Our plan today was to head 220KM south from Adelaide on the Prince’s Highway for an overnight stop at the town of Keith. This was our first move back on the road since our Christmas break in Adelaide but our Land Rover Discovery 5 car had other plans and we now find ourselves back in Adelaide.

Oh, not again!

We had managed to drive 120KM south and just overtaking a very slow moving car and caravan when the engine decided to go into ‘Performance Restricted’ mode… again. It couldn’t have picked a worse place – in an overtaking lane with vehicles behind us and oncoming traffic not far ahead. The only thing we could do was hope the car didn’t slow down too quickly so we could try and pull off from the road.

Fortunately we had built-up just enough speed to continue overtaking and move over onto a gravel strip. Almost certainly the same turbo valve issue that had caused us much grief the very first day we set-off on our Big Lap last April and from discussions with fellow Disco owners and a Land Rover technician – a known issue.

Towed again

So, we ended-up having both the caravan and car towed back to Adelaide and waiting on the Land Rover dealership to fix the issue once and for all. And this comes just days after the car had been serviced and the valve issue notified to them. Full marks to our tow assistant, though, who not only got us safely back to Adelaide but managed to reverse our caravan back onto the site – uphill, at an angle and with the car still onboard.

By coincidence…

However, all was not lost. The small roadside town of Coonalpyn, where we had waited to be towed, just happened to be the place we had intended to stop on the way to Keith for a break from driving and for a coffee and bite to eat at the Silo Cafe.

Not by chance the Silo Cafe is located directly opposite the silos and a good spot to take a photograph without having to cross the busy road.

The cafe was certainly a good choice having just been extended and serving excellent coffee too. Highly recommended and very friendly staff.

Coonalpyn Silo

In the same way that many country towns are choosing to paint their local grain silos to attract passing trade, Coonalpyn took the decision following the double financial hardship of the millennium drought and the global financial crisis of 2007/8. And it appears to be paying-off with the Silo Cafe at least, which opened in March 2017 on completion of the artwork and has just opened its latest extension to the property.

The silo painting is unusual in being black and white in an amazing hand-drawn style. It looks almost as if drawn with charcoal or pastel but on a gigantic scale.

Painted by artist Guido van Helten using 200 cans of spray paint, it depicts five local primary school children but, instead of more typical portraits, it has been created with a sense of movement as if the children are interacting and exploring their way around the silos.

Looking to the future

Guido designed the artwork under the banner of ‘Hope for the Future’. It is hope for the future of these young children and the hoped for rejuvenation of the town.

Guido’s still painting

Just across the road and next to the Silo Cafe is a statue easy to miss and more so if you don’t look upwards.

Using many of the LoopColour spray paint cans, Guido himself has been turned into a work of art and stands raised on a platform as if still painting the silos. It’s a pity he hasn’t been placed in a more prominent location closer to the silos.