from dowerin to mt barker

So often I have come to sit down and type the next installment of my journey. and i get so far then one thing or another causes me to stop. The last few times i have come to type i have been stopped by the fact that i have so much now to catch up on and that events in my own mind are now confused.

The last update was on my arrival in Dowerin and even that was entered three weeks after the date. I am have now left Dowerin and I can be found, though only for this one night, typing in the corner of the lounge at the Blue Wren Travellers YHA. Actually, again by the time this update is online, as I am currently unconnected to the internet, I should in Mt Barker, Wwoofing (willing worker on organic farm) on a independent vineyard.

I will now start from my departure from Dowerin, for the simple reason that it is all still fresh in mind.

Leaving Dowerin

I had attempted to leave Dowerin on several earlier dates, but then I would change my mind and stay for a week or so more. This meant that I by the time I left I had been there for 10 weeks. The longer I stayed the more i got to know people and the more I got to know people the longer i wanted to stay. In the end it was more a case of dragging myself away so that I could see some more of the country i had come to visit.

This I finally bought myself to do on monday 23rd March.

I was to help Bec (friend and co-worker) move her belongings to Perth where she herself was headed, and then drive down to Nannup where i had a couple of nights accomadation at the Black Cockatoo Eco Stay. Plans unravelled somewhat after a heavy sunday session. Neither of us in a particularly able state in the morning, it was quickly agreed on that we would leave later in the afternoon and I would stay the night in Perth, rather than risk the journey south.

Actually, moments reflection ... nothing has gone to plan since I left Dowerin ... but what should plans matter to me as a independent free-spirited backpacker.

Back on track....

From Perth I drove south to Nannup where I arrived mid afternoon at the Black Cockatoo. I had no expectations for this place I had chosen. It had been listed in the Lonely Planet as a hostel, though on calling I found it no longer was, and there was little information on the internet. Arriving I was plesantly surprised. Its location is well hidden from the quiet street that runs alongside it. There being no offical parking place, I left the car on the grass verge out front and took the path to the house. On being shown my accomadation i was happy to find it not a room, as expected, but a small painted caravan! Oh joys! Painted both inside and out, with a shaded decking area complete with comfy chairs, surrounded by trees, birds.... I was in my own slice of heaven. There were two other outer dwellings on offer as doubles. One is a wooden outhouse; large windows let in copious amounts of natural light. The walls inside are painted with a fantastic angel murial, leading to the nickname the angel room. The atmosphere created within is one of serene tranquility. I would have been equally as pleased to sleep there, just to wake with the light coming through the windows lighting up the angels dancing across the walls. The other could be likened to a safari tent. A tent made of thick green canvas over a wooden raised floor set at the corner of the property, hidden almost completey by trees and shrubs.

In the end I stayed in Nannup for four days, two days longer than I had planned. I was also able to cut down on costs by working in the garden for a couple of hours in return for free accomodation . I was enjoying being surrounded by nature again. Something I had missed while in Dowerin, the landscape lacking in colour and vibrancy there. I would sit and read or take a walk in the surrounding woods. On one occassion I drove out of town to the nearby water pools which have been used by the locals for swimming and leisure since the town was established back in the late 19th century. Although nearby, getting there requires driving along various dirt tracks deep into the forest, but it is well worth the trip.

I had planned to camp over in Pemberton but on investigation, for one person, the cost of staying in the tent was going to be more than the cost of staying in the hostel. I decided to look elsewhere for a place to camp. In nearby Northcliffe, I found a small camping ground called the Roundtu-it Eco Camp.

On the journey down to the campsite I took a break for coffee at a cafe in Pemberton. As I sat enjoying the caffenine filled goodness of a long black I watched as the rain began to pour down. It continued to rain as I drove down to Northcliffe, and in fact it continued for the majority of my stay there. I set my tent up in the rain, only mildly amused that the tradition of rain while camping had followed me from Britain to Australia.

The best part of the stay at Northcliffe was that the campsite owners also took in injured Kangaroos. This meant there were a large group of Roos roaming about the property, and even better was that some were tame.

The day after my arrival I awoke early with plans of taking a long walk. After I had breakfasted and packed what I would need i jumped in the car with the directions to the start of the walk. the car failed to start! My plans were ruined...again!

The next day (monday) I called in the RAC to be told my fuel pump had died and that I would need a new one. The car was towed to the local garage and I would end up having to wait two days to get the car back. I was stranded, and in Northcliffe of all places. There was little to do without the car. i took walks into the village, visited the cafe for coffee and the Telecentre for internet then I would return to wrap myself up warm in tent where I devoured several books. The owner kindly took me into Manjimup on the wednesday which got me away from the tent for half a day. There I was able to buy supplies.

The combined effect of the car and the weather meant that I was quite happy to leave.

Onwards....

From Northcliffe I drove to Denmark, stopping off in Walpole to visit the valley of the giants. Unlucky for me it rained the entire time I was there and I got soaked walking on the tree top walk. It was worth it though, being surronded by trees some few hundred years old, and sometime i hope to return when the weather is better.

I stopped for one night at the Blue Wren Backpackers in Denmark.

The next day I drove to Mt Barker where I would be a 'willing worker' on a vineyard. I drove through Albany stopping to buy another sleeping bag. I had seriously underestimated how the climate would change as I moved south and into Winter.

I arrived at the Eastwell Estate late morning,

---

---