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Circuit distance : 6 kilometres A beautiful Sunday afternoon, and time to walk another stretch of the Torrens Linear Park. We park the car near the Henley Beach Road bridge, and do a clockwise loop, covering the stretch between the Torrens Ave bridge and the Tapleys Hill Road bridge.
• 1 Just up from the Henley Road bridge is this interesting weir with stepping stones across. These get covered when the river is in flood.
• 2 Nearby is this work of art which I think is for walking on.
• 3 We can usually find a friendly swamp hen. (Do the males feel insulted being called a hen?)
• 4 Family outing. There are a number of these little river platforms along here.
• 5 Not scenic, but interesting. Originally the Torrens didn't flow out into the sea, but into a series of marshlands behind the coastal dunes. In the olden days I suspect this might have been one of the outflows.
• 6 We come to this nice footbridge at the end of Fairmont Ave – this is a view looking back. There is such a lot of aquatic bird life around here.
• 7 And a pretty flowering gum adding some colour ...
• 8 Across the river we spot a large Moreton Bay Fig; in fact there are several along this bank.
• 9 The river is delightful along here, although in places our enjoyment is tempered by the rampant growth of reeds along the water’s edge.
• 10 And so to the Torrens Ave footbridge again.
• 11 There are public toilets by the bridge, and it is a good spot to feed the pigeons.
• 12 We cross the bridge and return along the trail on the south/east bank of the river.
• 13 It is a real joy to be out on this sunny day after the cold gloomy days of winter.
• 14 There are often pretty patterns on the bark of gum trees ...
• 15 Now this is a very apt plant to be found growing alongside our walking track : the happy wanderer!
• 16 Warm sun, a seat looking out over the river: what better way to spend some quiet time?
• 17 Sometimes you can see the head of a long-necked tortoise along here ... but not today.
• 18 Our path brings us back in sight of the Henley Road bridge.
• 19 There was no sign of any fish caught by these boys. Closer inspection showed that there was no sign of any fishing equipment either!
• 20 Below the Henley Road bridge, the character of the river changes completely. For from here in 1938, Breakout Channel was constructed to carry the river water to the sea. The landscape is much more open with grasslands and plantings of succulents.
• 21 We arrive at Tapleys Hill Road bridge, the downstream limit of this walk, and cross back to the north/west bank. • 22 There are curious banked lagoons in the river along this section, and another weir.
• 23 Finally we return to the Henley Road bridge and the car. Now it’s time for a well earned coffee!
A very pleasant walk. |
