Locations: Penola, Casterton, Hamilton, Grampians, Halls Gap

Regions: SouthEast SA, Great South Coast and Central Highlands VIC.

Dates: Thursday 11 April – Tuesday 16 April 2024

Temperatures: 11-19 degrees

Thursday 11 April, 2024. 11-19 degrees Robe SA

A busy morning, up early to bake my latest Sourdough loaf in the camp kitchen before we set off today.

We leave Robe and head North East and our first destination is Penola a country town rich in grazing history and home to Australia’s only Saint Mary MacKillop.

We enjoy a stroll around town taking in the history of the Cameron family before visiting the Mary McKillop interpretive centre.

The centre outlined the history of Scottish families who came to Australia and then settled in and around the Penola area, the Cameron family and Mary’s association with them before starting her first school, St Joseph’s devoted to educating the most disadvantaged children and later her canonisation as a saint. Thought provoking and rich in detail. A lovely place to visit.

We leave Penola and within 30km’s cross over the Victorian Border. No quarantine here at all but I was extra careful using up all our fruit and veg so there would be no issue.

We enter the Southern end of the Grampians before long and the hills begin rolling with pasture and cattle again before we pass on through Casterton and then on to Wannon Scenic Reserve, our stop for the night. About 212 kms today

Our camp is a lovely quiet spot with the falls a 5-10min walk away. It’s chilly and there’s a fire pit so after checking the safety signs, Rob sets a fire to start and we enjoy our dinner of Chicken and pancetta stew with rice sitting by a warm fire.

Friday 12 April 2024, Southern Grampians, 7-18 degrees

We head off mid morning into Hamilton to shop for groceries, stow them and then have a walk around the town. It’s a bustling place with a busy Main Street and lots of shops including Coles, Woollies and Aldi. We have plenty of time today as we are only travelling 80km, 20km of which we have already done.

As we walk we see a sign for walk in flu jabs at a pharmacy so after enquiring and booking we have a couple of hours up our sleeve. Rob decides to get a haircut then we visit the local gallery and the botanical gardens.

The gallery exhibition – Emerging from Darkness: Faith, Emotion and the Body of the Baroque brings together National and International works from the 17th century showcasing three female artists alongside Rubens, Boulogne and Manfredi to name a few. A stunning exhibition, well worth the visit.

Next we walk to and around the botanical gardens before heading back to the chemist for our jab.

The drive out of Hamilton takes us further into the Grampians and the peaks begin to line up in front of us.

Tonight’s camp is just as nice at Wannon Crossing with lovely mountain views in the late afternoon sunlight. Another camp fire tonight too.

Saturday 13 April, Mafeking 7-18 degrees, cool cloudy then sunny.

Hiked Mt Sturgeon, 4.7 km with 300 elevation. A great workout with spectacular 360 degree views of the Grampians National Park. The trail began from Mt Victoria Valley Road with a gradual ascent to the summit and back again, starting with a sandy track, then natural rock stairway gradually becoming steeper towards the top. Great hike, stunning views with a wallaby on the way down!

After a good hike you need a good meal so I prepped Osso Bucco for a slow cook over the campfire. Accompanied by Rossi & Pissi. (Rice and Peas) risotto.

Sunday 14 April, 2024, Temp 7-19, Lovely sunny day.

Made sourdough crumpets and started a sourdough loaf then cleaned the van while Rob did some maintenance on the van, checking tyres etc.

About 1pm set off for Halls Gap about 43km’s driving through the Grampians.

Went for a walk around town, visited the brewery then caught up with Nick and Dee, fellow Qld travellers for drinks in the late afternoon.

Monday 15 April 2024, 6-18 degrees foggy then sunny

Today we got the bikes out (love my new bike!) and head out on the bike trail to Lake Bellfield. Great ride and then walk over the dam wall.

Tuesday 16 April 2024, 6-19 degrees cloudy to start, then sunny, then cloudy.

Today we are hiking the pinnacles and Rob has already done a run and hike up from the caravan park to one of the ridge lines below the pinnacles.

By 9:00am the sun is out and the day looks set to be a beauty and we stop to admire the valley.

We wanted to do the Grand Canyon walk but it is closed at the stair end due to structural issues. Nevertheless we hike about 300m up the canyon for a closer look.

The walk is picturesque and the rock formations never cease to amaze.

We turn on to the pinnacles walk and it is immediately up with lots of stone steps.

In the distance atop a hill I spy a lone gum seemingly sprouting from rock and it reminds me of the Wanaka tree in N Z which springs from the water.

The climb meanders past Echo Cave and Rob goes in for a look. As the morning progresses we see more and more people. Taking the time to say hello means we meet people from all over Aus but also, France and Italy. Towards the top we go through another canyon and the trail gets narrow and steep.

Finally after a bit of a rock scramble at the top we arrive at the pinnacle.

The views are glorious, down to Halls Gap and back to Lake Bellfield that we visited yesterday.

The return walk is lively and again we pass lots of walkers, families, young and older walkers like us.

Tonight we are off to dinner to celebrate Rob’s birthday with fellow travellers and Qld’rs Dee and Nick who we keep running into. Such lovely people.

Love to all, stay safe, be kind and most importantly in these turbulent times love one another and be humble…

PS. Will catch up March travels soon xoxo