“Not a Cloud in the Sky”
This became our morning mantra, and somewhat of a joke, as we packed into the car and started down the road in Western Australia. In what was our last major trip in and around Australia, we saved the state of Western Australia until last because it is the furthest from Canberra. We thought of driving but that would have taken another week of vacation and put miles on the car that we will soon sell - plus the chance of hitting a kangaroo or wombat near the end of our tour here. So on Friday, March 7, we flew Ansett Airlines to Melbourne where we connected to a flight to Perth for about a five hour flight. We picked up a rental car and drove to a hotel in South Perth for our first night. We checked in, drove into central Perth, parked the car and walked around. Since the USS Kitty Hawk was visiting, we encountered many US sailors in uniform walking the streets of Perth in large groups. We also toured South Perth along the Swan River and had dinner, the first of several good seafood dinners, at the Moorings Cafe at the Barrack Street Jetties on the river.
Saturday morning we slept in and got away late, driving north on highway 1 or the Brand Highway. As was to be the case most mornings, there was not a cloud in the sky! We drove through the Swan Valley vineyards and saw the famous Houghtons winery but it was too early to sample. We turned off towards the town of Cervantes and visited the unique Nambung National Park with the rock formations known as the Pinnacles. Hundreds of little rocks, the result of wind and rain erosion, are in a small area; they look like worn Washington Monuments and are an interesting sight. People are allowed to drive through and stop and take pictures. We had lunch in Cervantes then headed back to the highway and towards Geraldton. About 15 miles before Geraldton we saw the old deserted town of Greenough with its oddly shaped trees bent over from the constant wind off the ocean. In Geraldton we checked into our motel then took a quick tour around town.
Geraldton is the town where I gave a speech in September, 1993, shortly after arriving in Australia. I showed Rita Birdwood House, which belongs to the Returned Services League (a war veterans association much like our VFW), where I gave the speech. We walked along Marine Terrace and drove around the town which has grown quite a lot since I visited. That night we ate dinner at the Boatshed restaurant. I had the surf and turf, which included the local lobster they call crayfish, Rita had grouper, and we shared a starter of barbecued prawns, all very good.
Sunday had clear skies but we were getting further north and therefore it became much hotter. We had breakfast at McDonalds which just opened in Geraldton two weeks earlier. Heading north on the Brand highway, the countryside became monotonous and boring. Around Geraldton the countryside is grassy and was first developed as cattle and sheep ranching. Further north you get into desert with red dirt, spinaflex and mulga, plants that need little water and are not very pretty. It was open range also which meant the sheep were not fenced in but could roam across the highway. We stopped at Billabong Roadhouse for gasoline. Roadhouses are about the only signs of life for long stretches of highway. Rita and I joked that the major vegetables in these roadhouse cafes were fried onions and potato fries (called chips in UK and Australia). Our lunches, whenever we had to eat at a roadhouse, usually consisted of grilled cheese sandwiches which was about the safest thing to eat.
At the Overlander Roadhouse we turned off the main highway and headed to the town of Denham, Australia’s most westerly town. Here we entered the Shark Bay World Heritage area where the feeding of wild dolphins at Monkey Mia put this area on the map. We found out that the feeding stopped at 1:00 pm so we rushed directly to Monkey Mia arriving about noon. We had a good lunch at the only restaurant in the area and watched from our outdoor table for dolphins but they didn’t come that afternoon. They had been there in the morning. About 2:00 pm we drove back to Denham and checked into our hotel. We walked around the small town but there was little to see or do. We had a beer on our patio and read our books. Later on I went for a short run and when I returned Rita and I swam in the pool a short while. We had dinner in the hotel bar which was okay. I had grilled snapper and Rita had garlic prawns.
Monday was our longest day. We got away early and checked out of the hotel. We drove the short distance to Monkey Mia and had breakfast at the nice restaurant we ate at the day before. While we were eating and admiring the beautiful setting, a pod of about five or six dolphins swam in, right on time at 8:00 am. We rushed to finish then waded into the water on the beach. Park rangers held everyone back for nearly 30 minutes to let the dolphins settle down. The rangers know the dolphins by the shapes of their fins and we were told that the names of our visitors today were Puck and Surprise with their babies. Three people were picked to feed the dolphins (not us unfortunately) and when the fish were all eaten, the dolphins quickly swam away just like that. So about 9:00 am we headed back the way we came, stopping to view shell beach, a beach made up entirely of tiny shells about 12 feet deep. We also stopped at the Hamelin Pools, one of the few places in the world one can view live stromalotites, one of the world’s oldest living organisms. The heat was like a blanket, wrapping around us as soon as we stepped out of the car, and the flies, the flies, the flies!!! Back at the Overlander Roadhouse we stopped for lunch and gasoline. We also stopped again in Geraldton for gasoline, coffee and dessert at a nice Italian cafe called Topolinnos. Then we had the long drive back to Perth with only an occasional emu and kangaroo to view. We did see lots of ring-necked parrots with their black heads, yellow ring around the neck and green bodies. We made it back to Perth and drove the short distance to the port town of Fremantle, arriving at our nice hotel about 8:30 pm. It was a tiring drive but the longest we would have to do. We had room service dinner in our room and crashed.
Tuesday, March 11 was spent in Fremantle and the car didn’t get driven at all. We slept in and took our time getting ready before heading out on foot. Fremantle is a very pretty town with most buildings built before the turn of the century. We walked along Collie and Market streets and had a coffee at Ginos. We walked more along South Terrace, Norfolk and High streets. We toured the old Round House, originally built as a prison, the wharf and Essex street before having a nice outdoor lunch at the Dome cafe. We did laundry in the afternoon, walked some more and had dinner on the wharf at Sails restaurant where we watched the sun set on the Indian Ocean. We each had the local seafood treat called dhufish which was very good.
Wednesday morning I went for a run before getting ready and packing up again. We headed south along the coast and had a coffee in Mandurah. We stopped in Bunbury for gasoline and continued on to Busselton where we saw the only tuart tree forest in the world with some trees 300 to 400 years old. We stopped at a deli for sandwiches and drove to the lighthouse at Cape Naturaliste where we had our picnic. The surroundings were beautiful with a view of Geographe Bay on one side and the Indian Ocean on the other and not a cloud in the sky. At Sugarloaf Rock we saw a large pod of dolphins playing and near Dunsborough we stopped at an ice cream parlor called Simmos. We drove to the attractive town of Yallingup, took Caves Road through pretty vineyards and cheese factories, and drove to the town of Margaret River, where we checked into our hotel before setting out on foot to explore the pleasant little town. We had a very good dinner at the Cafe Forte, where I ate something besides fish for a change, with a very good cabernet sauvignon, 1993 Fremoy Estate, from a local winery.
Thursday was spent in the Margaret River area. We had a 6:30 am call from our property management firm to inform us that our furnace needs replacing at our home in Reston. They had tracked us down through work to give us the good news. What a wake up call! I went for a run and we headed off, driving to the pretty town of Augusta where we had a good coffee break. We drove to Cape Leeuwin and the lighthouse there where the Indian Ocean meets the Southern Ocean. And we encountered our first cloudy morning, too. We drove back north through Augusta and took the scenic Caves road again, stopping off to see Hamelin Bay. We took a dirt road through Boranup Forrest with tall jarrah and karri trees and stopped for a picnic lunch. It was very quiet and we were all alone in the dark forest except for all the tiny blue wrens inhabiting the bushes. We drove further north, detouring to visit the pretty seaside towns of Prevelly and Gracetown. When we entered the winery area, we stopped to sample and buy at Vasse Felix, Evans & Tate and Fremoy Estate. I wanted to try Mosswood, a very fine wine, but they are small and do not have a tasting room. We went back to Margaret River and walked around looking at crafts and potteries but not buying. For dinner we ate at the 1885 Inn and Restaurant. We had good food but the servings were much too large and we felt ill after eating too much. My starter was bigger than the main courses at some restaurants.
Friday we headed south and east on the Brockman Highway through majestic karri and jarrah forests. We stopped in Nannup for coffee then on to the forestry town of Pemberton, where we drove into the Warren National Park for a view of the Bicentennial tree, a huge karri tree with a platform at the top. Since I didn’t have proper shoes on, I couldn’t climb it but I doubt that I would have anyway. It didn’t look safe climbing up iron bars hammered into the tree. We had lunch in Pemberton at the Gryphen cafe at a woodcraft store with very nice furniture. We headed along the South Western Highway through thick forests and near Walpole toured the Valley of the Giants, a yellow tingle tree forest with a canopy walkway which goes up 60 meters (185 feet) above the ground at tree top level. It all sways and shakes but is supposed to be safe. We enjoyed the walk even though it was eerie. Some of the tingle trees are very old and big. In late afternoon we drove east through Denmark to the charming town of Albany. Our hotel, the Esplanade, was very nice and right on Middleton Beach. We drove around Albany, which is spread out, and had dinner at Middleton Beachside restaurant. I had pink snapper and Rita had grouper. We had a good local Mt. Barker wine called Goundrey chardonney.
Saturday was sunny and clear again and we headed north along the Chester Pass highway that took us through the Stirling Ranges National Park. The Stirling Ranges rise up out of nowhere in flat country. We drove through boring, dull country passing the towns of Borden, Ongerup and Jerramungup. At Ravensthorpe we stopped for gasoline and a terrible lunch in a fly-infested restaurant with the air conditioning turned off. We arrived in Esperance mid afternoon and checked into our motel. We took the scenic tourist drive which goes along a pink lake (caused by algae), modern wind mills and beautiful views of the oceans, beaches and islands. I went for a short run while Rita walked along the coast then we cleaned up and had dinner at Bonaparte restaurant, the only nice restaurant in town. I had lobster Wellington and Rita had King George whiting for a very nice meal. That night we had a thunderstorm with lightning, rain and hail just as we were ready for bed.
By Sunday morning there wasn’t a cloud in the sky and the car was washed off by last nights rain. We walked to Ollies for a quick breakfast then packed up and headed off. We drove north stopping in Norseman for gasoline. This is not very scenic countryside either. Further north we took alternate 94 highway through the mining town of Kambalda where we saw lots of gold mines including the famous Jubilee mine. We arrived in Kalgoorlie about 1:30 pm and checked into our hotel. This is gold country! We visited the tourist information center and bought a map. We drove around town looking at the interesting old hotels (which are mostly pubs) built at the turn of the century. We also drove to the Super Pit lookout which is a huge gold mining pit dug out of the earth. It was filled with giant dump trucks whose tires were about eight feet in diameter. Next we went to the bush two-up shed where some characters (supposedly millionaires) were dressed like bums but betting $20 to $100 on a toss of the coins. Two-up is an Australian gambling game which is only legal in casinos and this tin shed in the middle of nowhere or on Anzac Day. That night we ate dinner at an Italian restaurant called Mangia Bene and talked to the owner who came from Sicily about 20 years ago. We had good food but no lettuce in our salads - only lots of celery. After dinner we drove down Hay street and saw the prostitutes in their little store fronts much like the red light districts of Amsterdam but much smaller.
Monday, March 17, we spent again in Kalgoorlie. We got a late start but made it to the Hannah North gold mine where tours are given each day. We panned for gold, watched a gold pouring demo (liquid gold into bar molds), and went underground 120 feet to tour a mine shaft. It was all exciting and informative. Paddy Hannah discovered gold at Kalgoorlie in the 1880s and his statue is on the main street of town. Since it was St. Patrick’s Day, we went back into town and had lunch and a Guinness at Paddy’s Irish pub. It was a wild crowd but not as wild as later on that night. In the afternoon we toured the Museum of the Goldfields which was interesting. The area around Kalgoorlie is called the Golden Mile and has the reputation of most gold taken out of a square mile on earth. That night we went back to Mangia Bene for dinner as it appears to have the best food in town.
Tuesday we got away early and drove west stopping in Coolgardie, another gold mining town, for gasoline. Next we stopped in Southern Cross for coffee and at Merredin we turned south along one lane roads where, if you meet an oncoming car, you pull over (at 65 miles per hour) with two wheels on packed dirt and two wheels on the paved road. Exciting. At Narembeen, a pretty, clean, little country town, we had lunch. Further south at Kondinin we turned east to Hyden and checked into our motel, the only one around. A few kilometers away we visited Wave Rock, a famous rock formation that looks like a giant wave about to break. It has been eroded away by wind and water over time and was a meeting place for aborigines. It was interesting but, in retrospect, I’m not sure it was worth the time and effort. We also walked to a rock formation called Hippo’s Yawn and drove to Mulka’s Cave where we saw aboriginal handprint paintings. We saw several of the ring-necked parrots in this area, too. We had dinner at the motel bistro which was surprisingly good. It was steak or chicken, which you cook on the grill yourself, along with a nice salad bar full of fresh vegetables and good baked breads.
Wednesday morning I went for an early run then we took our time getting ready and on the road. We drove west to York via Kondinin, Corrigin and Quairading in wheat-growing country. It looks like Kansas, Toto! At York we checked into our bed and breakfast farm, called Hillside, then drove into York where we had lunch at the old Settlers Inn. York is a pretty town and was the first inland settlement in Western Australia, settled about 1830. Many of the older buildings survive and it is a popular weekend visit from Perth. We toured the jail and courthouse and walked around the town. We visited a nice craft and wood-working shop in an old flour mill then headed back to our B&B. Hillside was interesting and since it was on a farm we had a cat, dog and horses to pet and play with. We had the place to ourselves and our host, Bruce, gave us a tour of the main house, built in 1911, which had lots of antiques - almost too many. For dinner we drove a scenic route via Beverley and then to Northam where we ate at the Shamrock Hotel. The food was okay but we drove into town with an empty gas tank and there were no service stations open. The bartender called around and found a video store with a gas pump that was open until 9:00 pm so that solved that problem. We drove back to York where we sat outside a while and watched the stars in a clear sky.
Thursday we took a while getting ready and our host cooked us a big breakfast. Even taking our time, we drove into Perth and arrived at the Duxton Hotel mid morning. They found us a room with a nice view of the Swan River. The hotel is very nice and only opened about six months ago. We walked to the US Consulate where Rita met the staff and I said my good-byes. We walked to the Perth Mint where we saw gold nuggets, coins and another gold pouring demonstration. I purchased a one ounce Australian gold coin called Nugget and a one ounce silver coin called a Kookaburra. Then we walked a lot around Perth to town center, James street restaurant area, and King street with the recently restored His Majesty’s Theater. We had dinner at the Bourbon street restaurant which had very nice cornbread. In the evening we repacked our suitcases.
Friday morning we woke very early, checked out and drove to the airport for a 7:00 am flight to Canberra via Melbourne again. We arrived in Canberra about 3:00 pm and after dropping our suitcases off at home, rushed into the Embassy to collect our mail.
Our trip to Western Australia was, once more, an enjoyable trip with no bad experiences. Distances in WA are far apart and take a long time to drive. We drove over 5000 kilometers or 3000 miles in two weeks. It’s been pointed out to me that WA is five times larger than Texas so we are happy to have seen Monkey Mia and the scenic section in the southwestern corner in our time allotted. In our three and a half years in Australia, we feel fortunate to have seen the major attractions of this large country and to have met so many friendly people. We’ll always remember Western Australia. Did I tell you there were no clouds in the sky?
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