ATTRACTIONS PELICAN POINT SA

Stroll at your leisure behind the walls of The Jail in a self guided tour, use the phone at the front entrance to contact the manager, prior to you entering. Built in 1866, the former Mount Gambier Gaol was used up to 1995 and is now also available for budget accommodation with a difference.

The Mount Gambier Aquatic Centre is seen as a major leisure facility for the residents of both the southeastern corner of South Australia and the western district of Victoria. Facilities: Giant inflatables - retain your balance against the obstacles and make the length of this giant airbed that sits atop the Olympic pool. Full sized Olympic pool - this pool is heated to a considerably warm 27 degrees Celsius and is primarily used for recreational swimming, squad training, lap swimming and higher-level swimming lessons. Wading pool - heated to 31 degrees Celsius and is primarily used for recreational swimming, rehabilitation exercises and the lower level lessons. Toddler's pool - heated to 27 degrees Celsius and allows caregivers to cool off or build the confidence of the real young ones. Beach volleyball court and free barbecue facilities. Group bookings after hours are available by appointment. Admission fees vary. Please refer to the Aquatic Centre for full details.

The Mount Gambier Golf Course has a Par 71, 6,014 metres and has an Australian Course Rating of 71. The course is undulating with many of the holes played from elevated tees. The fairways are lush and tree lined, the greens are large, challenging and very true. The course is extremely well bunkered with conditions excellent all year round. The course is very picturesque with its blend of native and exotic trees and shrubs with an abundance of bird life and the occasional kangaroo. The club has won awards for garden beautification and is consistently listed in Australia's top one hundred courses. Visitors are most welcome to the relaxed country atmosphere, the fairways are uncrowded and the green fees are moderate. The club is proud of its reputation for hospitality and on maintaining the course and facilities to the highest standard. Today this superlative country course has approximately 800 members.

Walk to Centenary Tower, 190 metres above sea level for spectacular views of the lakes, the city and the beautiful countryside. Opened in 1904, the tower includes an extensive display of early photographs of the Lakes area. The foundation stone for the tower was laid on 3 December 1900, to commemorate the 100 years since Mount Gambier was sighted and named by Lieutenant James Grant aboard HMS Lady Nelson on 3 December 2000, two plaques in the Tower car park were unveiled to commemorate the Bicentenary and the refurbishment of the Tower which is open when the flag is flying. Illuminated at night, the tower can be seen from many points in the city and surrounding district and due to its elevation; the tower is used by fire spotters during summer months.

Enjoy cycling through spectacular scenery set among Mount Gambier's extinct volcanic crater lakes, on the Crater Lakes Mountain Bike Trail. Starting near the water tower on Keegan Drive, the first leg of the trail is quite adventurous, riding on a narrow track with views down steep cliffs to the bottom of the craters. Choose between the short ride from the water tower, or the shared walking trail. Take the designated mountain bike trail to the left, which winds past Devil's Punchbowl. Continue on this track around the bottom of the mountain veering to the right to join the walking trail again across the top of the cemetery. Either turn left at the second punch bowl to head down off the mountain near Tenison College, or turn right to continue on the walking track along the crater edge, past the Pines, finishing at the water tank near Potters Point Lookout.

The Valley Lake Wildlife Park and Boardwalk is popular all year round with its excellent playground and recreational area. The Wildlife Park and Boardwalk present indigenous species of flora and fauna in an environment very similar to that which would have originally been found in the area. With lookouts, nature walks and boardwalks over the Valley Lake surface, the area is a special place for families to spend many hours of pleasure. You'll find covered shelters and 16 free gas barbecues within well-kept picnic areas. The expanse of grassed areas caters for many family activities.

The Mount Gambier Crater Lakes area is made up of three main craters containing several lakes including Browne's Lake, Valley Lake, Leg of Mutton Lake and the world famous Blue Lake. The local phenomenon is the Blue Lake. It is approximately 75 metres deep and is the only lake with the inexplicable ability to change colour, as it does from November each year, reaching an intense turquoise blue until March, when it starts to return to a sombre blue. Enjoy the Valley Lake crater, with its wildlife park and boardwalk, adventure playground, barbecues, picnic grounds and shelters. The area is serviced by a maze of roads and walking tracks, all of which lead to lookouts, providing excellent viewing and photographic opportunities as well as the chance to enjoy the local flora and fauna. Walks include: Blue Lake Circuit - three point six kilometres, time one hour, grade easy; Leg of Mutton Lake - one point six kilometres, time 45 minutes, grade easy; Mountain Trail - four point two kilometres, time four point five hours, grade moderate; Pepperpot Trail - one point seven kilometres, time one hour, grade easy. Three short walks are Blue Gum, Browns Lake and The Oaks.

Echo Farm is a 27 acre rural property with house and outbuildings dating from 1890. It has been restored with integrity and now offers a glimpse of rural life and times from 1900 to 1950. It provides a window on Australian history and the life of a rural settler family during this time. Throughout the self guided tour visitors are welcome to open and look into the cupboards and drawers, ring the school bell, tap the typewriter and listen to short stories. Goods for sale throughout the farmhouse retain the traditional, heritage and Australian theme. Snacks and drinks are available, and the farm has disabled access and public toilets. The Echo Farm walk takes visitors on a walking track past paddocks and enclosures in which farm and native animals are at home. Wander among outbuildings, including the harness shed, cowshed and garage where all is in working order reminiscent of that era. On the way, visitors may work the lever or Douglas pumps and ponder Australian history depicted in the time line of seven life size tree carvings. Groups welcome by prior arrangement.

Engelbrecht Cave is one of the Limestone Coasts fascinating cave sites. Inside the cave you will find a viewing platform and much of the cave is accessible to divers. The Cave Divers Association has surveyed and mapped the cave system and you'll find maps, videos and other information in the visitors hut. After decades of use as a rubbish dump by private owners, in 1979 the Lions Club of Mount Gambier decide to make it their project of beautifying the cave. After much time and effort, the project was completed and the cave handed over to the local council. Today, Engelbrecht Cave is well worth a visit for both cave divers and for those who simply wish to enjoy the beauty of the caves. Fully guided tours of two caves are available, lasting between 45 to 60 minutes. Contact direct for tour admission prices and times.

The Lady Nelson Centre has been built around a full-scale replica of the brig HMS Lady Nelson, from which Lieutenant James Grant sighted and named Mount Gambier in 1800. It provides an information service on Mount Gambier and the Limestone Coast. Experience interactive displays on local history, geology and culture. Head through an under-sea world to see fish that helped to make the limestone 30 million years ago. Wander through The Wetlands to see animals here before we were, and learn the history of Aboriginal middens. Walk on the exciting glass floor to see the illuminated fossil rocks below. See 40,000-year-old fossils and examples of Aboriginal art. Watch for the Cave Explorer. In the Geology Room, see the neon volcano explode. Enter HMS Lady Nelson to hear Lieutenant Grant tell his story. Learn about life on this early sailing ship and see some of its passengers come to life!

Haig Vineyard is located south east of the famous Blue Lake just out of Mount Gambier. The vines were planted in 1982 and include Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon. The grapes are grown in rich volcanic soil and harvested as late as May. Both dry and sweet styles of wine are produced and cellar door sales are welcome.

Laughton Park Gardens and Tearooms is a tranquil oasis consisting of a waterfall descending through four ponds into a lake with a dolphin fountain and an island. A two-storey Swiss chalet cubbyhouse furnished to scale sits above a barbecue area located beside the waterfall. Extensive rock retaining walls wind their way up the slope to an elegant English rotunda set in an amphitheatre of stone and colourful plants, backed by a large three-tiered fountain set in a rose arbour. Ducks and fish are fed on the lake. There is a new 80-foot boardwalk at the back of the lake with fish and two viewing platforms. Devonshire teas are available in the large secluded Tearooms within a most delightful garden setting. The Tearooms have spectacular views of the lake and panoramic views of the garden. Come as a visitor, leave as a friend and enjoy true Australian hospitality.

The Blue Lake at Mount Gambier is a unique attraction. Water in the lake is exceptionally clear, the quality is very good, but it is hard due to infiltration through limestone, which underlies the district The colour of the Blue Lake changes from dramatically grey to a vivid blue over a few days in late November. Then, after summer the colour gradually fades until the grey winter appearance is resumed. Experience this fascinating tour, which takes visitors in a glass-panelled lift down the original dolomite well shaft, from which water was originally extracted, through a tunnel to see the Blue Lake at close proximity. Learn about the hydrology of Mount Gambier's water supply and the aquifer system. Hear the interesting stories of local history, European settlement, folklore and aboriginal legend.

Riddoch Art Gallery is South Australia’s largest and oldest regional gallery. Composed of three galleries hosting a variety of exhibitions to appeal to a broad range of the community and the travelling public. Students and researchers also regularly use the permanent collection of some two thousand artworks for individual study.

The Main Gallery and Margaret Scott Galleries features significant exhibitions curated from the collection, or major touring exhibitions from national cultural institutions such as the National Gallery of Australia, the Australian War Memorial and the Art Gallery of South Australia.

The Cathleen Edkins Community Gallery hosts exhibitions featuring the work of regional and emerging artists, as well as displays from community groups and local schools.

There is also a retail area opportunity to purchase arts and crafts from the region and further. 

Recognised as one of the best multi-purpose sporting reserves in provincial Australia, the Blue Lake Sports Park area of 32 hectares comprises extensive sporting facilities within a landscaped environment. With its vast areas of well-kept grass and tree-lined areas, is a popular recreational ground for family barbecues and walkers. Facilities include football and social clubroom, two cricket ovals, netball, tennis, cycling velodrome and clubrooms, five baseball diamonds and clubrooms, two international standard softball diamonds and meeting rooms, one artificial turf hockey field and clubrooms, open playing fields for hockey and softball, extensive landscaping and public areas.

The Blue Lake Print Gallery has a large range of beautifully presented Australian landscape photography ranging in subject from the Great Ocean Road and Otway Ranges, Melbourne, Ballarat and the Grampians of Victoria to the Limestone Coast, Fleurieu Peninsula and Adelaide, South Australia. Photographs cover a huge range of local scenery from coastal, to sunsets, rivers, mountains, waterfalls, farm and rural scenes and Australian fauna and wildlife. Blue Lake Printworks provides clients with the highest quality services from digital printing, poster printing, souvenir wholesale and retail, short run printing and personalised products such as fridge magnets, key tags, coffee mugs, postcards, t- shirts, laminated place mats and jigsaw puzzles. Customers can also bring in their own photographs or digital cards and have them reproduced onto any print size or souvenir products. Weekend hours may vary, contact Blue Lake Printworks and Blue Lake Print Gallery to make an appointment.

Sage Cooking School is based in Mount Gambier, Limestone Coast, South Australia. At Sage Cooking School, Graeme Armstrong of award winning Sage and Muntries Café Restaurant draws on his 36 years experience and knowledge. Graeme Armstrong will give you the confidence to create wonderful food for your family and friends in small hands on groups. Join one of his scheduled classes or grab a group of friends and he can create a class for you. Sage Cooking School's aim is to reduce its carbon footprint; hence they have planted numerous fruit trees and are in the process of converting the lawn into a productive vegetable and herb garden. They also endeavour to source local produce as much as possible. Contact staff for class details.

This is Mount Gambier's only public, licensed golf club. The public course has 18 holes, is a par 70 and has an Australian course rating of 68. Its length is 5638 metres and motorised buggies are available to traverse the length. Club hire and group bookings are also catered for. The course features lush greens and watered fairways and is built on the southern crater of Mount Gambier making it a very picturesque course with numerous scenic backdrops. The Blue Lake Golf Links now boasts a new clubhouse featuring a fully licensed restaurant Fairways On the Green, which overlooks the golf course set on the side of the Mount Gambier Crater Lakes.

Australia may be referred to as a relatively young nation, but the well preserved ancient landscape provides many precious windows into the past. The Kanawinka Geopark takes you on a surprising journey through this amazing landscape, enabling visitors to travel back in time over thousands and thousands of years. The surface geology of western Victoria and south-eastern Australia is a striking contrast of sweeping plains and spectacular cones which are largely the product of volcanic activity. In fact, with six sites of international significance and 14 of national significance, this area is Australia’s most extensive volcanic province. The history of these geological masterpieces commenced when great outpourings of volcanic material through vents took place. The Kanawinka Geopark’s spectacular and intriguing volcanic landscape also offers a range of other visitor experiences, from a 45-minute tour to the surface of Mount Gambier’s Blue Lake, to the 45 minute walk up Mount Schank and down to the crater floor.