Corroboree West 2019 (2 of 2)

Following the farewell event, I had to be up early with the group to catch our Virgin Australia flight to Adelaide. After a comfortable 3-hour flight we quickly made our way to Majestic Roof Garden Hotel where we had a packed lunch before heading on to Adelaide Zoo. At the zoo we were divided into small groups for our VIP experience, my group could go into the enclosure with a giant tortoise – which was a great experience spending time with the keeper and finding out more about this amazing animal. A quick tour followed including the chance to see the stars of the Zoo Wang Wang and Funi – the Giant Pandas. Following our visit here we then headed to Glenelg, which is Adelaide’s most popular beach area. After a short time here, we then headed for dinner at the Stella Restaurant at Henley Beach. Following this it was time to return to the hotel after a full day.

Early the next day we left our hotel to take part on the Adelaide Oval Roof Climb. Here we learned all the safety requirements, were breathalysed (compulsory by law for a climb like this) and then equipped with safety equipment. This is an amazing way to view Adelaide from the roof of the main cricket stadium. Right after our climb we were off to the airport and our flight to the amazing town of Coober Pedy in the outback.

Coober Pedy is known as the opal capital of the world where many of its inhabitants live underground and there are also underground hotels, restaurants, bars and a church as well as boasting of golf course which does not have one blade of grass. We had a packed visit which included an opal cutting demonstration, visiting a genuine underground home (or Dugout) before heading out into the outback viewing The Breakaways – a range of colourful exposed sandstone, and seeing the famous Dingo Fence which stretches for 5,300km across Australia. Finally, it was off to our hotel for the night – the Desert Cave Hotel, where I had an underground room for the night. Dinner that evening was in the superb Umberto’s Restaurant at the hotel where the food and service was excellent.

Up early the next morning for a couple of tours before heading off to the airport. We visited the mullock heaps for some ‘noodling’ for opals before visiting an opal mine and the Serbian Underground Church – all great fun but unfortunately, I did not make my fortune in opals. Back to the wonderfully small Coober Pedy airport, where we tried to check-in before any of the airport staff had arrived. Soon however we were on our flight to Port Augusta before heading up into the Flinders Range.

On arrival at Wilpena Pound Resort, where we were staying in Ikara Safari Camp – these luxury glamping units place you next to the wildlife and in the morning your ‘tent’ is usually surrounded by kangaroos. On arrival we went on a walking tour accompanied by our guide from the Adnyamathanha people who told us about their legend as to how Wilpena Pound was formed. Following dinner, we had an early night ready for our scenic flight over Wilpena Pound the next morning.

This was an amazing experience a short transfer to the local airstrip and we were up and seeing the amazing Wilpena Pound from the air. Then back to the resort for breakfast before we then explored the Flinders Range area. This area has some of the oldest rocks and fossils in the world going back hundreds of millions of years, it was great fun being shown around by our knowledgeable guides who took us to lunch at the Prairie Hotel in Parachilna (population: 3). This amazing hotel literally in the middle of nowhere specialises in Road-Kill delicacies including Kangaroo, Emu and Camel. As well as having some great accommodation, ideal for a stop if using the Outback Highway. Visiting more of the Flinders Range we made our way to our next stay which was the Rawnsley Park Station and where I was staying in one of their luxury Eco-Villas for the night. But first a 4WD trip had been arranged to take us up a nearby hill for canapes and sundowners, which was a wonderful end to a great day. Dinner than night was in the excellent Woolshed Restaurant before heading off to my wonderful Eco-Villa.

For our last full day in South Australia we were up early for the long drive to the Clare Valley (home of some amazing wineries). The drive took us from real outback to lush farmland and of course some great vineyards. First, we stopped for lunch at Bungaree Station – one of the earliest farms in the area (established in 1841) where we had a great lunch and the opportunity to view some of the new accommodation at the station. One of the surprise attractions was the orphaned Kangaroo Joey which the owners are looking after, and which was so cute.

After lunch we visited the wonderful Pikes Wines and Sevenhill Cellars for tours and tastings. For our last night we were staying in the Clare Country Club which was convenient to Seed Winehouse & Kitchen where we had our last meal together as a group.

Early the next morning we were off on our flight to Singapore and amazingly our flight path took us right over Uluru – which was amazing to see. At Singapore we had a few hours before our next flight home to London so I spent some time at the airport’s rooftop swimming pool – it truly is one of the best airports in the world. Finally, I could board my Business Class flight back to London, this was on the upper deck of the Airbus A380 and the as you can imagine was a highlight of the whole trip for me, with a lie flat bed and amazing service from start to finish.