Been going for a month already! We’re definitely getting used to living like this… We spent the day amidst tall tree forests. Went to Pemberton and saw the giant Bicentennial tree (75m tall) and the Gloucester tree (65m tall). They’re both used as bushfire lookout towers on top of giant Karri trees. Visitors (ie. us…) can actually climb to the top on very precarious metal poles placed around and spiralling up the tree trunk. Seems so dangerous, we can’t believe they let tourists climb up without safety gear. If you slipped, that’s it, it’s all over…
We went on a 2 hour tram ride from Pemberton to the Cascades (a small waterfall) and Arthur River – pretty lame trip. The driver loved the sound of his own voice and astounded us all with intricate details of the local tree species.
Later we did a brief walk to a suspension bridge over some other falls, and camped at a pretty camp site next to a river near Augusta – Alexandra Bridge (had a great BBQ over a camp fire!).
Day 31 – May 2 – Augusta -> Cowaramup
Glorious day in Margaret River! A great place, lots of fun for both kids and adults. We:
1. Saw Cape Leeuwin lighthouse – the tallest lighthouse in mainland Australia – at the point where the Indian and Southern Oceans meet. Some very interesting ocean currents, very rough!
2. We did a tour in Jewel Cave, the largest of many amazing caves in the region. Was only discovered in the 50’s, it’s very well looked after and in great condition.
3. Now a winery for Mum & Dad – Leeuwin Estate – excellent!
4. One for the kids – A Maze’n – Margaret River hedge maze. We usually love mazes, but this one was mediocre, one hedge maze and two smaller puzzles – all over in less than an hour and we’d forked out $60.
5. Afternoon tea of scones, jam and cream + ice chocolates at the Berry Farm. Yum! Bought some jam and pickles too.
6. Stayed at Taunton Farm Caravan Park. This was great, it really feels like we are staying on someone’s farm – the kids fed the animals. They then met some new friends, AND there’s a bouncy pillow. Couldn’t ask for more…
Day 32 – May 3 – Cowaramup -> Busselton
What a decadent day! We overindulged so many times today we all felt so sick…
First up we went to the Chocolate Factory for morning tea and couldn’t believe our eyes when we walked into a huge room full of chocolate. Free tastings! We had ‘real’ hot chocolate and chocolate fondue – tasted delicious but all soooo…. rich! We stocked up on chocolate supplies in preparation for the long drive north.
We followed this up with some more wineries and breweries – some with great playgrounds (good to see the wineries have figured out that parents with young kids can be a lucrative demographic!), then a nice drive to Canal Rocks, then Yallingup Beach and Cape Naturaliste lighthouse.
Afternoon tea at the quirky and yummy Simmo’s icecream – an icecream shop in the middle of nowhere with 39 obscure flavours. We had liquorice, blood orange, bubblegum, tiramisu and roasted macadamia. Our favourite was a sign outside – ‘Kids left unattended will be given a double espresso and a free puppy’.
The 1.8km jetty at Busselton was undergoing renovation so we could only walk on the first 20m… We stopped in a quiet bush campsite by the side of the road – and were then joined by 4 other vehicles in the next ten minutes!
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