This was published16years ago

Port Augusta

January 1,2009 — 12.00am

Port Augusta
Major port and centre at the top of Spencer Gulf.
There is no other town in Australia quite like Port Augusta for contrasts. Arrive in spring and the journey over the mountains from Wilminton is a magical experience. The car cuts through Horrocks Pass down onto the seaside plains near Port Augusta. To the west lie the beautifully contoured,undulating slopes of the Flinders Ranges. They are magical in their beauty and,in spring,they are impossibly green and fertile. At sunset they are gently coloured with a purplish hue. Yet this is only one angle on Port Augusta. The town is literally on the edge of the desert. Drive north along the Stuart Highway and only a few kilometres to the north,the edge of town gives way to flat scrubby land which stretches to the horizon. To the west lie five huge plateaux and their are dry salt lakes beside the road.

Port Augusta is located 322 km north of Adelaide and is a genuine crossroads with roads heading north to Alice Springs and Darwin,west to the Nullarbor and the Eyre Peninsula and east to Adelaide.

The area was probably inhabited by either the Banggarla or Nuguna Aborigines prior to European settlement. The area was first explored by Matthew Flinders who came up the Spencer Gulf in 1802. In 1839 Edward Eyre led an expedition from around Port Augusta north to Lake Eyre and in 1846 J. A. Horrocks discovered a pass (Horrocks Pass) through the Flinders Ranges and down onto the coastal plain. The harbour was located on 24 May 1852 by Alexander Elder and John Grainger who named it Port Augusta after Lady Augusta Sophia Young,the wife of the then Governor of South Australia,Sir Henry Edward Fox Young. Two years later land around the port was being sold for £100 an acre.

Because of its strategic location at the head of the Gulf,Port Augusta quickly grew into a major service centre. By 1854 the first wool had been shipped through the port and by the 1860s it was a vital transport node with its own troopers barracks and brewery. In 1860 10,000 bales of wool were despatched from the port. The Town Hall was completed in 1866 and the first consignment of camels arrived from India. The Greenbush gaol was completed three years later and in 1872 the Overland Telegraph Line linking South Australia with Port Darwin and the rest of the world was opened.

For the next century Port Augusta was primarily a port shipping the wool and wheat from the surrounding area. This activity continued until 1973 when the port ceased to operate. The town was officially proclaimed in 1875 and the railway from Adelaide arrived in 1882. The first power station was opened in 1954 and was supplied with coal from Leigh Creek. This became the basis of an expansion which saw Port Augusta become a city in 1963.

Today the city's power generation lies at the heart of its prosperity. Port Augusta is a prosperous and interesting rural centre which is home to an excellent tourist information office which provides lots of valuable information for people planning to travel across the Nullarbor or north through the Northern Territory.

Things to see:

Wadlata Outback Centre
Located in Flinders Terrace (turn off Highway One) this is one of the finest and most comprehensive tourist information centres in Australia. Not only does Wadlata allow the traveller to plan for for their trip into the Outback it also offers a wonderful opportunity to experience what lies ahead. It provides information about the animals which roamed the area thousands of years ago,about the Aborigines who moved through the area,about the early European explorers and of the stockmen,pastoralists,miners who opened up the Outback. It looks at the great challenge of transport and communication in the desert and alerts the traveller to the unique set of forces which created modern day Central Australia. For details (08) 8642 4511.

School of the Air
One of the fascinating aspects of Outback Australia is the way education and health are provided to people in isolated communities. Port Augusta,being located on the edge of the Outback,is one of the many bases for both the Royal Flying Doctor Service and the School of the Air. It is possible to visit the School of the Air (located in Power Crescent contact (08) 8642 2077 for details) to see teachers interacting with their outback students via the new high quality broadcasting equipment.

Royal Flying Doctor Service
Located on Vincent Street this is one of the many bases which is open for inspection by the public. It is one of 20 bases currently offering medical services to people in distant parts of Australia. It is open to the public on weekdays between 10.00 a.m. - 3.00 p.m. Contact (08) 8642 2044.

Homestead Park Pioneer Museum
Take Howard Street north off Victoria Parade and you will reach the large Homestead Park Pioneer Museum,an excellent railway and farming museum in an attractive park. The centrepiece,and a symbol of the hardships of the early settlers,is the 130-year-old Yudnapinna Homestead which was moved to the site from over 100 km away. It is the only genuine log cabin in South Australia and has been furnished to reflect the kind of lifestyle which was common 130 years ago.

McLennan Lookout
Located on Whiting Parade (which is at the far south-eastern extremity of the city) this was the site where Matthew Flinders landed in 1802. It was named after Alan McLennan,a local historian,and offers excellent views across Spencer Gulf towards the Power Stations.

Water Tower Lookout
Located just across the bridge to the west of the town (turn south west into Bond Street) this old iron water tower (the first one was built in 1882) offers good views across Spencer Gulf to the city centre.

Australian Arid Lands Botanic Garden
Located 2 km north of Port Augusta on the edge of the desert this 200 hectare site offers excellent views across the Flinders Ranges and provides an insight into the rich diversity of flora on the Australian desert. As the Botanic Gardens'document states:'The Arid Lands Flora endemic to Australia provides many thousands of species of plant life which are unique to the world. It is essential that such flora be preserved for future generations ... This rich and unique heritage must be conserved for the benefit of our country and its future inhabitants.'

Pichi Richi Railway
The Pichi Richi Railway Preservation Society Inc. has,since its formation in 1973,been dedicated to the preservation,restoration and operation of the Pichi Richi Railway,the first leg of the old Central Australian Railway to Alice Springs - the old Ghan route. The society has built up a collection of historic narrow gauge rolling stock of the old South Australian and Commonwealth Railways. These are restored and operated on a voluntary basis. The line has been extended through to Port Augusta,so trains now depart from both the Quorn and Port Augusta Railways Stations on a regular basis.

Tourist Information

Port Augusta Tourist Information Centre
Wadlata Outback Centre 41 Flinders Tce
Port Augusta SA 5700
Telephone:(08) 8641 0793
Facsimile:(08) 8642 4288

Motels

Acacia Ridge Motel
33 Stokes Tce
Port Augusta SA 5700
Telephone:(08) 8642 3377
Rating:**

Augusta Westside
3 Loudon Rd
Port Augusta SA 5700
Telephone:(08) 8642 2488
Rating:***

Pampas Motel
76 Stirling Rd
Port Augusta SA 5700
Telephone:(08) 8642 3795
Rating:**

Poinsettia Motel
Highway One
Port Augusta SA 5700
Telephone:(08) 8642 2411
Rating:**

Port Augusta East Motel
Highway One P.O. Box 3062
Port Augusta SA 5700
Telephone:(08) 8642 2555
Rating:**

Port Augusta Hi-Way One
Highway One P.O. Box 1809
Port Augusta SA 5700
Telephone:(08) 8642 2755,1800 066 262
Facsimile:(08) 8641 0588
Rating:***

Standpipe Golf Motor Inn
Cnr Eyre&Stuart Hwys P.O. Box 3062
Port Augusta SA 5700
Telephone:(08) 8642 4033
Rating:***

Myoora Motel
Eyre Hwy
Port Augusta SA 5700
Telephone:(08) 8642 3622
Rating:***

Hotels

Augusta Hotel
Loudon Rd
Port Augusta SA 5700
Telephone:(08) 8642 2701

Flinders Hotel/Motel
39 Commercial Rd
Port Augusta SA 5700
Telephone:(08) 8642 2544
Rating:**

Fourways Hotel
Tassie St
Port Augusta SA 5700
Telephone:(08) 8642 2522

Hotel Commonwealth
Commercial Rd
Port Augusta SA 5700
Telephone:(08) 8642 2844

Ian's Western Hotel
Loudon Rd
Port Augusta SA 5700
Telephone:(08) 8642 2781

Northern&Exchange Hotels
Tassie St
Port Augusta SA 5700
Telephone:(08) 8642 3906

Pastoral Hotel
Stirling Rd
Port Augusta SA 5700
Telephone:(08) 8642 2818

Caravan Parks

Shoreline Caravan Park
Gardiner Ave P.O. Box 519
Port Augusta SA 5700
Telephone:(08) 8642 2965
Rating:***

Big 4 Fauna Caravan Park
Cnr Highway One&Stokes Tce P.O. Box 435
Port Augusta SA 5700
Telephone:(08) 8642 2974
Facsimile:(08) 8642 6455
Rating:****

Nuttbush Retreat Caravan Park
Eyre Hwy
Port Augusta SA 5700
Telephone:(08) 8643 8941
Rating:***

Port Augusta Caravan Park At Stirling North
9 Brook St
Port Augusta SA 5700
Telephone:(08) 8643 6357
Rating:***

Restaurants

Acacia Ridge Motel
33 Stokes Tce
Port Augusta SA 5700
Telephone:(08) 8642 3377

Augusta Westside Motel
3 Loudon Rd
Port Augusta SA 5700
Telephone:(08) 8642 2488

Barnacle Bill Family Seafood Restaurant
Victoria Pde
Port Augusta SA 5700
Telephone:(08) 8641 0000

Crossroads Restaurant
Stokes Tce
Port Augusta SA 5700
Telephone:(08) 8642 3191

E.T.S.A. Institute Licensed Club Restaurant
Hannagan St
Port Augusta SA 5700
Telephone:(08) 8642 4122

Fernleigh Restaurant
Tassie St
Port Augusta SA 5700
Telephone:(08) 8642 3906

Flinders Hotel/Motel
39 Commercial Rd
Port Augusta SA 5700
Telephone:(08) 8642 2544

King Po Chinese Restaurant
Flinders Tce
Port Augusta SA 5700
Telephone:(08) 8642 5851

Myoora Motel
Eyre Hwy
Port Augusta SA 5700
Telephone:(08) 8642 3622

Northern Gateway Inn
Jervois St
Port Augusta SA 5700
Telephone:(08) 8642 2944

Ozzie's Coffee Lounge
Commercial Rd
Port Augusta SA 5700
Telephone:(08) 8642 4028

Pastoral Hotel
Stirling Rd
Port Augusta SA 5700
Telephone:(08) 8642 2818

Poinsettia Motel
Highway One
Port Augusta SA 5700
Telephone:(08) 8642 2856

Port Augusta Hi-Way One Motel
Highway One
Port Augusta SA 5700
Telephone:(08) 8642 2755

Shell Meteor Roadhouse
Highway One
Port Augusta SA 5700
Telephone:(08) 8642 6488

Standpipe Golf Motor Inn
Highway One
Port Augusta SA 5700
Telephone:(08) 8642 4033

Tucker Box Bistro
Flinders Tce
Port Augusta SA 5700
Telephone:(08) 8641 0755

Your Choice Coffee Lounge
Commercial Rd
Port Augusta SA 5700
Telephone:(08) 8642 5677

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Port Augusta

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