Burra to Kapunda
In the footsteps of the pioneers
Thomas Ninnes and family left Burra sometime in 1852.
1852 Left the Burra for the Victorian diggens. Brother Joseph and myself bought two Hasset drays. Brother Joseph, wife and Wm Roach in one dray. John Thomas, sister Mary and family in Hasset Bullock dray. Self, wife and three children in second John Thomas bullock dray. We locked up our furniture in one house. We went on to Kapunda, Angaston, Collingrove. – From the Thomas Ninnes diaries
Tim and Pat are seasoned Audax riders, who have, in the past, taken on ridiculous rides of ridiculous distances. I’ve heard talk of 300km, 600km, 1000km rides. Not the rides that Neil and I do, but almost non-stop, self-sufficient, ride-through-the-night-for-kicks kinds of rides. Phillip is a seasoned cycle tourer, who has done many rides in Europe and beyond (a bit like Neil and I). John is an adventurer who has travelled widely to places that many of us have not dreamed about and has taken on challenges like walking from Robe to Bendigo. Greg is a Friends (of the Bendigo-Kilmore Rail Trail) stalwart and rider, a general all-round community guy, who has recently bought an eBike which has changed his cycling life.
Our party departs on Monday April 20th, 2026. Neil and I, Tim, John, Greg, Phillip on our bicycles, Pat driving the mini bus. We will take turns cycling and driving the bus, in what will be a very democratic process. Today Pat will drive for the first part of our 80-ish km journey, and I will drive the second part.
Leaving Burra, we take the main road a short way before turning onto what is signposted as the “Old Adelaide Road”. We believe that this would be the route that the Ninnes party would have taken, based on various historical markers we see along the way describing the route as the one that bullock drays would have taken when heading towards Adelaide in te 1800s.
We’re a merry band, with the high spirits, energy and anticipation you have on the first day of a cycle tour, and the going is fairly fast on a slightly undulating hard gravel road.
The morning is cool, and a lot foggy. In the distance many wind turbines line the hills, but the blades are barely visible through the almost pea soup fog. The turbines turn slowly this morning, then stop as the fog burns off and sun and blue skies prevail. Obviously there’s enough power in the grid without the need of the wind power.
We slow a little after turning onto another gravel road where roadworks are in play and we have to slog through some wet, clingy gravel for a short distance before passing the works and getting back on to firm and solid gravel.
This group is super organised, with a morning tea kit, and we take a break at the Black Springs cemetery. A slightly unusual place for morning tea, but there is shelter, historical signs and views across green tinged hills. Last year, when Neil and I rode the Mawson Trail with Bike South Australia, this same area was just hard, burnt brown. There’s obviously been at least some rain through.
The stretch after morning tea is again fast, on good, hard gravel and we reach Waterloo, the mid-way point in no time. Pat and I swap over with me taking the wheel of the mini bus so she can ride the afternoon.
The going is pretty easy into Marrabel, our lunch spot. The riders are going so fast I can barely keep up with them! We eat lunch at the Marrabel Coffee Shop, where the prices seem to be from decades ago, and where they turn out the freshest of salad rolls and toasted sandwiches. Do not miss this place if you are ever passing through Marrabel!
From Marrabel it’s a fast downhill run on sealed roads for the intrepid cyclists. Again, I can barely keep up with them – as soon as I catch, pass and the pull over, they are away again, cycling into the distance. It takes no time for us all to reach the lovely Kapunda Caravan Park where we spread ourselves across two cabins and relax beside the soothing sounds from the man-made lake that lies right outside our doors.
Stats for today:
Note that these are my stats only. I didn’t ride the whole way today.
- Distance: 39.91km
- Climb: 292m
- Average speed: 16.9km/h
- Average temperature: 16C
- Moving time: 2:21:36
- See my ride on Strava.
The second part of the day was much quicker, with me at the wheel of the mini bus, dragging the bike trailer along with me!
The beer picture
At the end of a day’s ride, our tradition is to enjoy a beer, and to photograph it for posterity. Normally Neil and I enjoy a beer together, but he didn’t wait for me, so this is mine alone. Today’s beer picture was taken on the shores of the man made lake near Kapunda Tourist Park, with my beer resting on the fender of an old truck parked by the lake.
Along the way today:
Click on an image to scroll through the gallery at full size.
