Walpole - Albany

We left the van at the caravan park and did Hilltop Road scenic loop which leads to the giant 400 year old tingle trees. Unlike other eucalyptus, tingles do not have a taproot. They have a shallow root system that spreads as they grow older, causing the trees to buttress. Not so long ago one huge tree was the main attraction because visitors could take a photograph of their car in the hollowed out base. However, years of people and vehicles trampling around it's base had compacted it's nutrient supply and in 1990, the giant collapsed. To minimize the impact of humans on the tingle trees and to allow for an ever increasing number of visitors a tree top walk was proposed and a competition was held to find the perfect design. We picked up the van and continued to the Valley of the Giants Tree-Top walk. We had a look through the discovery centre and did a guided walk through the ground level Ancient Empire walk. The tingle trees are very different looking with lots of burls and tangled branches. They can have a base circumference of 20m. The 600m tree top walk which was opened in 1996 takes you high into the canopy - 40m at it's highest point. It is designed to sway in the breeze, mimicking life in the tree tops. The view of the trees are amazing. The next stop was the 'Elephant Rock Cider' company where they make a variety of ciders, toffees and sauces but the best thing was the delicious ice creams. We drove through Denmark and decided to continue on to Albany - another 54km.

Walpole

Happy Birthday to Rick! We enjoyed pancakes for breakfast - even though I cooked them. It was quite cool and we had to pull all our jumpers out from the back of the cupboard. Until 1968 this campground was the site of WA's biggest timber mill - a couple of buildings and pine trees are a few reminders of the old settlement. After packing up we did the Great Forest Trees Drive through Shannon N.P. which was mainly karri but also jarrah and marri. We continued on to Walpole and took the scenic drive along Beardmore Rd stopping to do the walk at Fernhook Falls. At Swarbrick we stopped to have a look at the Forest Artwork and 39 metre long 'Wilderness Wall of Perceptions'. Swarbrick forest was a focal point for people who campaigned to preserve these forests for future generations. We drove into Walpole and dropped in at the visitors centre. We decided to stay in Walpole and went to the caravan park at Coalmine Beach. We relaxed the rest of the afternoon and went to the pub for dinner to celebrate Rick's birthday.

Shannon National Park

Dave Evans Bicentennial Tree

Gloucester Tree

We were planning to head towards Pemberton which is surrounded by the karri forests. Stewart Road was still closed due to fires so we were diverted to Nannup. Just before Pemberton we drove part of the Karri Forest Explorer Drive along the Old Vasse Road. The majestic karri trees grow straight up and are the third tallest trees in the world (after the sequoias and Victorian mountain ash). They can reach heights of 90 metres and can live to an average of 300 years. Thankfully, in February 2001 after many years of campaigning the WA government ended logging in all old-growth forests. We stopped at the Dave Evans Bicentennial Tree which is one of three fire tower lookouts and the tallest at 68m. When fire spotter planes were introduced in the early 1970s the lookout trees were opened to the public. I was quite amazed at this as it is only laddered with a daunting metal spiral stairway that winds it's way all the way up to the top. Rick was keen to climb as was I but chickened out as I didn't like the thought of coming down. Rick completed it and said he didn't particularly like the feeling and felt like he was suffering a little vertigo. We drove into Pemberton and stopped at the visitors centre before heading to Gloucester National Park and another lookout - the Gloucester Tree. We did a couple of short walks and continued onto Shannon National Park where we decided to camp for the night.

Margaret River

The Berry Farm

Colonial Brewary

Voyager Estate

Our gourmet food and wine tasting tour of the region began at the Berry Farm where you can taste and buy a delicious range of mustards, preserves, vinegars and dressings. We had morning tea at the cafe - berry smoothies and scones with jam! The kids loved feeding the birds. The next stop was the shell museum which was quite bizarre - this man had collected shells from all over the world spanning the last 65 years and displayed them in his home and charged people to look at them. Further north we found the Margaret River Chocolate Company - a huge range of products from chocolate lip balm to after dinner mint flavored massage oil. Caitlin and I shared some rocky road and Cooper and Rick sampled some truffles - yum! Then on to the lolly shop at Cowaramup. Next stop was the Colonial Brewing Company which had a fantastic playground for the kids. Rick and I shared a sampling paddle. We were keen to find an olive grove and stumbled across 37 degrees South. We sampled the different oils and had to stop the kids from eating all the olives. We bought a couple of big tubs of olives and continued on to Voyager Estate a large vineyard with beautifully manicured rose gardens. We did a little wine tasting and the kids tried the grape juice in small wine glasses (not sure if that's a good thing or not) - all good fun. We bought a couple of bottles and then drove onto Margaret River Township and went for a walk down the main street. We decided to head back to the campsite for the Sunday spit-roast. Kevin and Shelly had invited all the campers to the spit-roast. It was a great turn out - everyone brought a salad or dessert and placed it in the middle to share.

Augusta - Margaret River

We headed towards the small township of Augusta and drove out to Cape Leeuwin, the most southwesterly point of Australia. We went for a stroll around the lighthouse which opened in 1896 and is the tallest on the mainland. It is at this peninsula that the Indian and Southern Oceans meet. After taking in the views we checked out the historic waterwheel and headed back into town to the bakery for lunch. From the latest reports the fires in the Margaret River area were under control and the cooler weather meant further outbreaks shouldn't be an issue so we decided to double back and spend a couple of nights exploring the region. We found the Big Valley campground which is on a large sheep farm owned by Kevin and Shelley. It was a great spot and the owners were very welcoming. We met another family with four kids so we didn't see Caitlin and Cooper for the rest of the afternoon.

Boranup National Park

Busselton Jetty

We walked back across to the Dolphin Centre just after 8am. There were a few dolphins quite a distance off the beach. We were about to head off when a pod came in quite close, obviously feeding on a large school of fish which all the comorants were also diving for. They were a few metres off shore but weren't interested in coming in real close. We finished packing up and decided to head to Busselton which lies on the shores of Geographe Bay. Sadly over 30 houses had been lost in the fires west of the Margaret River township. We went to the visitors centre to get advice on the areas we should be avoiding because of the fires. The Bussell Hwy was open and we were advised it would be safe to travel to and camp at Bornup N.P. which is 40km south of Margaret River township. Busselton is a popular destination for school leavers and the weekend was expected to be busy. The towns main attraction appears to be the 146 year old jetty measuring 1841 metres. You can catch a train to the end for $35 or walk for $10. We decided to walk and went about halfway. Back in the car we headed south along the Bussell Hwy. There was quite a bit of smoke around when driving through Margaret River but the town seemed like it was business as usual - we didn't think it would be appropriate to stop. We continued on to Boranup and found a fantastic camping spot in the middle of the Karri forests and best of all no traffic noise. We left the van and drove across to Hamelin Bay for a look. After dinner we had a campfire and cooked some marshmallows.

Bunbury

We were concerned about heading into the Margaret River region after reports of a large scale bushfire that was out of control. Of course we were more concerned for the residents in the affected areas. Rick took the car into 'Chip It' the company whom he had bought the last performance chip from to see if they could sort out a few issues. We left Perth around 10.30 and headed to Bunbury - just under 200km. We checked in at the Big 4 on Koombana Bay. Bunbury is quite a big town but the main attraction seems to be the dolphins which regularly feed in the inner harbour. We walked across to the Dolphin Discovery Centre. The kids enjoyed the touch pool and various tanks with turtles, sea-horses and fish. There was no sign of the dolphins in the harbour so we decided to come back in the morning. We headed to the supermarket. It was pretty clear we weren't going to be catching up on sleep - we were only metres from a busy road.

Fremantle

We promised the kids we would take them back to Kings Park to visit Naturescape a whole section of bushland for kids to get back to nature by exploring, climbing, wading through creeks building cubbies and just getting dirty. It was only recently opened and a brilliant concept, especially so close to the city. Caitlin & Cooper had a great time even though it was 37 degrees! We drove to Fremantle and had a leisurely lunch at Gino's and had a wander around the shops and a few historic buildings. We went across to the port to get a closer look at the Endeavour and across to the Maritime Museum. It was too late to go in but it was interesting reading all the messages on the welcome walls which pay tribute to the millions of migrants who arrived in Fremantle by sailing ship, steam ships, naval vessel and ocean liner depending on the period of travel. I explained to the kids that when Grandma and Grandpa were only a little older than them they left their home in England and The Netherlands and travelled by ship with their families to come to Australia arriving in Fremantle. It made me think about what a huge journey it would of been for their families - uprooting and confronting an unknown future somewhere so very different socially and culturally to their own. We decided it was time for a swim so we drove to Cottesloe Beach - it seems everyone had the same idea on such a warm night. We watched the sunset and headed back taking a quick detour to Kings Park to get a view of the city at night.

Rottnest Island

It was really windy overnight. It is not a great caravan park for sleeping - the airport is close and we seem to be surrounded by backpackers who stay up to all hours. We had to meet the bus at the front at 7am to take us to the ferry terminal. The ferry trip down the Swan River included a commentary. Rottnest island was named late in 1696 by the Dutch explorer Willem de Vlamingh who called it "Rotte-nest" meaning rats' nest, mistaking the quokkas for huge rats. The island is car free and cycling around is very popular. We decided to get a bus ticket for the Bayseeker which is a jump-on, jump-off service and does an hourly loop around the island. The bus was very crowded - thankfully we didn't have to go too far. We spent an hour at the very picturesque Salmon Bay where we had a quick dip. We were feeling a bit rushed and we felt it would have been better to stay overnight however we had been advised that it would be busy with school leavers'. Our next stop to the Wadjemup Lighthouse where we did a tour which allowed us to walk to the top for 360 degree views of the island. Walking back down the hill we sighted our first quokkas which were very cute. Back at Thompson Bay we spent some time walking around the museum and convict built buildings. From 1838 to 1903 the island was established as a prison for Aborigines from the mainland. Caitlin & Cooper enjoyed hanging out with the quokkas. We had to get back on the ferry at 4pm. We arrived back at the caravan park after 7 - another big day.

Adventure World

We decided to let Caitlin & Cooper choose what they would like to do today and they came up with Adventure World. It is a theme park located 20 minutes from Perth and includes water slides and thrill rides. It was a great day largely because there weren't many people around and we didn't have to queue up for anything. Cooper's favorite was the Pirate Ship and Caitlin's was the Aqua Racer.

Perth

Bell Tower

Perth Mint

It was a beautiful sunny 28 degrees - perfect for a taking in the sights of Perth. We drove to Kings Park and then bought a ticket for the City Sightseeing double decker bus which you can hop on and off at various locations. We thought it would be a novel way for the kids to enjoy the city attractions. There were lots of building projects underway including a new entertainment centre, underground railway and residential development. Our first stop was Barrack Square on the river which is also where the ferry terminals are located. The very modern Bell Tower contains bells dating from the 16th century from London's St Martin-in-the-Fields church. The bells were given to the people of Western Australia to commemorate Australia's bicentenary in 1988. There were great views from the 6th floor and the kids enjoyed watching a group who were practising playing. We went for a walk along the esplanade and caught the bus to the Perth Mint where we did a tour to watch a gold pouring demonstration and discover the value of our weight in gold. The mint was founded as a colonial branch of Britain's Royal Mint in June 1899 to refine gold discovered in WAs eastern goldfields and turn it into sovereigns. Today it produces precious metal and commemorative coins. After completing the city tour which took us out to the Burswood Entertainment Complex and other various points of interest we went back to Kings Park and did the Tree-Top walkway and botanic gardens. We all think Perth is a very impressive city. It has a very laid back atmosphere and the pristine parklands are amazing.

Perth

We arrived in Perth around 1.00pm and decided to stay at the most central caravan park which is in Ascot. After setting up we drove into the city and went to the Visitor Centre in the middle of town to get some info. We then headed out to Kings Park located on Mt Eliza. The 400 hectares of bushland and manicured gardens is just amazing with numerous walkways, playgrounds and picnic areas. We did the walk along the cliff edge which looks over the city and Swan River and ended up at the War Memorial and cafe for regulation ice-creams.

Jurien Bay

Lesueur NP

The Pinnacles

The day started with the battle of the journal writing. We then drove out to Lesueur National Park where a one-way 18.5km loop road takes you through the park. The area is home to one of the most diverse range of wildflower, with more than 900 different species. The best time to view them of course is in spring but there were still a bit of colour around. Rick was finding it hard to contain his excitement! We stopped at the Wilson Lookout and did the 2.1 km bushwalk opting out of the 4 km walk to the summit of Mt Lesueur. It was actually lovely doing a walk in temperatures below 35 degrees. From there we drove to the crayfishing town of Cervantes and had lunch at the foreshore park. 17km from the town is Namburg National Park where rising mysteriously from the sand dunes are thousands of limestone pillars. We had a look through the Discovery Centre and did the 1.2km walk through the Pinnacles Desert. We had a good game of 'hide and seek' and then did the loop drive. Back at the van Cooper was excited to find some other children to play with.