Torrens Linear Park – Section 2

Only a serious walker would do the 30 kms of Linear Park in one go so I’m dividing it up, Section 1 was “The Breakout” and this next section starts where that finished.

Click on any image to see it full sized.

Maintenance work being carried out on the Henley Beach Rd bridge.

Looking upriver from the rock crossing

There are a variety of tracks along the northern side of the river.

Shared cycle/pedestrian bitumen track

Simple walking track

Kids’ alternative bike track

I grew up in this area but it looks very different since remediation work has been carried out.

As kids we used to swim in massive concrete pits here, now all covered over.

There were many irrigation pumps along the river, used to water the Market Gardens. The base of one, I think.

Observation platforms have been built.

There are plenty of places to simply stop and savour the environment.

Native trees have replaced the Willows which are invasive and their roots erode riverbanks.

Peaceful, soothing water – not to drink though.

Some Gum Trees are growing in more open areas.

Flowering Reeds

Bottlebrushes

Footbridge that led to our old street at Lockleys.

Pine Tree fruit

Grasses like Kikuyu are difficult to eradicate.

Foot bridge to Torrens Ave.

The bridge at Findon Rd was our turning point.

On the southern side of the river the path is closer to houses and it’s clear that there has been considerable redevelopment over the last 35 years.

Not one of the originals and not one of the newest.

Probably built in the 1950s, I love the grapevines, fruit trees and Wisteria.

Taking advantage of the river view

Ultra modern

The old Fulham Park Stud homestead, in the 1980s still had some horse yards beside it.

For more information on Fulham Park Stud check here.

Being a walk beside water there have to be birds.

Black Swan

Wood Duck

Mallards

Domestic duck

Magpie-lark

Noisy Miner

Little Pied Cormorant

Little Black Cormorants

We crossed the river using the big stones rather than trying to negotiate the trucks on the bridge then took the path with the mosaics back to the car.

People obviously feed the ducks at this spot.

Swan and cygnet mosaic

Victor Harbor area

It was such a lovely, sunny day we decided to head south to Victor Harbor, about an hour from home. Because of Covid19 restrictions the Whale Watch Centre wasn’t posting updates of sightings which was disappointing.

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Our first stop was at Horseshoe Bay.

Horseshoe Bay

Original Jetty

Renovated Jetty

Anchors retrieved from the bay

Remains of old structure built using local rocks

Seriously?

Next stop, Basham’s Beach

Basham’s is a popular surfing spot

No surfers would want to end up here

Limestone in the making?

Vegetation on the dunes is healthy

Native

Wattle

 

Victor Harbor for a lovely lunch at a pub. The Seagulls took any opportunity to grab a snack if plates were left unattended.

One of many opportunists

Simpson Newland

Nana’s uncle – my Great-grand Uncle 🙂

Southern Right Whales have made a come-back since Whaling days.

Pelican

No dogs allowed so no Granite Island for us.

The Bluff

The town of Victor Harbor

Wright Island in Encounter Bay

Looking south from the lower slopes of The Bluff

We’ll leave the climb to the top of The Bluff for another day.

 

Petrel Cove, I’ve never been here before and I loved it though I wouldn’t want to be here on a hot Summer’s day, the water would be too tempting and the rips are deadly!

On boulders were a couple of memorial plaques for drowning victims.

Sand being sucked out in the rip.

The Cove is only small.

West Island

Uni SA is conducting research on the island, it’s now a reserve.

The variety of rocks in one place fascinated me.

Stegosaurus?

Not a good place to land a boat.

It would be easy to spend a day walking around the various tracks at any one of these lovely places.

Watiparinga Reserve

In the previous post one track led to Watiparinga Reserve which came to a sudden stop at a railway embankment, this next walk started across the railway line.

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Across the railway line you can see a little of the embankment

Passenger train heading towards the CBD.

Freight train heading towards Sleep’s Hill Tunnel and the CBD.

Tracks go in all directions.

One of the ups!

No wonder there was a quarry not far away.

Not terraces across the gully but small tracks.

At a high spot there’s always a good reason to take a breather. The views.

The building in the distance is Westfield, Marion.

On the horizon is Glenelg.

Over there somewhere is the track I need to take back.

I think I see the track.

Yeah, there’s the railway line, I’m on the right track.

Only a couple of bird photos this time.

Warbling Magpies

Rainbow Lorikeet, it’s nesting time

 

One area looked like it was completely covered in wild flowers.

A field of Wildflowers? Wild yes, native no.

Swan Bush, the food plant for Wanderer caterpillars

Twiggy Bush-Pea – a native

Salvation Jane or Paterson’s Curse

Fressia

Dandelions

Wattle – a native

Cape Tulip