Alexander Bridge to Margaret River 11/5 to 20/5

Firstly for those who have enquired, the weather has continued to be fabulous - at least up until our last day in Margaret River!  Most days are 22 to 24 degrees and while it can get cooler in the evenings we believe it’s just right for sitting around the campfire, chatting to fellow travellers.  However on our last day in Margaret River the weather changed dramatically.  It was wet and windy and the temperature dropped to a chilly 19 degrees.  This was the same day that Perth experienced a mini tornado so we felt fortunate that we hadn’t moved on yet.

You may have noticed the many townships ending in ‘up’ in this area, eg: Nannup, Manjimup, Dwellingup, Boranup, Cowaramup, etc.  We have learnt that the suffix ‘up’ in the local aboriginal dialect means ‘place of’.  So Cowarumup is the ‘place of the small parrot’; Manjimup was Place of the Manjin , which are edible seeds  (but it will always be place of nightmarish dental experience for Donna) and we were reliably informed that Yallingup is the ‘place of love’ (I kid you not!).  Naturally Mark was keen to stay a few days at Yallingup, but I quickly reminded him that we need to keep moving and check what’s over the next hill.  At this stage Mark is still checking the maps looking for a town called Drinkingup, but I think he’s becoming too well practised for my liking.

Blackwood River

Cape Leeuwin Lighthouse

We left Manjimup heading for Alexander Bridge which was where we had planned to stay for a night or so.  As the road veered from Bridgetown to Nannup we followed the Blackwood River Valley.  This road featured lush pastures, winding valleys, towering forests and of course the Blackwood River.  This river is the longest river in Western Australia and enters the sea at Hardy Inlet at Augusta.  After choosing a spot near the river at Alexander Bridge camping area, we headed off for the town of Augusta and to visit Cape Leeuwin.  This was to be our last sight of the Southern Ocean on this trip as the Indian Ocean meets the Southern Ocean at Cape Leeuwin, which was named after the Dutch ship, “The Leeuwin” which first sighted in this part of the south west coast back in 1622. 

The lighthouse is usually open for tours but we found it closed for refurbishment on the day that we visited.  This was disappointing but it’s something we’ll have to do on another trip.  Just a short distance from the entry to the lighthouse, we visited the heritage listed 'water wheel` which was used in earlier times to pump fresh water from a spring nearby up to the lighthouse keepers cottage.  This wheel is now entombed in calcium deposits.

Historic Water Wheel

On our way back to Augusta, we also visited Flinders Bay obviously named after Matthew Flinders, even though he didn’t actually land there.  According to historical journals, Flinders sailed past miles out to sea and believed that Cape Leeuwin was an island.  Augusta is a town where nearly every house has a view of the water, either the inlet or the southern ocean. 

Jewel Cave

  We decided to head back via Caves Road and visit Jewel Cave which is the largest limestone 'show cave’ in Western Australia.  Whenever I visit caves I think of the early explorers who entered these cave systems not knowing what they would find and often using very primitive lighting equipment to find their way around. Now that must have been a very eerie experience.  The tour lasted around 45 mins and some of the features were awe inspiring!

Hamelin Bay - Old Jetty

From Alexander Bridge we also visited both Hamelin Bay and Cape Freycinet – stopping at the National Park “Conto Campground” along the way, where who should we run into but Dennis and Diana Freeman who kindly offered us a cuppa.  I would recommend this campsite to anyone, as it is bitumen all the way, with spacious campsites, either sunny or shaded depending on your preference. 

Conto Beach

  Conto Spring enters the ocean at Conto Beach, yet again another very scenic spot.  On the way back to our campsite we stopped to visit a shop that specialises in Christmas decorations!... a bit early I know, but it’s my kind of shop.  Whereas Mark got to visit his favourite tourist spot – a winery.  We both enjoyed Hamelin Bay Winery, both for the vista and the wines on offer.

We left Alexandra Bridge after two days and headed for Margaret River.  We booked into the Big Valley Campground, which is about 10km east of the Margaret River township.  We planned to stay for one week, which will hopefully give us time to sample everything on offer throughout this region.  Obviously, as well as wineries, the Margaret River Region is known for its restaurants, speciality chocolate stores, high end timber galleries, boutique breweries, glass studios. etc. 

Redgate Beach

Margaret River is also known for its surfing beaches. We visited Prevally Beach, which recently hosted the 2011 World Surfing(Surfboard) Championship.  Near Prevally was Gnaralup Beach which is the locals’ favourite swimming beach and Redgate Beach which on the day we visited had amazing surf and many surfers complete with wetsuits, trying their luck. 

History Lesson!

We were also very interested in learning about the history of a ship called the Georgette which sank very close to this beach.  History at school would have been much more interesting if it had included tales such as the one of the Fenian Prisoners who escaped and with the help of an American Ship finally reached freedom in America.

 

 

Ellenbrook Estate

There are also many walks and bike rides in this area.  We enjoyed the heritage walk, to the weir and back to the Lions Park.  At this time of year the Margaret River is at its driest as they are waiting for their usual winter rains.  It’s quite an eye opener seeing all the dry and near dry dams as you drive through the countryside.  One day we drove to Margaret River’s original homestead ‘Ellenbrook’ and walked to the Meekadarrabee Falls, which at this time of year was really just a gentle trickle of water.  The rustic homestead would have been spectacular in its heyday.

Lenton Brae

Grounds & Sculptures Vasse Felix

Mark - Decisions?

Leeuwin Estate

Rose Garden - Voyager Estate

Wineries, there are aplenty.  Mark is in his element tasting and choosing wines that he would like to share with friends and family when we return home.  What has amazed us both is the architecture and landscaped grounds that surround many of these wineries.  For example we heard that Voyager Estate employs 10 gardeners to ensure that their grounds and gardens are always kept in showcase condition.  Did you know that Voyager's wine cellars are underneath their spectacular rose gardens? The wineries here also employ first rate staff particularly in their cellar doors.  We have met some very knowledgeable people who are willing to share their understanding, not only of their own wines, but also of the local region and other attractions.  They are always willing to praise the wines from other wineries and recommend another winery to visit that may appeal to a particular palate.

We also spent a wonderful day at the” Vintage Stomp” at the Voyager Estate.  This was a day designed for the locals to celebrate the 2011 grape harvest.  The day started with a grand parade, led by Bacchus (the God of wine and debauchery).  Each year the stomp attempts to honour a different country who have influenced viticulture and wine growing in the MR district.  This year the stomp celebrated `Germany’ as the international wine growing country.  The host for the day was based on the major male character from the movie ‘Cabaret’.  The primary school choir performed, as did dancers from the local high school.  There was also a special guest performance by Marlene Dietrich, who was unable to hide a very noticeable `Adam’s Apple’ and a very masculine sounding voice.  But the highlight for us was the didgeridoo playing and a troupe of aboriginal dancers.  We waited for the ‘stomp’, which was a competition that awarded $1000 for a local charity.  The entrants included duos from the local council, police, school principals and local radio station who had to stomp grapes into juice.  There were also relays for waiters and tug of war competitions.  It was a memorable day.

Bunker Bay - Geographe

 The Margaret River Region is very diverse and we also enjoyed a drive to Dunsborough and Cape Naturaliste which are situated on Geographe Bay.  The beaches on the day were quite placid, however both Bunker Bay and Meelup Beach are noted surfing beaches.  During this drive we could have visited many a winery, maze, ice-creamery, chocolate shop, providore, olive grove, soap factory, glass factory, brewery, maze, bird sanctuary....in fact the list seems endless.  The problem is that there are not enough hours in the day.  We opted for beaches, a quiet morning tea at Cape Naturaliste, lunch near the beach at Yallingup and then two wineries (Lenton Brae) (Clairault) on the way home.  Luckily we were able to include the chocolate factory on another day of touring.  Each day’s tours were very diverse and interesting, but all included visits to wineries and/or breweries.  Ryan – please look after those wines we’ve sent home, many of which Mark referred to as 'My Precious'!

The Margaret River Region truly has something to interest everyone and we’ve really enjoyed our week in this region.

A different tasting this time

P.S. Mark also asked me to include a reference at the end of the blog to update the boys on the cruiser’s performance.  As mentioned earlier we have now travelled over 10,000 km and our spreadsheet indicates that our average is now at 16.3 litres per 100 km. A very creditable performance we believe.