General: Western Australia

This opinion will take on a slightly different style to my recent travel opinions as instead of a guidebook style op this will take a more travelogue description of my 10-day, 3500km-road trip of Western Australia. I should probably mention that it is by far the longest opinion I've written on the site so be warned.

My adventure began as weary and slightly hung over on a Saturday morning myself and my two intrepid companions dragged ...
...conveyance of choice (well actually it was the cheapest) a one year old gleaming white Toyota Corolla 1.8 which is quite simply in terms of looks and performance, the worlds most boring car. The only interesting thing about it was the yellow sticker on the doors that had the company’s obscure and unfathomable slogan of "No Birds" on it.

After several confusing moments of trying to fathom out Perth abundance of one ... more

This opinion will take on a slightly different style to my recent travel opinions as instead of a guidebook style op this will take a more travelogue description of my 10-day, 3500km-road trip of Western Australia. I should probably mention that it is by far the longest opinion I've written on the site so be warned.

My adventure began as weary and slightly hung over on a Saturday morning myself and my two intrepid companions dragged ourselves down to Bayswater Car Rental in Perth. Our conveyance of choice (well actually it was the cheapest) a one year old gleaming white Toyota Corolla 1.8 which is quite simply in terms of looks and performance, the worlds most boring car. The only interesting thing about it was the yellow sticker on the doors that had the company’s obscure and unfathomable slogan of "No Birds" on it.

After several confusing moments of trying to fathom out Perth abundance of one way roads I finally managed to navigate the car onto the highway heading north, our destination Geraldton a town some 422km away. About an hour after we set off we cleared the suburbs of Perth and two things very quickly became apparent, firstly that Australia is an enormous place and secondly that there really aren't many people in WA.

It was not rare that we would drive for hours without seeing another vehicle. The black asphalt stretching as far as the eye can see tinged on either side with the red soil that gives way to the seemingly endless outback is a formidable sight and one that even allowing for the corner less roads remains captivating in its desolate beauty. Enough though of my attempts at lyrical prose and back to the road trip, after a stop for lunch at a stereotyped road house somewhere in the vast expanse of emptiness we rattled off the last couple of hundred kilometres up to Geraldton at high speed (well Toyota allowing).

We eventually made it to Geraldton sometime in the early evening and although with a population of some 25,000 it is one of Western Australia's larger towns it seemed remarkably quite when compared with the metropolis of Perth. The YHA was a hospitable enough place with a distinctly family feel but bar a few pints of Guinness in the Freemason's hotel we found little of excitement in the nightlife of Geraldton and thus headed for the amazing Auzzie institution of the bottle shop.

A quick aside here on this subject, throughout the country is the more than a little worrying existence of drive through bottle shops... effectively like a McDonalds style off licence that seem all the more bizarre when positioned next to a police warning about drink driving?! Australia is certainly a strange country... never the less a 12 pack of Carlton Cold was bought and consumed in the hostel before a relatively early night.

A brief flick through the Lonely Planet guidebook before we left revealed that Geraldton has a “captivating museum” which we decided we should probably check out before continuing our northern migration. After a considerable amount of confusion over its whereabouts we found that it had in fact closed down and decidedly uncaptivated it seemed an auspicious time to move on.

The aim of day two was to cruise up to Denham, the closest town to Shark Bay and the Monkey Mia tourist resort which is famous, predominantly, for the presence and regular appearance of dolphins. Denham is the most westerly town in Australia and sadly this is perhaps the most interesting and exciting thing about it. It is a town seemingly trapped in a time warp, containing two pubs, the first we ventured into contained a Crocodile Dundee hatted old crooner banging out some disturbingly dated country and western.

The second was more lively (but then so are morgues) and was a ramshackle place that seemed a wonderfully cliched example of an outback pub. It seemed that many of the towns local population were present and of those most were already blind drunk by the time we turned up, one punter in particular was barely intelligible, had considerable trouble standing but somehow through his swaying managed to play a blinding game of pool. The over used expression that “you’ll meet some real characters” takes on a whole new meaning in Oz, and between the locals and Brad, a “chef” from the same desolate roadhouse we stopped at (who seemed, at best, to have a tenuous grip on his sanity), the evening was entertaining in a strange almost surreal way.

After two days on the road it definitely seemed time to actually see something of the sights rather than merely the endless miles of road and Monkey Mia provided the wonderful spectacle of seeing dolphins being fed. The place is another fine example of how well the Australians look after their tourist industry with knowledgable park rangers divulging dolphin related facts and regaling stories whilst the eager crowd stand a few feet into the sea watching the magnificent creatures glide past. Several relaxing hours later and full of an array of dolphin related trivia it was time to return to the North-West Coastal Highway and head south to the Kalbarri and the lure of it’s scenic national park.

Before we left the Shark bay area a visit to Hamelin Bay to take in the Stromatolites. Stromies, as the Aussies like to call them are one of the earliest forms of life on earth and previously covered much of the earths surface they were responsible for the current levels of the atmospheric oxygen and hence the existence of life on earth. Impressive stuff but in all honesty it is only the idyllic and accessible location that makes viewing these microscopic wonders worth a visit. So onward to Kalbarri.

Kalbarri is another small town but it had a more vibrant feel than Denham (which is hardly surprising) did, this is due, in no small part, to a far greater number of backpackers. Sadly we missed out on the experience of eating at Finley뭩 Fresh Fish BBQ which is renowned in the area as a great night out with Gargantuan size portions as for some obscure reason it doesn’t open on Mondays. Our next choice was the intriguing Kalbarri Palm Resort which the Lonely Planet guidebook claimed was a restaurant cinema … this was apparently no longer the case but the food was plentiful and the wine flowed so the absence of a movie was not too keenly missed. It was however another of the plethora of errors that are present in the guidebook and highlighted for us the importance of not over relying on a our two year old Lonely Planet.

The fourth day of our trip promised to be the most interesting as we had traded in clocking up the kilometres for a place on a canoe tour in Kalbarri National Park. Our congenial guide for the day, Davo, collected us at about seven in the morning and it quickly became apparent that we were in for a great day. Not only was he equipped with the traditional bush style hat so that he looked the part but it was obvious that he had an impressive local knowledge and a wicked sense of humour. Our excursion into the park took us to The Loop, the first of two dramatic gorges that have been cut into the landscape by the Murchison River, the second the Z-Bend is no less impressive. The high iron content of the rocks endowed them with a redness that contrasted magnificently with the clear blue sky.

After much of the morning was spent clambering around and admiring the views we finally descended down to the river for a leisurely two-hour canoe. As Davo had wisely said canoeing is a far better way of taking in the surroundings than walking where it is necessary to keep your gaze pointed at your feet to avoid falling on your arse. Canoeing allowed us all the time in the world to admire the dazzling views and revel in the serenity of the gorge. Amazing.

After our canoe trip during the walk back to the bus we finally got to see our first live hopping kangaroo which made a pleasant change from the plethora of roadkill roo that adorn the edges of the highways. So it was with an elated feeling of having experienced something of the Australian outback that we headed back to our hostel for a few bottles of beer and an early night prior to our onward trip to Cervantes and the Pinnacles desert.

After a shorter journey than usual we descended on the small town of Cervantes. As we turned up around mid-afternoon it seemed an excellent idea to head into the nearby national park and watch the sun set over the bizarre spectacle of the Pinnacles desert. It truly is a remarkable sight as rising up out of the yellow desert sand are a multitude of thin rock pillars ranging from a few centimetres to five metres in height. The descending sun gives the Pinnacles a purplish haze and the lengthening shadows gave the whole area a beautiful haunting appeal. I could best describe it as a cartoon graveyard on acid if that helps at all. It was certainly well worth remaining an extra day north of Perth to take them in and to find a signpost that directed us to the superb and aptly named Hangover Bay (yes I do have a picture). Most appropriate. Unfortunately due to a huge drive that loomed the next day and Cervantes distinctly uninspiring nightlife another early night was in order.

The long long drive to Albany on the south coast took up the majority of the day, as we did not arrive until late afternoon having set off fairly early. Throughout the day the more barren and dusty landscape of northern WA gradually became the more densely vegetated and forested regions of the south. The possible tedium of such a journey was rudely interrupted when whilst overtaking a 50m plus road train it decided to pull out and emergency manoeuvres required me to take to the gravel and luckily avoid any accident? I was quite sure the irony of being involved in an accident with the only four vehicles in a hundred kilometres would have been lost on me if things had turned out differently.

Albany itself was by far the liveliest destination we had visited on our statewide tour. The Youth Hostel itself has received numerous accolades including the title of best YH in WA and also is the recipient of a glowing review in the Lonely Planet guidebook. When we arrived manager Baz was unfortunately on holiday. He is by all accounts is a fairly vocal character often greeting backpackers with the overly enthusiastic “So how the fuck are you doing?” and after a glance in the guestbook it became apparent that he was not adverse to calling guests “Stupid duffers” if he felt they deserved it. Thankfully his replacement, Dirk, proved more than adequate and informed us that complimentary coffee and cake is served at half past six every evening.

This is a great idea for a hostel as it enables all the guests to meet and exchange advice and stories and find out where are the best places to go and what there is to do in Albany. The “buy one get one free” vouchers that could be used at the local pub made decisions a lot easier in my case and prompted a fun evening at first the pub and then the local nightclub called Heaven, a misnomer if ever there was one. It all culminated in an early morning stumble back to the hostel at around four in the morning and of course the inevitable excruciating hangover the following morning. My state was not aided by the crazy girl who wandered in around six screaming and swearing insults at all and sundry - very bizarre.

The next morning basically involved a mixture of feeling sorry for myself and a wander around Albany from which I expected the locals to be a well read bunch with immaculate hair as the town showed a distinct predilection towards book shops and hair dressers (of which there were no fewer than 19!). By the afternoon we seemed to have sufficiently recovered to venture out to The Stirling Ranges, a nearby mountain range. We had been advised to visit Bluff Knoll which supposedly offered the best views of the ranges themselves and the surrounding area, a one hour arduous climb, 634 vertical metres later and we had reached the 1073m summit of the highest peak in the range.

After several minutes of anticipating some manner of heart and/or lung failure I was able to take in the view which made the climb well worth the effort. Unfortunately the overcast day prevented any sun and so a dark and moody mountain range and surrounding landscape was the imposing view. A far less energetic and exhausting descent followed after we had sufficiently soaked up the scenery and a return to Albany that included a scary near miss with an inquisitive kangaroo. Upon our return to the hostel we gratefully received the complimentary coffee and cake which set up another evening on the beers and another return to the pain and misery of a hangover, it appears that I never learn.

Day eight of our little jaunt took us west along the south coast with the target of Augusta in mind. Along the way there were several places of interest that deserved a visit and nicely broke up the journey. The two main places that were we stopped at were indicative of the vastly different scenery present in the south western part of the state; gone were the semi arid desolation of the outback and in its place the towering magnificence of the Karri trees which dominate the Walpole-Nornalup national park.

Our first stop was at the famous tree top walk in The Valley of the Giants, this is a masterpiece of engineering that allows you to take in the giant tingle trees on a 600m raised walkway that reaches 40m at its highest point. As we strolled along the fairground-esque swinging walkway the vast size of these massive trees is immediately evident with the taller trees reaching over 60m in height. As well as the treetop walk which vertigo sufferers and those of a nervous disposition may not enjoy there is an excellent forest floor walk that is well worth doing. We spent half and hour or so marvelling at the dizzying heights of the trees and their impressive stature as well as taking in much of the other indigenous wildlife.

Our next stop was also linked to the presence of the Karri tree in the area and allowed us to experience the height of the trees first hand. Obviously in a country as dry as Australia the risk of forest fires is huge and so, back in the days before satellite imagery and planes could be used to regularly survey the forests, large trees in prominent positions were the only way to get an overview of the surrounding area. The Gloucester Tree at 61m is one of these and is can now be climbed by members of the public at their own risk. Not one to shirk a challenge I decided to shimmy up the natural skyscraper using the rudimentary ladder of metal rods attached to the truck; it is an exhilarating business especially when ignoring the well meant advice of “don’t look down!” At the viewing platform at the top, the view is simply sublime with the sea of green foliage stretching out in all directions.

Our adrenaline used for the day we made our way to Augusta, a sleepy little town that had a distinctly retirement town feel, admittedly though the winter months are hardly the best time to travel around the area. One thing it had going for it is the Youth Hostel which has been voted the best in Australia on more than one occasion and it’s easy to see why as it puts many mid priced hotels to shame. Our main reason for stopping of at Augusta was to take in the caves, which are prevalent in the area, and so we were up and on our way early the next morning.

Before taking in the caves a quick stop off at the Cape Leeuwin Lighthouse was necessary as this is the point were the Indian and Southern Oceans meet and the nearest stop off south is none other than the Antarctic. Suitable impressed we headed off to the first of the three caves we were to visit. Jewel Cave is about ten or so minutes drive out of Augusta and on a well thought out and interesting guided tour the impressive massive initial cavern and subsequent visually astounding rock formations is definitely a place to visit. The three-cave pass we bought also got us access to the deeper and, in my view, more beautiful Lake Cave, which once again was expertly guided, and the self guide Mammoth cave. In addition to all this there is the cave information centre, Caveworks, that has free entrance with the ticket we bought that was interesting if perhaps more suitable for children.

Fully caved out we embarked on the final stages of our journey with a quiet uninspiring Sunday night spent at Bunbury and our final night at the trendy port town of Fremantle. Whilst Freo is a great fun place with several places of interest for tourists I won’t discuss it in this already overly long opinion as I’ll probably devote a whole op to it instead. To celebrate our last night several enjoyable pints of IPA were sunk at the Brass Monkey, a lively and excellent pub. Tuesday morning saw us return to Perth and after 3529km I drove back into the Bayswater Car Rental and returned the keys to our reliable if dull chariot. Our road trip was over.

Conclusion

As I said at the start of this opinion (if anyone can remember that far back or is in fact still reading) I have adopted a different approach for this op and hopefully its been successful. Obviously with trying to cover as vast a place as WA not only did we only take in a very small amount of what its possible to see but also I’ve only covered the highlights of our trip in this op. It is truly a remarkable place and accounts for a third of the country’s area yet gets relatively few tourists due to its remoteness. The incredibly diverse landscape and huge number of different attractions really do mean there is something for everybody in WA and to those unsure of whether or not to head out to the West of Australia I’d whole heartedly advise that you do – it won’t disappoint.

Cheers to anybody who actually managed to read the whole opinion as always any comments are welcome.

SB.

 

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