Port Lincoln SA - A new experience...27 Sept 2011

Moving on from Whyalla I googled unusual accomodation for caravans Port Lincoln.  I love google while we are travelling.  Nothing is ever far away.  The search came up with 4 hits.  Two were farms with spots for 1-2 caravans, one was a National Park and the last was Nyroca Scout Camp where they had 2 spots for caravans and was in close proximity to Coffin Bay Conservation Park. 

A quick call to Nyroca and spoke to the caretaker Malcolm Schluter who advised he was closed as he was heading to Adelaide for personal reasons.   After a brief discussion I hung up from the call and advised Danny we were heading for Nyroca.  The Nyroca Scout Camp is a 21 hectare natural bush setting situated adjacent the Flinders Highway, in the shadow of the Marble Ranges, 56 kms west of Port Lincoln. 

What shocked Dan was the fact I advised him we were caretakers for the next 5 days.  We would arrive to be greeted by Daisy the border collie who would eat us allive with love and kisses and we should make ourselves at home, feed the 50 + animals, collect the eggs, assist with the incubation of the chick eggs and enjoy the environment.

Who lets a total stranger do this after a 5 minute phone call?  Malcolm Schluter does! Ex West Coast Police Chief Inspector has been looking after Nyroca for a number of years.  He was leaving Nyroca the same time we were leaving Whyalla so our paths would not cross.  He would leave the place open and advise his good friend and neighbour who we will call 'Hoss' for now of our arrival.

So our visit to Lighthouse no 11 was going to be an adventure - we could both feel it....

Long time gone....

Wow, it was Sept 2011 that I last blogged in here....boy how time flies.  I have a bit of catching up to do which I will over the next 9 days.  We are on another roadie but let's do a catch up of what has been happening in the lives of Dan and Man.

Firstly I went through a pretty ugly workcover claim of which ended late in 2011.  From that I was detached from my employer of 20 + years.  After what seemed a lifetime of having one career direction, opportunities arose that I had not anticipated.

Firstly I was provided with opportunities of employment that I had not considered before.  I worked for an amazing organisation MIFSA reviewing and developing new policies and procedures.  MIFSA provide a safe and encouraging place for people suffering from any form of mental illness.  The day was filled with many visitors to the organisation who would come to learn to ccok, chill, play music or use the library.  Thursdays were music day and the whole office would be filled with the sounds of people strumming out music and singing, mainly songs from the 70's and 80's.  I loved it. What an inspirational place to work.

Whilst working there I was offered a position as a Practice Manager for a brand spanking new Dental surgery that was about to open 1 minute from where I live.  To top that, one of the owners is someone is who so special to me.  I jumped at the opportunity and Oct 2011 starting working at Beachside Dental Studio in Port Noarlunga. 

Now what does that have to do with caravaning and my lighthouse quest?  Some big changes in my life created opportunity for us to make some real differences in our lives.  We sold our home of 14 years that consisted of a very large garden and two storey home of many rooms to a 3 room apartment on the esplanade and upgraded Eddy the Hawk (our first camper trailer) to Ethel the Expanda.  We simplified our life completely....

 

From this beautiful home to espy Apartment lifestyle - what a change but one we are loving.

 

So back to our lighthouse quest.

Innes National Park - Lighthouse No. 9

Cape Spencer Lighthouse

We visited this lighthouse on the same day as West Cape and although windy it was nowhere near the winds experienced at the other end of Innes National Park. Lighthouses can vary in age, look and materials and some stand out for all the worng reasons. Cape Spencer was one of these.

A concrete monstrosity with no architectural lines such as Cape Jervois. The fact of the matter is they have a purpose and Cape Spencer plays a significant role in ensuring ships are led in safely between Yorke Peninsula and Althorpe Island. Althorpe Island is one of our future destinations and hosts a Lighthouse and some cottages you can stay in. Once a cheap & unique holiday it is now a costly exercise only for those with a passion such as ours. Theonly way over to the Island is by chartering a boat and once on there, you are left to your own devices.

Some facts about Cape Spencer

1. New lighthouses don't have may stories to tell


2. Built in 1975


3. Prior to the exisiting Lighthouse a small beacon which resembled a metal box with a light on top.


4. Height: 3.4m


5. Elevation 78m
   
   

Innes National Park May 2011 - Lighthouse 8

West Cape and Cape spencer Lighthouses werethe focus of this trip along with taking time in Innes National Park to visit the pristine beaches and hopefully catch some fish.

What we weren't expecting was 150klm + winds that left us laughing, crying and crawling to reach one lighthouse. I felt as light as a feather and the wind made it impossible to do anything other than think of the next step. It made me realise how crazy human beings can be a times, Sir Edmund Hilary and many others suffered blizzards, freezing conditions and lack of oxygen to reach the top of Everest. I aligned ourselves with him as we staggered towards the stainless steel monstosity known as West Cape Lighthouse.

We had a lot of fun on this trip to Lighthouse no 8. You are never too old to be like little kids again and I am loving this journey.....

A few facts about West Cape -

1. Expect winds!



2. Built in 1980



3. Construction - Stainles Steel



4. Why stainless steel? The say to reduce environmental impact when costructing



5. Height -8.5 metres



6. Above sea level - 67.1 metres (it was a long wa to fall if the wind blew us over!)

A great day, one neither of us will forget....

Cape Jervis - South Australia Lighthouse # 7

This lighthouse is on the SA coast near to where you catch the ferry to Kangaroo Island. Making the most of our stay at our church camp at Carrickalinga we decided to tick this lighthouse off our list whilst we enjoy 'fellowship' with our brothers and sisters, hear some inspiring talks and reflect on how blessed our lives are.

There appears to be two types of lighthouse experiences, those steeped with history and those that are modern, concrete structures that appear cold and lifeless. Here at Cape Jervis there was the remnant of the original lighthouse standing as a backdrop against the architectural concrete monstrosity that provided me with some great photos.

One thing I love about my husband is his absolute commitment to me and my idiosyncracy's, whether it is my lighthouse quest or organising a dinner at the last minute for 10, he always shows great interest and enthusiasm. He will scour the beach for the perfect pebble or shell to have as a memory of that particular lighthouse. He just is the best thing that has happened to me when it comes to friend. I am still excited when I am with him, every holiday is in fact, an adventure. As corny as it sounds 'he completes me'.

Our closest local Lighthouse where? No way!

March 29th, 2011.

When I started this quest a good friend sent me a message asking if I had marked off the closest Ligthouse to where we live. Port Adelaide - no I hadn't been there officially since we started our quest! No much closer.....

Of course the internet soon confirmed there was a Lighthouse at Marino, only ten minutes away. Why didn't I know this? A couple days later we were walking along the esplanade at Seacliff and there it was on the skyline - the Marino Lighthouse. Why had we never noticed it before? Sort of reminded me of when you buy a new car and you believe you have never seen a car the same colour or model on the road before. Once you own it you realise every second person has bought the same car!

So camera in hand we took off down the road to Marino. Once on the coast we walked down to the beach and could NOT find the lighthouse anywhere. We asked some locals and they looked confused and stated there wasn't one. Were we on a wild goose chase?

Eventually I looked up the Lighthouse on my iPhone maps and a few minutes later we were walking through the Marino Conservation Park towards the closest Lighthouse to where we live.

FACT: The photograph of the sign, above, says it all.

NOTE: Don't assume a local suburban Lighthouse is going to be on the coast with a paved footpath - wear inappropriate shoes!!

Black And White Lighthouses

Queenscliff Lighthouses (Victoria) - March 20-21st, 2011

Dan, our grand-daughter Isha and myself took off for Queenscliff on a weekend late in March to capture photos and visit the 'Black' and the 'White' Lighthouses located at Queenscliff on the Bellarine Peninsula.

I love each and every one of our grandchildren and we love to involve them in some of our holidays and they are all keen to be included in our lighthouse quest. So with our quest in mind the three of us drove to the Fort in Queenscliff to photograph both lighthouses.

Facts:

1) What do you do to tell the difference between two bluestone lighthouses in close proximity? Paint one white. The Black Lighthouse is the only 'black' lighthouse in the southern hemisphere.

2)These lighthouses guide ships through the Rip and into Port Phillip Bay.

Note: Need to consider obstacles such as:-

1) Lighthouse locations behind fort walls or barbwire fences!

2) Lighthouse location not accessibble to public due to tour guide sick for entire week. Even grovelling for a photograph from the locked door at the base of the lighthouse went on deaf ears.

3) Climbing up cliffs to access Lighthouse has element of risk.

A quick visit to the Queenscliff Maritime Museum netted me a laminated map of all the lighthouses in Australia so we are now official nerds with a tacky laminated map of Australia on the study wall with 6 markers on the map! 410 + to go :)

We had a great time, stayed at the Queenscliff Big 4, second timers here as the park has great facilities including a great indoor heated pool, spa and kids club. Isha took control of Dan's bike and made lots of friends.