Today was to be a nostalgic day for me as our destination was the small beach town of Wallaroo. This was my mothers home town and the place I spent my first 10-11 years. Wallaroo's original reason for existence was as a copper mining and copper smelting town and in my childhood the old smelter works and the piles of cinders from the defunct smelting operation were great play grounds. After the copper era ended the Adelaide and Wallaroo Fertilizer Company produced agricultural fertilizer from imported fertilizer rock. The piles of ferilizer and rock were also a playground for us kids.

In some regards the place has changed a lot in the almost 60 years since I lived in Wallaroo. The beach front has been developed as a holiday destination and there are large (by South Australian standards) housing developments along the beach north of the original town. These developments are a mix of retirement communities and young families.

However, not with standing the development, my old family home (pictured) has seen only minor renovations at least on the outside.

Today fertilizer and grain outbound shipment are the main industries but the close proximity to Adelaide increasingly seems to be making Wallaro a playground destination for Adelaide's population.

As in my time fishing from the wharf/jetty for crabs and fish is a very popular passtime.

Finally the word Wallaro is also the name of a small kangaroo like animal (macropod) that range across most of Australia.

We spent the night at a newish caravan park on Wallaroo Beach. The place had good modern facilities but unfortunately the weather was a bit unpleasant. As the afternoon progressed a strong wind came up and persisted over night. So that our night was filled with flapping and shaking tent fabric. The good news is that the tent survived.