A very showery day greeted us on day 4. We set out westwards on the Barrier Highway. The Pinnacles are on the western side of Broken Hill are near an enormous solar farm.

Rock sida growing at Thackaringa Hills outside Broken Hill.

The horizon from the Barrier Highway near the South Australian border.

A wedge tailed eagle sitting on the main railway line from Broken Hill to Port Pirie.

A devastating fire tore through Olary in November 2015 gutting several buildings (half the town). The pub survived.

Saltbush country outside Olary.

Manna Hill railway station. Most of the older South Australian buildings are made of stone. Power poles are steel and concrete. Tall trees are in short supply.

The Big Dice outside Manna Hill taken at 110km/hr. Oddly enough I was the only one who wanted to stop. Democracy won on this occasion.

Corrugated iron artworks adorn the well kept streets of Orroroo. The cold weather (12 degrees at mid day) lured us to the Gumtree Cafe for locally made pies. Absolutely suberb. In our top 3 all time list with Hope Bakery, Ballarat and Mount Carbine Cafe in Far North Qld. 5 out of 5 perfect crusts with generous flavoursome fillings.

The giant river red gum at Orroroo is 11 metres in girth and believed to be over 500 years old.

We saw several species of Eremophilas (Emu bushes). Above is a selection.

The Horrocks Pass traverses the southern Flinders Ranges and takes us down to Spencers Gulf.

Mallee and saltbush near Port Augusta

A solar powered tomato farm outside Port Augusta.

Whyalla is about an hour’s drive south of Port Augusta. The decommissioned (obviously) HMAS Whyalla on the outskirts of town at the Visitor information Centre was built in Whyalla from local steel. We then found a local repairer for the stone chip and crack on our windscreen.

Whyalla Steelworks

The Whyalla marina from Hummock Hill. The distant range is the Southern Flinders Ranges on the opposite side of Spencers Gulf.

Yellow flowered mallee gum

The view back to Hummock Hill from the marina breakwater.

Crested tern sitting on the buoys that hold the shark net in the swimming enclosure at the Whyalla Marina.

Crested terns taking up every available buoy for the night.

After a wonderful meal at the Sundowner Hotel Motel in Whyalla (5 out of 5 for value and quality), we ventured out and revisited Hummock Hill for the lights of the Steelworks.

Emu Count today:23