Woodgate beach at sunrise

Canoe, watermelon, just can’t find the darn paddles.

Good work, don’t you think???

We stayed at the Woodgate Beach caravan park, The first impression of the caravan park is of the plants/foliage. It is lush and green with many tropical plants abounding. The park is across the road from the beach and what a beach!

It must be one of the top beaches near a caravan park in this country. The park is dog friendly and that suits us as we travel with our dog Lexie. The owners are relaxed and leave visitors alone. The park is very organized and professional. It has many really attractive and clean cabins. The park is large, but visitors do not sit on top of each other as the sites are spacious.

After a few long walks on the beach we went to the mouth of the Theodelite  River which is just 2km north of Woodgate..  A number of people were fishing, but I did not see anyone catch a fish.T he beaches grow a coastal pine tree that offers shade and protection from the wind. So it is possible to soak up some sun in a quiet spot.

Just to the south of the village there is access to the beach. This is great as the beach is wide and flat with hard sand to drive on most of the time. This allows one to get away from the crowds and have some solitude. Above the high water mark is the Burrum Coast national park so there is no traffic from there. The area is dog friendly and it takes about 10km until one comes to Walkers point and the adjacent Burrum river. It is a tranquil large estuary with the village of Burrum Heads on the opposite side of the river. Tucked away behind the national park, in the estuary, is the sleepy village of Walker’s Point. As one gets out the car the peace just enfolds one… and you relax as you walk along on the sands at low tide.

As for looking after the body beautiful, there is a Hotel that serves a good fare and cold refreshments. I could not resist the hamburger and chips. The hotel includes a bottle shop so there is no excuse for running dry. Down the road is the local Bowls club. They are set up very well with superb greens and a very active membership. The facilities are well maintained and have a great restaurant that serves really great food. Needless to say the bar supports the food offering. We have been there a few times already.

The other day we came back from an excursion and nearly ran into a mob of kangaroos that were lounging around the neighborhood spilling onto the street from the nature strips. All this in the middle of Woodgate. We slowed down and stopped so as not to run over the little ones.

On Monday 13/July the trusty Navara is having its 40k service in Bundaberg;  gee its come around quick!

The road south was interesting as it travels along the Coorong which is an inland lake system that exists parallel with the dunes and the sea from Kingston to the Murray river mouth, around 150 km. There are scenic spots that overlook the lakes in a number of places. Years ago I took my sons camping and fishing along this stretch of coast.

Closer to Robe the countryside looked even better with forests and wineries lining the highway. Every now and then there were grain fields and paddocks growing hay. It’s very agricultural down here.

Part of Robe, nestled into the hillside

Decided to buy this one — only kidding!

Robe is a picturesque seaside tourist resort with a long beach northwards that gets you to Cape Jaffa at the low tide. During summer the population swells from a few thousand to 10,000 people. It used to have a Hippie feel about it years ago. These days there has been a lot of development and it sports a harbour for recreational and commercial fishing craft. There has been new development all over the place.

New Age lighthouse at Robe

We booked in at the Sea Vu caravan park. This park certainly lives up to its name. It is situated on a small hill close to town and offers views, of the Robe bay all the way to Cape Jaffa, from most of the sites. In fact the views must be some of the best sea views from any caravan park in Australia.

Sea Vu Caravan park from the Marina

4/11

Today the wind blew up a storm. So we did some sightseeing. Travelling around Robe we came across the Marina and at the point of the bay we saw a beautiful Nature sculpture called ‘Doorway Rock’ where wind and water had eroded a passage through the sandstone to create the illusion of a door.

Doorway rock

The Robe Marina

The new and modern lighthouse is fully automated and even looks good. We found a way onto the beach at Long beach where one can drive on sand, next to the ocean for 30+ kilometres. As the bay is shallow it provides safe swimming most of the time. Here Dawn and the dogs had a run around in the strong wind and driving sand, crazy.

Navara, 10km up the beach at Robe

Family having fun

Commercial Fisherman returning with day’s catch

When we returned to Robe we visited the ‘Wild Mulberry’ Café. The name is derived from the mulberries that grow around the building. We had some really good coffee and a ‘Doorstop’ bacon and egg sandwich with relish and melted cheese. Yum that was good. The toasted bread was thick and marbled. Yum again! Tonight we will go out to the local hotel once more for some good food and a glass of wine.

Cafe Terre

What an ‘Outhouse’.

When I walked back from the outhouse I came across this young Sprite guarding some dogs (J)

Must be a Lavender Sprite!

On our last day at our caravan park we saw what must be the ultimate touring rig. When is Xmas??? The Camper was towing a special trailer that had a toolbox for storage, space to park a Suzuki Vitara and hold a Tinnie and a motor. There was a special device to lower the Tinnie to the ground. Wow, enough to make your mouth water.

Dear Father Christmas, I have been a good boy all year……

The Boss Spoodle

Later in the afternoon we had a swim in the river next to our caravan park. Along the Murray there are pockets of clean beach sand on the banks. There are even flocks of seagulls. The only thing missing is the crashing of the surf, but we will get heaps of that when we hit the Yorke Peninsula later on this trip. In the evening we had a slow barbie at the caravan. The sizzling of the sausages and patties was interspersed by sips of beer and a yak with the ‘good lady’ and doleful looks from the pooches psyching me into giving them a sossy as well. All in all, a great day.