25000 Clicks Around

The vast landscape of WA and the amazing contrasts of this state continue to amaze me.

In a matter of days we have gone from the beach to national parks to eucalypt forests. We have been through wine regions we did not know were there and been to little towns that are so far from anywhere else you wonder how people got there in the first place!

Albany is the oldest town in WA and this is reflected in the beautiful buildings. It has the oldest consecrated Anglican Church in WA which has beautiful stain glass windows and you can also find funky little coffee shops that make you feel like you could be in Europe (if you squint and tilt your head a little). The standard of coffee is good is surprisingly good in most places which is a blessing as I hate to pay good money for bad coffee.

From Albany we ventured to Denmark and found that there were some very good wineries in the area. We visited Forest Hill Winery which provided super excellent service that was not pretentious at all. Howard Park winery was also a stand out with good solid wines for reasonable prices. The region was known for its Riesling and cool climate Shiraz which is less peppery than the warm climate Shiraz of the Margarete River.

Esperance

We made our way to Walpole and found a suitable caravan park. We are paying about $24 a night in the caravan parks which is annoying when we know how good the free camps can be. It is however, raining, and it is difficult to camp at free camps in the rain. To get our monies worth we make full use of the camp kitchen and facilities available.

Walpole is situated 5 mins from National Parks. The beaches are mostly NP land and it also stretches to cover the amazing Tingle Tree Forests. The Tingle Trees are so big and the base is often hollowed out. The hollows are so big you can drive a car through it!

The Valley of the Giants Forrest Walk and the Ancient Empire Walk cost $12.50 each and was well worth the cash. It is a tree top walk over 40m off the ground and gives a spectacular view of the Tingle Tree Forrests.

WA has so far been very interesting and it is great to talk to people who are experiencing this state mining boom and its effects; good and bad.

More to come!

Bowden: a little town that was deserted so we camped at the footie oval. Well it was deserted until footie training time! We cooked our diner while watching the AFL boys train.