Mount Gambier & Coonawarra, South Australia, Australia, 2004 -Holidays & Travel

In March and April John and I had a fabulous holiday in Singapore and travelling around Australia.

After leaving the Great Ocean Road we drove into South Australia and stopped for lunch at Mount Gambier before heading onto the wineries at Coonawarra.

Mount Gambier

Not far from the border with Victoria is Mount Gambier, a small city on the slopes of a (hopefully) extinct volcano.

Perth
Fremantle
Melbourne
Great Ocean Road
Mount Gambier
Coonawarra
Renmark
Adelaide
Sydney
Manly
Watsons Bay

Jens hotel with its grand balcony, Mount Gambier

Near the Cave Gardens in the city centre is Jens Hotel.

On the outskirts are three craters each with its own lake.

Blue Lake, Mount Gambier, South Australia

The most popular and largest is Blue Lake. During the spring and summer it's a stunning blue colour.

and in the autumn and winter apparently it turns a dull grey colour.

Blue Lake in the summer at Mount Gambier

Looks like we happened to see it at its best.

Then we headed north to the Coonawarra wine region.

We stayed at the Chardonnay Lodge, a charming hotel within easy reach of approximately 20 wineries. Unfortunately we couldn't visit them all, however in the hotel restaurant we did sample a bottle from Wynns, one of the most famous wineries in the region .

We tasted and bought some good Cab-Sauvs, Shiraz and Merlots at the cellar door of the Jamieson's Run winery.

John at Jamieson's Run winery, Coonawarra, South Australia

Then we travelled north to Renmark and Adelaide, where I met my Australian cousins.

See the photos from the rest of our travels around Singapore and Australia.

Mount Gambier, Australia 2004