It was an early start this morning as we have to be at Loxton Golf club at 8.30 am for our tee time booking. We woke to a very soupy fog with little breeze and hoped it would clear by 8.30 am or not be as thick as the golf course is a fair distance from the river, about 8 km out of town.
Fortunately, it had all but cleared when we reached the golf course. There was no one else there except for a couple of caravans parked in the caravan park that is part of the course complex.
Just a little fog in the distance, otherwise perfect conditions
The course is in excellent condition and it is maintained predominantly by volunteers with one professional green keeper.
Our round only took 3.5 hours and we were ready to head off to Clare at just after midday. It is about a 2.75 hour drive with a few interesting places along the way, so we should be there by around 3.30pm, allowing for a few stops.
We opted to take a route North of the Murray river which took us through Berri, where the massive wineries are hard to miss. Berri Estate had an advertised special on bulk Tawny Port, which we decided to pass up. From Berri we took the Goyder Highway to Morgan. It is a pretty uninteresting drive through barren land covered with saltbush, but Morgan was a very interesting place.
An old river port, on the Murray, Morgan has a lot of interesting history and the old port is the tourism attraction. We first went to a lookout that was signposted as we entered town. It gave a great view of the river, and some very expensive looking homes across the river.
There is a ferry service that runs across to the other side, which was carrying quite a lot of traffic, so it must represent a shortcut to other destinations.
Ferry across the Murray and a large number of houseboats in the background
The Old Port area, near where the ferry leaves from, seems to be the main tourism magnet. There was a paddlesteamer, The Murray Princess, tied up to the river bank. It apparently runs multi day cruises on the river, but I couldn't see any itineraries that go North of Blanchetown, which is well South of Morgan so I suspect she is up here for maintenance, given the temporary mooring lines tied to trees. The great disappointment for us was that we were in need of a good cup on coffee, and it wasn't to be found in Morgan.
With no coffee in sight, we headed off to Burra, the next main town on this route, and very close to the town of Clare. The good news is we found a great little cafe that not only had good coffee but also scones with jam and cream. Revitalised after our stop, only a short drive was needed to arrive at our accommodation in Clare. This time we opted for a B&B and we are very glad we did. Clarevale Cottage meets our needs perfectly. Lots of room, close to town and a lovely old building with a host intent on making our stay enjoyable.
The self contained cottage is just behind our car
Entrance pathway
A full kitchen
and generous lounge space
There is also a bootle of wine, chocolates, cheese and crackers, generous breakfast supplies and a washing machine.
I have another mission to fulfil in Clare, and that is to have the stitches removed from the surgery I had to remove a skin cancer from behind my ear. I had booked ahead at the local medical clinic, and after the usual long wait, despite having a booking, the nurse removed the stitches and for the handsome sum of $16 I was allowed to leave and continue on our trip without the annoyance.
Dinner also needed consideration, so we checked out all of the options nearby and opted for the Bentley Hotel. It turned out to be a good choice as it was only a short walk and we had a decent meal.
Exploring the Clare Valley is on tomorrows agenda.
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