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Published: September 27th 2018
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Having recovered from the stormy night in our cosy apartment in Esperance it was traditional ( for me on my travels ) that at I make eggy bread for breakfast ( that’s our family name for the posh version of French Toast ). Well fortified we set off to drive the Great Ocean Drive ( not Road ) taking in the Pink Lake which is not pink anyymore because of a change in water catchment levels and the bacteria in the lake and many other beaches along the Twighlight Beach road ...and you couldn’t stop oohing and aaahing at the stunning cliffs, turquoise waters and rocky outcrops. Perfect spot for a picnic lunch ...and I loved the warning sign on the beach ...not excactly encouraging ! We had been invited to spend the night at a friend‘s farm at Munglinup ( yes I had to practise saying that too) , so it was thanks to Brigitte nd Wilhelm we spent a very enjoyable night in this gorgeous farmhouse with big roaring log fires , wine flowing and delicious Italian foodmade by another guest Verdi . As we arrived Verdi was finishing making the pasta and the lasagne was draped over the
dining table....it looked like a work of art ! Colleen was out and about with the camera at sunset so thanks for those pics Of the beautiful trees and the cattle. Again I was a happy listener to hear their stories of how they arrived from Germany to buy this farm and Verdi their Italian friend had gone along with them too, how they managed the land and rebuilt the ramshackle old house into the beautiful home it is today. You can’t beat a farmhouse breakfast and we were off again to follow the coast road on the last drive to Albany . Through Fitzgerald National Park we went . This is one of the largest and most botanically significant National Parks ...with more than 1660 species having been identified , 60 of which are found nowhere else. More species of animals live here than in any other reserve in SW Australia...the inventory includes 22 mammals, 41 reptiles , 12 frogs and more than 200 birds. Parts of the park are wilderness zones with no vehicular access, but for the drivers the roads are excellent with good signage and stopping points . One of the important flowers here is the
Royal Hakea ...it’s always great to see something completely different from what you’ve ever seen before and this was just such a plant.
Geology lesson... as Australia was rifting away from Antarctica in the the warm ice free waters of the late Cretaceous period (80million yrs ago) there was a rapid rise in sea level and a huge inland sea covered much of the Southern Australian landmass, islands were formed which are now mountain ranges and you could see the shape of the cliffs wavecut platforms all along the coast.
FYI: One of the things I found on the whole trip had been that toilets were always available and clean in every little town we stopped in , and out in the bush where there were drop toilets like in Kennedy Range and here in Fitzgerald they’re were really very good, so I have included a couple of pics for any travellers who may follow after me .
At one place there had been a bit of a flood and a washout on the road so we had to take another route but mostly we could stick to the Coastal route and then joined the main Highway
and the road home to Colleen and Peter‘s lovely heritage home in Albany. Next day after we were cleaning the UTE , packing all the camping gear away , doing the laundry and for me to say goodbye to these wonderful friends and companions ...Peter drove me back to Perth and we had clocked up 4600 km on this round trip. I cannot thank Peter and Colleen enough for everything..... This has been such a wonderful memorable enjoyable experience and of course the test is would I do it again ....OF COURSE I WOULD !
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Jill
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Have enjoyed reading your latest blogs am wondering where to next travel well Cheers Jill