First interesting sight down the highway this time was the Diggings at Coober Pedy

DIRT FROM THE OPAL MINES THAT SURROUND THE TOWN

It is law here that you cannot fill in any of the mine shafts just in case there is someone down there and they also serve as escape routes when they are connected to another shaft nearby.   Hence all the piles of excavated dirt and rock.
We had a pie/pastie for lunch and hit the road again to the night stop at Marla, a road house in the middle of nowhere.

A cold night and off next morning to Glendambo our next camp spot.

About 400kms further South we cane to Glendambo for the night.

The camp was in the grounds of a motel/roadhouse and it did for the night, nothing fancy.

Funny noises out side during the night and a strange bird was near our camp. It sneaked in for a flutter before flying off into the night. WHO?

FLUTTERING AROUND

QUEER BIRDS UP HERE

Next morning and we are off again with sandy salt bush country until we came to Lake Hart. A large salt lake with water a fair way out across the salt bed.

Might look better when the pic is blown up and the reflection across the salt is more evident.

Interesting place surrounded by sandy country and lots of wild flowers. Will insert a few to see if they come up alright.

LAKE HART 

WHO IS THAT IN THE MIDDLE?

SALT FLAKES

AN OLD CART WHEEL IN THE SALT

SOME OF THE WILD FLOWERS NEAR THE LAKE

We arrived in Pt Augusta in time to set up camp and have a shop for dinner. Decided to have Chinese that night as we were lazy and did not want to cook.

Good camp site with very good amenities.

The weather has picked up and we can pack the thermal gear away, I hope.

The lady in the office suggested we have a look at the Australian Arid Land Botanical Gardens.

The Gardens are about 5km back up the Stuart Hwy from the township.

The gardens are set on a large land site on the side of the waters at the top of Spencer Gulf and contain acres of plants from the Australian dry lands.

The gardens are a work in progress with a lovely cafe/ info centre/ convention centre/ nursery shop in the middle. As it was time for a cuppa we had a couple of drinks and some carrot cake and Banana caramel pie.

Absolutely YUMMY.

So good , we decided to go back next day for another look around and lunch.

For lunch we had pumpkin soup with mini damper and a bigger slice of Banana pie.

All of which was YUMMY, YUMMY.

The damper was about large scone size with flavoring of aussie arid land native food spices and bits.

If any readers of this blog are in Port Augusta you must try the cafe in the gardens.

The gardens are great with all sorts of native plants and many in flower at the moment. Will insert some below and hope they show up OK. After they are processed and edited they will look better.

LOOKING INLAND AT THE HEAD OF SPENCER GULF WITH RED CLIFFS

STURTS DESSET PEA

ME LOOKING IN TO THE GARDENS

 LEIGH TRYING TO SEE WHAT TIME IT WAS

THE VIEW FROM INSIDE THE CAFE
FLINDERS RANGES IN THE BACKGROUND

Have taken many pictures of plants and flowers that are too many to insert here.

Tomorrow is our last day here and we are eating out somewhere to be decided, for our anniversary.

Will ask around tomorrow for somewhere nice to eat.

Sunday we head off to Renmark after we eat all our fruit as they will take it off us as we cross the line on the map where the fruit flies stop flying. They pinched our honey before in WA and we had to go to the shop over the line on the map and but the same honey there. How the viruses that effect the bees stops in a new jar of honey before it crosses the line beats me!

Probably be in Renmark for one or two days and then home mid week.

Looking at the stats for the blog and it shows it has gone international.  There are readers in Poland, the USA as well as here in Australia.  Does not say who and where  but just the country.
Bye for now.