Murray River Tour

Our tour today took us up and over the green Adelaide Hills, and our driver related the terrible time in 1983 when the hills and large parts of the surrounding area was ablaze – now known  as Ash Wednesday.

The Adelaide Hills

The Proud Mary was waiting for us at Mypolenga, about 18km  upstream of Murray Bridge.  Our bus load were welcomed aboard by the friendly staff, and our pleasant journey began, as we slowly made our way along the river.

Proud Mary

Pelicans paddled serenely in the river, while bigger groups kept themselves hidden from our view on the far side of the river behind a screen of trees.

Pelicans on the river

A colds buffet lunch was soon laid out, salads, chicken, ham, and a huge platter of large prawns.  Yes, it was prawns for me, but I had to ask our Aussie neighbours at the table for a little help on the best way to deal with those heads and legs.  My prawn technique leaves a lot to be desired – it’s obvious that I need a lot more practice.  And our dining companions assured us that these weren’t the biggest prawns available either, they come much larger that this!

I couldn’t go past the prawns for lunch.

The captain was quite happy to chat to guests in the wheelhouse, so we popped it to say hello.  The engine runs on diesel, we were told.

The Captain of Proud Mary

Views of the Murray River

Guess who bought a new cap!

Enjoying our Murray River cruise, with the Lower Murray Flag flying

At the conclusion of our cruise we re-boarded the bus, which took us to the Mannum Lookout.  Fancy that, Robin found a Motor Camp down by the river.

Mannum Motor Camp

This little town has a free car ferry crossing the river.  That looked like fun, so we hopped aboard too, for a journey there and back.  What a treat – and we were surprised that none of our tour group joined us.   Two ferries work simultaneously and are pulled across on a cable. 

Car ferries across the Murray River

There was another treat in store for us too, and our bus driver took us on a koala finding exhibition.  He explained that he had occasionally spotted koalas in a particular stand of trees and drove slowly along.  Sure enough – we saw one, and quickly scrambled out of the bus clutching our cameras.  The koala looked down at all these crazy tourists as we all started snapping away.  This sighting really made our day extra special.

What a cutie