photographyperthwa

I’ve put the details in the title so I know what I’m doing!

On Thursday in the evening the wind died down a bit for the first time on this trip. We enjoyed a walk on the boardwalk and from above Middleton Beach looks as lovely as ever. When we returned it was nearly 7.00 p.m. and I didn’t feel like cooking. We went into town to check out food options. There were a number of rather expensive looking bar/restaurants open, very busy, and not what we wanted. As we walked around the block we came to a modest Chinese restaurant with takeaway options.

After placing an order we walked around the block, then back to Stirling Terrace where we were parked. Stephen went off to pick up our order of ginger beef and special fried rice and I set up the table for the meal. With one of our nice downlights on we were able to have a lovely meal with the hot and delicious food. Afterwards it was home to the golf links for the night.

Friday and Saturday were forcast to be hot in Albany, at least 32 degrees, but we think it was hotter. Sitting it out at Emu Point yesterday afternoon seemed a good option and later in the day I moved the van to a shady spot. Most of the time sitting under a tree we felt like we were in airconditioning because of the cool wind, but there was an hour or so when the wind changed direction and we were feeling quite hot. An iced coffee helped.

Our berth for the next two nights includes power, water and sullage. It’s called ‘driveway camping’ offered by a local business just out of town off the Chester Pass Road. The owners live onsite and we have a spot next to their house. I managed to get our meal of Thai Chicken Curry cooked in the cool of the evening. We had gone shopping, mainly for some fly spray, but actually bought lots of other stuff and forgot the flyspray and our host was kind enough to lend us some.

We were able to keep our fan on all night plugged into 230v power and it was great to have running water, normal power, and sullage. To empty our toilet and get rid of rubbish our hosts recommended a local dump point on Albany Highway, very close to the cinema. Going to a movie is another way of dealing with a hot day, though I must say that it hasn’t been hot so far, as of about 12.30.

Another exciting thing to happen is that Stephen realised one of our front tyres is ball in the centre. The other one is also on the way out. We took the van to a tyre place to have the spare tyre put on, but are now going with the option of having them install two new front tyres on Tuesday next week. They have to come from Perth and are due to arrive then.

Saturday: We are presently sitting in a Coles parking lot next door to the cinema complex. The flyspray has been bought and I’m getting the blog up to date. We are hoping the cafe at the cinema opens soon so we can be in airconditioning.

Yesterday morning was a working morning. At the caravan park we were up early and spent until 10.00 a.m. getting ready to leave. Or that is how it felt. We headed towards Mt Barker for shopping and a coffee afterwards. We had emptied the cassette at the caravan park, but their water was a bit dicey (according to the manager) and we took advantage of Mt Barker’s facilities to fill up with water. I am a bit cross that they closed the free overnight parking, but not enough to deter me from shopping there. It was easier than going to a supermarket in Albany.

The drive down wasn’t too busy and we bypassed the city centre to take the road to Frenchman’s Bay. We had found a cheap place to stay on Wikicamps. The public golf course, about 9 kms from town, offers overnight stays by self contained vehicles for $15.00 per night. There are old, but passable, public toilets available 24/7, and that’s it. We’ve paid for two nights.

After booking in we drove out to Frenchman’s bay to have our lunch. Because of having morning tea we weren’t hungry until about 3.00 p.m. We found a beautiful place overlooking a very sheltered swimming area. There were people camping a bit further along the road above the bay and when I checked on Wikicamps found that this was not a formal camping area, but people do camp there. There are ‘no camping’ signs at the beach parking area, but nothing where we were. There are public toilets and outdoor showers available as well.

We spent a peaceful afternoon enjoying being in the lovely location. I took photos when we went for an evening walk, but am feeling a bit disappointed as they don’t convey how lovely it was. Only the fact that we had already paid to camp at the golf links made us go back there for the night. It was quiet overnight and we had a good night’s sleep. This place works out well for people with caravans who have a safe place to leave them during the daywhilst they tour around in their cars. The car park is very large and a few caravans on the edge don’t make much difference for people wanting to play golf.

It was another lovely day. I enjoyed the drive into Albany from Mt Barker because it is much greener here, indicating that they have had sufficient rain, unlike the rest of the southern area of the state where it’s now very dry.

We have finally arrived in Albany today and have a cheap place to park for the night out on the road to Frenchman’s Bay. It’s been a full day with a very late evening meal and I am too tired to write tonight. But there will be time in the morning to blog and I’m looking forward to seeing and sharing the photos I took today from our lunchtime park up overlooking Frenchman’s Bay.

After a really good night’s sleep we got up a bit late at 8sh. No worries as we could leave when we wanted to with no formal checkout time. It’s the big disadvantage of caravan parks, especially when staying for just one night. This caravan park is as nice as I rememberd and we have a lovely view across the valley, or we did until our neighbour put his bikes on the roof of his car.

Some washing has been done and we have damp clothing hanging from every possible hook. I put some things in the dryer and did not realise till I got back to the van just how many items were still a bit dampish. I couldn’t be bothered going back to put them through another cycle.

We meandered here along the Chester Pass Road, taking a diversion to see a windmill and Dakota, then up to the Nudist Crossing sign, then up to Bluff Knoll. It has been a mostly cloudy day with the Stirling Ranges topped with clouds, but it was briefly sunny and still worth going for the views. We had a very nice lunch at the Bluff Knoll lookout carpark of rolls and salads.

We stopped at Mt Trio and a parking bay on the road to take photos and Stephen got a great shot of a Christmas Tree. We arrived here very tired, but it was worth having all the sightseeing along the way. How much nicer to come to Albany this way than along Albany Highway.

We have one more meal of leftovers from the freezer for tonight’s meal. There is the noise of other campers, which we are not used to. However, Stephen has had a shower and washed his hair and I am looking forward to having a proper shower before bed. There are definitely advantages to being here. Washing machines are on an honour system of $4.00 per wash and the dryer was only $2. There is an enclosed camper’s kitchen and a sheltered gazebo area with a BBQ. The showers and toilets are older style, but very clean.

We are always a bit confused about which range of mountains comes first, the Stirlings or the Porongurups. It depends on whether you are coming from Perth or Albany. The Stirlings are much higher and grander, but the Porongurups have lovely forest with tall trees. There are a good many wineries in this area as well.

We’ve had a very good day.

We went for a walk around Katanning before tea last night. Some of the old buildings were interesting. The hotel/Dome Cafe is converted from an old flour mill.

We had another peaceful night, our second in the town, with one caravan besides us. The really nice thing about free camping is that you don’t have to worry about checkout times. Nevertheless, we were ready to leave by about 10.30 a.m. after a restful morning. We dumped the toilet cassette and filled our fresh water tank before moving on to buy diesel. We had our receipt from shopping yesterday to get a discount. Overall, we spent quite a lot of money in the town, which helps us to feel that we are somewhat entitled to the free camping. We are also very grateful for safe places to stay for free provided by Katanning, both in town and out at the lake.

As well as our normal morning routine we had to work out where we were going next. I want to visit the Stirling Ranges National Park and the Porongorups on our way to Albany, so we explored options for overnights in and around the area. Borden offers free overnight camping and is very close to the Stirling Ranges. Unfortunately, there are no views to the Ranges in town as it is set in a valley. It is about 90kms from Katanning and we arrived here in time to settle in and have our lunch here.

We may stay at the Porongurups Caravan Park tomorrow night as it is a convenient distance from here, given that we may be making a few stops on the way. From there, we will probably go to Albany to explore some of the cheap/free camping options in the area.

Despite an afternoon nap I’m feeling a bit tired at the moment. It’s still very windy and to go out for walks we have to prepare ourselves for the wind exposure. Nice once we are out, but we have to overcome some initial reluctance.

Don’t forget that if you click on the images in the gallery at the top of this blog it will open them up to a larger size and you can click through them using the arrows on the side.