A wild day in Innes National Park
Cliffs, shipwrecks, lighthouses and a ghost town, all in a single big day at the bottom of Yorke.
The plan
Innes National Park is the dramatic finale of the Yorke Peninsula, a wedge of mallee, cliff and surf at the south-western tip. You could spend a week here, but a single well-paced day captures the highlights. Start early from Marion Bay, grab a park pass, and follow the loop road clockwise, finishing with sunset at West Cape.
Bring water, fuel and food; there are no shops inside the park. Roads are mostly unsealed but well graded. Watch for emus, kangaroos and the famously bold malleefowl.
Along the way
From the heritage jetty at Stenhouse Bay to the salt-lake ruins of Inneston, the park tells the story of an industry that boomed and vanished. The coast does the rest: the rusting ribs of the Ethel on its surf beach, the sheer drop at Cape Spencer, and the surf rolling in past Chinamans Hat Island at Pondalowie.
Finish where the light does, on the boardwalk at West Cape, watching the sun fall into the gulf.
Day 1
6 stops-
1
Stenhouse Bay Jetty
Innes National ParkStart at the heritage jetty and clifftop trail, the gateway to the park.
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2
Inneston Historic Township
Innes National ParkWander the gypsum ghost town and its restored cottages.
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3
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4
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5
Chinamans Hat Island Lookout
Innes National ParkWatch the surf roll in past the conical island at Pondalowie.
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6
West Cape Lighthouse
Innes National ParkEnd the day with sunset on the West Cape boardwalk.
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On the map
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Image credits
- Dolphin Beach, Dhilba Guuranda-Innes NP 20230209 3.jpg by DXR , CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons