COFFIN BAY – Tagalong 23

About Coffin Bay

Coffin Bay is surrounded by sea and national parks. It is famous for fantastic seafood and camping. Named after Sir Isaac Coffin, a friend of Matthew Flinders, Coffin bay is famous for its oysters and fishing and is home to one of the most stunning estuaries in Australia.

TIP: The links below are “short-cuts” to each section on this page…

Our Accommodation
Dining out
Organised Activities
Activities & things to do
Nearest Supermarkets & Bottle Shops
Our Next Stop

Our Accommodation

Staying at:	Discovery Parks - Coffin Bay (click for website)	Park Map (click to open)
Address:	91 Esplanade Coffin Bay (click for location)	WikiCamps (click to open web page)
Contact:	Tel: (08) 8647 5770	Email (click to send)
Arrive:	Monday 18th September 2023
Stay for:	3 nights
Depart:	Thursday 21st September 2023
Notes:	The park has a dump point
	Above ground Fire pits are allowed in the Park in September

PLEASE NOTE: Sites will be assigned on arrival. No-one is to occupy another site other than the one they have been allocated by the caravan park management.

Here’s some images (from the internet) of Coffin Bay Caravan Park…

From Touring Wombats visit in 2018

Dining out in Coffin Bay

Here’s a list of places where you can dine in the Coffin Bay area (listed by distance from the CP)…

Eatery	Address	Call	Distance from CP
Beachcomber (on Facebook) - Quick bites & Seafood	113 Esplanade, Coffin Bay	(08) 8685 4057	750 metres
Oyster HQ - Seafood	100 Esplanade, Coffin Bay	0428 530 133	550 metres
1802 Oyster Bar - Seafood	61 Esplanade, Coffin Bay	(08) 8685 4626	800 metres
Coffin Bay Yacht Club - Australian, Seafood	146 Esplanade, Coffin Bay	(08) 8685 4287	1.1kms
Coffin Bay (IGA) General & Liquor Store (no website) - Café, Asian, Australian	149-151 Esplanade, Coffin Bay	(08) 8685 4052	1.2kms
Coffin Bay Sporting Club - Australian, Seafood	Giles Rd, Coffin Bay	(08) 8685 4302	1.3kms
Coffin Bay Hotel - Pub meals	Shepperd Ave, Coffin Bay	(08) 8685 4111	1.8kms

Organised Activities

Coffin Bay Short & Sweet Oyster Farm Boat Tour

Travel to an oyster farm just outside the township of Coffin Bay. Along the journey you’ll experience beautiful Coffin Bay coastal & township views plus learn the history of oyster farming & visit the first ever oyster lease in Coffin Bay.

While you sit back & relax your host, a veteran oyster farmer, will share with you the history of oyster farming. Including how premium Coffin Bay oysters are produced & what it is about the pristine Coffin Bay waterways that makes oysters world renowned. Plus they’ll teach you how to shuck like a pro!

You’ll witness pods of dolphins playing in the water alongside the boat as they follow us on our journey (sightings cannot be guaranteed but are highly likely).

Locally produced wines, beers & gin are available to purchase which are the perfect accompaniment to a plate of freshly shucked oysters direct from the source.

For more information please visit their website – just Google “experience coffin bay”

Cost is $75 per person (no oysters included)

Approx. Duration: 1½ hours for the boat cruise.

Important Information:

Please familiar yourself with the following:

Check in – Tour check in time is strictly 15 minutes prior to your tour start time at the boat at Berth 5 Coffin Bay Yacht Club floating jetty. The boat departs at the tour start time so please don’t be late as we would hate for you to miss the boat. They cannot wait, unfortunately.
Tour Duration – Tour duration is an approximate only. If your tour finishes a little early it is only because of less numbers on board that day or weather has allowed us to finish everything a little quicker than normal.
Weather – The weather can quickly turn cold on the water, even when fine, sunny conditions are forecasted so we always advise bringing a warm jacket & beanie.
What to Bring – They also recommend you pack sunscreen, a hat, sunglasses & a camera (you are definitely going to want to capture this experience!)

Located at Coffin Bay Yacht Club Berth 5, Coffin Bay – 1.3kms from the CP
Date…. Wednesday 20th September Time…. TBA
Read the reviews on TripAdvisor

Activities & things to do in the Coffin Bay region

There is no Information centre in Coffin Bay, just an information board. Information can be found on the Coffin Bay Visitor Info website. The information board is located on the Esplanade, Coffin Bay - In front of the CP.
TIP: Most caravan park offices have stacks of tourist information brochures and the staff are usually helpful on places to visit

Here’s some suggestions of places to visit and things to do around Coffin Bay:

TIP: a lot of the activities & things to do are within easy walking distance of the caravan park!

Oyster Farm & Tasting Tour

This is a different tour company to the one the Tagalong Group has booked with.

Wade out into the water, wearing waterproof waders, sit at their semi submerged tour deck ‘The Salt Water Pavilion’ which is located right in a working commercial Oyster farm. Hear from the Oyster Farmer himself (Ben) about how oysters grow and Oyster farming practices. Taste the freshest and most famous Coffin Bay Oysters you’ve ever tasted, straight out of the water! A very unique culinary experience!

This tour includes a tasting of 4 oysters each. It’s a bit of a ‘choose your own adventure’ where you can select from a list of options to tailor the experience, you’d like to create to make it a memorable experience for you. Select a bottle of Moet or Bird in Hand Sparkling, a Bloody Mary oyster shot, a bottle of Riesling, whatever you like!

Experience the ultimate seafood indulgence, by pre-booking a seafood platter to be enjoyed after the tour at Oyster HQ.

Located at 100 Esplanade, Coffin Bay – 500 metres from the CP
Tours take 1hr 30minutes – You must book via their website
- Prices vary depending on what you want to do
Want more info? – check their website or call 0412 268 648
Read the reviews on TripAdvisor

Coffin Bay Lookout

This lookout is at the top of a hill over looking the town. Lots of the view is blocked out by trees. You can drive to the lookout but there is a walking track that loops around as well. Medium Fitness required for that walk.

Located off Coffin Bay Rd – 2.5kms from the CP
Open 24 hours
Read the reviews on TripAdvisor

Reelview Art Gallery

Art work by local award winning artist Lea Jericho is on display. Her love of nature and the environment of the local area has a huge impact on her art work and depicts many local and Australian landscapes and seascapes.

Located at 35 Esplanade, Coffin Bay – 1.1kms from the CP
Open by appointment only – free admission
Want more info? – call 0427 532 663

Coffin Bay Surf Co

Surf shop in Coffin Bay. From their website – At Coffin Bay Surf Co. we have developed a range of items from shirts to bags, hats to hoodies. These items were created from our passion of surf. These items were born out of our desire to promote and support our local coastline.

Located at 35 Flinders Ave, Coffin Bay – 1.3kms from the CP
Want more info? – check their website or call 0423 843 806

Coffin Bay’s Oyster Walk

The Oyster Walk is a walking trail that follows the foreshore along the town of Coffin Bay. It’s easy to find the trail from the Esplanade which follows Kellidie Bay and Coffin Bay around to Long Beach. At the eastern end (the Port Lincoln end) there is a loop to a lookout in Kellidie Conservation Park, and an out-and-back trail to Old Oyster Town in Kellidie Conservation Park.
The trail through the town section includes many interpretive signs of native wildlife and flora.
The full trail is 10.4km long, although most people would just walk some sections of it. The section to Old Oyster Town in Kellidie Conservation Park is 2.2km one-way (or 4.4km return) from the main highway and park entrance. The section along the town foreshore is about 5.5km long.
Old Oyster Town dates from the mid-1840s when Europeans first started harvested local wild oysters. After 1882 the fishery faced periods of official closure due to over fishing, and the native oysters never recovered. There is little evidence now of Old Oyster Town, except for some wells and a very large rosemary bush (over 30m across) dating from 1850. The trail to Old Oyster Town ends at the rosemary bush.
You can walk your dog on this trail, provided it is on a leash – however dogs cannot enter Kellidie Conservation Park.
NOTE: Bicycles are not permitted anywhere on the trail.

See map below for the path, walk as little as you like or do the whole 8 kms
Open 24 hours
Read the reviews on TripAdvisor

Coffin Bay National Park

Known for its remote coastal scenery, the bays and coastline around the Coffin Bay National Park are ideal for boating, fishing, sailing, scuba diving and windsurfing. You can explore the park’s coastal landscapes of high windswept cliffs and massive dunes, pounding surf beaches and sheltered sandy bays.

At the southern end of the park is Yangie Bay, accessible by 2WD. It’s an ideal place to paddle your canoe, enjoy a bush picnic or explore a coastal bushwalking trail. Point Avoid and Golden Island lookout can also be reached by sealed road and you’ll be rewarded with spectacular island views along the way.

The pristine northern beaches of Coffin Bay National Park are only accessible by high-clearance 4WD.

PLEASE NOTE: you must book before going, either via the Parks SA website. Cost is $12.50 per vehicle ($10 concession)

TIP: Download the Coffin Bay National Park Map using this link

Park entry is located on Coffin Bay Rd, Coffin Bay – 3.5kms from the CP
Open 6am to 11pm daily
Want more info? – check their website or call (08) 8688 3111
Read the reviews on TripAdvisor

Gunyah Beach 4WDriving

PLEASE NOTE: you must book before going, either via the Parks SA website. Cost is $12.50 per vehicle ($10 concession). This for experienced 4WD enthusiasts, who have experience with sand driving!

Experience great 4WDriving to Gunyah Beach and down the Coffin Bay Peninsula. When travelling on the Gunyah Beach 4WD track please follow the route markers and if travelling on beaches first check tide times and heights.

Travelling on these 4WD tracks you will encounter different terrains such as beaches, dunes and narrow rocky passes. Driving in this park cannot be hurried and takes concentration. The tracks are narrow, so be on the alert for oncoming traffic. Where possible (and if safe to do so) avoid driving above the high-water mark and keep vehicles to designated tracks, obeying all signs. Be aware that traffic over dunes destroys small plants and causes erosion.

On Gunyah Beach, you cannot drive further than 3km either side of where the track joins the beach. Beyond this, are important seabird refuges and breeding areas. Watch out for seabirds when beach driving.

Travel Distance from Coffin Bay National Park Entrance

Gunyah Beach – 14 kms – one hour, forty-five minutes return
Black Springs – 28 kms – three hours return
Sensation Beach – 50 kms – six hours return
Point Sir Isaac – 55 kms – six hours return

Minniribbie Farm

Minniribbie Farm is dedicated to producing tasty, succulent, 100% free-range pork for South Australia from the famous heritage breed Berkshire pig. Although Berkshires are a black pig, the flesh is still a pale pink, moist, delicious meat. They don’t use any chemicals on the farm & don’t give the pigs any growth hormones or feed additives, and the meat is preservative free. They process the pigs ourselves in our fully licensed and accredited facilities.

Located at 40 Snapper Hill Rd, Wangary – 16.5kms from the CP
Open 10am to 5pm daily but closed Sundays
Want more info? – check their website or call 0402 352 368
Read the reviews on TripAdvisor

Nearest Supermarkets & Bottle Shops

IGA – 149/151 The Esplanade, Coffin Bay – 7am to 7pm – 1.2km from the CP
The Cellarbrations Bottle Shop is connected to the IGA

Our next stop

Our next stop is for 3 nights in Elliston staying at the Waterloo Bay Tourist Park located at 10 Beach Terrace, Elliston.

Google maps say it’s approximately 140kms from Coffin Bay and you should expect about 1 hour & 29 minutes traveling time.

TIP: Buddy up with another Bailey to make the trip and maybe stop off at Sheringa Beach Roadhouse along the way, even arrange to meet up with others along the way for a cuppa at a bakery – just google bakeries in a town you’re passing through ☕