Head of Bight
Want to see a whale? Stand at the top of a 90m limestone cliff with the Nullarbor at your back and witness some wild ocean on SA's Far West coast. (Just make sure it's between June and October. It's a long drive to get the date wrong). Head of Bightalso offers a pretty amazing drive along the coastline.
Southern right whales play at the Head of Bight. Picture: Andrew Brooks Source: Supplied
Tailem Bend's pink lake
After Lake Eyre floods, it's known for going pink. But that's a really, really long drive (and, let's face it, doesn't happen very often) so if you want pink water that's a little closer, get on the Princes Highway. Between Tailem Bend and Meningie you'll find another pink lake, made that shade by the algae. We'd advise against swimming.
The pink lake, on the Prince Highway between Meningie and Tailem Bend. Picture: australiantraveller.com Source:Supplied
Remarkable Rocks
They resemble a giant child's bizarre cast-off toys - eroded by wind, rain and sea spray for millions of years, you'll find them on Kangaroo Island, in Flinders Chase National Park. A little advice - if you're going to go, hang around until sunset. The lichen on the rocks make for great photos - as any number of pics from SA Tourism show ...
Remarkable Rocks on Kangaroo Island. Picture Mark Brake Source: Supplied
Pool of Siloam
No, not that Pool of Siloam , but one that's apparently seven times as salty as the ocean. You'll find it in Beachport, in SA's South-East. Not only does it make learning to swim pretty easy, it also allegedly has healing properties. Some websites say .
The so-called Pool of Siloam near Beachport, in SA's South-East, which purportedly has therapeutic qualities. Source:Supplied
Magnetic Hill
Near Orroroo, in South Australia's north, it's said that at Magnetic Hill your car will roll up the hill , not down. The optical illusion (the layout of hills around you make it look like the slight downhill slope is actually uphill) doesn't always work very well .
This must be Magnetic Hill — the giant magnet proves it. Source: Supplied
Umpherston Sinkhole
One of the most fascinating spots in SA, the sinkhole in Mt Gambier - also known as the Sunken Garden , was a cave once. The cave roof collapsed, and it was turned into a garden by James Umpherston in the 1880s.
From the bottom ... the Umpherston Sinkhole gardens in Mount Gambier. Picture: SA Tourism Commission Source:News Limited
And here’s the other view, from the top. Source: News Limited
Lake Eyre
At 15 metres below sea level, the salt lake is the lowest point in Australia - but looks pretty amazing when it floods . The Lake Eyre Basin covers a sixth of the continent, and on those very rare occasions when it fills , it becomes the largest lake in the country. That's when it teems with birds and fish.
The rare image of abundant wildlife at flooded Lake Eyre in 2011. Source: News Limited
But it’s not long before the lake completely changes, as seen in this photo, which shows the ‘normal’ saltwaters of Lake Eyre to the left, and the algae-rich lake after flooding to the right, separated by a sandbar. Source: Supplied
Hallett Cove's ice age
No, it's not just another suburb of Adelaide - it's one of the country's most extraordinary geological sites . The northern cliff tops contain the best record of an Australian ice age , and have international significance. You can literally see the changes the country has gone through over millions of years.
The cliff tops at Hallett Cove Conservation Park. If you look closely, you can see about a million years into the past.Source: Supplied
Whyalla's giant cuttlefish
Technically they're citizens of the sea, but between May and August these cuttlefishgather in one place to breed - False Bay, near Whyalla. Where they come from - and where the babies go - is a mystery.
Giant cuttlefish try to impress each other during their mating ritual near Whyalla. There was no information on any resulting little cuttlefish. Source: News Limited
Piccaninnie Ponds
Above Piccaninnie Ponds, near Mt Gambier, it's a flat wetlands area of reeds, birds and other wildlife. But beneath the surface is an extraordinary network of limestone caves , including a 100m sinkhole known as The Chasm. There's even (mainly online) rumours of a second cave below that.
The surface of Piccaninnie Ponds in the South-East of South Australia. Who knows what lies beneath these still waters ...Source: Supplied
Well, actually it’s this — crystal clear water filters through immense limestone caves. Picture: Department of Sustainability, Environment, Water, Population and Communities Source: Supplied
Farina
Nope, it's not the cover of Midnight Oil's Diesel and Dust album (that's in Burra) - it's the ghost town of Farina. A good six or seven hours drive due north of Adelaide along the Oodnadatta Track will get you to this once-busy, now-ruined town on the old Ghan railway alignment. The nearest people now live at Farina Station . There's now a push to restore some of the old buildings. It's a stark and desolate place - butrich in history .
The old ruins at Farina. A home renovator’s delight. Source: News Limited
Murphy's Haystacks
One of the true geological oddities of South Australia, Murphy's Haystacks areinselberg rock formations that emerge from the middle of a wheat field. Estimated to be more than 1500 million years old , you'll find them on the Eyre Peninsula between Streaky Bay and Port Kenny.
More remarkable rocks — Murphy's Haystacks on the Eyre Peninsula. Source: Supplied
Pearson Island
It's a 238-metre-high piece of granite that sticks almost 100m above the sea. Just off Flinders Island, it's a windswept, cold place with nothing between it and Antarctica but waves. Here's a pretty good story of two kayakers who braved the ocean to reach it - surprising a couple of scientists and a cray boat already on the rock.
Keith P. Phillips’s aerial picture of Pearson Island. And for a close up view ... Source: Supplied
What the term ‘imposing’ was invented for — the cliffs of Pearson Island tower over research ship the Ngerin. Source:Supplied
The Painted Desert
The result of the erosion on the residue left over from an age-old inland sea, the different colours make for spectacular views. It's at Arckaringa, northeast of Coober Pedy , and looks even more amazing at sunset or sunrise.
The Painted Desert, about 150km north of Coober Pedy, at Arckaringa Station. Ian Rolfe Photography Source: Supplied
Naracoorte Caves
The staggering cave system at Naracoorte - which also include some pretty amazing megafauna skeleton and fossil finds - is great to visit on really hot days. The national park has 26 different caves, from easy-to-traverse (read, you can take the kids) to more complicated ones (read, no, you can't).
Inside one of the Naracoorte Caves, and face to face with millions of years of patient work. Source: News Limited
Dannielle Thomas, Naracoorte cave guide, in the fossil chamber, with Leo the marsupial lion and Stanley the short-faced kangaroo. Source: News Limited
Dalhousie Springs
On the edge of the Simpson Desert in the Witjira National Park lie these 60 or so artesian thermal springs - ranging in temperature from 38-43C. If you're going to go, you'll want to stay for a day or two. It's almost in the utter middle of Australia.
The Dalhousie Springs, thermal springs on the edge of the Simpson Desert. Picture SA Tourism Source: Supplied
Mt Gambier's Blue Lake
One of South Australia's best-known spots, Mount Gambier's Blue Lake. which sits in an extinct volcano, turns into its remarkable turquoise blue colour from November to March, when it changes back to steel blue. How? Well, there are several different explanations online ... choose the one you like the best .
Clouds reflected in Mt Gambier's iconic Blue Lake, perched on the edge of the city, beside one of the smaller lakes. Picture: Frank Monger Source: Supplied
Whispering Wall
The retaining wall of the Barossa Reservoir, built between 1899 and 1903 near Williamstown, the whispering wall doesn't just hold back thousands of megalitres of water, but is also great to teach kids about science, and stuff. And how sound travels - even whispers, along the 200-metre concave structures.
Psst ... the Whispering Wall at the Gawler Reservoir, near Williamstown, in the Barossa Valley. Source: News Limited
The underground homes of Coober Pedy
Maybe in the future when climate change has claimed our country, we'll all be living in underground dugouts. At least the people of Coober Pedy can stay cool, in a desert town where the average January high is 36.4C.
Mine manager Steve Humphray in his underground home at Coober Pedy. Source: News Limited
But there’s also luxury — here’s the master bedroom of a Diggers Dream dugout house. Source: News Limited
Kangaroo Island's Little Sahara
It's two square kilometres of eroded limestone - a little desert right in the middle of bushlands on Kangaroo Island. And it's great for sandboarding.
Port Adelaide players about to tackle Little Sahara during the Power’s training camp at Kangaroo Island. Source: News Limited
The Coorong
It's 140km of lagoon, the mouth of the Murray, the extension of Lake Alexandrina and Lake Albert - a vast stretch of sand lying between the ocean and the lagoon behind it. Seen only from the air can you get a real picture of how amazing it is.
The southern lagoon of the Coorong and Lower Lakes. Source: News Limited
Wilpena Pound
Nature's own amphitheatre, it's actually two mountain ranges in the Flinders Rangesjoined at the southern end. It's reportedly named after an Aboriginal word meaning "place of bent fingers".
The majestic Wilpena Pound, in the Flinders Ranges. Source: News Limited
Woomera Prohibited Area
It's essentially the largest firing-range in the world - where the defence force tests its "war materiel". About 127,000 square kilometres, geologists say it has the potential for $35bn worth of iron ore , gold and uranium projects in the area.
A Tiger ARH test-fires a hellfire missile at the Woomera range. Which is probably why it’s a prohibited area. Source:Supplied
Maralinga
The darkest chapter in South Australia's - and the UK's history? Maralinga - within the Woomera Prohibited Area - was the site of the British Government's secret nuclear weapons tests in the 1950s, and was contaminated with radiation. The indigenous Maralinga Tjarutja people were awarded $13.5m in 1994, the site was cleaned up and handed back to them , but debate continues over their long-term health - and those of exposed veterans, who didn't win compo .
One of the nuclear tests at Maralinga during the 1950s. Source: Supplied
The village administration building at Maralinga, as pictured in 1957. Source: Supplied
Port Lincoln tuna
Let's end on a lighter note - you've heard of swimming with sharks at Port Lincoln. But why swim with sharks when you can swim with tuna ? Later, you might even eat its brother.
Here’s looking at you, squid (sort of) ... Matt Waller feeds a tuna while swimming on an Adventure Bay Charters outing in Port Lincoln. Source: Supplied
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