In the little town of Spalding in South Australia there is an amazing Barbed-Wire Museum in the local pub. Who knew there were so many types of barbed wire? The museum also has artworks made from barbed wire, fencing materials, different types of fence posts and a wonderful display of photographs of all the bridges that lead into the area and several of the ruins of local stone cottages. Marion and I stopped by here after staying overnight at a free camp in the picnic area on the Broughton River about 1km out of town. Well worth the visit!
The Snail Trail 
April 16, 2015 at 4:28 pm
Interesting! Never heard of Spalding but I see on my Hema road atlas that is nicely located between Clare and Jamestown. Was the Broughton River campsite OK? Just in case you haven’t moved too far away, you might enjoy having a look at the little town of Terowie, about 20km south of Peterborough. It’s almost a ghost town now but it was a thriving community of 2,000 in its heyday, when it was the hub of the rail transhipping operations in South Australia. The history of the place is fascinating and well documented with walks and information plaques. There is a free campsite at the old railway siding, part of which is being restored because of its historical significance. There are no toilets on the campsite but there are very clean and well kept toilets beside the Terowie Institute, which is less than 100m away. Among the railway siding’s claims to fame is that it is where US General Douglas MacArthur made his famous “I shall return” speech on his escape from a hideout on Bataan following the Japanese conquest of the Philippines.
We’ve just returned from our very enjoyable tour around Tasmania. I thought 6 weeks was a pretty generous allocation of time for Tasmania, but of course that proved not to be the case, especially with the weather being as unsettled as it was. It was mainly dry and reasonably warm on the northern half of the east coast, but the rest of the place was mainly wet or cold or windy or any combination thereof. Ten weeks would have been better, but we had to get back to Perth for Donna’s operation, which she had on Wednesday. She is now recuperating at home.
I foresee a book coming from your adventures. Have a go at it. It would be an inspiration for women who have found themselves alone in retirement for one reason or another.
Keep on trucking!
Graham & Donna
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April 16, 2015 at 4:47 pm
Funny that you should mention Terowie because that is where are stopped for the night! and you’re right, it’s an interesting old place. Amazing to think that it was once such a busy rail hub. Reminds me a bit of the fate of Dajarra, south of Mt Isa. Hoping the weather clears so that I can get out of the van and do some exploring before we leave – cold and wet at the moment. Best wishes to Donna for a speedy recovery.
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