Adel Aide & South AuStr Ali ALIMESTONECOASTAdel Aide & South AuStr Ali ASLEEPING&EATINGAdel Aide & South AuStr Ali ACOORONGNATIONALPARKtall above the rippling iron surface of the
Southern Ocean. There are walks here from
1.5km to 9km, and extra tours at 3.15pm and
4pm during summer holidays.
At nearby Harvey’s Return a cemetery
speaks poignant volumes about the real-
ity of isolation in the early days. From here
you can drive to Ravine ̈des ̈Casoars (lit-
erally ‘Ravine of the Cassowaries’, referring
to the now-extinct dwarf emus seen here by
Baudin’s expedition). The challenging Ra-
vine ̈des ̈Casoars ̈Hike (7km return, three
hours) tracks through the ravine to the coast
4 ̈Sleeping ̈& ̈Eating
There are campgrounds at Rocky ̈River (per
person/car$9/27), Snake ̈Lagoon (per person/
car $7/13), West ̈Bay (per person/car$7/13) and
Harvey’s ̈Return (per person/car$7/13); book
through the Department ̈of ̈Environment, ̈
Water ̈& ̈Natural ̈Resources (DEWNR;%08-
8553 4490;flinderschase@sa�gov �au).
There’s also refurbished cottage accom-
modation at Rocky River − the budget Post-
mans ̈Cottage (d $70) and family-friendly
Mays ̈Homestead (d $133) − and lightkeep-
ers’ cottages at Cape ̈du ̈Couedic and Cape ̈
Borda (basichuts to stone cottages,d$22-170).
Book through the Department ̈of ̈Environ-
ment, ̈Water ̈& ̈Natural ̈Resources (%08-
8553 4410;kiparksaccom@sa�gov �au).
On the food front, the only option here if
you’re not self-catering is the Chase ̈Cafe
(%08-8559 7339; www �thechasecafe�com �au;
FlindersChaseVisitorInformationCentre;meals$9-
27; h9am-3�30pm) at the visitors centre, serv-
ing burgers, wraps, soup, coffee, and wines
by the glass.
88 Information
Flinders Chase Visitor Information Centre
(%08-85597235;www �environment�sa �gov �
au/parks;SouthCoastRd, FlindersChase;
h9am-5pm)Info, mapsand camping/accom-
modationbookings,plus acafe and displayson
islandecology�
LIMESTONE COAST
The Limestone Coast − strung-out along
southeastern SA between the flat, olive span
of the lower Murray River and the Victorian
border − is a curiously engaging place. On
the highways you can blow across these flat-
lands in under a day, no sweat, but around
here the delight is in the detail. Detour off-
road to check out the area’s lagoons, surf
beaches and sequestered bays. Also on offer
are wine regions, photogenic fishing ports
and snoozy agricultural towns. And what’s
below the road is even more amazing: a bi-
zarre subterranean landscape of limestone
caves, sinkholes and bottomless crater lakes.
Online, see http://www.thelimestonecoast.com.88 Getting ̈There ̈& ̈Away
TheDukesHwy(RteA8)isthemostdirectroute
betweenAdelaideandMelbourne(729km),but
thecoastalPrincesHwy(RteB1;about900km)
adjacenttotheCoorongNationalParkisdefi-
nitelymorescenic�AIR
Regional Express(Rex;www�regionalexpress�
com �au)fliesdailybetweenAdelaideandMount
Gambier(onewayfrom$160)�BUS
Premier Stateliner(www�premierstateliner�
com �au)runstwobusroutes−coastaland
inland−betweenAdelaideandMountGambier
($73,sevenhours)�FromAdelaidealongthe
coast(Tuesday,Thursday,FridayandSunday)
viatheCoorongyoucanstopatMeningie($36,
twohours),Robe($64,4½hours)andBeach-
port($68,5¼hours)�Theinlandbusrunsdaily
viaNaracoorte($71,fivehours)andPenola
($70,5¾hours)�Coorong National Park
The amazing Coorong ̈National ̈Park (www�
environment�sa �gov �au) is a fecund lagoon land-
scape curving along the coast for 145km
from Lake Alexandrina towards Kingston
SE. A complex series of soaks and salt pans,
it’s separated from the sea by the chunky
dunes of the Younghusband ̈ Peninsula.
More than 200 species of waterbirds live
here. Storm Boy, an endearing film about a
young boy’s friendship with a pelican (based
on the novel by Colin Thiele), was filmed
here.
In the 1800s the bountiful resources of
the Coorong supported a large Ngarrindjeri
population. The Ngarrindjeri are still closely
connected to the Coorong, and many still
live here.
At the edge of the Coorong on Lake ̈Al-
bert (a large arm of Lake Alexandrina),
Meningie (population 900) was established
as a minor port in 1866. These ‘lower lakes’
have returned to life recently, in the wake of
the 2011 Murray River floods. Prior to this,
the lakes were shrinking rapidly, and the