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4 Reasons To Visit Port Pirie

15 May 2015

One of South Australia’s less popular, but no less beautiful, locations is hidden in plain site and is waiting to be explored near Port Augusta’s pet friendly accommodation (call to confirm which accommodation is pet friendly before booking). Port Pirie is a great location for water sports like fishing, photography, historical site seeing with buildings that are over 100 years old and even a bit of lunch at the local pub. Be sure not to pass Port Pirie by when you make the drive through South Australia. Here are 4 reasons to help convince you to check South Australia’s Port Pirie out.

1. Food and Shopping

Markets

The Port Pirie Producer’s Market is a great place to kick the day off. Producers sell anything from home décor to baked goods, with local and fresh vegetables. Bacon and egg breakfast is also on offer, along with coffee, at the markets, so even if you don’t buy anything, you can definitely claim your breaky as supporting the locals.

Port Pirie Producer’s Market takes place every second Sunday of the month, from 8:30am to 12pm and is easy to access from Port Augusta.

Family Hotel Port Pirie

This pub serves great food and promotes a happy family environment. It is a stunning Victorian building with all the trimmings. This is one of Port Pirie’s most popular locations for lunch, so be sure to drop by if you’re starting to feel the pang of hunger.

2. Port Pirie’s Historical Sites

Take the National Trust Walking Tour to see the best sites Port Pirie has to share with you.

Returned Services League Museum

Head to Port Pirie’s RSL Museum for an interesting military lesson that will inspire you. The RSL showcases an Iroquois Helicopter that was used in the Vietnam War, which has been dubbed the ‘Huey’, and is one of just 6 groups in Australia to have a relic from the Vietnam of this standard. The iconic ‘Huey’ acted as the workhorse for soldiers going into battle; it delivered them to the battle and brought those who survived home.

The National Trust Museum

The National Trust Museum is home to Captain Harry Butler’s Story, a highly trained aerial fighter and Captain in the First World War. His story is a short but nonetheless impressive one; with war, love and daring stunts mixed throughout. This is only one component of the National Trust Museum, so be sure to stop in to learn more about the settlement days and check out the historic records of the area. This Museum is made up of the old Customs House and Central Police Station, built in 1882, and serve as historical sites.

3. Art

Northern Festival Centre

This centre holds art shows, theatrical events such as cabaret, and dramatic productions like Kelly, an intimate depiction of Ned Kelly’s last night alive. The centre also hosts live music with the likes of Roy Orbison & the Everly Brothers and Athol Guy. The Northern Festival Centre is open Monday to Friday and is worth a visit to see what’s happening in the arts scene.

4. Fishing and Walks

Fishing

  • Weeroona Island is 13km from the centre of town, and offers deep water for great fishing experiences.
  • Port Germein has one of Australia’s longest jetties where you can be sure to catch something off the edge of.

Walks

  • Port Pirie’s Self Guided Heritage Walk introduces you to the stories of the heritage buildings in Port Pirie. The Information Centre will be able to provide a map for this walk.
  • The Port Pirie War Cemetery is located at the general cemetery. It’s a good place to pay respects to the men who lost their lives to protect Australia.

For pet friendly accommodation that’s smack bang in the middle of all the things you will want to see, check out Discovery Parks - Port Augusta.