Perth and WA

After our day of R&R, Mark and I finally arrived in Australia. Perth was a nice city, full of really nice parks and beaches. It definitely had the feel of a much smaller city (i think it's almost 2 million), kind of felt like being in the suburbs...everywhere. After a staying in a hostel for a couple nights a friend of ours we met in South America named Luisa offered to let us stay with her. Given that a dorm room costs $30 a night each, this was a no brainer. Luisa and her mom Elena treated us to some proper Italian hospitality, we even met the extended family. We like to think we're now part of the family.


After 4 days in Perth and a couple good nights out, Mark and I headed out in a camper van for a week.


DAY 1:
Uneventful, mostly driving to get down the southern coast. However, a stop worth making was the "Wave Rock." Very cool.



The not unlike our wine purchasing tactics in Argentina, our camper van selection was the second cheapest. The extra headroom was a nice addition, and it also had a second bed.


Apparently the second bed is good for starting over the edge like a weirdo at the guy below. I have no other explanation for this picture.


DAY 2:
Now we know we're in Australia..

The first real destination, Esperence was finally reached. Much of the shoreline is protected as national parks, so the beaches are almost deserted (this may have also had something to do with the fact that it's currently winter in Australia).




The cold weather was no match for Mark and his boxers though. T, if you're wondering, Mark's quest for a bathing suit continues. One might think that finding board shorts in Australia would be easy. And...it is. Unfortunately Mark is a man who knows what he likes, and it aint what Australia's got.


We quickly realised that being winter, the sun sets quite early, usually around 5:30. After that, there isn't really much to do when you're camped out in the middle of nowhere. And thus, the "goon bag" (as they call box o' cheap wine in Australia) was discovered. It worked well at facilitating early bedtimes so we could wake up at the crack of dawn and get a full day of activity in. Unfortunately, while helping with the early bedtime, it also helped with sleeping for 12 hours at a time.


Day 3:
Our first kangaroo sighting...

And a trip up to the top of "Castle Rock."


Continuing with our trend of avoiding campsites where you had to pay (typical rate it $20 per night), we were forced to get creative. Not only are Woolworth's parking lots well lit, they also have plenty of obstacles which work well for frisbee golf.


DAY 4:
The day started off with a hike to the top of a lookout in Albany...Mark was happy.

The rest of the day was spent driving through amazing old growth forests. These huge eucalyptus trees rot in the middle as they age, then are often gutted by brush fires. The result is massive hollow trunks.


It's hard to see me, but if you can find me on the left of this one below hugging the tree you can get a sense of how big this thing is.

Next stop, the canopy walk...


And finally, the 'imposing' coast line outside Pemberton was home to the "Natural Bridge."





DAY 5:
Once again, we started the day with a hike to the to of a scenic lookout.

Followed by more old growth forests. This region had a couple old fire lookouts that the public can climb to the top of and enjoy the view. This was BY FAR the sketchiest thing I've done on this trip. The "ladder" to the top, was a spiral staircase made up of 1" metal rods drilled into the tree. Though there was a cage set up so you couldn't fall off the side, there was nothing below. I'd even find this surprisingly dangerous if I was in Bolivia. With nothing but these metal rods spaced out every foot or so, we climbed to the top of this 75m lookout. The view...average to good.


And of course, yet another amazing beach.

And this time, instead of hiking to the top of a scenic lookout in the morning, we just set up shop for the night on one. We never determined if this was allowed, but I'm pretty sure not.

After some more frisbee tossing, and subsequent struggles from Mark, I held a little seminar before bed. Next lesson....hackysacks.

DAY 6:

The original plan for day 6 was to go on a wine tour in Margaret River. However, we had heard good things about whale watching this time of year from a few people. Turns out, this time of year is their migration, and after a long hall they stop to rest in a bay outside of the town we were in.

Though the pictures naturally won;t do it justice, this was really cool. There were 4 whales which were swimming all around our boat for the whole 2 hours, getting within about 30 feet.

With the boat dropping us off at 1:00, we figured we could still check out a few wineries on our own. We were quick to realise, it's just not quite the same as doing a tour.

DAY 7:

The night before, we set up shop in an IGA parking lot right in the center town. Easy access to bars and restaurants, it worked out quite well. We met a Canadian fella who was heading out with some friends who we joined for a rather large night. Mark ended up bailing out at about 11:00, which was a blessing, because I awoke to the hangover of all hangovers. 5 litres of cheap wine...not advisable. Mark took one for the team and handled the 3 hour drive home while I slept in the back.

The one quick stop on the way was Bussleton Jetty. Apparently one of the worlds longest jetties.

And then back to Perth we went. Luisa and Elena put us up for another couple days before we headed out. Thank you once again for your hospitality.