Blanchetown, South Australia

Blanchetown is the first town in the Riverland, coming from Adelaide through the beautiful Barossa Valley, and is known as the "Key to the Riverland".

Blanchetown is one of the earliest river settlements and was surveyed in 1855, and named after the wife of the Governor of SA.

There has been access across the river since a private ferry was introduced in 1869 (the Government ran them from 1879), and the first bridge was built in 1963 to replace the ferry system.

Due the introduction of road trains the bridge was soon deemed to be unsafe for heavy vehicles and the current bridge was opened in 1998. This gives Blanchetown the distinction of having two bridges spanning the Murray River.

It is also home to Lock 1, the first of the locks completed in 1922 to keep the Murray River navigable at all times.If you are lucky, you may also see the PS Murray Princess or PS Marion entering the Lock or tied up at the riverfront.

Griffens Marina is located upstream from Lock 1 at 9131 Sturt Highway Paisley and is only 90 minutes from Adelaide, in South Australia, and 3 hours from Mildura, Victoria.

Access to the marina is directly from the Sturt Highway (A20) making our location the most accessible hire houseboat marina from a major traffic route in SA. With such easy access and flat lawned moorings, we really are your number one spot for houseboat holidays.

Our next town upstream is the historic port of Morgan, a very comfortable 6 - 7 hour cruise away, so start your houseboat holiday at the beginning of the unique Riverland region and enjoy all there is to offer in our great stretch of the Murray!

The Murray River in South Australia

The Murray River is the third longest navigable river in the world. It spans three states from its source in the Kosciusko National Park in NSW, through Victoria and South Australia. In South Australia it gently flows to the Murray mouth near Goolwa, where the river meets the Southern Ocean.

The Murray River supports some very unique riverlife including the Murray Cod, Eel tail catfish, long and short neck turtles and the Murray River Crayfish.

Many species of birds live along the Murray and nest in the majestic River Red Gums that line the banks, or in the stunning backwaters and cliff faces along this great waterway.