Rock View Cafe

About

The Inman Valley on the Fleurieu Peninsula is a classic picturesque Sunday drive in the country. Its rolling hills of fertile farming country are punctuated with magnificent old red and blue gums.

You need to get off the main road heading south from Adelaide and take the quiet back road and you�ll find the valley between Yankalilla on Gulf side and Victor Harbor on the other.

The Heysen Trail eases along the Inman River. It also treks up and over the ranges offering spectacular views.

The tell-tail sharp drop into the flat-bottomed U-shaped valley below gives a hint - a giant glacier of sheet ice created the landscape. A slab of half a billion-year-old riverbed rock now called Glacier Rock provided the vital clue.

In 1859, geologist Professor A.R.C. Selwyn recognised the smoothing and scratching of the rock as the grindings of a glacier. We now estimate that it was about 250 million years ago when Australia was further south and part of the great southern super-continent known as Gondwanaland.

�Geologists from all over the world visit this remarkable piece of history and they drool. They�re down there for hours taking photographs.�

Thankfully you don�t need to be Indiana Jones to experience Selwyn�s Rock (Glacier Rock), with a viewing platform amongst the tree tops and stairs to the river platform, it�s possible for all to see.

Wonder around one of the world�s largest exposed glacial pavements and you�ll marvel at a huge granite boulder lodged in the riverbank. Weighing maybe 30 tonnes it�s called an erratic and was carried by ice all the way from Granite Island about 20 kilometres away. An impressive demonstration of the forces involved

The unofficial �keeper of the rock� is the Rock View Cafe, ran by Dave, Teresa and Family.

You can enjoy a meal or jam and scones in Dave and Teresa�s Cafe - with views of the river below and the beautiful back drop of Gum Trees or sit outdoors in the Rotunda with fish ponds and water cascading from the rocks.

Also close by are the ruins of the Crossman Bridge-Historically, this Bridge is significant in that it was the last of its kind known to be built in the state. The Bridge provided an important and reliable link across the Inman River for local residents to the main road between Yankalilla and Victor Harbor. Architecturally, the Bridge is an impressive example of the use of timber. The Bridge is a contributing element of some importance in a pleasant, tree studded landscape.

There might be a new bridge and a new cafe - but the Glacier Rock? Well, that�s been the same for thousands of years. Glacier Rock is on the Inman Valley Road - access is free with plenty of parking, even for those with vans and boats

The Cafe is open for Breakfast and Lunch 6Days 8.30am to 5.30pm - Closed Thursday

Inman Valley

Fleurieu Peninsula