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29-614: Gumeracha ( / ˌ ɡ ʌ m ə ˈ r æ k ə / GUM -ə- RAK -ə ) is a town in the Adelaide Hills , South Australia , located on the Adelaide-Mannum Road . It is located in the Adelaide Hills Council local government area on the south bank of the upper River Torrens . The region relies heavily on grazing, dairying, grape growing, orchards, and market gardening. Its most prominent attraction

58-792: A church, and the Salem Baptist Church was built – the oldest Baptist church still in use in South Australia. The surrounding area, meanwhile, had become an agricultural centre, and the Gumeracha Farmers' Society held annual shows. In 1853, the District Council of Talunga was established to administer the Hundred of Talunga , including in large part the early Adelaide Hills pioneering community that would become Gumeracha. In 1855, Randell allocated land for

87-625: A day, and large amounts of hail are more likely to fall here than on the Plains. LinkSA LinkSA is a regional bus operator in South Australia . It is a subsidiary of Keolis Downer , and is a separate business to its sister company SouthLink , which operates Adelaide Metro buses in metropolitan Adelaide . LinkSA was founded in 2008 when Australian Transit Enterprises purchased Barossa Valley Coaches and merged it with its Murray Bridge Passenger Services. In March 2015, it

116-587: A distance of 70 km (43 mi), where a festival is held. There are two Bay to Birdwood events held on alternate years: the Run, held on even-numbered years, for vehicles manufactured up to 31 December 1959, while the Classic, held on odd-numbered years, is for vehicles manufactured between 1 January 1956 and 31 December 1986. The Tour Down Under is a major annual sporting event, which makes use of some of South Australia's most popular cycling locations, including

145-561: A few degrees cooler in the Hills than in Adelaide city centre and Plains . The days are warm in January and February, but the region generally experiences cool nights. This significant diurnal variation results in cool mean daily temperatures even in summer. The area receives a light snowfall approximately once every three to four years, occasionally enough to stay on the ground for half

174-525: A thriving community of artists and craftspeople, either in the town or nearby countryside. The Adelaide Hills wine region includes all areas of the Hills above 300 m (980 ft). The elevation leads to cooler nights during the warm summer months, important for increasing the flavour of wines during the ripening season, and higher rainfall. The Adelaide Hills region is one of the oldest wine region within Australia. The first vines were planted in

203-486: A township and by 1860 the town was laid out. Commercial businesses sprang up on the main street (Albert Street), and many fine buildings were erected, including the post office, police station and courthouse (1864), Gumeracha Institute, l ibrary and town hall (1909), a butter factory (1889), a school, a hospital, a coach-house, hotels, churches and business houses. Most of the buildings in use at that time still stand. William Beavis Randell's son, William Richard Randell , built

232-468: Is a popular destination for school groups as well as interstate and international visitors. Many native species of fauna can be encountered within the hills region. Among the more common species include the kookaburra , tawny frogmouth , southern brown bandicoot , kangaroo, brown tree frog , and bearded dragon . Several of the less common species include the antechinus ( Morialta Conservation Park ), heath monitor ( Scott Creek Conservation Park ) and

261-596: Is home to the Basket Range Cricket Club. A small independent weekly newspaper, The Courier , is published in Mount Barker and serves many Hills towns. Founded in 1880, the paper has never missed a print run. It has been in the hands of the same family, the Marstons, since 1954, with a circulation of 7,500 as of May 2020, down from 15,000 in its heyday in the 1970s and 1980s. It is generally

290-488: Is not served by Adelaide's public transport system. As of 2010 LinkSA operates a coach service from Tea Tree Plaza Interchange at Modbury to Gumeracha and Mount Pleasant . Adelaide Hills The Adelaide Hills region is located in the southern Mount Lofty Ranges east of the city of Adelaide in the state of South Australia . The largest town in the area, Mount Barker is one of Australia's fastest-growing towns. Before British colonisation of South Australia ,

319-618: Is the Big Rocking Horse . The original inhabitants of the area were the Peramangk people, and the name "Gumeracha" derives from an Aboriginal word meaning "fine waterhole". The area was one of the earliest settled by Europeans in South Australia . First to explore the district were Dr George Imlay and John Hill , on 24 January 1838. In 1839, the South Australia Company took up a parcel of land, on which

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348-502: Is the " biggest rocking horse in the world " – standing at 18.3 metres (60.0 ft) (approximately the height of a six-storey building), it is just east of the town on Main Road and serves to advertise the toy factory and wildlife park. Gumeracha is also home to Applewood Distillery, Australia's highest altitude distillery, specialising in gin and Amaro showcasing native Australian botanicals like finger limes and strawberry gum. The area

377-534: The 2021 Australian census , Gumeracha had a population of 721 people. Gumeracha is the regional centre for the area. It contains a primary school, hospital, community centre, sports Adelaide Hills Council (the main office is at Woodside ). There is also a golf course in Kenton Valley south of the town. Several wineries operate in Gumeracha and in nearby areas. The most notable attraction of Gumeracha

406-722: The Barossa Valley , and also southwards to Strathalbyn and Myponga on the Fleurieu Peninsula , as well as some sites on the River Murray to the east of the hills. The Adelaide Hills were among the first areas of South Australia to be settled by European settlers. A number of towns in the Hills were started as German settlements ; Hahndorf and Lobethal are two examples. The original town names and architecture still reflect this. Descendants of these first settlers and others of German origin still reside in

435-418: The 1870s and has had only some major realignments since (the most significant of which was the boring of a new tunnel at Sleeps Hill). Commuter passenger train services used to run from the city to the town of Bridgewater in the heart of the hills but were cut back to terminate at Belair in 1987. For many Adelaide residents, a drive through the hills is a popular pastime, particularly due to proximity to

464-534: The Hills at Echunga by John Barton Hack in 1839, three years after South Australia was declared a province , with the first wines produced in 1843. The Mount Lofty area, home to Adelaide's television transmission towers, has a lookout area, restaurant and the fire-spotting tower that used to be run by the Country Fire Service . Gumeracha is home to the largest rocking horse in the world , standing at 18.3 metres (60.0 ft) (approximately

493-537: The Hills include parrots such as the Adelaide rosella , rainbow and musk lorikeets as well as large cockatoos like the Major Mitchell , and the yellow-tailed black cockatoo . Smaller resident species include the superb blue wren and eastern spinebill . Sporting and recreational activities are also popular in the hills region, with sports such as Australian rules football , cricket and soccer having very strong participation rates. The Basket Range Oval

522-641: The Hills. The area is home to the annual Medieval Fair held at Gumeracha across one weekend every April, and the English Ale Festival, also annually held each May. Highlights of the Medieval Fair include live jousting tournaments held on horseback, blacksmithing and dance demonstrations, needlework and costume creation, and authentic music provided by wandering troubadours. The genesis and popularity of these two colourful festivals, where patrons are encouraged to come in costume, springs from

551-575: The area has increased, particularly since realignment of the road and construction of the Heysen Tunnels on the South Eastern Freeway improved road access. Rising real estate prices reflect this. The tunnels, completed in 1999 are named after Sir Hans Heysen , an eminent local landscape painter whose home and studio, "The Cedars", has been maintained as a cultural site located near Hahndorf . To this day, Hahndorf itself supports

580-536: The area was inhabited by the Peramangk people. The Adelaide Hills wine region comprises areas of the Adelaide Hills above 300 m (980 ft). Before European settlement, the Peramangk people occupied the Adelaide Hills region, including the land from the foothills, north from Mount Barker through Harrogate , Gumeracha , Mount Pleasant and Springton to the Angaston and Gawler districts in

609-572: The area. Wood was harvested by woodsmen in the hills and carted to the city for building new buildings from the earliest days of the colony of South Australia . The hills were then named "the Tiers", and the timber merchants "tiersmen". The first pub in the East End of Adelaide , built at 233-237 Grenfell Street , was known as the Woodman (later being rebuilt as The Producers Hotel). This explains

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638-417: The city and other suburbs. With Adelaide being a linear city extending 90 kilometres (56 mi) north to south, the hills are within 20 kilometres (12 mi) of the majority of residents. The Adelaide Hills region is close enough to commute to the city, yet is the gateway to the country, so residents enjoy the best of both worlds – the country community life and the convenience of the city. Desirability of

667-497: The first Murray River paddlesteamer in Gumeracha in 1852. In 1935, the District Council of Gumeracha replaced Talunga Council to administer a broader area around the town, centred at Gumeracha, the main point of population in that part of the Adelaide Hills. Gumeracha is located between Inglewood and Birdwood along the Adelaide-Mannum Road , and north of Lobethal along the Gumeracha-Lobethal Road. At

696-403: The height of a six-storey building) and open to the public, it serves to advertise an adjacent wooden toy factory and wildlife park. The National Motor Museum is at Birdwood . The National Motor Museum is the endpoint of the " Bay to Birdwood " event, in which up to 5,000 motor vehicles are driven by their owners from Glenelg past the city and through the hills to finish at the museum,

725-650: The relatively large numbers of British expatriates who reside in the Hills. Throughout the year there are folk music sessions and concerts held in various small towns like Mt Pleasant , Mylor and Balhannah - connected with this same cultural community. The Hills region includes the Cleland National Park , and within it the Cleland Wildlife Park with its free-roaming kangaroos , wallabies and emus . The park also has enclosed areas for dingos , koalas , native birds and snakes, and

754-484: The settlements of Gumeracha, Kenton Valley and Forreston developed. The company established a district headquarters and opened it up for sheep grazing. In 1841, The South Australian Company built a home, known as "Ludlow House", for the first manager of the station known as "Timnath", William Beavis Randell. The company also built a flour mill in the 1840s. The estate housed his large family, his workforce and their families. In 1846, Randell donated land and funds for

783-549: The strong German cultural connection seen in the number of Lutheran churches, Lutheran schools which often have German on the curriculum, and the number of older residents who still speak German. Some customs have grown, such as the Lobethal Christmas lights which began in the 1950s. Today, only one railway goes through the Adelaide Hills: the Adelaide to Melbourne railway line , which was first built in

812-658: The very rare inland carpet python (greater Mount Barker region). Many walking trails, including a portion of the Heysen Trail and bike trails, including the start of the Mawson Trail abound within the Hills. The Heysen Trail itself extends from the tip of the Fleurieau Peninsula, through the Adelaide Hills and on up to the Flinders Ranges, three hours drive north of Adelaide. Birds found in

841-536: Was included in the sale of Australian Transit Enterprises to Keolis Downer . In October 2023, LinkSA was awarded new eight-year contracts to continue operating bus services in Barossa, Fleurieu, Northern Adelaide Hills and Mount Gambier, with the potential to be extended to 2035. The new contracts began on 1 October that year. It operates services in the Adelaide Hills , Barossa Valley , Mid Murray , Murraylands and Victor Harbor regions. As of November 2024,

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