Kings Around Oz

On our drive down to Pemberton we stopped off at the Beedelup National Park. The walk here got our blood pumping as we walked up a steep incline to reach the Walk Through Tree. This is a huge Karri tree that has a hollowed out trunk that you can walk through, hence the original name! We were all amazed at the size of the trees in this forest. We continued our walk around Beedelup Lake and to the Beedelup Falls. This was a nice little waterfall and you crossed over the river via the suspension bridge, much to Haydan’s horror who did not enjoy Glen’s attempts to sway the bridge! It was then on to Pemberton where this time we found a great camp behind a chocolate shop! For our first day of exploring, we went on the Pemberton Tramway that took us on a journey through the forests and over 3 bridge crossings to get to The Cascades. We enjoyed a stop here where you could go for a short walk and take some photos before heading back to Pemberton on the train. It was a very enjoyable morning but the day was about to get better as we had been given a great tip from the lady at the visitors centre that the Lavender and Berry Farm was the place to go for pancakes. This was a very good tip as we all enjoyed the best pancakes with berry sauce ever! They were the biggest pancakes we had ever seen and we only ordered the small ones! While we were here we also walked around the gardens a feed the alpacas. We were not allowed to feed the ponies as there was a sign to say that they were too fat! There was one alpaca that was a very big guts so Emmalisa thought she would go over to the other alpaca and feed it but as she got close, it spat at her. We all found it very funny, but Emmalisa, not so much! With very full bellies we then went to the Gloucester Tree. Before they introduced spotter planes there was a network of 18 fire lookout tree towers. Foresters would sit at the top of these trees and scan for smoke to send an alert of a fire. The Gloucester Tree was used as a lookout tree up until 1952. It is now a tourist attraction and you can climb the 53m to the top on little metal pegs with not safety equipment! Sadly the tree was closed for maintenance when we got there so we couldn’t climb it (phew!) We then found out there was another one you can climb and Glen and Emmalisa were keen, but we thought we would save that for another day. We returned home via Big Brook Dam. We were all very excited to see some Maron in the dam as this is a local delicacy that sells for big dollars! There are restrictions on these so they got to live another day in the dam.

The next day in Pemberton we went on a 4WD track called Heart Break Trail which takes you through the Warren National Park where you get to see the impressive giants of the South West, a place where some of the Karri Trees can grow up to 90m high and are about 200 years old. As we drove along the road, we came to a tree that had fallen over. The sheer size and weight of it as it fell down the side of the valley dragged it across the road and it was now ‘resting’ on the steep slope of the valley on the other size of the road. It was mind boggling to think of the sheer size of a tree like that coming down and coming to rest meters away from where it fell. At the end of this trail you get to the Bicentennial Tree this is another one of the fire tower trees that was used as a lookout except this one is 65m tall and is the tallest climbing tree in the world! Once again you can risk your life as you climb the little metal pegs on the side of the tree with absolutely no safety equipment. Glen and Emmalisa were keen and much to Laura’s rising anxiety levels they headed up the tree. They made it all the way to the first platform which was 21m above the ground. It was at this point commonsense prevailed and they made there way back down. Laura was very glad to have them back down safely on the ground! While we were there Pat Callinan from 4x4 Adventures was filming a story, so we got a behind the scenes look at filming a story like this.

The following day we went for a drive down to Northcliff. It was nice drive but when we got to Northcliff almost everything was shut. The local historic museum was open so we had a look through here and there was a documentary playing that showed how they cut down the huge trees back in the logging days. This was fascinating to watch and it was a wonderful display of how hard the foresters worked in those days. We then went to look at the Hollowbutt Karri Tree which is a big hollow in a tree that back in the day people used to get photos of there cars backed into the hollow. On the way home we stopped at the Brockman Sawpits. These were used in the logging days where the foresters would place the log over the pit and one man would be on top of the log and one man would be in the pit and that was how they cut through these massive trees! We just could not get over how hard they worked and how hard the work was back in the early pioneering days. After yet another busy and freezing cold day we thought it was only fitting to finish the day with some hot chocolates from the shop we were staying behind. We got to select our chocolate and they put the choc chips in the bottom of your cup and then fill it with hot milk and you stir it until the chocolate melts. This was a great way to finish our time in Pemberton.

The Walk Through Tree at Beedelup National Park

Beedelup Falls

The Pemberton Train and one of the bridge crossings

On the Pemberton Train

At The Cascades

Now that's a pancake!

Glen made friends with the Alpacas

On the Heart Break Trail drive....yes it was cold!

The tree that fell and was dragged across the road and down the valley due to its size and weight

Glen and Emmalisa climbing the Bicentennial Tree

They made it to the first platform

The Hollowbutt Karri Tree and the Brockman Saw Pits

Enjoying a hot chocolate after a cold day exploring

Busselton, Margaret River and Nannup

When leaving Perth we realised we weren’t going to be able to do it all but we were not prepared for how much there is to do in the South West. We just called into Bunbury for a day stop and had a little look at the Dolphin Discovery Centre but the kids were more impressed with the park that had a flying fox and a water station to play with. That night we did a free camp with the resident ‘boxing kangaroo’ that likes to roam the campsite in the hope for food. The next day we made our way to Busselton and found a great camp in a paddock at a Lawn Farm! From here we were able to explore what this area had to offer. Of course, a trip to Busselton is not complete without a trip down the 1.8km long jetty on the little train! Once you reach the end of the Jetty you get off the train and explore the underwater observatory. This is a building that is underwater and allows you to look at the marine life and stay warm and dry. We learnt that all the sea life that has grown on the pylons on building has formed naturally, and that the observatory has just provided a place for them to grow. The colours were amazing and it was pretty awesome to stand at the window where the tide line was and see the waves rolling on top and the fish swimming just below. Once we finished at the observatory it was back on the train to get back to the start of the jetty. At the Information Centre there was also the Ballarrat Room that we went to look at. This is the history of rail in the Busselton area and how the town has now preserved the original train that used to haul the timber from the Busselton area. The Ballarrat is now on display with many stories about its history and families that used to play on it when it was just parked up after it had be decommissioned. While in Busselton we also went and explored the Origins Markets, and we were able to taste some local produce and we managed to find some Banh Mi rolls!

We spent another day exploring the coastline around Busselton. We spent the day going to the Cape Naturaliste Lighthouse where we went on a nice walk around the headland and then went to see the Lighthouse. The wind was blowing a gale and it was freezing! On our way home we continued to follow the coastline and stopped in at Castle Rock, Bunker Bay and many other beautiful beaches. After teasing Emmalisa all day with these beautiful beaches, we let her have a swim in the afternoon, but even she admitted it was a bit cold.

We also had a go at Archery while we were in Busselton. This was something different that we hadn’t done before, and we had a great time. Glen was the clear winner on the day, but Haydan and Emmalisa also did very well. It was a bit of a test of strength for Emmalisa as it is quite hard to pull the bow string back far enough to release the arrow. As for Laura, it is fair to say that archery is not her sport. Her aim was very off and more often than not she had to rely on the directions from Glen to tell her where to aim (otherwise the arrows were all heading well into the bush!) When we got back the instructors did say that for some people the brain plays tricks on you when you close one eye to aim. This made Laura feel a bit better as she thought there was something seriously wrong with her eyesight!

The weather was not always kind to us in Busselton, there was one morning when we started cooking bacon and eggs for breakfast and then it started to rain! So that morning we were cooking breakfast under a beach umbrella! Overnight it was also very cold so we all got out the warm PJs and thermals! Despite this we enjoyed our time here.

It was then on to Margaret River, and as we were driving through this region it was very clear that we were in a wine region. It felt like we passed a winery every few kilometres! On our way into Margaret River, we stopped off at Canal Rocks. This is a natural rock formation that over time the tide and ocean currents have worn away canals in the rocks. You can go for a walk over one of the canals via a little bridge then you can walk along the rocks to explore the other canals. From here we then went to explore Injidup Natural Spa. This is once again where nature shows its beauty and creates a natural spa as the waves flow into the rockpool. We then continued on our way into Margaret River via the Chocolate Shop! We enjoyed some afternoon tea compliments of the samples and looked at all the amazing and delicious chocolates. This was put on the list as a place we need to come back to, but we needed to find a place to stay so we kept moving. We did find another great place to stay, this time it was in a paddock at a winery and came complete with ‘our own dog, A.J’! (the dog that lives at the winery) A.J camped with us for 2 nights before his owners took him to Perth with them! There were also horses in the paddock, and we were so excited to find out that one of the horses was pregnant! We were told that she would have the foal in a few weeks. You can imagine how excited we all were when we went to visit the horses one morning and there was the foal with his mother only hours old! As you can guess, we spent some time at the fence watching the mother and her foal!

While at the winery Glen and Laura did a wine tasting but not being wine drinkers found the information and conversation about wine more enjoyable than the wine itself. The next day we went and explored some to the surf beaches that Margaret River is so famous for. It was fascinating watching the surfers at the surf breaks catch the waves and ride them in. That day they were also doing some controlled burns in the area and a thick blanket of smoke came over the town and it became quite dark and eerie. So, we decided to go to Lake Cave and do the cave tour. This one is the smaller of the 4 caves that you can explore but we were fascinated to learn about the cave environment and how they are formed and continue to live and grow today. We had fun playing the guessing game with the guide and try to guess the shapes in the rocks, I must say we were pretty good at that game. The tour then finished with a light show in the cave to highlight its features.

We also went back and retraced our steps from the first day as we wanted to check out the Spa Pool again and of course Emmalisa wanted to have a swim there. We then went back to the chocolate shop to check that the samples were still alright, but we also bought a selection of the chocolates to try for dessert. As we made our way home, we went for a walk through a quaint little town called Cowaramup or as it is more affectionately known, ‘Cowtown’. We enjoyed a yummy lunch at a bakery and browsed the little shops.

The next day was a big day as we drove down to Cape Leeuwin Lighthouse. On the way there we stopped off at Hamelin Bay where the Stingrays come right up close to the shore, and you can get close enough to pat them! It was amazing to see them interact with us. We then continued on to the light house and the first thing we looked at was the old water wheel that was built to supply the lighthouse keepers with fresh water. The ingenuity that necessity brought about in those times is to be admired, a lot can be learnt from our pioneers. Unfortunately when we got to the lighthouse we found out we couldn’t climb it due to maintenance being done. We could walk around the precinct and we learnt a lot about a lighthouse keepers life at the interpretive centre. We were also able to go to the point where the Southern Ocean meets the Indian Ocean. As it seems all lighthouses are built on windy points so after a windswept look at the lighthouse, we made our way back via Augusta and picked up some local whiting for dinner. Of course, when Emmalisa saw the water a Flinders Bay, she just had to have a swim. This was a beautiful bay and protected from the wind.

On our last morning in Margaret River, we went to the Rotary Park and the little heritage village and learnt about the community camps that were set up for the migrants that came to make a new life in Australia. With so much to see and do in the South West we had to move on and we continued on to Nannup. Just before we got to Nannup we stopped off at Workers Pool and Barrabup Pool. These are in the National Park and are there from the days of the Timber Mills when the area was bustling with workers and their family. Workers Pool was where the timber mill families and workers got to go for a swim and relax but Barrabup Pool was just for the timber mill manager and his family to use. We then went to Nannup and called in to see an artist that showed us his work and he spoke to Emmalisa about how he creates his artwork. That afternoon we enjoyed once again looking at all the quaint little shops and in one upstairs gallery we lost track of time, and the owner nearly locked us in the shop as she was heading home. She said we were so quite she thought we had left! The next morning, we went for a walk along the Blackwood River and were blown away by the flood markers that were on a tree. In 1982 the flood mark nearly reached to top of the tree, and it looks like the bridge would have also gone under. It was a nice little walk along the river but after a brief stop here we continued on to Pemberton.