Perth
Perth
reminded me a lot of Sydney because of its location on the bank of the Swan
River and its attractive parks. The highlight for me was King’s Park,
from which there are great views over the city and the Swan River. Apart from
the views, the park has many attractive walking trails. There are also a number
of gardens with historic buildings on the waterfront in the downtown area. I
highly recommend the boat trip with Captain Cook Cruises down the Swan
River to Fremantle. This takes about
an hour and the captain’s commentary on the different sights along the river is
very interesting. You might even see dolphins if you’re lucky. www.captaincookcruises.com.au/cruises/perth-cruises
Perth from King's Park |
(Click on the photos if you want to enlarge them.)
Fremantle
Fremantle
is a good option if you’re looking for somewhere to stay in the Perth area but
outside the city itself, as it has lots of accommodation and dining-out options
as well as a number of interesting historic places to visit. I did the guided
“Doing Time” tour at the Fremantle Prison, which gives you a real insight into what life was like back in
the early days of the colony. The Bathers’ Beach area is a pleasant
place to stroll around. Don’t miss the Fremantle
Markets, where there are lots of souvenir and food stalls. From Fremantle
you can take the scenic Captain Cook Cruise up the Swan River to
Perth, which includes an interesting commentary by the captain. Staying in
Fremantle also means that you can take the earliest morning departure of the Rottnest
Express ferry to Rottnest Island, which gives you more time on the
island.
Fremantle Prison |
Rydges
Esplanade Hotel
Very
well situated in the centre of Fremantle within walking distance of most sights
and restaurants, this hotel has large and well-appointed rooms and offers a
good breakfast in the attractive lobby area. www.hotelesplanadefremantle.com/
Little
Creatures
This
brewery-cum-restaurant is a great place for a cheap meal in original
surroundings. The food is good and the service fast and friendly. https://littlecreatures.com.au/
Quokkas on Rottnest Island |
Bread
in Common
This
restaurant serves excellent dishes in a large heritage-listed building which
has been tastefully renovated. www.breadincommon.com.au/
Bathers
Beach House
Right
on the seafront next to the eponymous beach, this restaurant has an extensive
seafood menu and the dishes I chose were very well prepared and presented. www.bathersbeachhouse.com.au/
Rottnest
Island
A
visit to “Rotto” is a great day’s excursion from the mainland. It only takes
about half an hour to get there from Fremantle on the Rottnest Express
ferry and there are a number of easy walking trails around the island. I
particularly liked Geordie and Longreach bays and of course the quokkas
are very tame and cute. www.rottnestexpress.com.au/
Longreach Bay, Rottnest Island |
Pinnacles
Desert
This
is an incredible place. Rocks of all shapes and sizes protrude from the sand
and the visual effect is stunning. Apparently nobody knows how these pinnacles
were formed, although the informative visitor centre explains the theories. https://parks.dpaw.wa.gov.au/site/pinnacles-desert-discovery-centre
Pinnacles Desert |
Cervantes
A
small seaside community which is a convenient place to stay if you’re visiting
the Pinnacles Desert. I stayed at the Pinnacles Edge Resort. www.pinnaclesedgeresort.com.au/ The room
they offered me when I checked in was very small, but I got an immediate
upgrade to a large apartment for no extra charge as soon as I asked for a
bigger room, so no complaints there. They serve a good cooked breakfast too. I
also recommend the nearby Cervantes Bar & Bistro restaurant for
dinner. www.pinnaclesedgeresort.com.au/ http://cervantesbarandbistro.com.au/
New
Norcia
This
monastery is a good place to while away an hour or two if you are in the area
as there are some curious buildings to wander around and a museum with some
interesting historical exhibits. However, I would definitely avoid staying at
the New Norcia Hotel. The rooms are small, dark and don’t seem to have
been redecorated in decades. The whole
place is a bit run down and depressing. Its only saving grace is its
restaurant, which turns out well prepared dishes and has a spacious sundeck
outside.
Swan & Avon Valleys
Toodyay
Formerly
known as Newcastle, Toodyay’s main street has some well-preserved colonial
buildings and the Newcastle Gaol Museum Precinct is worth a visit as it
has some interesting exhibits about life in colonial times, including the story
of Moondyne Joe, WA’s most famous bushranger. www.toodyay.wa.gov.au/Community-Visitors/Museums/Newcastle-Gaol-Museum
Kookaburra at Caversham Wildlife Park |
York
WA’s
first inland town has an attractive setting in the Avon Valley and its
centre has a number of historic buildings. It’s also a good base from which to
explore other places of interest in the area. I stayed at the excellent Faversham
House, a beautifully restored colonial mansion with great views over the
valley. The managers are a charming and attentive Italian couple who make you
feel very welcome and they serve an excellent breakfast in the hotel’s grand
dining room. www.favershamhouse.com.au/home
Northam
Not
as quaint as Toodyay or York, but it has a very good visitor centre and it’s
pleasant to take a stroll along the river bank.
Koala at Caversham Wildlife Park |
Guildford
A
good place to base yourself while visiting the Swan Valley. It’s only 15
minutes’ drive from the Caversham Wildlife Park, where you can see lots
of Australian animals and birds. The nearby Houghton and Sandalford
wineries are set in attractive grounds, but only the latter organises tours.
Accommodation-wise, I strongly recommend the Rose and Crown Hotel. The
rooms in the motel-style block are modern and comfortable and the restaurant is
very good - it was full of local people the two nights I dined there. It prides
itself on being the oldest operating hotel in WA and occupies a heritage
building that dates back to 1841. www.cavershamwildlife.com.au/ www.rosecrown.com.au/
Broome & the Kimberley
Broome
After
visiting Perth and some of the sights around it, I took a 2½ hour flight north
to Broome. Established originally as a centre for the pearling industry,
nowadays the town’s economy is based on tourism. That said, it doesn’t feel
very touristy at all, perhaps because many of the hotels are 6km away at Cable Beach. It’s very pleasant to
wander around the town centre. If you’re into books, don’t forget to drop in at
the Kimberley Bookshop, which has a
good selection of titles on Broome and the Kimberley. On the subject of books,
those interested in history should read the excellent “A Pirate of Exquisite Mind” about the life of William Dampier, after whom the peninsula north of the town is
named and which is available there. The Broome
Museum has some interesting exhibits.
The very helpful visitor centre can provide you with information and brochures on all aspects of Broome and the Kimberley. I stayed at the boutique McAlpine House hotel, which is where the construction tycoon Lord Alistair McAlpine lived when he was promoting the Broome tourism industry. The staff are very pleasant and my room, although a bit on the small side, had a large private lounge area outside. Breakfast is served at a large communal table and is fine except for the fact that for some unknown reason they refuse to serve orange juice, or any other kind of juice for that matter! http://mcalpinehouse.com.au/
The very helpful visitor centre can provide you with information and brochures on all aspects of Broome and the Kimberley. I stayed at the boutique McAlpine House hotel, which is where the construction tycoon Lord Alistair McAlpine lived when he was promoting the Broome tourism industry. The staff are very pleasant and my room, although a bit on the small side, had a large private lounge area outside. Breakfast is served at a large communal table and is fine except for the fact that for some unknown reason they refuse to serve orange juice, or any other kind of juice for that matter! http://mcalpinehouse.com.au/
Broome |
I
had dinner at Matso’s and 18 Degrees, both of which are a
10-minute walk from the McAlpine House and I would recommend both. I hired a
4WD camper through Apollo, who are very well represented in Broome by the
friendly and efficient owners of the Broome
Hire Centre in Blackman St. www.matsos.com.au/restaurant/
Derby
My
next stop was 200 km away at Derby, which is the western gateway to the
Kimberley. This is the place to stock up on supplies before starting along the Gibb River Road. I recommend the Kimberley Entrance Caravan Park, which
is conveniently located within walking distance of supermarkets and restaurants
and is run by a very friendly couple. The nearby Jila Gallery restaurant, which also displays artworks created by
local artists, serves excellent pizzas. Another good place to see, and maybe
buy, art by Aboriginal artists is the Norval
Gallery on the outskirts of town. Some of the paintings are very good and
quite reasonably priced compared with other Aboriginal art galleries I’ve
visited. https://kimberleyentrancecaravanpark.com.au/ www.jilacafe.com.au/
Sign at start of Gibb River Road |
Gibb River Road
I
must admit to having felt excited and daunted in equal measure by the idea of
venturing into the outback along the Gibb River Road (GRR). Much of the
literature I had read about it beforehand, in addition to highlighting the
beauty and the opportunities for adventure available in the Kimberley, also stressed the remoteness
and potential dangers of travelling in this part of Australia. So it was with
some trepidation that I turned off the main highway just south of Derby and
pointed my 4WD campervan east. Now, after having spent nearly a week in the
area and having covered around 1000 km on mainly unsealed roads, I realise that
my fears were largely unfounded.
During the dry season there are many other vehicles on the GRR and on the tracks that radiate from it, so you never feel like you’re alone in the middle of nowhere. Having said that, it is obviously essential to drive carefully and carry enough food and water in case something unexpected occurs, but if you follow the safety advice available and behave sensibly nothing untoward should happen to you. One aspect that worried me was the possibility of running out of fuel as there are very few places where you can fill up along the GRR. So having a 4WD with two tanks holding 180 litres of diesel altogether greatly allayed my fears in this respect. I found that just one of the two 90 litre tanks lasted for around 600 km, so there was never any danger of running out and being stranded miles from anywhere.
A lot is made of the roughness of the unsealed roads, but while some sections had quite deep corrugations most of the GRR and the tracks leading off it that I travelled on were in pretty good condition. Many people recommend that you lower your tyre pressures, but I found I was able to drive at between 60 and 70 kph most of the time with very little discomfort while maintaining them at the normal pressure.
So I would encourage anyone who might be thinking of visiting the area to go ahead and do so as I’m sure they will enjoy it as much as I did. If you need any more encouragement, check out Birgit Bradtke’s excellent website and publications as it was she who convinced me to organise my trip to the Kimberley despite my initial misgivings. www.kimberleyaustralia.com/
During the dry season there are many other vehicles on the GRR and on the tracks that radiate from it, so you never feel like you’re alone in the middle of nowhere. Having said that, it is obviously essential to drive carefully and carry enough food and water in case something unexpected occurs, but if you follow the safety advice available and behave sensibly nothing untoward should happen to you. One aspect that worried me was the possibility of running out of fuel as there are very few places where you can fill up along the GRR. So having a 4WD with two tanks holding 180 litres of diesel altogether greatly allayed my fears in this respect. I found that just one of the two 90 litre tanks lasted for around 600 km, so there was never any danger of running out and being stranded miles from anywhere.
A lot is made of the roughness of the unsealed roads, but while some sections had quite deep corrugations most of the GRR and the tracks leading off it that I travelled on were in pretty good condition. Many people recommend that you lower your tyre pressures, but I found I was able to drive at between 60 and 70 kph most of the time with very little discomfort while maintaining them at the normal pressure.
So I would encourage anyone who might be thinking of visiting the area to go ahead and do so as I’m sure they will enjoy it as much as I did. If you need any more encouragement, check out Birgit Bradtke’s excellent website and publications as it was she who convinced me to organise my trip to the Kimberley despite my initial misgivings. www.kimberleyaustralia.com/
Campground at Mornington |
Mornington Wilderness Camp
Run
by the Australian Wildlife Conservancy
(AWC), this camp is a long way (90km) off the Gibb River Road. The approach
track is not as scenic as the guidebooks suggest and I didn’t see much wildlife
there either. The two gorges that lie within the property (Sir John Gorge and Dimond
Gorge) are worth visiting, but to my mind are not as beautiful as Bell Gorge and Windjana Gorge, which don’t require such a lengthy detour off the
GRR. So I’m not sure I would have made the nearly 200km round trip if I’d known
what it was really like beforehand. That said, the AWC do excellent
conservation work that deserves public support and the camp is in a picturesque
setting and is well run, so if, unlike me, you have plenty of time it might be
a good option. www.australianwildlife.org/mornington-wilderness-camp.aspx
Sir John Gorge |
Bell Gorge
Whatever
you do, don’t miss this gorge! It’s easily accessed via the Silent Grove campground and a 20-minute
walk from the carpark. The gorge is very beautiful with a waterfall that falls
in tiers between two large pools. The highlight of the Kimberley for me,
although I only visited the western part. https://parks.dpaw.wa.gov.au/site/bell-gorge
Bell Gorge |
Imintji Store
Run
by a very helpful couple who sell a few basic supplies plus diesel. http://imintji.com.au/comunity-store
March Fly Glen
Between
the turn off to Mt Hart Homestead and
the one to Bell Gorge, this picnic
area is a very pretty place to pull over and take a break from driving for an
hour or so.
March Fly Glen |
Mt Hart Homestead
The
approach road is more scenic and in better condition than the one to Mornington. However, while the staff
make a big effort to make you feel welcome, the homestead itself and the
campground are a bit run down . I didn’t do any of the recommended excursions,
so I can’t say if they’re worthwhile or not. http://mounthart.com.au/
Creek on track to Mt Hart Homestead |
Windjana Gorge
It’s
definitely worth spending an hour or two at this atmospheric gorge. The scenery
is attractive and there are many birds and freshies (freshwater crocodiles)
there too. https://parks.dpaw.wa.gov.au/park/windjana-gorge
Windjana Gorge |