11 Epic Places Along the Eyre Peninsula Coast
Eyre Peninsula – the Seafood Frontier. A statement like that already tugs at your taste buds. Mighty blowholes, crumbling limestone cliffs and transparent salty rock pools take care of the other four senses.
The Eyre Peninsula in South Australia spills from the Spencer Gulf in the east to the Great Australian Bight in the west and to the Gawler Ranges in the north. Covering over 2,000 kilometres of South Australia’s west coast, no imagination is needed to understand why there are so many raw and unique places to be explored.
Do you want to know the best part?
The Eyre Peninsula does not suffer from the usual coastal crowds of the east coast. Making this road trip feel personal and original.
We ventured to the Eyre Peninsula’s unforgettable and untouched coastline with little to no research – standard for us – on our long journey to Western Australia.
What we found was so much more than we expected, causing the Eyre Peninsula to become our favourite South Australian coastline.
Here’s Why!
Shark Diving – Port Lincoln
Just WOW!
Call us crazy, but Shark Cage Diving was the highlight of our whole Australian road trip. These magnificent Great White Sharks own the ocean and we realised why. Stealth in such an enormous body can’t be easy.
The cunning nature of these beasts constantly keeps you guessing and the rush of being up close and personal to such an extraordinary creature will stay with us forever.
I can guarantee it will stay with you too!
What made this experience even better was the Sea Lions we had the pleasure of swimming with all morning. Nicknamed the ‘puppies of the sea’, these animals clearly enjoy the interaction with humans. Their curious and cheeky personalities heighten as you play with them in their natural habitat.
Port Lincoln is the only place you can experience Great White Shark Cage Diving in Australia. In fact, it’s one of the only places in the world! And Calypso Star Charters do an incredible job. They’re super stoked team enhanced our excitement and allowed for an unforgettable day.
With Calypso Star Charters you can choose from three different packages – Shark Diving Tours, Sea Lion Tours or a Shark and Sea Lion Combo.
You must lock in the Shark and Sea Lion combo! It’s an experience of a lifetime!
Check out Calypso Bay Charters for more information on prices and tours.
Whalers Way – Port Lincoln
Located at the southern-most tip of the Eyre Peninsula, Whalers Way is a wild and natural wonderland. Consisting of caves, crevices, blowholes, rock pools and secluded beaches hidden by staggering cliffs, we may have to award this historic reserve as our favourite place on the Eyre Peninsula.
There are twenty-something (depending on the conditions) stops along Whalers Way that can keep you occupied for two days at least.
Unfortunately, we only had time for one day of exploration causing us to pick our stops carefully.
Here is our favourites and the ones not to miss…
Cape Carnot
Parking at Cape Carnot, take a scramble down wave ravaged rocks to a cave called the Old Whaleman’s Grotto. Hear your voice boom and echo in the hollowed-out chamber as you climb deeper over the crumbled roof into the cool interior.
A short scurry around the point will reveal the Baleen Rock Pool and Blowhole. From the highest viewing point, the spray catapulting from the rocks can be enjoyed.
Baleen Rock Pool is a tiny, perfect circle. Best described as a plunge pool for its depth. The taste of salt in the air and the roaring of the ocean below your feet give off an eerie encounter this close to the blowhole.
Cape Wiles
Binoculars are your best friend for Cape Wiles… or a drone!
Being home to a colony of New Zealand Fur Seals and exposed to all aspects of the untamed ocean, this area is inaccessible. But that doesn’t affect the spectacular birds-eye views you can enjoy from the top of the cliff.
The curious sea dwellers enjoyed putting on a show for Sparky the drone as we snapped some epic videos of the playful creatures.
Pelamis Point
Pelamis Point is the foundation for a glassy rock pool full of starfish and colourful coral. Boulders rising jaggedly provide a natural buffer from the angry sea and create a peaceful afternoon sunbathing point.
Choosing to leave Pelamis Point to last, we had the whole natural pool to ourselves.
Unbeknown to us, there is stair access to these rock pools. We endured a hairy slide down the cliff in high winds instead.
Not Ideal but oh so worth it.
Accessing Whalers Way
Whalers Way happens to be located on private land, resulting in a cost. $30 per car may seem steep – it did for us anyway – until you explore the gorgeous coastline and all its wonders.
The $30 price tag includes one-night free camping on the property at one of two designated campsites.
A map detailing all of the attractions with a little description is provided when you pick up the keys for the gate access to Whalers Way at the Visitor Information Centre. A $20 cash deposit for the return of the key is needed, and if you’re only planning a day, the key needs to be returned by 4 pm. Though you can keep the key for 24 hours which we would recommend.
Coffin Bay
The Eyre Peninsula is known as the Seafood Frontier for good reason. More than 65 per cent of Australia’s seafood comes from this stretch of ocean. And succulent Coffin Bay Oysters are a crowd favourite.
Coffin bay was as picturesque as the oysters were delicious. Stunning landscapes over the shallow inlet stretch as far as the horizon.
Oyster HQ brags of the best view and tasty oysters to match. Their unique toppings had us tasting a wide range while watching the oyster farmers at work.
Great Ocean Scenic Drive – Elliston
Are you a sucker for cute and quirky?
Elliston’s Great Ocean Scenic Drive has got you covered. Follow the 12 kilometre trail around the coastal cliffs for staggering views of the Great Australian Bight and some very odd statues formed by locals.
Easter Island Head replica’s, a humungous face and – our personal favourite – the giant thong are all part of these sculptures. No, I’m not talking about a G-string… Flip Flops for all the un-Australians.
These statues are remnants from the Sculpture on the Cliff Festival which happened every second year up until 2008.
Talia Caves – Elliston
Talia Caves – properly known as the Woolshed – is a large cavern or grotto carved into the granite and sandstone cliff by continuos smashing waves.
The cool echoey depths produce an unreal feeling. Sunset is the best time to visit this phenomenon as the setting sun situates itself perfectly for an epic photo.
Murphy’s Haystacks – Streaky Bay
Located 2km off the Flinders Hwy on a farm in Mortana – a rural locality of 16 people – is a stack of ancient wind-beaten pink granite boulders.
This has to be South Australia’s most random attraction…
Murphy’s Haystacks rise obscurely from the field, forming odd shapes and providing a truly original photo opportunity.
The wind wreaks havoc whipping in and out of the curves and crevices of the 3 billion-year-old rocks, making climbing on them an adventure.
I was nearly blown off at one point when the wind became especially ferocious.
A donation is asked for from the owner of the land at the entry gate. And camping for a small fee is offered at the car park.
Smooth Pools – Streaky Bay
Finding no information on these rock pools other than a place of interest on WikiCamps, we were stoked to find Smooth Pools deserted and stunning.
Our van managed to drive to the very edges of the pools, making for the perfect picnic spot.
Smooth Pools is a collection of mini rock pools teeming with life, the inlet being perfect for snorkelling and surfing when the swell behaves. Watch out for resident Sea Lions that love to check what you’re up to…
A curious Sea Lion absolutely terrified Dylan as he was surfing, he saw its shadow and baulked. It was only two days after we swam with Great White Sharks, so understandably, Dylan was more than a little jumpy.
Whistling Rocks and The Blowholes – Streaky Bay
Let the eerie whistling guide you along a 360m boardwalk out to Whistling Rocks and The Blowhole.
Whistling Rocks is an epic phenomenon where waves force air and water through small holes formed in the eroded cliff edge. As a result, ghostly whistling sound and mini sprays of seawater escaping from the rock shelf.
The Blowhole was underwater when we arrived, so a tip from us is to check the tides before arriving. Although the higher tide did make the Whistling Rocks even more magical.
Lake Macdonnell – Eyre Peninsula
This little lake has taken Instagram by storm. And for good reason.
Naturally pink from high salinity levels and salt-loving algae doing their thing, the contrast of these two lakes on either side of a dead straight dirt road makes for the perfect photo opportunity.
Unfortunately, poor little South Australia doesn’t see much rain during summer and when we visited, the pink lake was all but dried up.
This didn’t stop us from getting our iconic photo… though we must admit we succumbed to a little photo editing to heighten the pink hue.
The smell of the dried-up salt lake was terrible, making this a quick stop on the way to Cactus Beach.
Eyre Peninsula’s Best Surfing – Cactus Beach
At the end of the road running through Lake Macdonnell, you’ll find the world-class surf break – Cactus Beach.
Dotted with small shrubs, stark red dirt and crumbling cliffs, this is one of the most beautiful beaches we’ve been to. And to top it off, Cactus Beach surfing is some of Australia’s best. The beautiful left-hand reef break dominates when it works, but for most of the year provides a steady 3-4ft glassy ride.
Being 21km south from Penong, a small rural town, Cactus Beach is quite remote. This makes for a slightly less crowded break to enjoy. The only encounters of people are the ones camping or surfing there.
Cactus Beach camping is located just behind the sand dunes, $15 each a night will give you prime position for sunrise waves.
Bunda Cliffs – Nullarbor
Huge limestone cliffs dropping dramatically into the Southern Ocean, stark desert and sand dunes, billions of unobstructed stars filling the night sky…
Sound epic? It is.
The Great Australian Bight shows off its arid beauty contrasted with the turquoise ocean from Bunda Cliffs, a campsite along the Nullarbor that stole our hearts.
Bunda Cliffs is one of Eyre Peninsula’s best camping spots, the Head of Bight being another. From these two campsites, views of the tumultuous southern ocean can keep you mesmerised for hours.
Watch out for schools of salmon, humpback whales and dolphins when the season is right.
This is only 11 epic places along the Eyre Peninsula and by no means is this list everything on offer in this wonderful part of Australia. So get out there and find the rest.
Tell us of your favourite Eyre Peninsula attractions in the comments below.
