Blogs from Albany, Western Australia, Australia, Oceania - page 16

Escaping form Perth for a few days I drive along the coast from Walpole to Albany. Attractions during this trip are the Valley of Giants, inlet beaches and the former whaling city of Albany. Walpole, 450 kms south-west of Perth is located on Walpole Inlet which drains into the larger Nornalup Inlet and hence into the Southern Ocean. Established in the 1930's as a group settlement for farmers its industries grew to include timber milling, beef and dairy farming. Today its main claim to fame is the Red and Yellow Tingle Tree. With a population of 500 people it is a very quiet center with shops closed by 8PM. The Red Tingle (Eucalpytus Jacksonii) is found only in the vicinity of the Walpole-Nornalup National Park. It can grow up to 75 metres high. Its shallow root ... read more

Up for 7 for the breakfast then onto the bus and on the road for 7:45am. We drove for 15 mins then stopped at the bicentennial tree, This tree has the highest fire look-out post in the world. A few people climbed it using the metal spikes that had been put into the tree, most of us did not bother climbing it as it did not look that safe. We then left and drove to Walpole where the tree-top walk is. We walked along the platforms that had been built above the trees, We then drove to a winery and had lunch. Following this we went through Denmark towards Albany. Before we reached Albany we stopped at the natural bridge and the Gap. the hostel cooked a pasta dish which was ok... read more

I've done a little more this week than last week. On Thursday we went down to Albany to stay for two nights with Ian and Jean and to explore the South, everything is so far apart that it took a couple of hours even from there to get to the places that were 'close by'. The drive down wasnt the most scenic and mostly involved trees and more trees and yep you guessed it more trees . Nat did spot our first wild Kangaroo and we spotted alot more hopping in fields by the time we got back. On the Friday we went to The valley of the giants and took the 'Tree Top Walk' the highest point being 40metres and the walkway had a slightly uneasy sway about it when too many people got on ... read more

I'll send the next update in the next few days. In the meantime, here's a selection of photos from the last 6 weeks....enjoy! http://community.webshots.com/user/nickweaver100 ... read more

20/10/06 - 22/10/06 We flew around the South West corner of Oz in a 3 day tour; Perth - Albany - Denmark - Pemberton - Margaret River - Busselton - Perth. Traveling from Perth our first stop was at Fox River Winery - Hurrah!! We slurped (literally) the Pinot Noir, Shiraz and Chenin Blanc, sucking in the oaky flavours. After a lot of swallowing and not much spitting we followed the highway through the Porongurups and climbed Castle Rock. The hike was well worth the effort for the rewarding views, after clambering across boulders and up a steep metal ladder to the crow’s nest viewpoint. Our Guide Rick gave amazingly detailed information on the local flora, learned from Aboriginal guides. Red/orange is a warning, beware! Anything with leaves coming off the stalk at 90 degrees and ... read more