HAVE YOU spent time at Kingoonya? For a remote one-pub town, it punches well above its weight. The caravan park is quaint and well-run, it’s also where you can fuel up before or after tackling Googs Track. The Kingoonya Hotel is a friendly spot to hang out with the owners, locals and happy-to-chat fellow travellers; the beer is icy cold and the tucker is top-notch. Kingoonya is also a great spot to kick off a Lake Gairdner and Gawler Ranges adventure.
As we headed south along the Gawler Ranges Road, there was still plenty of pooled water but thankfully it could be bypassed so there was no damage to the road, while the open saltbush plains were home to more emus than sheep. The sandy track was in good condition, except on corners and cattle grids, where the corrugations were harsh.
A small western grey kangaroo tried to play chicken, eventually bounding away when we got too close. The sheep that we did see looked healthy,
