The Eyre Peninsula is a triangular shaped peninsula in South Australia. It is known for its rugged coastline with many natural attractions, endless beaches, unique wildlife and great seafood.
Western coast of the Eyre Peninsula
Haslam
Haslam is a small coastal town in the western part of the Eyre Peninsula, South Australia. It is located 45km northwest of Streaky Bay, off Flinders Hwy. Established back in 19 century, it was originally a deep sea port and a coastal shipping town. There is an old jetty that was built in 1912. It still functions and serves as a fishing jetty.
Haslam is a popular place for an overnight stop for those travelling east to west or vice versa. It was a savior for us, as we couldn’t secure any accommodation in Streaky Bay. There is a council-run campground, which costs us only $10 per night. Facilities include picnic tables. Public toilets, dump point and newly build playground with exercise equipment are only 100 meters away.
This is what I saw when arrived late at night at Haslam. It was pitch dark and I was struggling to see anything near the waterfront. The moon aligned with Venus looked beautiful up in the sky. The lights at the end of the jetty were reflected in the water. It was quiet and peaceful.
Streaky Bay
Streaky Bay is a larger coastal town further south from Haslam. It is known for its spectacular coastline with many natural wonders. It is also a prime fishing location. Being one of the largest towns for many hundred kilometers, it is the center for essential services. For us, Streaky Bay was the place to explore nature’s wonders. There are many scenic drives and trails around Streaky Bay. With limited time available, we only covered a small section of what it is there to explore.
Whistling Rocks and Blowholes
Cape Bauer Loop Coastal Drive was our first choice. It is 38km loop drive. First, we visited the Whistling Rocks and the Blowholes. We love blowholes and try to visit them as we come across them during our travels. These Blowholes were formed when vertical fractures in the limestone cliffs become enlarged by erosion over thousands of years. Sometimes these pipes are connected at the base of the cliffs with open air. In that case the waves force the air and sea water through the spaces. This is how the fountains of sea water emerge from the rocks with forceful sounds. The phenomenon is known as blowholes. Sometimes only air comes out. Other times you can see water too.
Yanerbie Sand dunes
Yanerbie Sandhills are part of Westall Way 32km loop drive. It was a fun place to visit for our kids as they were playing with the sand. Visiting sand dunes during sunset was quite magical too for photography.
While walking towards Blowholes and Whistling Rock, we saw this Jacky lizard. I love how this little lizard has so many common names. According to wikipedia, it is also known as blood-sucker, stonewalker and tree dragon. No matter how it is called, it is a cute little lizard.
Venus Bay
Venus Bay is a small tourist and fishing town that lies between Streaky Bay and Elliston. The place is quite picturesque. It has a unique curved jetty, used by marine vehicles, as well as fishermen.
The beach is calm, thus making it a popular holiday destination.
Apart from a unique curved jetty another attraction of Venus Bay is Needle Eye lookout. You can see the beautiful coastline of the Great Australian Bight from there.
Walkers Rock
Walkers Rock campground near Elliston is a usual coastal campground on the Eyre Peninsula. We arrived late at night when it was dark. Only in the morning we had a chance to briefly see what the camp looked like. We were not particularly impressed by the layout. Some sites are more or less private, while others are cramped too close together with no privacy. The worst thing was that there was only 1 toilet (!) for 34 sites. And if you are far away from it, you would need to walk nearly 10 minutes towards it. Easier to drive.
But – this was the place where I was lucky enough to witness real Aurora for the first time. And what a show it was!
Leaving the campground, I saw these Cape Barren Geese.
Murphy’s Haystacks
Murphy’s Haystacks is a unique geological rock formation that attracts a lot of visitors, especially for those who love photography. These wind-eroded granite rocks are over 1500 million old. And what’s in the name? It happens that the rocks got their name from a Scottish agricultural expert. While travelling on day, he saw them from the distance and thought they were haystacks. Being located on Murphy’s property, they became known as Murphy’s Haystacks. But technically they are inselbergs, which means isolated rock hills.
Murphy’s Haystacks are 40km east from Streaky Bay and 2km off the Flinders Hwy. They are located on private property and a small entry fee applies.
Talia Caves
Another unique natural attraction of the Eyre Peninsula is Talia Caves, which include the Tub and the Woolshed. It is the Woolshed that gets most of the tourists’ attention. We nearly missed it as the name sounded misleading to us. We walked down the steps to the rocks and spent some time marveling at the mighty ocean. Kids were exploring little rock holes with their marine treasures inside.
Then we took pictures outside of the giant cave but didn’t think of entering it.
The slippery slope inside did look slightly dangerous. But braving for the sake of memories and photo opportunity we decided to give it a try. When you look out into the ocean from the cave it feels like looking through a natural window. The window that has been carved by wind and waves, over thousands of years.
The Tub is further down the track. It is a relatively large crater in the rocks that connects to the ocean via a tunnel.
Talia Caves are 40km north of Elliston.
Central Eyre Peninsula
Kimba
Who doesn’t know where Kimba is? Well, we didn’t know until our trip to eastern states in December 2024. Kimba is an iconic place, in our opinion. Probably, anyone who drove from east to west, or vice versa, knows that. Kimba is a small rural town, but it is significant. It marks halfway between the east and west of Australia. There is even a popular sign there Halfway Across Australia. This is next to an 8-meter-tall statue of a galah. It’s another photo opportunity.
There is also a silo art, as well as a nice free campground. We didn’t stay at the campground, as it was still early for us and we had to make more kms. But we heard good reviews about it, so it is on our list for any future travels.
Iron Knob
Iron Knob is the birthplace of Australia’s steel industry. For such a tiny town, it is quite impressive that it has a Visitor Centre. The population is just slightly above 100. It also has a museum. They run tours of the nearby iron ore mine during cooler season.
Unfortunately, the Visitor Centre was closed due to extremely hot weather and then holidays at the end of December. But the town surprised us with great facilities for travellers. These include a free campground, newly installed toilets, showers, and a kitchen area. There is an interesting contrast that you can see in this town. Parts of the town look abandoned, making it almost like a ghost town.
Yet, there are new and clean amenities. The dedicated Visitor Centre has murals on the walls and looked very inviting from the outside. It also has a museum depicting local mining history. The “Aussie” spirit is trying to survive here.
