Life in a Humpback

Day 110: Denmark to Fitzgerald River Rest Area

Today we packed up and said goodbye to our lovely campground by the Denmark River and continued eastward. Our first stop for the day was outside Albany at the Historic Whaling Station. This was the last whale processing station in Australia, which closed in 1978. It was interesting to learn about the history of the industry and how Albany has changed since the 1970s to have a more conservation focus.

We all really enjoyed exploring one of the old whaling ships. The kids struggled with how the whales were killed for their oil but enjoyed the sheds where we got to learn about the whales and learn to tie different knots.

On the way back towards Albany we stopped in at the Natural Bridge and The Gap in Torndirrup National Park. The lookout had one of the most impressive car parks that we have encountered. It appeared to be raised above the surrounding rock, with drop offs along the edges of the road to navigate with the caravan attached. Once parked we walked out to the Natural Bridge and The Gap to watch the waves crashing against the coast. It was fascinating to watch the power of the ocean and learn how it helped to create the bridge and gap.

From Torndirrup National Park we drove through Albany and continued towards Esperance. In the evening we camped on the side of the road at Fitzgerald River Rest Area, just outside the Fitzgerald River National Park. Recently we have been travelling though the more built-up areas of WA, so it had been a while since we have had the chance to free camp. When we arrived at sunset we were the only ones there, but before heading to bed we gained a few neighbours and lots and lots and lots of mossies!!

Just as the kids were getting into bed one of our neighbours came knocking on our door asking if we could help them as their camp stove was on fire and they were worried they might start a bush fire. Armed with a fire blanket and extinguisher and a water bottle John and I went to help. Meanwhile the kids are hanging out windows trying to see what was happening. It was our turn to be the "people who know what they are doing". While initially it looked like a flame from a leaky gas cylinder, it turned out to be a few gumnuts that had caught fire under the camp stove. A few swift kicks to get the stove out of the way (with Crocs™ providing foot protection - no thongs were on hand), a bit of water to dose the flames, and any potential emergencies were avoided. I gave the inexperienced travels some reassurances, and some quick tips on using the dodgy little gas stove, and we left them to reattempt making their dinner.

Day 109: Denmark (Day 3)

We woke up to rain at 6:30am in the morning and it stayed pretty constant all day. Instead of wandering further afield we stayed in town and caught up with some old friends from Tassie who moved to Denmark a few years ago. The kids and I had a great morning hanging out with Emma and her family at the local playground (between showers) and also at the chocolate factory. We even dropped in to see their block of land where they will be building their new home. John hung around camp for the morning - catching up on things and finally getting a chance to fix his hat.

We wrapped up the day and our time in Denmark with dinner at the local brewery with Emma and family. Despite the weather we had a great day hanging out!

Day 108: Denmark (Day 2)

Again we opted for a quiet morning around camp - basketballs, frisbees and boomerangs all were thrown. After an early lunch we drove west to Walpole to checkout the tingle forests at the Valley of the Giants Tree Top Walk.

The tree top walk took us 40m up into the forest canopy. The walk is a lot like the Tahune Airwalk in Tassie just with different types of trees to walk through - karri, karri she-oaks and red tingle trees. After the tree tops we wandered along the Ancient Empire Walk. I actually thought the walk through the under story more interesting than through the canopy. On the lower walk we got to walk through some of the tree trunks, look out for fairy doors in the trees, learn about how quokkas tunnel through the grasses, and of course see the wildflowers in bloom.

On the way back to Denmark we stopped to walk up to Monkey Rock. From the top we had amazing views down the coast. As it had been rather windy there was lots of sea spray in the air along this section of coast.

We got back to camp in time for another game of basketball before dinner.

Day 107: Denmark (Day 1)

We started off our day with a relaxing morning around camp - exploring the river, watching the ducks and kookaburras, playing basketball, and throwing the frisbee. After lunch we drove out to the coast to have a look, and swim, at Elephant Rocks and Greens Pool.

We wandered over to Elephant Rocks first. Going for a scramble over the rock outcrops before walking through a small gap in the rocks to get to the beach. The kids both had a swim here before we headed to the next bay over. At Greens Pool it was rather busy but is was easy to see why. It was a nice protected beach, which made it great for families with kids. After our swim we made our way back up the hill to the carpark checking out the coastal wildflowers along the way.

Day 106: Prevelly to Denmark

Today we left the west coast for the last time and headed to our first stop on the southern coast of Western Australia. Along the way we stopped in Pemberton to have a look at the Gloucester Tree. Unfortunately the Gloucester tree climb was closed due to renovations of the top platform. Instead we went on a short walk around the forest before piling back into the car.

We made it to our campsite at Riverbend Chalets and Caravan Park just after 5:00pm. We were met by Jo one of the lovely owners who walked us down to our site near the river.