We were ready to hit the road and take the hilly drive back to Adelaide to get supplies before making our way to Port Augusta for a night. The drive was uninspiring with nothing to really look out once you got thru Adelaide.
We arrived at Port Augusta late arvo and it was stifling. Thankfully we found a cheap caravan park, $25 a night, so we had power. First thing we did was put the air conditioner on and then l got the washing done. It was dry on half an hour! Lucky we were only wanting this place for power and water cause it didn't offer much else. It was quite dodgy and run down, probably in its prime in the 70's. The playground was pretty much obsolete except for these two big metal slides which the girls enjoyed. There was no grass, dirt and ants everywhere and the bins looked and smelt like they hadn't been empty for ages. There were heaps of peacocks roaming around and a big bird cage with the birds sitting there panting with their mouths open from the heat, l checked and saw water was filled in their pots thank god. There was also about 30 cats and kittens hanging around the caretakers cabin. Have l painted the picture for you now?
Next morning we were up and off early heading down the west side of Eyre Peninsula. We arrived at lunch time at Cape Hardy where l had Ickes out a free camp for us for a few nights. The scenery was nice, tall cliffs and the ocean rolling in, but the wind was intense. We had lunch, took a stroll on the beach, then decided to keep going and find somewhere a little less choppy and windy. Lucky we had only half set up!! The girls were also slightly confused seeing they thought they had done their stint in the car for the day, lucky their so adaptable these days and we said they could watch a movie in the car!
We drove thru Port Lincoln, as we were coming into the town l was amazed at how big the town was. There was, funnily enough, a huge port! We didn't stop as we wanted to find a camp spot sooner than later. We eventually decided on Farm Beach and arrived late arvo. We were all totally over being in the car, funny how being somewhere for a week makes you forget the joys of driving all day! The camp spot is actually a caravan park but is only $5 per night and you pay in a donation box. No power or water but there is a flushing toilet and cold showers. After setting up we took a stroll down to the beach, only five minutes walk from the van. The scenery was amazing! Clear blue water, soft sand and beautiful surrounding land. The girls took off and started to explore near the rocks whilst Marty and l enjoyed some peace and quiet. When we got back to camp we saw all the campers gathering for what looked like happy hour. I headed over to introduce myself and was excited to see familiar faces, Simone and Mark from Narrung where there. It was so great to see them and wee ended up having a great catch up!
We ended up staying three nights here at Farm Beach and we had a great time. We spent our days doing school with Boo and Meg, heading down to the beach and fishing unsuccessfully (which was disappointing as everyone was going on at what a great spot this is to catch fish!) and taking the kayak occasionally. Marty had rigged up the kayak trailer so that he could pull it behind the car, was inspired by Marks boat trailer. Speaking of Mark, they must have felt sorry for our poor fishing efforts because one night they brought over heaps of whiting and squid for us to cook up. We hadn't ever had squid before and Marty was a little tipsy when getting instructions on how to cook it and the fish. We ended up with fish smothered with sweet chilly sauce, to the extent that l nearly couldn't eat it, and squid that was so tough that we nearly couldn't chew it! Boo, Meg, Marty and l all agreed that fresh squid wasn't our cup of tea and that the fish would have been better without the chilly sauce. Also, maybe Marty shouldn't cook when being a little pickled! Lol
One day we headed in to Coffin Bay to check it out and also to replenish our water supply. It was a small coastal town, quite pretty. We explored around the jetty and saw a local seal in the distance swimming about. The girls decided that the jetty wasn't too exciting so they played on the playground and made heaps of noise for the town to hear. We were going to check out the national park but they wanted $11 just to enter, bloody extortion l reckon! So instead, we replenished our water supply and went back to camp.
The best things about this time at Farm Beach was watching the sunsets and also the happy hours at night time. A lot of the campers staying here have been coming for years and all know each other. I think the biggest happy hour would have been 20 people or so. Come 5 o'clock everyone starts to mossy out with their chairs and drinks until a big circle starts to form. There are fishing scores swapped and laughs had from taking the piss out of one another. Felt like a real little community and can see why they keep coming back.
Just a shame that there wasn't any water close by as we probably would have stayed a little longer, instead, after three nights we had had enough and decided it was time to chase a nicer spot...... Plus it's only two more nights till we meet up with the Cronans again and start to get ready for our cross to WA!!!!

Bell Xxx