Adelaide to Murry Bridge

A short one hour drive from Port Parham, down the Port Wakefield Road to the caravan Park in Adelaide, Windsor Gardens. We passed some interesting sculptures on the side of the road. The Caravan Park is very nice, it is a small park located on the Torrens River. It is about 20 minutes from the centre of town.

We had a drive around the city centre, not much has changed since the last time we came, except the name Polites all over the place. A man born in Port Pirie started with a deli shop in the city and has increased his holdings over the years. He displays his name 'Polites' on all his buildings, which are many. Interesting to know.

The next day Peter went to the caravan show, which was the reason for coming to Adelaide. Me, I did bills (they still have to be paid), some blogging, and sewing – of course. Early next morning we left and headed to Murray Bridge. What a lovely historic place. We drove across the bridge to the Recreation Ground - $10 a night power and water. There were already a few vans there but we found a spot, unhitched and set up for a few days.

We went to the information centre and met Kevin, a most helpful and knowledgeable guide. We got all the relevant history, tourist drives etc. and set off on a drive around the area, following a tourist route – I can't remember the number. Like many country towns, Murray Bridge has many historical buildings. We had a look at the Round House (built 1874), station, and station houses. The wharf area is also interesting. There are paddle boats that do lunch cruises (from $64.90) and an old steam engine. The park at the wharf is great and we can imagine families coming here for weekend picnics. Murry Bridge is located on the Murray River and was the first bridge to be built across the Murray. The first European in the area was Captain Charles Sturt who had rowed a whale boat down the Murrumbidgee late 1829 and reached the Murray River (at what is now Wentworth NSW) in January 1830. He passed by Murray Bridge and continued on to the mouth of the river by February 1830. The river trade started in 1854 and many towns along the river. In 1856 George Edwards and his family were the first settlers in Murray Bridge. Sadly George died a few years later and his wife Mary-Ann set up a place for drovers to rest and have a meal on their way to and from Adelaide. At this time it was called Edwards Crossing. As the port grew and more people came to the area, the village was known as Mobilong Port, from the Aboriginal name 'Moop-pol-thawong' meaning 'haven for birds'. By 1864 a proposal for a bridge was made and by 1879 the bridge was opened and named the Murray Bridge. The town adopted the name in 1924. The bridge became a rail bridge in 1886 and gates were installed to stop walking / horse travellers moving across the bridge when a train was coming. This continued with cars. A dedicated rail bridge was completed along side the original bridge in 1924. The top of the bridge has been raised from the original bridge to allow for todays trucks to pass. Murray Bridge is on the main route from Melbourne to Adelaide.

One of the quirkiest things we have seen for a while was The Bunyip Cave. This attraction is really good. In Dreamtime there was a man who was greedy and catching too many fish. The elders were not happy with his disrespect. The elders became so angry they turned him into a Mulyawonk – half man and half fish – and banished him to the river forever. Children were told never to swim alone and never to catch more fish than you can eat.

We did a full day trip, a loop from Murray Bridge down one side of the river to Wellington where we got a vehicle ferry across to the other side of the river. Ferry services are free in South Australia. Then we took another turning and a ferry to Raukkan. This is an Aboriginal village and has the church on the $50 note. The $50 note also has a photo of David Unaipon. Originally an Aboriginal Mission called Point McLeay, Raukkan – which means 'meeting place' – was the first location where Aboriginal men and women were observed voting in 1896. Located on the banks of the Alexandrina Lake, it is recorded that the Ngarrindjeri people fed explorer Charles Sturt and his party in 1830. A church, school and mission station were built in 1837 and much land was given to the towns people. However the crops didn't grow and by 1916 the South Australian Government supported the town. In 1974 the Ngarrindjeri people took over the running of the town, and in 1982 the town was renamed Raukkan. James Unaipon and his son David lived in the town. James was the first Aboriginal deacon of the church (on $50). His son David went on to be an inventor and writer. David, born in the town in 1872, left school at the age 13 to work with politician and pastoralist, C.B. Young, who encouraged David's academic interests. He invented at least 19 inventions, none of which he gained financially from. He promoted Aboriginal rights, and was the first Aboriginal writer to be published. He died in hospital in Tailem Bend in 1967, at the age of 95 years, and is buried in Raukkan.

We continued on gravel roads down as close to the Murray mouth as we could. Lovely scenery and lots of beach camping. The National Parks in South Australia are called Conservation Parks, and we have already been to many. We wouldn't take a caravan to most, but tents or trailer vans would get in and out ok. While driving along the 4WD track that runs along the inlet behind the dunes that block the Great Southern Ocean we came across the remains of Mark Point Mill. It is really well presented and was a water trough that used an Aboriginal well to pump water into a long trough to feed the stock.