What Blue Lake?
by iandsmith
What is my favourite thing about Mt. Gambier? Well, it wasn't the Blue Lake! Now, before I went there I knew that November to March is the time to visit if you want blue, so it came as no surprise that, when I was there in October, it was only bluish.
What did come as a surprise was that there were four lakes, although one, the Leg of Mutton Lake, would barely fill your bath tub. What I would recommend you get excited about is Valley Lake, a body of water whose colour (brown) is nothing to get vibes about but, what it does have is access and a wonderful, user-friendly park and nature reserve.
More than just a nice building
by iandsmith
Another example here of some attractive architecture featuring quoins, not too far from the fountain as it turns out.
This is the old town hall which has an art gallery in the downstairs area. I have to say that the exhibition on show while we were there was less than celubrious but, as with all galleries, it pays to check, you never now what you'll see.
Naracoorte Fossil Caves & Fossil Centre
by Kate-Me
Many people may visit Mt Gambier, see the many caves in the area, and then leave, forgetting about Naracoorte, 100 kms further up the highway.
Sure, Naracoorte is a tiny little town in comparison to the greener, more interesting Mt Gambier, but Naracoorte's caves are just as spectacular, and more numerous. Mt Gambier caves tend to be wet caves, whereas Naracoorte caves are more dry. I highly recommend Victoria Fossil cave, where many fossils of ancient Australian animals have been excavated, and some are on display. The caves range from very easy guided tour caves, to more difficult Adventure Caving.
The Wonambi Fossil centre, across from the cafe and booking office, is well worth a visit to learn more about the amazingly rich fossil history of the immediate area.
Picanniny and Ewen Ponds sinkholes
by Kate-Me
Picanniny and Ewen Ponds are sinkholes for snorkelling and diving, located about 20 minutes from Mt Gambier, near the coast not far from Port Macdonnell.
Picanniny is one large pond, about 25 metres deep and has a chasm with steep sides in the middle. Snorkelling over the top and looking down into the black void below, is quite scary. You need a certain level of diving to be allowed to go in here, and snorkellers also need to purchase a permit (numbers in the pond at a time are limited.
Ewen Ponds is much more shallow, and made up of 3 inter connecting ponds, linked to each other via narrow channels. Ewen is a spring fed system, the clear limestone fed water coming up from below the ponds. The amount of water which flows from the springs to the sea is greater than at Picanniny ponds.
At Picanniny, there is also an Outlet walk which you can take from next to the ponds, along the channel where its water flows out and emerges at the beach.
My preference is Ewen Ponds, as it's much less deep (about 10 metres) and there's more life living beneath the surface to look at (silver fish of varying sizes, freshwater crayfish) and much more submerged plant life than will grow in the depths of Picanniny.
No formal qualifications are needed for snorkelling at this one.
Be aware the water is very cold - even with a medium thickness wetsuit, unless it's a really warm day, you could still end up quite cold.
Wander the town
by Kate-Me
Something I highly recommend is leaving the car for a couple of hours or so and exploring the commercial centre of the township, above all to see the many fine examples of stone Victorian architecture.
Not just any stone, but for the most part, many of the early buildings were built in limestone (a type called Mt Gambier stone) which is still quarried today for building, and also the making of things like glass, lime and talcum powder.
a jetty?
Sorentos
What the shop has to offer
looking down into the cave
