Happy campers

By 7 am we were moving, determined to do what we could to rescue some elements of yesterday’s lost itinerary and complete today’s. We walked out to the main street and had coffees with a bowl of fruit for Majella and a blueberry muffin for me.

Back at our room we prepared for departure. Mighty Campers opened at 9 am so we wanted to be there then but not so early that we would be standing on the footpath for long. Maps suggested 40 minutes by car and we had seen taxis waiting out front of the Oaks. Around 8 am we checked out and took the first cab waiting. Our chatty driver, Gary, got us to Mighty a few minutes before 9 am. In the process, by talking about how he took cash jobs to avoid tax he persuaded Majella that Uber might not be so bad.

The gate and door at Mighty/THL/Apollo/… were open so we entered. It took about 30 minutes to complete the paperwork and orientation. Our camper is configured similarly to those we have had in the past so we should settle easily once we stop for the night. It is built on a Mercedes Sprinter van but the 4 years since we last rented one have made some differences to driving setup with placement of gears and parking brake and built in GPS. It will take a while to familiarise.

Around 9:30 am I drove out of the yard with Majella navigating on her phone. Once we had cleared the city traffic we turned off onto country roads that wound through hilly countryside covered in scrub until we exited into the Barossa Valley. First stop was Lyndoch Lavender Farm. Majella had seen it on television ages ago and I had put it on the original 2020 itinerary. Neither of us recalled why it was notable but we arrived just after 10 am hoping for coffee only to find the cafe does not open at this time of year. We browsed the store and Majella bought some lavender marmalade.

By then Majella had acclimated to sitting in the van and was keen to drive. She stopped at Lyndoch township where we had coffees. Then we scrubbed Jacob’s Creek winery from yesterday’s itinerary and headed for the next stop, Taylor’s winery in the Clare Valley. That took us through a little more Barossa wine country and then out into open green farmland with a mix of cultivation and grazing.

We reached Taylor’s around noon, tasted and then bought a rose and BDX red blend, and then drove on to the caravan park at Clare, about 20 minutes further. Had we arrived yesterday as planned we’d have spent more time tasting.

We arrived, checked in, and arranged to rent e-bikes. Once we had parked the van we walked back to reception, collected our bikes, and headed off on the Riesling Trail, a disused railway track converted to a trail for cyclists and walkers. We headed south, away from nearby Clare township.

Three or four kilometres along we reached a side trail to Sevenhills winery which is operated by the Jesuits. We cycled up the trail, pausing at a small stone shrine and passing the retreat centre, to the cellar door. I tasted a Malbec and a Shiraz, both very pleasant, and bought a bottle of Malbec. The panniers on our bikes did not allow for more.

By then it was early afternoon and we had not eaten since breakfast. We rode back to the trail, on a bit, and into Sevenhill township where we found the Little Red Grape Bakery. We ate pies, beef and mushroom for Majella and beef and pepper for me. They had no ginger beer so we shared a can of West End. Majella was sufficiently impressed by the pie that she wondered if they had good bread. They clearly did as they were all but sold out, but she was able to buy their last Turkish loaf.

We rode out the other side of town on Horrock’s loop. It followed sealed roads through forested hills past several wineries and then back to the main road. At that point we had a little trouble with the map and rejoining the rail trail. That caused us to pass the same swooping magpie three times before finding the trail.

We rode on a few kilometres more through a mix of forest and farmland. Around 3 pm we turned and headed back toward Clare. On the way back we paid more attention to the informative signs beside the trail. There was information about flora and fauna and about local history, though not about the original inhabitants. John Horrocks was the original white settler and we saw the hollow tree where he had set up camp while building his first residence.

As we reached the point where we had entered from the campsite we decided that, rather than walk or drive into town for provisions, it made sense to ride on the few kilometres and buy a few essentials that we could carry in our panniers. We found a supermarket in town and I minded the bikes while Majella shopped. Then we rode back to camp, deposited gear in our van, and returned the bikes. We had ridden about 36 kilometres.

We spent a little time getting things packed away and the van set up as we liked it. Dinner consisted of what we had gathered over the past few days – Turkish bread, ham, tomato, camembert, and dried figs washed down with some Rosé from Taylor’s and followed by chocolate coated almonds.

After dinner we relaxed, pleased to be back on track. We were tired but happy campers.