RM Williams Way

We woke to early morning fog. Had breakfast, packed and headed off. We were going into the outback now. But first another look at the Lutheran church.

We drove via Clare valley. The way to Clare was almost all cropping country after the first few kilometres of vineyards. The wheat fields seemed to stretch on forever. When we got to Clare the country closed in a little, with a narrower valley and lots of little side roads. Nowhere near as Germanically ordered. Also fewer churches and only one Lutheran one. Slackers! Actually there seems to be considerably less money here than in the Barossa. Probably it is that little bit further from Adelaide. The towns are still pretty with lots of lovely stone houses, but few are as well maintained as in the Barossa.

We actually tried to go to a winery in Clare. We had had a Kilikanook wine before and liked it. However they did not open tastings till 11 and we got there at 10:30. Oh well. We visited the supermarket to stock up on food, had a coffee and cake and bought the wine at the bottle shop.

If we thought there was a lot of wheat before Clare, the RM Williams Way after Clare opened up our eyes to the real meaning of wheat belt. It just went on and on and on. Yes the road is called the RM Williams way, and yes we discussed purchasing cowboy hats, boots and a boot scooting licence. I can picture it. Jamestown was the place....RM Williams birthplace........but we dodged the C&W bullet and drove on by.

We made it to Ororroo for lunch. Picnicked in the Lions Park. A little picnic ground by the river and a giant River Red gum. Went for a short stroll to some Aboriginal carvings......a little underwhelming but a nice thing to do after lunch.

After Ororroo the land got poorer and drier, lots of saltbush and scrubby plants, also lots of sandy soil. We were actually in the southern Flinders foot hills, so a constantly changing landscape. Lots of ruins of old farm houses. Not sure where the Goyder line is precisely but around here would seem to be it. We did actually go past the Goyder highway.

The towns seemed to get poorer and scrappier as we headed up, and the birds which had seemed to disappear suddenly appeared again. In particular Black Kites which seemed to be everywhere. Four on the road at one point, and another which zigged when it should have zagged and almost became a hood ornament. Marjan had a little heart attack.

Eventually we started to see higher hills as we approached Hawker. Very sleepy town, but at least the petrol station had an ice cream. Though still the country was beautiful with the hills on either side and scrubby land all around. It was not far before we got to Rawnsley Park Station. This is just outside the National Park but with a great view of the ranges surrounding Wilpena Pound.

We had time for a walk up to the Alison saddle behind our cabins for a wonderful view of the ranges and a look at some lovely wildflowers. We think we are going to love the Flinder's Ranges.