"I'm not a man who feels compelled to take my phone everywhere I go; it's for my convenience, not that of others, I'm happy to be without it and I don't need to be contactable every minute of the day."
I used to be able to say that and loved leaving my phone home, in the car and when home either off completely or in another room; I wasn't attached to it and didn't miss it when it wasn't with me. That changed not long ago; I have an implant in my arm that sends critical blood data to an app on my phone via Bluetooth; I take my phone everywhere now.
A week ago I headed south to a little coastal town called Port Elliot, here in South Australia down on the Fleurieu Peninsula, I went to see a private garden, open for the weekend.
It's a one hundred and five kilometre drive so to make the distance worth it I drove around a little to see what I could see, have some lunch and take a walk on the beach. It's during the latter where my phone came in handy for more than registering the blood data from my arm-implant.
I took these photos using my Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra, and despite not being all that great I think they show what the day was like. If you can't work it out I'll explain...It was awesome.
These images were taken at Basham Beach on the boundary of Port Elliot and the tiny town of Middleton.
This area is the home of Boomer Beach, a popular surfing beach, but it's dangerous coastline, certainly not a place for a novice to attempt surfing for the first time; there's incredible rips in these waters and a person can find themselves in trouble quickly. It's unforgiving. On the day I was there it looked innocent enough, but these waters are worthy of great respect.
This spot is popular for whale watching which people do from the beach itself, there's the path to it above, and on the platform you see below.
The Southern Right Whale is most prevalent and people flock to this area in whale watching season, the cooler months of May to October although June to September is when the most sightings are. It's often cold and windy in those months but watching these extraordinary marine mammals move around to mate and nurse their young is worth it. Rug up, bring your binoculars, camera and zoom lens and you're good to go...A thermos of coffee and some donuts is a good idea too.
I saw no whales but that's ok as I was happy with a walk on the beach, time with nature, and to create some moments in which to think a little, reflect and contemplate. I found what I was looking for...but then I got hungry.
Ok, I lied...I did see some whales. This legit mural is on the wall of the Middleton Tavern...I was going to eat there but changed my mind at the last minute and headed to Goolwa, fifteen kilometres away.
I ended up at a small café for a warm chicken salad and coffee; it was nice, if a little overpriced at $27AUD, then wandered around the historic river-port town of Goolwa...where the Murray River, Australia's longest at 2,508 kilometres (1558 miles), empties into the ocean after travelling through three Australian States. There was an open-air market there but I ended up grabbing a drink and sitting on the pier watching modern boats and old paddle-steamers ply the waters and sea birds, cormorants, dotterels, blue wrens, grey teals and pelicans winging their way around in the beautiful weather. I didn't take too many photos there but below are a couple I snapped.
It was mid-afternoon by the time I headed home and when I arrived felt pretty content with my, alone with my phone day. I'd driven almost two hundred and fifty kilometres and enjoyed every one...it was the day I needed...even though I had to take my phone.
Do you ever take drives like this, find places to unwind and relax? Feel free to tell me about it in the comments below, or make a comment on the photos or the text if you'd like. I'll respond.
Design and create your ideal life, tomorrow isn't promised - galenkp
[Original and AI free]
Every image in this post is my own.
My Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra was used to capture these images.
