Early start to our driving day – squeezed all our remaining oranges this morning (knowing we will be passing the fruit/vege quarantine over the SA border). LOVE fresh orange juice!!!!
Left the Outback Resort about 7.30am.
About 48kms along the road is Cockburn which is on border of NSW and SA.
Yunta Roadhouse is 150kms further….was a great place to get more flying rations for this trip. The railway line for the Indian Pacific runs parallel with this road – but no sign of the train.
Passed Yunta and on a bit – I was expecting quarantine bins on the side of the road but all the cars were stopped and checked for fruit or vegetables. Very strict with quarantine. Definitely a vegan’s paradise – all the fruit and veg you can eat!
Stopped for an hour in Peterborough. The boys did the Steamtown Railway Museum (but they both thought the one in Broken Hill was much better). The Print Museum and Miniature collection were both closed. One of the locals we talked to said they had been closed for a long time. Jen and I walked the long length of the main street but there was very little to see.
I can’t remember the name of this café in Peterborough but look for this interior in the main street.
The coffee was amazing and so were the muffins. Very rustic and eclectic! The owner had only been there a short time…..moved from Bryon Bay and was enjoying the change of pace and community in Peterborough. The low house prices are a big draw card for many people. There are ex miners cottages here for under 100k.
We ate our pre-made salad buns on the road to Burra….with our takeaway cuppas and muffins. DELISH road trip lunch!!!
Burra is a REALLY historic town and if we had any regrets on this whole road trip holiday…..it was that we did not spend more time here. The whole main street was filled with beautiful stone historic buildings.
We did check out the Miner dug outs (in Blyth st, east of the town centre).
These were built in the 1840s and you can walk into each of them. They are cut into the sides of the riverbed and quite unbelievable that people lived in these.
If we had stayed here longer we would have checked out the Burra Mine site and lookout, walked the main street and had a look at the Gaslight café (known for its tea and books – YES!!! I can’t believe I didn’t go here). We were heading for Clare Valley so wanted to allow time to explore there.
After Burra we turned right and headed to the Clare valley (Burra to Adelaide via the Clare valley- 190kms) versus Burra to Adelaide directly – 163kms. This drive was not as scenic as we were expecting given that the Clare Valley has experienced quite a severe drought.
We arrived in the Clare Valley about 3pm-ish and most cafes etc were closed. Auburn did have some lovely stone buildings but the Auburn lookout was nothing special. We were also planning to head to Maggie Beer’s farm from Auburn…..but of course it was closed that day. Was a tad disappointing but thankfully we checked it out before heading her way….so didn’t do the extra kms to get there.
TIP
If I was planning the trip again…. I would stop briefly at Peterborough for a cuppa at that café (I cant remember the name of :)), then would stop off at Burra for 1-2 hours.
I would then either –
spend a night/s in the Clare valley/Barossa and sample wines (and head to Maggie Beer’s Farm)
OR
head directly to Maggie Beer’s Farm from Burra (ensuring it is open the day you are travelling there 🙂)…and then onwards to Adelaide
Arrived in Adelaide city at 5pm-ish. Checked into The Mantra at Hindmarsh Square. This was the perfect place to stay in Adelaide CBD. After checking in….we walked 5-10mins to Rundle mall where there is a plethora of restaurants to choose from. We found the Schnithouse which was a schnitzel-lovers dream restaurant (seriously – what is it with us and schnitzel?).
Jen and I ordered a ‘Full of Schnit’ meal to share between us. We could have shared this with 3 or 4 of us. There were 5 different types of schnitzel on the plate with 3 different sauces and chips. Bit of an experience!!! Thankfully the boys did help us out a bit :).
Great start to our Adelaide adventure!