At the beginning of the year, we planned a nine day March caravan trip that included four nights in Wallaroo with the remainder somewhere else last minute. Unfortunately, we were ‘trumped’ by the price and availability of diesel. Not wanting to mortgage the house to pay for fuel and to risk being able to make our return journey, we changed our plans to a four night visit to Mannum.
With Mannum only 100km from home, as opposed to 280 km to Wallaroo, we could complete the round trip on one tank of fuel. So, on Monday 23 March we packed the caravan and set off for Mannum on a lovely 30 degree day. We took the opportunity to stop at Strathalbyn to fill up with diesel, including our two 20 litre jerry cans.
Mannum
Mannum is located on the west bank of the River Murray 23 km north of Murray Bridge. The first European settlement was established in 1840, with a shipbuilding industry quickly flourishing to meet the demands of trade along the Murray. The first Mannum built paddle steamer was launched in 1852. The town features the only remaining dry dock on the Murray Darling river system and is home to the paddle steamer Marion which continues to offer short two hour trips and the Murray Princess which departed when we arrived on a three night excursion.
The town is also located at a main thoroughfare across the river, facilitated by two cable barge ferries, both of which we were to use a few times during our visit.
Campground
Mannum offers two alternative camping options: a Big 4 Holiday Park and Bolto Reserve on the east side of the river. On the recommendation of friends who had recently camped at Bolto, we decided to set up there. We were warned about noisy weekends of jet skis and power boats that rip through the normal tranquillity of the spot, but as we were planning to be there during the week, we reckoned that was not an issue.
On arriving at the campground in the early afternoon, we selected a vacant pitch that backed onto high vegetation on the bank of the river.
Still recovering from our 17 hour shift at the polling station on Saturday and suffering a bit from the temperature, we didn’t wander too far from the caravan until early evening when we walked to the ferry crossing to watch the sunset over the river and town on the opposite bank.
Lenger Reserve
After a very warm and relatively restful night in the caravan, we were up before sunrise and on the road to Lenger Reserve by 08:00.
This 95 ha reserve was donated to the National Trust as a bird sanctuary in 1978 by Rudolph Gustav Lenger. It features a range of topography, flora and fauna, and a very interesting and varied 2.7 km loop track which we took our time to complete. Apart from the March flies, which attacked us with ferocity for invading their territory, it was a pleasant walk.
My highlight was photographing a small flock of galahs for a project I am working on to illustrate a book of bird poetry being written by an up-and-coming local writer.
Close to the reserve entry there is a derelict cottage that is being restored by volunteers. Its construction comprises a mixture of clay, cut straw, fresh manure and water packed between native cypress pine posts. We later took advantage of the veranda shade for our morning tea before heading back to Mannum.
On the way into town, we stopped at the river bank Herman J Gass Bird Sanctuary, but the only bird spotted was a pelican perched on top of a pole in the middle of the river. After a visit to Tourist Information where we picked up a few brochures to help us plan the next day, we returned to the caravan for lunch, a relaxing afternoon and a short uneventful drive to Mannum East.
After dinner, we walked to the ferry crossing once again to watch the sunset.
Mid Murray Self-drive Eco Tour
With this round trip covering 129 km, we had no intention of completing it (time and fuel considered). However, the first few stops grabbed our interest for a short-day outing.
We were both awake early after a sporadic sleep during another warm night. As a result, we were on the road by 08:15 and at our first stop after about 30 minutes.
TP Bellchambers Reserve is home to the protected Silver Daisy Bush. It features a short 500m loop walk that returns along the edge of a disused quarry. Bird spotting was very disappointing, but the quarry offered the opportunity to launch the drone (handy for the occasional selfie).
The next stop was the Pines Reserve, 25 ha of native pine (Callitris garcilis). There were no defined trails through the reserve, so we wandered with only a rough idea of where we were. With thanks to Apple Maps, the ‘Parked Car’ function helped us to find the car again. Amongst a multitude of Magpies, the only bird of interest spotted by K was a Red capped Robin.
The route map described Saunders Gorge Sanctuary which we were unable to find. However, being morning tea time, we stopped at the Sanderson Trail trailhead for refreshments. This 10 km linear trail joins the Lavendar Federation Trail, a linear route that extends form Murray Bridge to Clare.
Driving on, we found the Meldanda Community Garden (not on the Eco Drive route). This was a great spot for some more much-needed exercise. The site incorporates camping for large school groups and is therefore well signposted, with zones for various activities and types of flora. Unfortunately, the featured lake was dry and few birds were in evidence, possibly due to temperature and time of day.
Our final planned destination was Lake Moodie, a few kilometres north of Cambrai. This was the most disappointing stop of the outing as the lake was dry, there were no birds and no opportunity for walking. However, it is on the edge of the Lake Moodie Dark Sky Reserve [link to: https://lakemoodie.com.au/], a location worth considering for a future night sky photography visit.
On the way back through Cambrai, we stopped at the Op Shop to but a couple of books before returning to the caravan. By this time the weather started to change with a drop in temperature and strengthening wind.
Return to Lenger Reserve
The morning welcomed us with a much cooler temperature and a shower of rain. We had enjoyed Lenger Reserve so much that we decided on a return visit, despite the overcast sky. As we walked round the track, the sky cleared to clear blue but quickly closed in again to deliver a shower of rain. With a drizzle continuing, we sat under the cottage veranda again for coffee and to photograph more Galahs.
After a warming bowl of soup at the caravan, we walked across to town, managing to avoid being blown off the ferry by the wind. Our wander up the street culminated at the bakery where we treated ourselves to a yummy cream cake.
In the evening, it became so cold that I fired up the diesel heater – what a contrast to our first two nights.
Monarto Safari Park
When we left the campground, we were undecided about visiting the safari park at Monarto due to the overcast rainy start to the day. However. as we approached the turn off to the park, we decided to give it a go. Monarto Safari Park is a 1500 ha open range zoo, visitors being transported by a regular bus service to a number of key stops. Fortunately, the rain stopped, so we took the bus to the second stop and walked back via one of the many walking tracks. Once again, we spotted few birds of any interest.
After a fuel top up stop at Strath, we arrived home where I spent the afternoon washing the caravan and wagon.
7 Responses
Spoken like a true Scot Martin about the fuel😁😁, great blog. We certainly hope to emulate some of your travels next year when we head to WA.
A wonderful recount of your trip and I love the drone selfie! What an amazing adventure even if it was shorter than your original plans had been. Thank you for sharing.
Great bird shots – especially the ones of the galahs in flight. And the male robin was just brilliant.
It’s turned very cold over here in Ballarat so interesting to read about suffering with the heat – not that I want it back again just yet.
Sounds like a great little trip.
Cant keep good travellers down !!! – really enjoying your posts Martin; speak soon all best
We went to Mannum many years ago and thought it was quite a pretty spot. Only had lunch there though. Trying to remember whether we were on our way back from Broken Hill or Flinders Ranges, possibly it was the same trip!!! I’ll have to get my maps out to revisit where we went.
Fabulous!
Many thanks for all your replies. I have had issues with being notified of comments, henc a bot of a delay in responding. These are now hopefully resolved. Many thanks again. Martin