Forget not that the earth delights to feel your bare feet and the winds long to play with your hair - Khalil Gibran

Wow if we thought it was windy in Robe, we were in for a shock at Port Elliot....

After a much easier pack up we headed off to Port Elliot via Kingston
(the home of the Giant Lobster) and
The Coorong. We spent a few hours exploring sections of the Coorong, including one area which had a walking trail showing the path the Chinese took on their search for gold, it was really interesting. Driving past small beach shacks, and sand dunes the kids imagined life for storm boy, comments like "I wonder how long it took storm boy to climb those sand dunes" and "imagine living in one of those shacks" were discussed with great enthusiasm. Unfortunately we didn't see many pelicans that day except for a big flock overhead flying in a V formation. This led to a discussion as to why birds fly in a V formation - so they can get 70% greater up lift and take turns in being the leader.

Grandad came to visit for a day which was a highlight for us all. We spent the day at Goolwa and Hindmarsh Island exploring the Mouth of the Murray, and enjoyed lunch At the Goolwa Pub.

Catching up with Nick's mate Nick Whiteway was great. He and his dog moussy (a large black playful lab) came down to the beach and enjoyed a warm but windy afternoon swimming.

Walking along the beach listening to the sound of an African drum one afternoon, we met a lovely couple (Chris and Roz) who we shared many stories, philosophies, dreams and red wine with.

One particularly windy afternoon we walked along the causeway at Victor Harbor over to Granite Island. Here we visited a penguin rescue centre and saw the injured and recovering penguins being fed and learnt some interesting things about the Little Penguin. Sadly numbers on the Island have dropped from over 2000 to less than 150 in less than 10 years.

We were told we HAD to go to Goolwa beach and catch some cockles. It was a so much fun twisting your feet and wriggling your toes in the sand in search of a cockle, especially when a wave came just as you were reaching down to get the cockle out of the sand. We caught 101 in total and each were measured meticulously using a cockle measurer by the boys to make sure we didn't have any under size ones. After soaking them in fresh water overnight we enjoyed the cockles cooked in a rissotto, and some were frozen for bait.