The oldest City of Western Australia

Albany - located in the King George Sound - is celebrating its 200th birthday this year and is considered the oldest colonial settlement, founded on 26 Dec. 1826 as a military outpost of New South Wales. Lots of historic architecture downtown, from the times when gold findings brought wealth to town in the 1890s. Fancy hotels, pubs, public buildings etc. are to be found along Princess Royal Harbour and York Street. The city is marked by Mount Clarence to the east and Mount Melville to the west and has a pretty impressive futuristic "Entertainment Center" at the harbour (photo). 

 

Albany’s Historic Whaling Station goes back to the Cheynes Beach Whaling Company, established in 1952 at Frenchman Bay. The whaling industry was initially focused on hunting humpback whales, later sperm whales. It operated as an important commercial whaling operation in Australia until 1978 and is a museum now with this whaling ship below anchored in front of the building.

 

A little out of town are a couple of natural sights - like the Blow Holes, The Gap and the Natural Bridge and the outlook at Stony Hill - all offering great views towards the Southern Ocean (photos below).

 

In the Museum of the Great Southern we not only learned about the city formerly and now, but also about the interaction of the local Menang people and Europeans starting in 1622 with ships arriving. In the 50ies agriculture became important, end of 19th century it developed as a health resort, and holiday destination.

 

 

 

Drove about 300 km in total back west from Albany on Thursday. We stopped on our way in Mount Baker,  with a fantastic info center in the old railroad station -, in Manjimuk, and some other pitturesque towns on the way to Bunbury, again on the coast. Bunbury was our last overnight on the way back to Perth. More on that later - Aussie Football is waiting!