About 39k south of the quiet seaside town of Streaky Bay stands a rock formation called Murphys Haystacks. The origin of the name is interesting in itself but the rocks or "inselbergs" that are the haystacks are even more fascinating.

Made up of pink [some call it red] Hiltaba granite, so named after a sheep station situated some way north-east, the haystacks have stood on top of the earth in their present form for nearly 34,000 years. This represents an almost immeasurable amount of time in relation to us, as humans, but is actually less than 0.002% of the granites estimated life-span of about 1500 million years.

The "yarn" at the introduction page of this website was actually true, although embellished somewhat to set the scene. The area back then was very remote and many days of horse travel were required to get from town to town on Western Eyre Peninsula.

Even today, standing on the hilltop where the rocks exist, there is a sense of remoteness, a solitude if you will, that humbles any visitor to Murphy's Haystacks. The haystacks themselves stand like silent sentinels, guardians of the view that stretches for miles from atop the hill.

Back then, the region that the haystacks existed in was considered the outback. They are in fact only 39 kilometres south of Streaky Bay, on the Eyre Peninsula's west coast. Even now though, Streaky Bay must still be considered remote in terms of kilometres required to get there.

The story behind the naming of Murphys Haystacks is quite true. Charlie Mudge the mail coach driver did exist [see The Mail Run]. So to the Scottish agricultural advisor whose name, despite a reasonable amount of research, escapes us. The agricultural advisor was certainly in the region, promoting tillage of the country to produce better crop yields.

It is said that the Scotsman knew what the "haystacks" really were and was being flippant. Whatever his reasoning, the land surrounding the haystacks was owned at the time by Denis Drinan Murphy, so "Murphys Haystacks" it became. The name stuck, was passed down through history and is now part of every tourism brochure of the region, even listed on official maps.

This website has been setup to provide you with an insight into one of the most fascinating features of Eyre Peninsula, South Australia. Read about the formation of the rocks in great detail from a world renown geologist or look at some magnificent photographs taken by a variety of visitors to the haystacks. Feel the pioneering spirit as you read the human history behind the story.

We welcome your input and sincerely hope you find your "virtual visit" and perhaps your "personal visit" to Murphys Haystacks as intriguing and as humbling as it was to the thousands before you.

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