THE DRIVE DOWN THE EYRE PENINSULA from Port Augusta to Port Lincoln is about 350 kilometers and takes four hours for Australians, a bit longer for us out-of-towners. We got an early start and in less than an hour arrived at the turnoff for the Whyalla Conservation Area where Connie’s eBird “Beta” said we might find the elusive Western Grasswren and Copperback Quail-thrush. We pulled off after only fifteen hundred meters of the washboard road and began birding along the power-line roads. An hour in the chilly wind netted us only an Inland Thornbill and Southern Whiteface but it did break up the drive.
Rough enough to loosen your fillings
Inland Thornbill, Whyalla Conservation Area
Southern Whiteface, Whyalla Conservation Area
It was nearly noon when we pulled into Arno Bay. We parked along the foreshore and braved the flies and wind for a walk along the Boardwalk Trail before lunch. There were quite a few birds in the mangroves and a few we hadn’t photographed on this trip. For the rest of the drive we had the Spencer Gulf on our left and “amber waves of grain” and enormous flocks of sheep on our right. Australia is the largest producer of wheat in the Southern Hemisphere. Recent drought years have affected the harvest but Oz still manages to export ten million tons of wheat a year along with $5 billion worth of lamb and mutton.
Arno Bay Boardwalk Trail
Little Pied Cormorant, Arno Bay
Pacific Gull, Arno Bay
Port Lincoln, however, is known as the “Seafood Capital of Australia.” It is also famous for Shark Diving, being submersed in a cage among Great White Sharks. It must be quite pleasant in the summer but the this week’s weather is unseasonably cold and windy—it even rained last night! Guess we'll pass on being shark chum!
Linving Room Kitchen Master Bedroom
While the weather has been on the skids our lodging just gets better and better. Aart Apartments is the best place we’ve ever found on Booking.com—✰✰✰✰✰! Clean, spacious, great kitchen and even a second bedroom and covered parking. It’s only a short walk to the beach and to the new Coles Supermarket. We also found a place to repair our windshield chip—fingers crossed!
