Stargazing is one of the simplest ways you can appreciate nature, and yet one of the most awe-inspiring. As a city-dweller, the reminder that billions of stars blanket the night sky every night, but I normally can’t see them, is a little startling. In September, David and I went stargazing in South Australia with his parents, to celebrate his dad’s 70th birthday. We saw shooting stars, the Milky Way, constellations, nebulae, Jupiter, and the highlight of the trip, Saturn. We were stargazing in the River Murray International Dark Sky Reserve, just a 90-minute drive from the city lights of Adelaide.

I only found the River Murray Dark Sky Reserve, after lots and lots of research. It was accredited in 2019, just before the onset of the pandemic, and so word is still getting out about this unique stargazing opportunity, a remarkably short drive from a major city. There are several prime stargazing spots in Australia, but many of them are quite remote or didn’t have guided tours available. We booked a stargazing tour with Jugglehouse Experiences, which included guided stargazing and the use of two state of the art telescopes, which was a huge benefit. Located in the Murray River & Coorong Region, in addition to stargazing we discovered an extremely beautiful part of South Australia that hadn’t previously been on my radar.

We flew from Melbourne, and spent a night in Adelaide and visited wineries in the Adelaide Hills and McLaren Vale on either side of our time in the Murray Region. I love how much you can see and experience in South Australia, in such a short drive!

Astrotourism & Stargazing in Australia

We were looking for a place to go stargazing in Australia. Surprisingly, my searches for astrotourism in Australia didn’t return much – there are undoubtedly lots of places with excellent conditions for stargazing, but finding somewhere accessible on a weekend trip was much more challenging. We also wanted to find somewhere that was recognised for its clear skies and stargazing, so we’d have a high chance of success on the trip. Finally, a guided tour was a huge bonus, and would mean we’d actually know what we were stargazing at. 

We’d considered going to Uluru, but it’s very difficult to get there in a few days, and we were travelling in September, which we suspected might already be too hot for the best stargazing conditions. We want to go to Uluru another year in winter, and make a 4-5 day trip out of it.

River Murray International Dark Sky Reserve

The River Murray Dark Sky Reserve was accredited by the International Dark Sky Association in late 2019. With the pandemic hot on the heels of its accreditation, it hasn’t had much time to attract a reputation, so it’s still a bit of a secret. 

The River Murray International Dark Sky Reserve is the only accredited Dark Sky Reserve in Australia, and one of only 15 in the world. To be accredited, darkness must be measured over the course of months or years, and the region must maintain significantly dark skies on average. Darkness is measured on a 22 point, logarithmic scale, and the average darkness here is measured at 21.9. There are darker places across the world, in the 21.99-22 range, but this has to be the most accessible dark sky park or reserve, to a city in Australia.

The River Murray area is known for its dry climate & clear skies, which are two essential ingredients for stargazing. The third ingredient is a lack of light pollution, which is possible in the Murray region because it is protected from the light pollution of Adelaide by the Adelaide Hills and Mt Lofty Ranges. 

Where is the River Murray Dark Sky Reserve?

The River Murray Dark Sky Reserve spans 3200km along the north border of the Murray River & Coorong Region in South Australia. 

We based ourselves in Mannum, a very small country town on the Murray River, which is a 90 minute drive from Adelaide. Our tour with Jugglehouse Experiences departed & returned to Mannum, which made it the most convenient place to stay. We stayed at the Mannum Motel, which was clean & comfortable, and had an outlook across the road to the beautiful Murray River.

We arrived in Adelaide on Friday night, and spent Saturday morning at Grange Beach. We stopped in Hahndorf in the Adelaide Hills for lunch, to break up the short drive to Mannum. 

Dark Sky Reserve Stargazing Tour 

We booked a spot on the Dark Sky, Gold Stars Sunset Dinner tour, with local operator Jugglehouse Experiences. Our tour guide, Kelly, is the owner-operator of Jugglehouse and is extremely passionate about her beautiful backyard. 

The tour left from Mannum, in a luxury 12-seat minivan kitted out a bit like the inside of a limo. Stargazing was the last stop of the night, so we spent the late afternoon and evening making a few stops in the Murray region. 

Fosters Lookout

Our first stop was Fosters Lookout, which has breathtaking views over the Murray River. This was one of the most beautiful spots we visited on our weekend in South Australia, and it made me realise how beautiful the Murray River is! Flocks of pelicans flew overhead, which was unusual to see so far from the sea, but they live on the Murray.

Ngaut Ngaut Conservation Park

Our second stop was Ngaut Ngaut Conservation Park, which is one of the most significant Aboriginal Australian cultural sites in the country. Ngaut Ngaut is the home of the Nganguraku people, who have lived in this area for at least 5000 years. Our guide, Ivy, was extremely knowledgeable and shared so many interesting histories of the people who lived at Ngaut Ngaut.

Swan Reach Hotel

Our final stop before stargazing was dinner at the Swan Reach Hotel, which is a proper Australian country pub. Our meal was hearty and lovely, but my favourite part were the historic photos from the pub and the community decking the walls!

Stargazing & Seeing Saturn

When we entered the core of the dark sky park, we were all given red headlights to help us see when we got out of the van, without creating too much light pollution. I couldn’t believe just how dark it was, and continued to be astounded over the next 15-20 minutes as my eyes adjusted to the dark and more stars seemingly came out in the sky. It made me realise how rare it is to be somewhere truly dark, and how few stars I can see living in the city. Where I live in Melbourne is relatively dark by city standards, and yet I often close my blinds to avoid the light pollution from distance street lights, or emanating from the city.

This part of the tour was guided by a local couple, Lynn and Joe. Lynn is an astronomer, and Joe, who led the tour, is a passionate amateur astronomer. Armed with a laser pointer, he guided us through the constellations and stars that were visible to the naked eye, including the constellations of the Southern Cross and Scorpius. 

He had set up two telescopes, one as large as a cannon, and fixed it on several points throughout the evening. Using an app connected to one of his telescopes, he was able to take a photo of the view through the telescope, of a lagoon nebulae, which he kindly shared and I’ve posted below.

My photos from this part of the tour were rubbish – my iPhone couldn’t capture the stars, and I didn’t have a tripod (or the know-how) to do astrophotography. Before I go stargazing again, I’m going to make sure I have the right gear, as it was so incredible and I’d love to have been able to capture it.

The highlight of our stargazing was seeing Saturn. Joe found it using the giant telescope, which is so tall that everyone had to climb up on a stepladder to reach the viewfinder. The group lined up for a turn at the telescope, and despite hearing everyone else’s surprised reaction, every single person gasped in awe.

It was truly awe-inspiring to stare at saturn. To everyone’s surprise, it looked like a perfect cartoon drawing of Saturn, a white planet encircled by a bold white ring. 

Seeking out moments of awe and wonder is one of the things I love most about travel, even though I don’t always find it on every trip. This was one of those rare experiences which made me feel so connected with my own sense of wonder at the world, and in awe of how incredible the world is. An unforgettable moment, and a reminder to find these moments more often!

Adelaide Hills & McLaren Vale

On Sunday morning, we had a lovely breakfast on the lawn of the Mannum Motel, overlooking the Murray River. We drove back to the Adelaide Hills, making a stop at Melba’s chocolate factory, before visiting Nepenthe Winery in the Adelaide Hills on a hosted visit, to check out their beautiful new cellar door. It was a gorgeous day, so after the tasting we sat at a picnic table on the lawn at Nepenthe and enjoyed another glass of wine – their sauvignon blanc is perfect and their chardonnay is made in the same style as Burgundy in France, which is my new favourite.

Afterwards, we had just enough time to stop into another famous South Australian wine region, McLaren Vale, before our flight. We enjoyed a drink on the lawn, picnic-style at Down the Rabbit Hole, a whimsical winery and cellar door.

All too soon, it was time for our flight back to Melbourne, and once again I was amazed at how much South Australia has to offer within even a small range of the state. Now that I’ve been properly stargazing once, I know how much I’d love to go again and would be prepared to build a long trip around stargazing opportunities, and to learn how to do astrophotography before my next trip.

If you’ve been stargazing somewhere incredible, please let me know in the comments!

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