NOW: BUSSELTON TO MARGARET RIVER
After pulling the trailer plug apart and rechecking the connections we still had unreliable tail lights on the Tvan so we sought the help of an auto electrician. It seemed the electronic bits were dead in the taillight assembly and there was some intermittent fault in the wiring between the two taillights. So the Tvan spent the day resting at the auto electricians while we explored the beaches and shops of Rockingham. Being late in the day when everything was working we stopped overnight in Mandurah.
On down the coast to get our first flat tyre for the trip. After thousands of kilometres on the dirt we wrecked a tyre on the sealed highway! This starting to sound like a bit of a saga! So, on to Busselton where the native wildflowers are planted in the parks and gardens all around town.
While we were having the new tyre fitted we walked around the historic town precinct. The old goal, police station and court house are open to visitors and include works by some local artists. The Busselton Art Prize exhibition was also on display. The bronze statue of Mr Bussel after whom the town is named is also here.
At Point Naturaliste the lighthouse has been protecting the coast since 1903 and is still operating. Whales were frolicking close to the coast and catching everyone’s attention as we walked along the clifftop paths.
The boutique beers at Eagle Bay went well with our lunch platter and the views across the bay. When the sun came out we caught the coastline at its best with the bluest blue water, clean sand and stunning rock formations.
Busselton has the longest timber pier jetty in the southern hemisphere and it has an underwater observatory at the end, 2 kilometres out to sea. As we climbed down the spiral staircase we saw the sea animals that live at different levels below the jetty. The old timber piers make great homes for sponges, soft corals, crabs and fish. A large school of salmon and then tailor swam by right on cue as we looked through the observation window.
We rode out to the observatory on the tram and really enjoyed our underwater experience. We were both surprised at how interesting it was down there.
We opted to spend two nights in Margaret River so that we could be picked up and chauffeured around some wineries. Our full day tour treated us to 6 wineries, cheese, chocolate and small goods as well as a restaurant lunch.
The Margaret River region has many forest trails, some of them right along the coastline. There are also many limestone caves so we set off to explore travelling through Hamelin Bay on the way to Jewel Cave. The drive back through the forest to our camp at Conto was spectacular.
NEXT: ONE YEAR DOWN, AT LEAST ONE MORE TO GO!
See you on the Emu Track
Cheryl and David
