Rottnest Island

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We've been on the road (sea) again, hooray! Our mums arrived in Perth on Tuesday and after a couple of days acclimitising (to the cold and rain????) and getting over jet-lag, we headed off to Rottnest Island, a mere 26 km from Fremantle Harbour. The crossing was a tad choppy and Kay got soaked but we spotted dolphins bobbing around in the harbour before we left so that made it quite exciting (Mark and I have spotted dolphins every time we've gone to Freo on the train so I guess they are quite common for Ozzies who laugh at us when we get so excited to see them).

Louise and Tom met us off the boat and we had a barbie together catching up with news on our balcony before they had to head off for the last boat. That left Mark to go fishing with Louise's snazzy hot pink fishing rod (he caught 3 fish but they all went back in) and the mums and I went for a walk along the cliff past more dolphins to the lighthouse and the sunset.

Rottnest was so named by the Dutch explorers who found the island and it's cute inhabitants - quokkas. They look like a cross between a rat and a kangaroo with extra fluffiness. They are rather cute and very friendly but the Dutch thought they were rats hence Rottnest (rat's nest for the unfluent in Dutch). It's a lovely island with loads of glorious beaches and calm bays. There are no cars on the island so it's peaceful and safe on the roads. Just as well as we hired bikes for the day to go exploring.

We thought tandems would be the way forward. What a giggle! It took my mum and I a while to get the co-ordination right, then a while longer to master the art of stopping safely. We could only just reach the ground and as we are both a bit dyslexic with lefts and rights there were a few mad scrambles and hairy moments trying to ensure we both went the same way. Mark and Kay had none of this trouble and sailed away leaving us scrabling around in fits of laughter. It didn't help that we had a few screws loose (on the bike) and anytime my mum moved her handlebars (they should have been static) my saddle went too! Funnily enough, we didn't make it round the whole island but that was only because of the big grey cloud looming overhead, nothing to do with it being too much like hard work on holiday, honest!

We did however, make it up Oliver Hill to the gun where Fred gave us an informative tour. The gun was built up there in the 1930s to give Freo a bit of protection should Australia come under attack. The gun was still in an impressive condition as were the tunnels built underneath to store armaments. The hill was made of sand so to build the tunnels they dug away all of the sand, built the tunnels with concrete and then put all the sand back on top! After all that, the gun was never fired in defence but as Fred told us, it was an insurance policy.

In the afternoon we took the bus round the island in the (light) rain (that cloud maybe wasn't as grey as it had looked from a bike) and saw some stunning views (they will make it on here eventually, promise). The sea was turquoise and crystal clear. Rottnest would be stunning place to visit in the summer. As it was, it was still lovely and the sea wasn't as baltic as expected. Didn't go in though!

Our accomodation was basic, but it is all run by the Island Authority making it an affordable place for anyone to visit. They got a lot of things right that the Scottish Tourist Board could learn from, there were facilities everywhere and it was spotless. Our weather was OK, a wee bit cold but the sun came out the morning we left, typical! It was great to get away again and spend time catching up with our mums and playing board games.

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Photos

Pegleg
This seagull sat on our balcony the whole time begging for food. The day we left he followed us to the pier.

Comments

[Dorothy Quayle]

Do hope you both had a lovely time with your Mums - I guess they are both back in UK to watch the rain fall and parts of the country especially Yorkshire down through Lincolnshire, the West Midlands, Gloucester, Herefordshire and Worcester become wetter and wetter with massive flooding esp as the main rivers get beyond coping point. London is suffering as the Thames is having to carry a lot of the midlands water away. Devastating stories, road problems etc. What a lovely summer we are having but am assured it has been worse in prvevious times! Still, stiff British upper lip and all that to say we are having a lovely time paddling on the recreation ground!! Take care and enjoy last weeks of trip. - Dorothy