Penola Getaway & The Coonawarra

What a great trip! 14 of our members headed west to spend a few days in the beautiful Coonawarra region of South Australia. Staying in the Alexander Cameron Suites in Penola, we started out with dinner at the Royal Oak Hotel. It was very busy, which is a great sign of good food, and our meals did not disappoint. With an expansive range of local wines, we were quite spoilt for choice.

Saturday, we headed to the Naracoorte Caves National Park, for a guided tour of the Victoria Fossil Cave. Our guide was sensational, hardly drawing breath during our tour. Great knowledge of the Geological formations, as well as the intricate details of a “live” working cave.  Plenty of time for photos, and not too strenuous, so well worth the visit. Lunch in the Caves Café was a well earned treat. On our return trip to Penola we visited the Father Woods Sculpture Park. It never ceases to amaze what people can do with a chainsaw? For dinner we enjoyed a real treat at the upmarket, and very much awarded, Pipers à la carte restaurant. It was plain to see why they were in the S.A. Hall of Fame for all of their awards. Absolutely beautiful.

Sunday, was a slower day, where our group visited three of the local, family owned wineries. Coonawarra, renowned for Cabernet Sauvignon, had a few surprises for us with quite a few other varietals for our palette to savour. Our lunch was a couple of very large Charcuterie boards at Patrick’s winery. They were large enough, with plenty of delicious treats, to quieten down even our rowdy group. For afternoon tea we visited the Post & Rail Café for coffee and a home made cake 😋, beautiful! Dinner was at the Prince of Wales hotel, where we enjoyed another great dinner.

Monday, we saw coffee at Wyndara Bakery, before heading to the Tantanoola Caves Conservation Park for another guided tour. This cave was discovered by a young boy, trying to recover his adventurous ferret. This cave is absolutely stunning. It is the only wheelchair accessible cave in Australia, so our members with walking aids could participate. Breathtaking is an understatement, as it was absolutely amazing. Again, our guide was very knowledgeable, and happy to answer all questions. If you’re in the area, this cave is not to be missed. And for the nimble, there’s always the cliff top walk. Talk about mountain goat country, but our members that were adventurous enough made it around unscathed.

Into Mt Gambier, where we all enjoyed a wonderful lunch at the Limestone Coast Pantry. Another quirky Café, with friendly and helpful staff, it was a great place to visit. Onto the Blue Lake, and whilst we’ve all been there before, it is always a remarkable place to visit, especially on a sunny afternoon, where the Blue was stunning.

Next stop was Umpherston Sink-hole. To appreciate the size and depth of this Sink-hole, you need to descend to the bottom, but also stop at the viewing platforms along the way. These gardens are always impressive, and though a lot of the plants had just finished flowering, it was still fantastic. A few steep steps were well worth the effort. Back to Penola for a return visit to the Royal Oak for dinner. Another beautiful meal over a discussion of our wonderful trip.

Tuesday brings breakfast at the Vintage Café. A very popular place for locals, with lovely food, and coffee to set your day up perfectly. A few shops visited, then bid farewell to our members after enjoying a wonderful few days away. Can’t wait for our next adventure!

For a lot more photos, click here