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Just keep driving. Along South Australia’s Limestone Coast, a leisurely week-long drive can turn into the most charming, exploratory journey.
Intriguing volcanic and natural landscapes, stunning coastal scenery, super fresh seafood and glorious red wines — all can be had along the way. It’s a road trip into a languid world, far removed from the frantic bustle of Singapore.
The rugged Limestone Coast covers the entire length of South Australia’s 47,000ha Coorong National Park and stretches to the border of Victoria state in the east.
Think Victoria’s scenic Great Ocean Road, with lobsters the size of your arm thrown in.
Terra rossa soil is the key to the magic of this coastal region.
The fertile, vine-friendly earth blankets an ancient limestone plateau that was formed when the great Southern Ocean receded about one million years ago.
As a result of the lowered water level, a labyrinth of deep caves was formed.
My friends and I flew to the Limestone Coast from Adelaide, South Australia’s capital.
After the hour-long flight, we touched down at Mount Gambier in the southern tip and hopped into rental cars.
The six-day drive took us from Mount Gambier to coastal towns such as Beachport, Robe and Kingston.
After that, we headed south-east to Coonawarra, then north to Naracoorte. It was an easy drive as the towns we visited were a few hours away from one other on the route.
Mount Gambier sits atop an extinct volcano and is surrounded by scenic crater lakes, verdant farm land and dense pine plantations.
Below and around Mount Gambier, a multitude of ponds and sinkholes litter the limestone mass like pockmarks.
One of the bodies of water is the Blue Lake, so named because of its colour.
The lake serves as the town’s main water supply but visitors can get a close up view with a guide.
We took a glasspanelled lift down a dolomite shaft and walked through a tunnel to see it. In the summer time light, the water was indeed a stunning turquoise.
We also toured the Umpherston Sinkhole, created when the top of the limestone chamber fell to the floor of a cave.
As undignified as the name sounds, the sinkhole is actually a beautifully landscaped sunken garden.
After Mount Gambier, we headed north-west to the historic port town of Robe, located at Guichen Bay.
A pretty seaside holiday spot, Robe is also an important fishing and lobster port.
Along the way, we stopped by the Lobster Shed at Port MacDonnell to view its enormous denizens, which can grow to twice the size of regular lobsters.
Our drive yielded many memorable experiences.
One was lunching on the freshest crayfish, fruit and bread road trip Happy in a sinkhole in Limestone Coast at Beachport, a former 1830s whaling station. The town has one of Australia’s longest jetties at over 770m.
Nicely weatherworn but still sturdy, the jetty makes for a thrilling walk as it takes strollers far from land into what feels like the midst of the sea.
In another unforgettable moment, we ate what we photographed.
At Kingston town at Lacepede Bay, we took turns snapping pictures of Larry, the town’s iconic 18m high fibre-glass giant lobster, then lunched on the genuine article at Lacepede Seafoods in Kingston Marine Parade.
The Southern Rock lobster there was divine. It was cooked just right so that the meat was nicely sweet and succulent.
More tantalising meat can be ogled, if not tucked into, in the town of Millicent, where premium Wagyu cattle are bred.
The top-quality beef (with prices to match) is marked for export, so it’s not a common item on the menu.
But probably the most riveting, but non-edible, experience was visiting the Naracoorte Caves, South Australia’s only World Heritage Site.
Situated about 10km south of Naracoorte town, it features a fossil history going back 500,000 years.
Bones of extinct animals such as the sthenurine kangaroo abound and the chambers that weave through the limestone hills make for wondrous viewing.
The gleaming caverns with their intricate calcite formations look different at every turn.
Beyond the Naracoorte Caves, the Norfolk Rise Vineyard at Mount Benson; and Wynns Coonawarra Estate and Rymill Coonawarra in the Coonawarra area are excellent for wine tasting, with engaging winery guides and cosy showrooms.
Throughout our weeklong drive, we stayed at homely, reasonably priced motels. You can book them on the Internet, as we did.
My favourite was the Robe Haven Motel, which overlooked a scenic dock.
The motel had a personal, homestay feel, much like the cafes and restaurants we ate at, with their gregarious, chatty wait staff.
Some quick tips: Don’t drive for long periods without a break, plan regular stops at local towns, and avoid driving at night. Remember sunblock, sunglasses — and drive on! - TODAY/ra
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