After the Barossa Marathon: Clare Valley

The Route: Tanunda → Sevenhill → Clare → Adelaide Airport Logistics: Hire car, about 1 hour 15 minutes north through Kapunda and Auburn. A car is needed in the valley. Marathon Month: August Duration: 1 night

Tanunda ──(approx. 1 hr 15 mins by car)──> Sevenhill ──(10 mins)──> Clare
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       Adelaide Airport (ADL) ◄──(approx. 2 hrs by car)─────────────────┘

The Barossa Marathon finishes on Magnolia Road in Tanunda in late August. An hour and a quarter to the north, the Clare Valley is the Barossa's smaller, cooler neighbour: a narrow valley of stone villages and wineries best known for riesling, and a long, flat path that suits legs that have just run 42 km.

August in the Clare Valley is winter, a few degrees colder than the Barossa because of its height. Mornings can be frosty and days cool, with rain passing through. The vines are bare, the hills green, and the cellar doors quiet enough that the person pouring the wine often made it. Pack warm clothes.

Drive north from Tanunda through Kapunda and Auburn. There is no useful public transport to the valley.

Night One: Clare Valley

The valley was settled in the 1840s, largely by English, Irish and Polish migrants, and the Jesuits arrived soon after. In 1851 they founded Sevenhill, the valley's first winery, to make sacramental wine. Sevenhill Cellars still produces wine today, and the stone St Aloysius Church beside it can be visited. The cellar door and church are a short, level walk from the car park.

The recovery asset here is the Riesling Trail, a walking and cycling path built on the old railway line between Auburn and Clare and beyond, about 35 km long. Because trains cannot climb steeply, neither does the trail: the gradients are gentle, the surface is compacted gravel with sealed sections, and there are benches and shelters along the way. Walk a few kilometres from Sevenhill or from Clare itself, and turn back when the legs say so. Bike hire is available in Clare and Auburn for the second day.

Mintaro, a heritage village a short drive east, has stone cottages and slate buildings from the 19th century and a hedge maze. Martindale Hall, a Georgian mansion outside the village, is open for tours on some days.

Where to stay: Bungaree Station, south-east of Clare, is a merino sheep station founded in 1841, with guests staying in its restored stone shearers' quarters and cottages; a remote, quiet night. Cottages and bed and breakfasts in Clare and Mintaro keep dinner within reach.

Where to eat: Skillogalee, a winery restaurant in the hills near Sevenhill, serves long lunches by a fire in winter. Book ahead, and check days: several valley restaurants close early in the week in the off-season.

Getting to Adelaide Airport

Adelaide Airport (ADL) is about two hours south of Clare by car, via the Horrocks Highway and the Northern Expressway. Allow extra time for traffic through Adelaide's northern suburbs.