Eyre Peninsula 2 weeks Jan 2007

Was looking at the last two weeks in January - hopefully quieter than the first two of Jan

12 foot tinny would be ideal for the sheltered waters of Venus Bay.
Things might have changed but back when i was a South Australian Eyre penninsula was the best kept secret of SA with everyone piling into the Yorke penninsula for holidays. The area around Venus Bay has plenty to see with nearby Mt Camel Beach good for Salmon fishing, also the back beas and surfers beach are worth a look . Further South is talia with fascinating rock formations and a huge beach which stretches towards Elliston.
A little known (or at least it used to be) fishing spot at Talia is the ledge which is a few hundred metres to the right looking out to see from the formation posted as the tub. You need to stand close to the cliffs edge to see it as it is a ledge below the cliffs but a reasnably safe distance above the water for good rock fishing.
the Headlands between Elliston and Anxios bay have good rock fishing well above the waves, and just south of Elliston is Locks Wells, Which after fishing extensivly in South Australia and western Australia I reckon is the best salmon spot in Australia.
Only problem is wind that time of year. used to be heaps of spots for bush camping such as along the track into talia but things may have changed with new restrictions

Hi Andrew and Jen,
Yes I guess it would be busy as most seaside camping areas at xmas, but coffin bay is good and some bush camping is available in NP, and the is also the Flinders NP, but I havent stayed there.
Plenty of other spots up along coast towards Ceduna and there would be quiet places for sure.
Best spot for 12 ' tinny would be in Coffins bay, as bit might be too rough for small boat on open seas there.
Things are huge here this morning , first grandaughter was born during the night, Nan is uncontrolable.
Hope to catch up soon, been a long time !

Cheers Pesty

Andrew

We did Eyre Peninsula in early - mid January about 7 years back. What South Australians call crowded is still pretty darned good. Its not too far from Melb - you can make Port Augusta in two very easy days (1030 km), and be down the coast and taking your pick of good sites the next day.

What we had not realised is that the SW winds that blow keep it cool just about all the way around and most days. You can either complain about the wind, or pick sheltered spots and rejoice in not being hot when Melbourne is typically sweltering.

The sea on the bight side is pretty rugged, but from Whyalla down to Lincoln you are on the gulf, and there are sheltered bays in places like Coffin Bay and Streaky Bay should be sheltered enough for a spot of fishing - maybe even bays around Lincoln NP.

Go for it - it is a hidden secret.

Max

We did the Eyre Peninsular last January however we had 4 weeks

We slowly made our way from Melbourne to Port August via Renmark - Morgan

From Port Augusta we high tailed it across to Ceduna in one day.

From Ceduna we simply town hopped slowly down to Port Lincoln.

Highlights for us - Coffin Bay NP - Pt Lincoln NP - Streaky Bay area

The run from Pt Lincoln up to Whyalla was average after what we had seen and done on the southern coast, highlight at Whyalla was fishing for Blue Crab and red dust :-)

This was one of the best touring holidays we have been on, made all the better by the great friends we made on the way whom we keep in contact with today.

We didn't book or make any plans we took each day as it came, if your off the road by 2-3 you will always find a spot we had no problems at all.

Heat - some days were 45 + but this made the rest days swimming even better :-)

We did the trip in the new Hilux towing the Jayco off road camper, had no problems at all.

You could do the trip in 2 weeks, although you would be busy :-)

Brett

G'day Big Kid Andrew, Anywhere along the coast would be great. You can get to Cowell easily in a day from here. Nice big safe bay and then the rest down the coast to Lincoln via Arno Bay, Lipson Cove, Port Neil, Tumby Bay etc and then up to Coffin Bay, Venus Bay and Streaky Bay with the little side trips in between. From Streaky Bay head back towards Port Augusta staying at a free campsite in Peterborough (LOL) and then onto another free one at Berri

Definitely worth a look. We moved from the Vic high country to Batemans Bay, and about a year ago somehow ended up in Coffin Bay. 12 ft tinny would be fine in Coffin Bay, there is always something on the bite. On a good day you could launch off Farm Beach and maybe get into a few Whiting. I was lucky enough to catch a 1.3 mtr, 20kg Kingfish about 500 mtrs from the boat ramp not long after we got here.

The crowds aren't too bad here in summer,there seems to be plenty of room in the van park.

As for the National Park I am not sure if you have to book, but is surely worth the drive in. Magnificent beaches where the surf fishing apparently is excellent and great views over the ocean.

The weather can get a bit warm over here, we had a 48c one day over summer which was a bit hard to take but generally not that hot.

Don't know much about the rest of the Peninsular, we haven't had time to have a good look around.

Hope this helps.

Daryl

If you decide to go Andrew let me know, as i can give you some must see places on the west coast.

Andrew

I lived at Ceduna and Penong for six years and love the area. The coastline from Port Lincoln west is all worth a visit.

There is so much to see and do that you will only scratch the surface in two weeks.

A place to consider is Fowlers Bay. Reg Davis has holiday units there and the price is reasonable.

There is also a caravan park. I wouldn't use a small boat there. The fishing is great either from a boat or surf fishing.

You could also consider Googs Track and the Gawler Ranges.

We toured the Peninsular January last year, as well as going into the Gawlers. Fabulous. On the coast some days it was too cold, so we'd go inland where it was quite hot, but not unbearable. If you search the archives back to around November 2004, i got heaps of good advice on places to go. We bush camped (sometimes just on an old road as so many are accessible running roughly parallel to the present road - no traffic at night on minor roads) only went to a CP twice (Elliston CP near the jetty - we went there on the way back because we liked it the first time). We didn't catch any fish off the jetty, and froze in a very cold wind and showers.

We were told that the main holiday spots along the coast would be packed out in January, but not so. When we called into the tourist centre at Ceduna for some info brochures, they asked if we'd booked accommodation, because everything would be full. I said we had a caravan, and they said we'd still need to book. Not in the bush, i said. The CP at Elliston was less than a quarter of capacity. Their peak period is later, during salmon fishing season.

We were away for around a month, including touring the south west forests and south coast of WA as part of the holiday. We crisscrossed the Peninsular and saw so many places. We also went further east for a couple of days, coming back heading north west from Iron Knob through the stations and into the Gawlers for a couple of days or so (Michelle did a trek note on this route once). Two weeks touring on the Peninsular would be good - shame about the distance to get there and back which might leave you a bit pushed for time.

There are probably still some photos from this trip in my album on the caravaner's forums.

Perhaps you could contact Andrew from the Whyalla 4wd Club, they might be able to help you.They have a website too www.whyalla4wd.org.au.
cheers
'nette'