Beaches, Hikes and Wine

What fantastic two full days we had on the beach! We drove down (about 250 km) from Perth through Busselton (photo) with its jetty (pier) on Saturday in our more normally-behaved Hyundai Venue, which we had picked up in the morning at the Europcar city office closeby our friends' house. They had made arrangements and we all stayed in a beautiful beach villa close to Dunsborough (Quindalup), in Geograph Bay. At least one swim a day was on the itinerary, as well as some wine on the terrace, wonderful meals and great conversation.

"Our beach" – BTW, nearby a couple of weeks ago a boy saved his mother and sister, drifted out in the ocean. It was on the news  everywhere without mentioning the exact location. Below, "our" house, conveniently close to the beach and just perfect!

For two days we went on excursion with our friends. They drove us around and showed us the beauty of this area called Margaret River Region, in the southwest corner of Western Australia. What we absolutely liked best were the beaches and the views! Turquoise-blue water, fine sand, super-clean beaches - divine! 

Big surf scene in the Margaret River area - the Margaret River Pro is one of the premier surf events there. We didn't see much surfers due to the calm conditions, but we saw dolphins - photo further below - and, later, emus and kangaroos, too!. We learned that there is a "Shark Watch" by helicopter (supervising beaches) and that all beaches are public and can be used at your own responsibility.

 

Besides beaches - photos above can only give a rough idea about how beautiful they are! - we went for a hike every day, around Cape Naturaliste with its lighthouse and in Leeuwin Naturaliste National Park, and explored the flora and fauna. Thanks to our botanically very knowledgeable friend Bruce, we learned all about eucalyptus varieties and other plants as well as birds like the Galah (Rosa Kakadu - photo above).  

Jarrah (Eucalyptus marginata) Marri (Corymbia calophylla), Karri ((​Eucalyptus diversicolor) are the main varieties in Western Australia, but there are many more,,,

Wineries ,,, the Margaret River Valley, a pocket in the secluded south-west of Australia, is a coastal wine region. Its Mediterranean climate of wet winters and long dry summers produce excellent Cabernet Sauvignon and Chardonnay - but these are only the flagship wines of the region. The Margaret River wine region features over 100 cellar doors (meaning: wineries open to the public, selling wine) with superb fine dining and café options, too. You get a broad spectrum: from modest and very affordable wineries like Happs (below, free tasting) to fancy and very exclusive like Voyagers or Leeuwin Estate. Wines are very good, high quality and compared to e.g. California still affordable.

Leeuwin Estate above and below, with extensive grounds, an exclusive restaurant and an art gallery:

Voyager Estate below, with a rose garden!

Wise winery below:

It's been fun to taste these wines, and, other than in the Hunter Valley, wineries are much more approachable, inviting and very different in style. Loved it! We had a fantastic time and are sure that this part of the country is one of the most beautiful in the world.

Well, this is the second version of the text I've originally written - due to bad internet connection, somehow the first version wasn't saved and I had to re-write. A bit tired in the meantime after another interesting long day on the road. We left the beach house and our friends this morning and drove on further south towards Pemberton. More on that tomorrow!