Post by Tim
After a few days in Perth we set off to to explore the Southern part of WA. From Perth we drove through Fremantle and along the coast through 'Mandurah' (nice spot) and camped on the lake which is part of Peel Inlet. This was two days to get back into camping mode and make sure everything was in order. It rained on and off for the two nights but it wasn't too bad.
From here we made our way to 'Bunbury' where I had the car booked in for a service. I had also been nursing a stuffed steering rack in the car for a while so now I was out of the rip off zone of the Kimberly's and the Pilbara it was probably time to get it fixed. So two more days bunkered down in a motel binge watching some of our favourite tv series and we again headed off. By this time everything was in order for the final 2 months of the trip.
The coastline from Perth all the way to 'Dunsborough' wasn't anything special with dirty water and sea grass littering the beaches. From 'Dunsborough west to 'Cape Naturaliste' was a different story though with stunning beaches and rolling hills running straight down to the ocean.
'Eagle Bay' in 'Meelup Regional Park'.
The lighthouse area at 'Cape Naturaliste'.
From here we made our way to 'Margaret River' via 'Yallingup' and Caves Rd.
The town of 'Margaret River' (above and below).
We camped for two nights in Margaret River and spent a full day on a winery tour sampling some of the regions wineries, breweries, and chocolate.
Our host offered up a nice big Witchetty Grub for one lucky person. It wasn't either of us!
The Cheeky Monkey Brewery.
Although we did get moments of blue sky, it was overcast and pretty windy most of the time so we didn't spend much time on the coast around Margaret River.
The following day we set of towards the 'Southern Forests Region' but stopped off at a couple of other wineries along the way.
Our first stop was 'Cape Leeuwin' Lighthouse on the south west tip of Australia where the Indian Ocean meets the Southern Ocean. It was blowing about 40knots and raining on and off so we didn't worry about walking to the lighthouse. Oh and they want to charge you to walk in the gate.
From here we made our way to 'Pemberton' in the Southern Forests region.
After being in the north for so long with basically no trees, running rivers, or green grass, it was a nice change to be surrounded by forest.
Our first night, we camped just outside of town in the 'Big Brook Arboretum', close to Big Brook Dam. Great spot to camp and as its a local park, it's basically free to camp there.
The following day we drove to the 'Gloucester Tree' which is one of 3 climbing trees used by the fire service to spot bush fires (back in the day). We were completely shocked that the council allows the public to climb these trees considering there is zero safety precautions like harnesses and safety lines. Surely this is a tragedy waiting to happen but we were stoked to be able to do it.
The highest point is 61m.
We made it! Now to climb back down.
The view from the top towards the coast.
After the climb we set off on the mapped "Karri Forest Explorer" drive which is a loop through the forest including sections in the 'Greater Beedelup National Park', 'Gloucester NP', and the 'Warren NP'.
Big Brook Dam, just outside of the the town.
We made our way through the Karri forests on bitumen and dirt roads with a small detour to the town of 'Manjimup' (not much happening here).
Once out of the 'Greater Beedelup NP' we also made a small detour down to the Donnelly River via the Boat Landing Rd. This road follows 'Carey Brook' which feeds into the Donnelly.
Carey Brook is a very interesting creek which could have come straight from the movie set of Harry Potter or similar movies. Three easily accessible spots are named 'Grasstree Hollow', 'Snottygobble Loop', and 'Goblins'.
You can camp at all the spots other than Goblins which is a walk only. Goblins is by far the most interesting and unique (and scary if you're Kristy, lol). Within a dark swamp like section there are countless twisted trees growing straight out of the water. Not sure how they end up like this but you can't help imagining you are in one of those movies where the swamp and trees come alive. Crazy spot!
Snottygobble camping area.
At the end of the road you reach the river which is pretty stunning and teeming with life.
Back out on the 'Vasse Highway' we headed back towards Pemberton and the final section of the drive through the 'Warren National Park'.
Emus beside the road, driving through the Karri Valley.
The final section of the 'Karri Forest Explorer' was through the Warren. You take 'Old Vasse Rd' and then turn onto the 'Heartbreak Trail'. This section follows the 'Warren River' through an awesome valley. There are two camping areas along the road called 'Drafty's' and 'Warren Campsite'. We camped at Drafty's amongst the forest and beside the river although the Warren Campsite has better access and a boardwalk to the river.
The Warren River.
The next day, we continued the drive through the valley.
Warren Lookout looking up the valley.
Once back on Old Vasse Road you come to the 'Dave Evans Bicentennial Tree' which is the tallest of the tree climbing trees. It reaches a maximum hight of 75m and has 3 platforms linked by ladders reaching far above the main pegs. Again, how this it allowed in this day with no safety precautions is astonishing.
About 1/3 of the way up.
The view from the top was incredible although the wind came up and a storm started rolling in just as we began our decent. The tree was swaying a bit but we managed to make it down just in time before it started bucketing down.
From here we drove south all the way to 'Denmark' via 'Northcliffe' and the 'Shannon National Park'. The weather remained rainy and cold all day so we didn't venture out of the car much.
Middleton Road.
We did a short "Scenic Drive" through part of the 'Shannon NP' along the way and came across a male Emu with 4 chicks in the middle of the road. After trailing them for around 3km they simply would not stop running down the middle of the road. With no other choice I drove around them and the male and the chicks got separated for a while. This was pretty cool to see although it seems like Emus are incredibly stupid as they bolt in front of the car right at the last minute, turn around and then do it again. I have had so many very close calls this trip. I don't know how I have managed to miss them all.
Oops, the first car incident in over 20,000km. I accidentally backed over a sign which jumped out at me. It's pretty hard to see out of the back windscreen sometimes with the car stacked full of gear. No damage luckily. The tow bar took the force.
So green around here after all the rain. Just north of Walpole near the 'Mt Franklin'.
The inlet at Walpole. Almost a blue sky there finally.
Late that afternoon we did the tree top walk in the Valley of the Giants just east of Walpole. At $15 per person this was good but in my opinion it had nothing on actually climbing one of the fire trees and driving through the Pemberton area. If I was to give advice on the best part of the forest, I would recommend the 'Warren NP'. It was the best for many reasons.
Another character from Harry Potter. Lol
As it was really cold and wet, we stayed in a room at the Denmark Hotel that night. We couldn't handle camping. From here we drove all the way to 'Esperance'. The weather again turned on us and there wasn't much time out of the car.
The mouth if the inlet at Denmark. That's surfers in the water. Stuff that!
'West Cape Howe', just east of 'Denmark'.
The mouth of the inlet at 'Albany'.
From here it was a relatively nice drive through rolling west farms all the way to Esperance. There are plenty of great places to explore down this way but due to the weather and needing to pick up the pace a bit, we decided to keep moving. A return visit sometime in Autumn or Summer would be nice.
After another night in a budget cabin due to the weather, we woke to a perfect day.
Next post.... Esperance to Port Augusta, along the beach and across the Nullarbor.
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