Western Australia
Deep in the West
Once again, we board a Virgin Australia flight. With a stopover in Sydney, we continue on to Perth in Western Australia, by far the largest state in Australia. As we step off the plane, it’s 39 degrees outside – quite a contrast to the forests of Tasmania. We leave the airport and drive south until we reach Pinjarra, where we’ll spend the night in a small wooden cabin at a campground.
We start the morning at Dôme Cafe. This Australian coffee chain serves an excellent caffè latte, and we’ll be stopping by quite a few times over the next days. After a walk along the Murray River, we continue south on Highway 20. In Waroona, a purple cow welcomes us; Harvey is the center of the local orange production, and Brunswick Junction is all about the dairy industry, as the cow sculptures in town impressively demonstrate. Donnybrook, finally, is the apple capital of the region and offers lovely picnic benches for lunch.
The next few hours on the Muir Highway are very lonely – no towns, no farmhouses, no intersections. In Rocky Gully, which according to the internet has 92 residents with an average income of $0 (!), we are immediately attacked by biting flies, so we end up drinking our coffee inside the car for shelter. We spend the night at a bed and breakfast in Mount Barker.
The following day, we visit two national parks. In Porongurup National Park, we hike up the Granite Skywalk to the Castle Rock Plateau; the climb is quite strenuous in these temperatures. In Stirling Range National Park, we drive to the Bluff Knoll Eastern Lookout, where we have an impressive view of the Stirling Range. In the afternoon, we arrive in Albany, the largest city on the south coast of Western Australia.
On the South Coast Highway
The main attractions the next day in Torndirrup National Park are The Gap, a 24-meter-high cliff face that rises completely vertically from the sea, and right next to it, a Natural Bridge, another top-class natural wonder. In the afternoon, we explore the charming town center of Albany and enjoy coffee and cake at Kate’s Place.
We continue along the South Coast Highway to Denmark, a small tourist town with more than ten coffee shops. In William Bay National Park, Greens Pool with its turquoise-blue water and the massive Elephant Rocks spread out in front of us. Around lunchtime, we reach the Valley of the Giants, home to a fantastic Tree Top Walk. At its highest point, we stand 40 meters above the ground, surrounded by a forest of giant red tingle trees, some up to 400 years old and up to 75 meters tall. Not far away is the Giant Tingle Tree, with a circumference of 24 meters, one of the thickest eucalyptus trees in the world. The following night we spend in Pemberton.
Along the Coast to Perth
We reach Beedelup Falls in the national park of the same name via a swinging suspension bridge. In Augusta, we enjoy coffee and apple strudel at the Augusta Bakery. At Cape Leeuwin, finally, we find ourselves at the southwesternmost point of Australia; here, at the white lighthouse, the Indian and Southern Oceans meet. From here on, we head north again. We follow Caves Road, a scenic byway leading to a series of caves, and Boranup Drive, a 14-kilometer gravel road that winds through a forest of towering karri trees, the Boranup Forest. After a detour to Surfers Point near Prevelly, we arrive in Margaret River, the centre of one of Australia’s most famous wine regions.
Our route takes us past numerous wineries that invite guests to wine tasting with signs reading “Cellar Door”. Along the coast, we repeatedly admire bizarre rock formations such as Canal Rocks, Castle Rock, and Sugarloaf Rock. We have lunch in Dunsborough, and a little later we reach the seaside resort of Busselton. The famous Busselton Jetty is a pier about two kilometers long, making it one of the longest wooden jetties in the world. There is even a small railway running across the pier, and at its end, as a special highlight, there is an underwater observatory. In the considerably larger town of Bunbury, we spend the night in a beautiful hotel.
The final part of our journey to the capital takes us through Myalup, where there are two attractions. At the Miami Bakehouse, we check out the KangaART exhibition, featuring about 15 lovingly and colorfully crafted kangaroo sculptures. The Crooked Carrot Cafe is a small amusement park with a garden landscape adorned with all sorts of rusty tractors and other equipment.
In Bouvard, a small seaside resort, we actually manage to find one of the well-hidden Mandurah Giants, a large wooden sculpture by Danish artist Thomas Dambo. Finally, just before Perth, we visit the Aveling company in Jandakot. The company’s hallways feature art at its finest, and we enjoy coffee and cake at the company’s own café. We also have the pleasure of chatting with friendly staff who tell us about mining history in Western Australia.
Perth is Australia’s fourth-largest city and the capital of Western Australia. We rent bicycles and explore this sprawling city, whose heart beats at Elizabeth Quay. This is also where the Bell Tower and the iconic white sculpture Spanda are located. Next comes a strenuous climb up to Kings Park, one of the largest urban parks in the world. London Court in downtown Perth is a tiny alleyway, built in the Tudor style, with half-timbered facades, turrets, coats of arms, and wrought-iron gates. Our next stop is Yagan Square, surrounded by the Central Station and the Art Gallery of Western Australia. We end this eventful day with a refreshing drink at the elegant Duxton Hotel.
Harbor, Beach and Pinnacles
On the second day, we leave downtown and head out to Cottesloe Beach, one of Perth’s most famous beaches. This year’s “Sculptures by the Sea” exhibition is currently taking place here; during our walk along the beach, we can admire more than 70 spectacular sculptures. We spend the afternoon in Fremantle, Perth’s old port. We explore the Cappuccino Strip, known for its sidewalk cafes, restaurants, and bars, have coffee at the historic Esplanade Hotel, and visit the Fishing Boat Harbour.
The next morning, we drive north for about two and a half hours along the Indian Ocean Drive. Gradually, the landscape begins to look like what you would imagine most of Western Australia: heathland or bushland with low shrubs or grass trees, hardly any houses, almost no towns, and temperatures exceeding 30 degrees Celsius under a cloudless sky. Our destination is Nambung National Park. Here, amidst the barren landscape, we find thousands of bizarre stone pillars, known as Pinnacles, which can be explored on a four-kilometer loop. In Jurien Bay, we enjoy a last cup of coffee right by the turquoise-blue Indian Ocean, then continue on to Cervantes, where we spend our final night in a small holiday home.
To conclude our tour, we actually get to see koalas again, this time in Yanchep National Park. The park’s main attraction is a short boardwalk; from there, you can watch the little furry creatures as they doze in the trees. Then it’s time to head to the airport and return the rental car. From Perth, we fly back to Singapore, departing two hours later for the final part of our journey. After a long flight home, we touch down in Frankfurt early in the morning, right on schedule.
Route Description
| Tag/Day | Von/From | Nach/To | Route |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Perth Airport (PER) | Pinjarra | 090 km |
| 02 | Pinjarra | Mount Barker | 400 km |
| 03 | Mount Barker | Albany | 200 km |
| 04 | Albany | Albany | 080 km |
| 05 | Albany | Pemberton | 275 km |
| 06 | Pemberton | Margaret River | 225 km |
| 07 | Margaret River | Bunburry | 185 km |
| 08 | Bunburry | Perth | 200 km |
| 09 | Perth | Perth | 000 km |
| 10 | Perth | Perth | 050 km |
| 11 | Perth | Cervantes | 275 km |
| 12 | Cervantes | Perth Airport (PER) | 235 km |
| Total | 2.215 km |
The Journey in Pictures
Warum erinnert uns das nur an Shakespeare?
Eine 24 m hohe Felswand, vollkommen senkrecht im Meer stehend
Die einzige größere Stadt an der Südküste des Bundesstaates
In 40 m Höhe inmitten von riesigen Red Tingle Trees
Mit 24 m Umfang einer der dicksten Eukalyptusbäume der Welt
Der südwestlichste Punkt Australiens
Treffpunkt von Indian Ocean und Southern Ocean
Der perfekte Ort fürs Mittagessen
Eine der längsten Piers der Welt
Der Turm enthält 18 historische Glocken, teilweise aus London aus dem 14.–16. Jahrhundert
Das 29 m hohe Wahrzeichen der Stadt
70 wunderbare Kunstwerke direkt am Strand
