Welcome to South Australia: Exploring the Limestone Coast
I would like to start this blog entry on a surprising realisation we stumbled across after travelling through parts of Victoria and South Australia having lived in regional NSW, we have been conditioned with the expectation that travelling from town to town, or even state to state for that matter, takes a really long time. So with what feels like the shortest drive ever, we travelled from the Grampians, Victoria to Mt. Gambier, South Australia, in a measley 2.5 hours.
If you are ever travelling to South Australia, we highly recommend you visit Mt. Gambier and the wider Limestone Coast. This region is absolutely loaded with tourist attractions What we found to be most exciting is that they offer unique activities, different to anything we have previously experienced. From sinkholes and caves, to blue pools and wildlife; the region is equipped with a number of fascinating experiences for all ages and abilities. We spent a few days exploring this area and rated our top 5 activities/towns below. Enjoy!
#5 - Blue Lakes (The Blue Lake & Little Blue Lake)
In Mt. Gambier you cannot miss the HUGE lake known as Blue Lake. It is the crater of a dormat volcano and is an iridescent blue colour. You can drive right around the rim or if the weather is nice you can walk the 3.6km circut loop. We were told you cannot swim in Blue Lake (as it is the water supply for town), however a short drive out of town you can go to Little Blue Lake which allows swimming. Similar in its iridescent colouring, Little Blue Lake is a miniscule version of Blue Lake and offers a chilly swim as it maintains a mere 12 degree water temperature all year round. When we were travelling through it was quite a miserable day. Wet, windy and funnily enough it was also 12 degrees. Cam couldn't pass up the opportunity to swim in this fascinating pool. With his first jump we swear he got out of the water just as quick! It was a cool spot and definitely worth checking out.
#4 - Sinkholes (Umpherson Sinkhole & Cave Gardens)
In the centre of town in Mt. Gambier you can step down into a whole new world known as Cave Gardens. There are a number of sinkholes in this region and Cave Gardens offers tourists the opportunity to check out a sinkhole without having to venture out of town. It's quite pretty and unusual to find an established garden below surface level. While you're on the sinkhole journey, it is also highly recommended to checkout Umpherston Sinkhole, located on the edge of town within a sizeable park.
As you climb down the stairs into Umpherston Sinkhole you transcend into a tropical oasis, including a mass of overhanging vines, a running river and heaps of leafy rainforest plants. You can walk along the path hugging the cave wall too, however be prepared for the smell of either bat or bird droppings. It was a fascinating place to wander around and both sinkholes were free to access.
#3 - Caves (Engelbrecht & Tantaloola)
Who doesn't love a good cave? Our family gets excited with the idea of underground exploration and we were lucky enough to be able to visit two caves in this region. Engelbrecht Cave is located in Mt. Gambier with the cave system running under the town. It costs a small fee to visit this cave and you are accommpanied by a knowledgeable guide who takes you down two different parts of the cave system in a 45-60 minute tour. It was really interesting to visit this cave and you can see the access point inside the cave for cave divers. This dive however is restricted to fully certified divers and for good reason - it's a really tight squeeze!
Tantaloola Cave is located 20 minutes from Mt. Gambier and falls into the stereotypical cave experience. This cave had us gawking at its multitude of stalactites and stalagmites. It cost another small fee upon entry and we were guided through the cave with a guide. Tantaloola Cave also received bonus points because it is fully wheelchair accessible.
#2 - Cape Banks Lighthouse
Along the Limestone Coastline you'll find the sleepy little fishing village, Carpenter Rocks. As you pass through town you'll find yourself driving into Canunda National Park, where at the end of the track stands Cape Banks Lighthouse. Keep your eyes peeled on the drive down the track as we saw a number of echidnas scuttling about. There is a decent campground situated below the lighthouse with allocated sites at $17 a night. They are spaced out around the area with a drop dunny and protected campsites from the coastal weather. The salmon coloured lighthouse is stunning as it is set against the turquoise ocean, however views aside, the real icing on the cake was finding a small colony of fur-seals. With a quick walk down to the beach there is a small inlet off the headland where the seals live. We could have sat and watched these fascinating creatures for hours as they moved about and played in the water. They really are the puppies of the ocean. If you are interested in the historical side of things there are also three shipwrecks located along this stretch of beach.
#1 - Beachport & Robe
Coming in tied as our top recommendations for the Limestone coast are the towns of Beachport & Robe. Both are relatively small in size and offer different experiences to the traveller.
We absolutely loved our time in Beachport. We stayed at Southern Ocean Tourist Park which had our choice of luscious grassy sites & it was more reasonably priced. There is an awesome playground in town which we visited everyday, as well as a number of crystal clear beaches to swim at. The fishing here is top notch & the local fishing co-op, The Lobster Pot, was definitely worth a visit!
Robe also has small town feels, however is slightly larger in size. Robe is the perfect spot for a foodie as it offers a number of restaurants and cafes to visit. We made the most of the 4WD beach tracks where we gave our LandCruiser 300 Series its first taste of sand. The Multi-Terrain Select feature gives you what you need to take on all conditions.
Watch the LC300 conquer getting off-road and tackling Long Gully Beach in Robe, SA.
The fishing in Robe is great and the coastal walks were fascinating. We stayed at a local AirBnB and despite some patchy weather, we really enjoyed our time shopping & eating our way around town.
Mt. Gambier & the Limestone Coast really surprised us with all it has to offer. We enjoyed exploring the towns, encountering wildlife & creating memories as we shared new experiences together.
