The Spalding railway line on the South Australian Railways network branched from the Adelaide-Peterborough line at Riverton and passed through the Clare Valley to Spalding. The line opened from Riverton to Clare on 5 July 1918, being extended to Spalding on 9 January 1922. The cessation of railway services was a consequence of the Ash Wednesday bushfires in February 1983, which caused major damage to infrastructure between Sevenhill and Penwortham. The line was formally closed on 17 April 1984. The section of the line between Riverton and Barinia has been converted into a Rail Trail, known as The Riesling Trail. The section from Riverton through Rhynie to Auburn was subsequently redeveloped as the Rattler Rail Trail and opened in 2010.
A railway line through the Clare Valley had been mooted since the 1860s, but nothing happened until the start of the 1910s, when the cause was championed by Sir Richard Butler, who had briefly been South Australian Premier, and was then Commissioner of Public Works in Archibald Peake's administration. A Royal Commission examined the proposal and determined that a branch-line to Clare would not generate revenue sufficient to cover costs, but extending the line further north towards Spalding would facilitate closer settlement of the pastoral estates, which would in turn generate more revenue. The Riverton to Spalding Railway Act was passed in 1913.
The line was built with economies that doomed it to inefficient operation. There were tight curves (15 chains (990 ft; 300 m) radius north of Clare), 1:60 grades, second-hand 60 lb (27 kg) rails, and reinforced concrete bridges that were designed for light axle loading. When larger locomotives were introduced on the South Australian Railways in 1926, the Spalding line was unable to carry their greater weight. The motive power up to 1950 was mainly Rx class engines, with the occasional Q class and S class. Commencing early 1951, the line was worked mainly by 750 class locomotives. From 1960 the line was worked by 830 class diesel-electric locomotives.
There was a major bridge over the Broughton River, just south of Spalding. It still stands, and in 1993 it was heritage listed. Its 5-arch design was, by engineering standards, more than a decade obsolete when the contract was signed in 1918. Australia's expert on ferro-concrete construction, John Monash, had abandoned that style of bridge by 1906. When the Broughton River bridge was completed in 1919 there was a dispute over payments to the contractor, Joseph Dixon. The matter went to the High Court of Australia, which was critical of Joseph Moncrieff's handling of the contract, yet by a majority the High Court found in favour of the South Australian Railways.
When the line was opened in 1924, Model 55 Brill petrol railcars provided passenger services on rural branch-lines, with Clare being the first destination, commencing on 24 February. By the end of 1924, the new railcars had become known in popular parlance as "Barwell Bulls", which was a term coined by one of South Australian Premier Sir Henry Barwell's political opponents, with reference to the penetrating bovine sound of the railcar's air-horn.
In 1927 the larger Model 75 Brill railcars operated the passenger service, and continued until 1954. Passenger rail traffic on the line had the relatively short lifespan of just 30 years. On 24 May 1954, the railcar service was replaced by a co-ordinated road-bus service serving Jamestown and the towns along the Spalding railway line, to connect with trains at Riverton. The main source of outward freight on the line was bulk grain railed from Andrews.
However, the rail-haul distance for transporting the grain to the terminal at Port Adelaide was considerably longer than the distance by road haulage to Wallaroo. During the 1970s there was a marked drop in the tonnage of grain railed from Andrews. Spalding became an unattended station in January 1975, and then in July 1978, soon after Australian National Railways took over South Australian country operations, Andrews became the effective terminus, because Spalding was deleted from the Working timetable. The track was lifted in 1989.
In October 1992 the Clare Valley Winemakers Association held a Creative Think Day intended to find a way to distinguish the region's Riesling wine. Tony Brady of Wendouree Cellars suggested a trail be built using the old railway formation, and that it be called the Riesling Trail. The suggestion was adopted and in May 1994, two trial sections of The Riesling Trail were officially opened - Sevenhill to Watervale, and Riverton to Rhynie, it being South Australia's first Rail Trail.
The Clare Valley Winemakers Association continued to drive development of the Trail, and the section between Clare and Auburn was officially launched on 7 November 1998. The 19 kilometres section from Riverton through Rhynie to Auburn was subsequently redeveloped as the Rattler Rail Trail and opened in 2010. The original 33 km section from Auburn through the Clare Valley to Clare and beyond was extended northwards to the former Barinia siding, and was opened in November 2009.
The Mid North region of South Australia takes in the Clare and Barossa Valleys, the central wheatbelt, the eastern section of South Australia's Copper Belt and the Southern Flinders Ranges. With the exception of Burra's copper mining heritage and the region's two major wine regions - the Barossa and Clare Valleys - the points of interest in this area are not well known and in the main are less obvious. But for those willing to take to the intricate network of back roads that criss-cross the region, there are some wonderful villages, ruins and abandoned settlements with long-forgotten stories to tell, just waiting to be discovered and enjoyed.
Terowie
For example, there is the little town of Terowie, once a vital railway centre which has been allowed to mellow into quiet obscurity, largely unaltered since its heydey. It was on its station platform that General Douglas McArthur stood after emerging from the war-ravaged Asian islands in 1942 and made his famous "I will return" speech to the waiting ears of the world.
Booleroo Centre
The village of Booleroo Centre, with its amazing collection of 50 tractors and 100 stationery steam engines, holds a Steam and Traction Rally every march. The legendary horse and rodeo rider, Curio and Alan Woods, are remembered at Marrabel; the old Bank of Adelaide building in Caltowie is the only reminder that the town centre is today not where it used to be.
Canowie Belt
Australian poet and writer CJ Dennis, of 'The Sentimental Bloke' fame, is remembered with a statue in his hometown of Laura; Eudunda was the birthplace of world-renowned author Colin Thiele (Storm Boy, Sun on the Stubble), whose bronzed statue (by Chris Radford) is in the Centenary Gardens. The ruins of an old church are all that remains of the village of Canowie Belt; the general store frequented by mens outfitter RM Williams as a child is the only building still standing at Belalie North. The book, "Flinders Ranges and Mid North" by Stuart Nicol, is an invaluable guide to unlocking the secrets of this fascinating region and is recommended if you plan to explore the region in any detail.
The Clare Valley is one of Australia's oldest and most famous wine regions, in the Mid North of South Australia. It is one of the most scenic regions, presenting visitors with a series of small intimate valleys and magnificent views. The valley runs north-south, with Main North Road as the main thoroughfare, approximately 120 km north of Adelaide.
Settlers from England, Ireland and Poland first moved into the region during the 1840s, producing a rich heritage of architecture and villages, which remain largely intact. Many of these buildings now accommodate the generous offering of guesthouses, premium restaurants and galleries. Vineyards were planted alongside those first villages and winemaking has continued ever since.
Variation is the key word when describing the topography. The region contains valleys with altitudes ranging from 300 to over 500 metres. The climate is moderately continental, with cool to cold nights and warm to hot summer days. Rainfall is predominantly in winter - spring (June - September) with an annual average of around 630 millimetres. Generally dry summers make some irrigation desirable but also ensure a minimum of fungal diseases. Varied soil types throughout the valleys are another feature, ranging from red to brown grey over basement rock.
The Clare Valley has almost religious fervour for her wines, Riesling in particular, goes back a long way. John Horrocks was the first settler in the Clare area and planted vines in 1842 at Penwortham. Six years later, in 1848, Catholics fleeing religious persecution and political unrest in Silesia, followed the lead of the German Lutherans a decade earlier and migrated to Australia. In 1851 one of their number established the Valley's oldest winery, Sevenhill Cellars, with two recently arrived Austrian Jesuit priests. Initially their cellars made only sacramental wines, but it wasn't long before they discovered a local market for their product.
The region's 40 wineries, most of which have cellar doors, make a range of styles of varietal wines, reflecting different approaches to winemaking as well as the influences of the various sub-regions and micro-climates in the valleys. Each season, the landscape of the region changes in colour and vista. From the golden red in autumn, the lush greenery in spring, and the morning mist in winter, the vineyards of the Clare Valley are a picturesque site. Grapegrowers claim the unique combination of geography, geology and climate, results in terroir that is perfect for producing world-class wine. Warm days, coupled with cool nights during the growing season provide favourable conditions for most wine varieties grown in the region.
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