Thursday 26^th July

We realized today that we have been on the Eyre Peninsula for two weeks, and while we have certainly seen quite a bit, there is a significant area in the middle which remains unexplored by us.  Another time!!

We were on the road by 9 am from Cowell on route to Whyalla.  While our knowledge of Whyalla is basic and only elicits iron ore when prompted, we thought we should be more open minded and visit the information office to see what is on offer for us.  As soon as we entered the lovely warm office the lady asked if we were there for the 11 o’clock tour.  We were not aware of any tours having just driven in, so she explained it was a tour of the ship “Whyalla” sitting right next to the information centre. There was no good reason not to go onboard, so a guide took us all over this ship, which was built as a ‘mine-sweeper’ and was the first ship built in Whyalla in 1941.

Following the outbreak of World War II, the Government asked BHP if they could develop a shipyard for the war effort.  In 1940 BHP Newcastle recruited seven shipbuilding personnel from the United Kingdom to establish a shipyard at Whyalla, South Australia.  One was soon dismissed after expressing his dismay with the flies and heat of Whyalla, the others set to and developed a yard that built 634 ships, an oil rig and two barges over the next 38 years.

In 1947 the Victorian Ports and Harbours Department bought the Whyalla and renamed her the RIP.  Her role was to perform dredging work in Port Phillip Bay in a narrow and treacherously turbulent entrance in area known as “The Rip”.

In 1987 money was raised to bring her back to South Australia, where she was restored as the Whyalla just as when first built and brought ashore to be mounted as the central exhibit for the Whyalla Maritime Museum.  Although she was purchased back from Victoria for only $5000, it took another $560,000 to remove her from the sea and haul her the 2 kilometres on shore to set her up as she is today.

As I had left my camera in the car for the duration of this tour, I am using a photo I found on the net to display some of what we saw.

There is a lookout which gives views of the Spencer Gulf and has statues of Matthew Flinders and Louis-Claude de Freycinet, both of whom had navigated and charted this coast of South Australia. A good place to enjoy our lunch while looking at the Gulf.

A hill nearby, which is seen in this picture named Hummock Hill was our next stop. 

This was quite a steep climb and I can see why part of this hill was used as a fortification during the Second World War as it has 360 degree views of Whyalla the OneSteel operations, the foreshore and marina, and as far as the Point Lowly lighthouse.

In fact tonight we are camping at Point Lowly and I have just returned from a very enjoyable walk around the lighthouse and the lighthousekeepers cottages – ah the memories.