the river downstream once more. Lots of camping along the river. Lots of recreational boating. What a way to wake up Bridge at Cobdogla another tricky navigation The bridge is right on a river bend This was our pass, closest to the right hand bank Hot day but lovely on the river. There are always beautiful homes to view, birds to watch, life in general cruising down river. After lunch we were picked up for a visit to Banrock Station for some wine tasting. What a great place to visit. Lots of terrific environmental work going on here with the wetlands on the property. View across the rejuvenated wetlands at Banrock Station Outside the tasting room at Banrock Station A visit to an iconic pub before reboarding our boat. The Overland Corner is a local icon. Built in 1859 it was a staging point for the coach from NSW to Adelaide. I rounded off the day with a cocktail before ...

  Day 3: Our first day on the River. We left Renmark behind, passed through the Paringa Bridge on schedule and headed down river. This lift bridge only opens twice a day at 9:30am and 2:30pm so very important we made our way down river promptly this morning The current played havoc in the now swollen river from the heavy rains months ago up in the upper reaches of the Darling River. Here's a map of the huge catchment of the Murray, Murrumbidgee, Darling Rivers. The basin covers 14% of Australia's land mass. Renmark is close to the border with NSW. We travelled abut one-fifth of the length of the Murray River. As you can see the Darling River flows a long way from the north until it reaches the Murray River at Wentworth. The Murrumbidgee and the Murray itself, from it's source, would also have above average flows from winter snow melt and summer rains. At one stage the captain could not hold the boat in the narrow marked channel (so marked because of sand banks) and the cur...

  A lazy start to the day before leaving for the coach station at 10:30. RAT done and negative (phew, worked hard for that result!!), we left Adelaide behind. Of course very scenic passing through the Adelaide Hills, then out onto the plains. First stop Nildottie for facilities. These photos were taken here. Love quaint country towns. Picked up some more passengers at Murray Bridge. Last stop Loxton before arriving in Renmark around 5pm. A relaxed evening before boarding Proud Mary, our home for the next seven nights. Renmark Hotel from our boat During supper, we had wondered what all the families were doing on the shore after dark. We ventured down to investigate. Possums come down the palm trees to be hand fed vegetable scraps.

 Our plane departed Sydney on time, headed for a 30+C degree day in Adelaide. Our friend Anne was accompanying us on the river cruise. After settling in to the hotel. We went our separate ways agreeing to meet for dinner. What a beautiful start to our trip. A walk along the River Torrens on a balmy afternoon. It seems most in Adelaide wear their mask outdoors when walking around the CBD area, but not so much beyond. So walking along the river we did not encounter many with their mask on. This was a very pleasant walk. Easy on a hot day and ideal to walk off the plane trip. Pub dinner rounded off with a super dessert. Adelaide Oval from across the Torrens River Looking back towards city and Convention Centre