Burra to Echuca

The old Town Hall.

Centre of town.

Leaving Clare, we had hardly got the car warmed up, and we were in Burra, just 40kms away. Amazing to learn, that this little village just 2 hours from Adelaide, was the fifth largest town in Australia in the 1850's. Today it is a quaint little tourist village full of wonderfully restored homes, and trendy cafes and boutiques. Up until a month ago we had never heard of it. A chance morning tea by the Murray with a couple who were on their way there, led us to drive through on the way to the Flinders Ranges, and that was when we just knew we had to come back.

The Monster Mine.

The old smelter chimney.

As was often the case, it was a mining discovery that led to the town's creation. Here it was copper, rather than gold. Between 1845 & 1877, 50,000 tons of copper were removed from the mine. It was one of the richest copper mines in the world, and people flocked here to work the mine and the smelters, most of them from Wales and Cornwall. By 1850, the town boasted a population in excess of 5,000. The mine actually saved the fledgling state of South Australia from bankruptcy. A series of small villages were set up along the creek, but most are long gone, with the town now comprising just Burra and North Burra, though the restored old buildings are still there to visit.

It is always refreshing to see an active council that really works on tourism. These days tourism is a matter of life and death for these old rural communities, and is sad to see how many choose death! Burra doesn't, and with the Burra Heritage Passport, you literally get the key to the city, to gain access to all the old sites and buildings. All are accessible to view from the outside, but if you want to get inside, the Passport is the go. It is all close together.

One of three pubs in town.

The caravan park is right in town beside the creek. It is a nice little park, well kept, and the footbridge beside the park deposits you right in town. Most people only stay for a night or two. We decided on three nights. We wandered into town, and at the end of the foot bridge found two beautiful old buildings, The Town Hall, and the Regional Art Gallery. Town is full of cafes, boutiques and antique shops. There is a big Antiques Fair held in Burra each year, another great initiative of the town. Most of the cafes keep up the old English theme, and offer scones with cream and jam, as well as lots of other tasty goodies. In addition the Cornish Pastie is king in Burra, and there is a great rivalry to see who has the best.

Me and Tiddy Oggi.

We learned the history of the Cornish Pastie here in Burra. It was the miners' staple meal. The traditional pasties came in two kinds, all savoury or savoury/sweet. The pasties comprised a pastry case as long as a man's forearm, filled with meat and vegetables, or in the case of the savoury/sweet model, meat & veg at one end, and apple at the other. The pastry was closed with a braided roll of pastry, that served as a handle to eat it with. This braided crust was discarded, so as to avoid the arsenic used in the mines being transferred from the miner's hands to his mouth!! Today the pasties are a more manageable size. I had to try the Tiddy Oggy, the combined savoury/sweet, which came served with a little pot of tomato sauce and a little pot of cream! It was yummy, and not a hint of arsenic!!

Redruth Gaol.

Row houses.

Our tour took us out to The Monster Mine Site with the restored Engine House Museum. We also went up to the lookout to view the pit, now full of water. We visited the old Bon Accord Mine site at nearby North Burra, as well as the beautifully restored Railway Station that now houses a B&B. The last train came to Burra in 1970. We saw a number of old churches of many denominations, and headed over to Redruth Gaol, which was again well restored. Burra itself has a number of fully restored Row Houses, many of which today serve as accommodation options. Just walking up and down the streets of town reveals restored old homes one after the other. This place just oozes history! From the 1950's to 1970's, another go at mining was undertaken, using more modern mining techniques, and this realized another 20,000 tons of copper, but now all is quiet at the mine.

La Pecora Nera.

No trip to Burra is complete without a visit to La Pecora Nera (The Black Sheep). When a boy from Rome meets a girl from Burra, the end result is a unique and rapidly becoming famous, restaurant. People drive up from Adelaide for lunch on the weekends! It is a huge old tin shed, now with a huge new shed added to the back. The  wood fired pizzas are authentic and excellent, with thin crispy pastry and not too much filling. Paolo decides on what other dishes he will cook, but it is usually an antipasto, and a couple of pasta dishes, and mussels. We shared the antipasto plate and a pizza plus a Caprese Salad. It was absolutely delicious and transported us back to Italy. The place is licensed, but in the true casual style with which it operates, you help yourself from the fridge or the shelves and just let them know what you took! All wines are one price, all beers are one price. At the end of the meal, Paolo and his wife liberally hand out the Limoncello, and share a glass and a chat. We had a truly memorable evening and waddled back to the caravan across the bridge.

The mighty Murray

Some very big floods!

So that pretty much was Burra. In the morning, we quickly packed up and walked the bridge one last time for coffee and a light breakfast at our favourite café, St. Just. We felt they did the best coffee in town. After lingering over a second cup, we were headed out of Burra, richer for the experience, and on our way back down the River to Renmark, in SA's rich Riverland region. We were retracing our tracks, but felt we should stay a few days in Renmark, as it just looked inviting.

Renmark Big 4.

Not a bad spot for Brekkie!

In Renmark we stayed at the Big 4 Riverfront Caravan Park. We paid a little extra for one of the Riverfront sites, and were really glad we did. This is a very nice caravan park. A lot of people complain that Big 4 parks are expensive, but this one gives a lot for the money. It is a big caravan park. It has a huge resort pool area, with a water park for the kids next door. There are playgrounds and jumping castles, and excellent facilities, many of them new or recently refurbished. Our large double slab site was right opposite a huge, wide sweeping bend in the river. With houseboats and pleasure boats passing by, and so much birdlife, it was just lovely to sit there and watch the passing parade.

Renmark waterfront.

The weather was continuing to be superb. Cool nights and lovely warm days. We did the tourist drive out around Berri, Loxton, Moorook and Barmera, taking in Lake Bonney along the way. Following the river it is a drive through fruit trees and grape vines. We stopped and bought fresh crisp apples, semi dried nectarines to die for, as well as farm fresh veggies from the roadside stalls. We had a beer at the famous Loxton Pub, which really didn't live up to the hype for me. Berri was a lovely town, right on the river. It seems to be a busier centre than Renmark, with lots of Houseboat Hire based here. Some of the big bulk wine producers have their factories here, places like Berri Estates, where most of the wine comes in a box rather than a bottle! Row after row of huge stainless steel tanks. In town, the riverfront area was nicely rejuvenated. We think we will have to come back here for a better look!!

Woolshed Brewery.

Tasting platter.

On another day we crossed the river to Paringa and headed out to the Woolshed Brewery. What a great spot. You have to admire the initiative and drive of some people. Here, out on the banks of the Murray River, in an old woolshed is a working boutique brewery. There is a huge deck out the back, projecting you out over the river, where you try an ale or two among the giant river redgums, full of hundreds of squawking Corellas! The beers weren't too bad either. There were houseboats tied up at the wharf, as well as small boats. The only thing missing was a helipad! On the way back to town we detoured down a dirt road to Murtho Forest Landing. Here we climber a viewing platform that afforded some of the best Murray River views we have seen. Looming orange red and white cliffs and more of those incredible river gums. Stunning scenery, and just on cue a houseboat came into view around the river bend.

Incredible river scenery.

Thousands of Corellas.

We took ourselves out to the Renmark Golf Resort for a game of golf. A fair bit of poetic license here! It was a bit of a goat track, but it was another gorgeous day, and it was cheap and certainly not crowded. Given the competition, I can't see this place surviving! We called in at Ruston's Rose Garden, which was a very nice surprise. At 27 acres, they claim it is Australia's largest rose garden, and whilst many bushes were past their best, it was still a sight to behold. There is a café and even a small vintage car collection to add to the interest. Our last stop that day was Angoves Winery. This is probably the best known brand from the area. We just had a look, as we have so much Clare Valley Wine we couldn't fit more in!

Beautiful sunsets.

27 Acres of roses.

Probably our greatest delight in Renmark, was happy hour by the river. We would sit and watch the birdlife on the river. So many water birds, and precocious pelicans, who would almost mug you! They just walk right up to you and give you the eye! Carol is in her element surrounded by wildlife, no not me!, and always has a bag of seeds for the birds. The sunsets over the river were spectacular, and I can confirm that there is nothing nicer in life than being reclined by the river, under the shade of an enormous river gum, with a good book in hand and your beverage of choice.

Robinvale Caravan Park.

A campfire by the river.

We only left our spot in Renmark because we couldn't extend. SA school holidays put paid to that, so we decided to just head back down the river a little way to another riverside option, Robinvale. We love this park, and with Victoria school holidays over, had no problem getting a spot on the river. Here it is all about doing nothing. It is nice to come back to a spot. You've done all the sightseeing so can have some me time. With the nights now getting decidedly cooler, we got out our new Hillbilly Fire Pit, and christened it. This caravan park allows fires in a contained fire pit, and actually hire them out if you don't have your own. Nothing like sitting around the campfire beside the river. The only thing that amazed me was that we didn't

Birds feeding at the weir.

have any marshmallows! That will be fixed for tomorrow! We did do one little exploration trip. Access to the weir has been

River red gums.

restricted due to maintenance, and someone told us that if we crossed the river to the NSW side and worked our way along the dirt tracks at the back of the town of Euston, we would eventually find the river just below the weir. We persevered and were successful. What awaited us was well worth the effort, with hundreds of pelicans and cormorants taking turns in the turbulent water below the weir, diving for fish. It was quite a sight!


Our last stop along the Murray, on this trip, is Echuca, a town we have visited before and

like very much. The river boat history here is huge, and it is hard to imagine that in the mid 1800's this was the third busiest port in Australia! It is a great town to walk around with its many grand old buildings and pubs. There are some great pubs, but still nowhere near the

Birthday dinner by the fire.

number of 86 pubs that were in Echuca in its heyday! The weather, especially at night, has now cooled considerably. The days are lovely and sunny though it takes most of the day to warm up! Echuca is the ideal place for Carolyn to stay, whilst John heads off for his annual golf indulgence, this year at nearby Tocumwal, where together with 24 mates they will enjoy 5 days of golf on the annual "Big Tour". It is also the time of the year when we celebrate our birthdays and wedding anniversary, and Echuca offers some wonderful dining experiences at which to celebrate! At the time of writing, John has already celebrated, and when I get back from golf it will be Carolyn's turn. She has been left in charge of choosing her own venue for when I return from golf.

When the golfing activities have concluded, the colder temperatures will herald the start of our northern migration, chasing the sun. But first we will make a quick trip to Bendigo where we are going to see a wonderful exhibition of all things Marilyn Munro at the very with it Bendigo Art Gallery. We have now seen a number of fantastic exhibitions here, and are really looking forward to it. As most know, Carolyn is a Marilyn Munroe tragic. From Bendigo, we will be making a stop near Yass, in NSW, to visit Balmain friends who have chosen a rural life for the raising of their family. We haven't seen Nicole, Brendan and the boys for 4 years, so are really looking forward to a stop at their farm. Then we will be back in Sydney for a couple of weeks before the northern pilgrimage begins in ernest.