ALAN

There's a bit of a story in our family about photos of Alan always showing him walking away.  So on a rainy day in Coral Bay (didn't plan for that!) it seemed like a good time to show the collection so far on this trip.

Natalie and Richard, I know you've been waiting for them.

SMOKY BAY

GREAT AUSTRALIAN BIGHT 

ESPERANCE

ESPERANCE

VALLEY OF THE GIANTS

ELEPHANT ROCKS

CERVANTES

CERVANTES

JURIEN BAY

CORAL BAY

CORAL BAY

And it's still raining, so back to reading and relaxing now!

Merrilyn x

CERVANTES

SUNDAY, MAY 25             AUGUSTA TO CERVANTES

No photos for this bit - nothing interesting to show.

Fortunately, the rain let up enough for us to get packed up and on our way.  We weren’t really sure where we were headed when we left, just north!  The rain started again just after we left Augusta, with some very heavy showers.

This was probably the least interesting day of our travels so far, as we didn’t see anything particularly interesting, and we travelled on the freeway from Bunbury through Perth until the end of that particular road.  This took quite a long time and we were looking for a service station to stop for a toilet break for us and the dogs, and to get some lunch.  There was nothing without going some distance off the freeway for the whole time!  Very poor planning, and they have done such a good job with the railway line running down the centre.  By the time we eventually found somewhere, it was about 2.30.  No happy campers in the touring party at this stage.

We decided to press on, probably with a roadside stop overnight.  These were also a little scarce, so we ended up going into Cervantes having had enough driving for one day. Luckily, the one caravan park was pet friendly. 

We set up, not knowing how long we would stay, and the rain was continuing here so it was all a bit miserable. However things improved later when we went for a little walk to get something for dinner and rain make us seek shelter at the first place offering food.  The Sunday night special at the motel dining area was wood-fired pizza.  They were very good, so after a couple of glasses of bubbly and some good food, things were looking up.  We decided to stay a few days as we have plenty of time in hand before we get to Coral Bay, which is only a couple of days drive from Cervantes.

MONDAY, MAY 26 – THURSDAY, MAY 29   CERVANTES

The rain continued at Cervantes on and off over the next few days. We managed to fit in a few activities between showers (not involving wineries unfortunately).

Just near Cervantes there is a lake called Lake Thetis which has examples of stromatolites.  Don't ask, because I'm still not sure what they are, even after reading the information.  All I know is that they are very old and there are very few places that have them.  

We did see some kangaroos while we were driving back, so it wasn't all a waste of time.

Back at camp later - more rain.

And more threatening clouds over Hanson Bay and the marina.

There are lots of good things about Cervantes and I'm sure it doesn't rain all the time.  The main industry there is rock lobster fishing. Everything there seems to feature rock lobster.  There is a very large Lobster Shack where you can buy lobster, the lobster sandwiches at the servo are apparently very good for breakfast (as proclaimed by some members of the touring party) and the Community Club does a wonderful seafood platter for 2 at $75 featuring ........... you guessed it LOBSTER!!!

Another exciting thing about Cervantes is that you can drive onto the beach.

That is Peter Brown driving along near the water.  And later doing a little bit of fishing at sunset at the same spot.

As with most places on the west coast, the sunsets are worth seeing (and photographing in the hope one will be spectacular).

There just happened to be a plane flying over at sunset which made for an interesting photo.

 

There was no boat ramp at Cervantes with boats having to be launched off the beach. This proved to be a trap for young, inexperienced players who just might have got into a bit of bother and had to be towed out! No names being mentioned but it could have been the male members of the touring party.

Just a bit further north from Cervantes was Jurien Bay, a bit bigger than Cervantes and a boat ramp to launch your boat for those of you fishing folk.

And just so we don't disappoint you by not mentioning food or wine, there was a lovely cafe by the jetty for lunch!

From Cervantes it was northward bound for Coral Bay, via Kalbarri. But more about that next time, boys and girls.

Merrilyn (happily relaxing in Coral Bay) xx

AUGUSTA

MONDAY, MAY 19            DENMARK TO AUGUSTA

Soon after we left Denmark it started to rain, so there wasn’t much sightseeing to be done.  

Too wet to stop at the Gloucester Tree near Pemberton.  We did have a pit stop in Pemberton for refuelling, under great difficulties.  Rain and wind!  There was a bakery and the pie report is that they were good!  Millie enjoyed her sausage roll.

We got to Augusta and pulled in at the first caravan park.  It was called Westbay Retreat.  This was a very different sort of park. The sign at the entrance said choose your own spot and someone will come around the collect the fees.  It was almost like being in the bush, but with amenities.  There were large green grassy areas and plenty of trees.  

The river was just at the end of the park.  

The dogs were able to have plenty of space and we could even have a fire.  The amenities block was very different, rustic but with a lot of charm.  

There were only a couple of other visitors in the park, but quite a large area with permanent cabins.  It proved to be a great spot and we stayed longer than originally intended as it was so good.  

TUESDAY, MAY 20 – SATURDAY, MAY 24   AUGUSTA

It was only about 45 kilometres from Margaret River so handy for day trips. Voyager Estate Winery was a beautiful location for a delicious lunch one day.  

The gardens there were incredible - hundreds of roses still blooming.

There are 6 full time gardeners there to keep everything looking gorgeous.  The lawns were amazing - like a lush green carpet.

Augusta was  a nice little town.  There were enough shops for anything we needed, a pub with a superb view and the location on the river was very attractive.  
The only drawback was the rain.  It kept up, on and off, for the whole time we were there.  We had another day trip to the north of Margaret River.  We stopped off for a coffee break in Cowaramup. They have all these fantastic cows around the town.

 We had gone to Busselton to see the huge jetty, but it was raining so much we didn't fancy the 1.89 kilometre walk out to the end.  

It was a pity as there is an underwater observatory at the end which would have been interesting.
We also stopped off at Yallingup to have a look.  The surf there was pretty scary looking.

After all that sightseeing in the rain, it was time to head for a drier spot.  Oh look, wineries everywhere!  Which one shall we choose?  We chose Cullen Wines, and had a very nice lunch and sampled their $105 chardonnay and $115 red something.  Just sampled them, we had the $35 bottles with lunch.

Finally we had enough of the rain and decided to head a bit further north to get away from it.  

Miss you all.

Merrilyn xx

DENMARK

WEDNESDAY, MAY 14 – SUNDAY, MAY 18 

We were undecided about where to stay next, so we called in to the information centre in Denmark to see what there was to do around the area.  It seemed that there was plenty!  We found the Rivermouth Caravan Park on the mouth of the Denmark River and the start of Wilson Inlet.  

It was a beautiful area and the park was very user friendly.  "Just choose your spot and then come back and tell us where you are" was the instruction at the office.  We found a lovely spot on the bank of the inlet with a bit of scrubby bush for the dogs to scratch around in. 

There were lots of birds on the inlet, pelicans, ducks and several varieties of seabird.  

While we were there the moon was quite spectacular on a couple of nights, with a bit of a "stairway to the moon" happening.

The morning on the inlet wasn't too bad, either!

There was other wildlife in the park as well as all the birds.

Plenty of fish in the inlet and blue swimmer crabs for the taking as well.

Denmark is located amongst green hilly areas and forests of very tall trees.  

Between Denmark and Walpole is the Valley of the Giants with the huge Red Tingle Trees.  These trees are the largest buttressing trees in the world, but have very shallow root systems so they are endangered if lots of people are walking around amongst them. The walkway that has been built through the trees makes it possible to walk amongst them without doing any damage.

Around Denmark there are lots of lovely bays and beaches.  

At Peaceful Bay, you can even drive onto the hard sand on the beach.

At William Bay, there are some spectacular rocks called Elephant Rocks and Greens Pool.

On the way back to Denmark from Walpole, there is a place that grow marron and sell them.  Out the front there is a big marron - one to add to the list if you are visiting big things! 

There are some unusual ones that are bright blue - they don't sell those ones!  

There are lots of wineries and "foodie" places to visit as well. One of them, Ducketts Mill, makes beautiful cheeses.  We had a lovely lunch there with a very large platter of all sorts of goodies, accompanied by a glass or two of wine.  They also had a very nice assortment of specialty chocolates.  We took a few samples home for later.

Another one of the local attractions, The Lake House, was a gorgeous setting for another delicious lunch and a little wine sampling.

So that's Denmark for your enjoyment.  A beautiful part of WA.

Merrilyn xx