Mount Gambier Travel Guide
Mount Gambier accommodation, Mount Gambier activities and attractions, Mount Gambier maps, transportation to and around Mount Gambier - the ALL NEW Jasons Mount Gambier Destination Travel Guide is your complete visitor guide for Mount Gambier.
Mount Gambier is the jewel of
South Australia's south-eastern region. Built on the lower slopes of the extinct volcano and surrounded by rich farming, horticulture, viticulture and dairy country, Mount Gambier is the commercial centre for the largest softwood pine plantation in the Commonwealth. The volcano, extinct for 5000 years, is a striking feature rising 152m above the plain.
It was named Gambier's Mountain by Lieut. James Grant, who saw it while sailing along the coast in his brig the HMS Lady Nelson, a replica of which is located in the Visitor Information Centre.
The Mount Gambier area was originally inhabited by the Buandig Aboriginal people, who reputedly called it 'egree belum', meaning 'the home of the eagle hawk'. Mount Gambier was established in 1841 and is characterised by a large number of attractive, historic buildings made from the local stone. Features of the area are the crater lakes, the largest and most famous being the mysterious Blue Lake, 80m deep and with a circumference of 5km. The Blue Lake’s water is actually grey but changes dramatically to an extraordinary blue colour each November, remaining that way until March.
Geographic Location
460km south-east of
Adelaide
Population
22037
Climate
Cool Temperate
Summer: -1.6 – 43.6°C
Winter: -3.9 – 34.4°C
Rainfall: 708 mm/year (wettest months May to September)