Perth tourism – Page 2 – Chris Parry Writes For Us

ABC Perth Saturday Breakfast Gets Fit

January 29, 2022Posted in abcperth, abcperthsaturdaybreakfast, perth, Perth tourism, quirky travel, Western Australian TravelTagged #abcperth, #perth, #Perthnow, #wanderoutyonder, #westernaustraliaLeave a comment

It’s normally around now that we remember the New Years Resolution’s that we made nearly a month ago. It’s normally around now that reality kicks in as you realise that work outfits seem just a bit tighter than the singlets and bathers you might have been getting around in all summer.

It’s time to combine that spirit of adventure with the reality of getting a bit fitter.

For ABC Perth Saturday Breakfast, to help you find some fitness, I was sent to find some locations around Perth and WA that will inspire you and maybe just take you back a notch on your belt.

I think the collective noun for cargo shorts is a ‘lazy’. It’s what I’ve been living in this summer but I can’t get away with it for much longer. It’s time to start wearing some real pants and I need to get some exercise that is also outdoors and inspiring.

DNA Tower: This is like Classic Coke. You can mess around with new lookouts and treetop walks but this is the true classic. Just over 100 spiralling steps with a plaque on the top showing distances to different locations. Interestingly it’s 3km from Pelican Point and 26km to Rottnest.

Kokoda Track Memorial Walk: Located at the Kennedy Fountain on Mounts Bay Road, this is a great place to practise your pre-trek routine and break in new boots. I used to piggyback Matilda up these steps when I was training to do the Sandakan Death March. The 150 steps are uneven and odd distances apart so it’s hard to get into a stepping routine. There are park benches and plaques along the way, naming different Kokoda battles that allow you to reflect on the Kokoda campaign and the soldiers known as, ‘The men who saved Australia.”

Jacobs Ladder: This is probably our most popular exercise spot in Perth. Located at Cliff Street in West Perth with just over 240 steps up a 40 metre ascent, this is one for those who have good active wear and it can get a bit serious at times, particularly if groups are running up and down it.

Around the Bridges: The loop from the Narrows to the Causeway is more my style, and the style for all ages who can walk, ride a bike, ride a scooter, ride anything, just remember to keep to the left and ding your bell if you’re passing anyone. A good 10km walk with plenty of opportunities to just sit and marvel at what a beautiful part of the world we live in.

Whitfords Nodes Health and Wellbeing Hub: This is just up from Hillarys. As well as lots of nature play and climbing equipment there is the new 145 stairway up a coastal dune with the reward of great views of the metropolitan coastline.

Joyce Park Steps in Scarborough: Probably our least known exercise spot, it has a strong local following of step climbers who then head off to the beach for a swim.

Munda Biddi Trail: Stretching 1000km’s from Mundaring to Albany this is an off-road cycling track that is the longest off-road cycle trail in the world. You don’t need to ride the full length. Have a day out and try a level of difficulty that’s suitable to your ability. White or green circles are nice and easy whereas if you find yourself on a double black diamond it suggests you’ll probably fall off your bike any second.

Collie Trails: The area around Collie has some of the newest off-road cycling tracks in the state and have been designed by some of the worlds best riders. As part of a trails strategy, Collie is becoming the trail hub of the world with amazing cycling trails, horse trails and walking trails that are well designed for all sorts of abilities.

Cape to Cape: For those who don’t mind logistics and are looking for a longer challenge, the 123km Cape to Cape walk (from Cape Naturalist to Cape Leeuwin) can be done on your own or with an organised tour group over varying distances but you need to work out how you’ll return to your vehicle, what supplies you need to carry but it’s all worth it when you’re walking along cliffs, through forest and on remote shores.

The Hike Collective: We’ve touched on these guys before and for good reason. They offer a range of walks that can end with champagne and a sunset and providing for mental health is just as important as physical health. They have a new program. It’s often said that yoga is mentally grounding. This new yoga is undergrounding, in a cave. In the Cabaret Cave in Yanchep, enjoy yoga and meditation and maybe some fresh cold-pressed juice afterwards.

Ask your local council what they have for free outdoor exercise opportunities, like the ‘Get Active Outdoors Guide’ by the City of Armadale, City of Gosnells and Shire of Serpentine-Jarrahdale. They have a well coordinated program of sessions in parks including walks, runs, yoga, bike riding and even have maps for where you can find a new place to walk your dog.

Exercise can be a Hidden Treasure because we live in the best place on Earth for getting outdoors and doing stuff. Exercise doesn’t have to be a resolution, let it be a discovery.

Climb a hill, ride a bike through challenging switchbacks, walk around a couple of bridges or lakes. Hidden Treasures is about discovering what is close by and doing it in new ways. Don’t just drive past, get out and walk around for a bit.

ABC Saturday Breakfast: The Best Of Hidden Treasure

December 11, 2021December 17, 2021Posted in abcperth, abcperthsaturdaybreakfast, Aboriginal Tours, perth, Perth tourism, quirky travel, roadtrips, sports tourism, Western Australian TravelTagged #abcperth, #perth, #Perthnow, #wanderoutyonder, #westernaustraliaLeave a comment

Hidden Treasures has been a journey of local discoveries that has led us to urban art trails, suburban museums, jetties, lakes, parks and so much more.

In this penultimate edition of Hidden Treasures for 2021, we’re doing a year in review, we’re naming names, we’re handing out gongs and we’re doing it quicker than the Brownlow. Listen to the audio file below or keep reading, or do both!

aci-2021-12-11-hidden-treasures Download

What I’ve loved about Hidden Treasures is more than making the discovery, it’s been about sharing the discovery. Just like returning from those overseas destinations, I have found joy in describing for you Bull Creek and Mirrabooka, Two Rocks and Kwinana and many more of our suburbs. My Top Ten Hidden Treasures for 2021:

Best Suburban Museum:

2^nd Bassendean Railway Museum: Tells a great story of the railways in WA.

1^st Bull Creek Aviation Heritage Museum: Spitfires, Lancasters, rockets and roaring engines.

***Spitfires, Lancasters, Catalina’s and more, at the Bull Creek Aviation Heritage Museum***

Best Sport:

2^nd WAFL: Great standard of suburban tribalism in sport and community.

1^st Padel: Never heard of it before we did Hidden Sports Treasures.

***Come for a Padel, stay for a tapas***

Best Food:

A tie for 2^nd – Cray Dog at the Lane Café on Wadjemup and Curry Puff at Bull Creek Oriental Supplies.

1^st – Fish Burger at Preston Beach General Store.

Best Aboriginal Experience:

2^nd Deadly Divas – Wildflower Walkabout and Campfire Stories run by ladies for the ladies.

1^st Yagan Square Nyumbi – Friday evenings, hopefully back for 2022.

Best View:

2^nd Kwinana Chalk Hill – a worthy winner of hidden treasure views.

1^st HALO at Perth Stadium – Don’t just be a spectator, have an adventure.

Best Main Street:

2^nd North Fremantle – a great street to walk and mooch

1^st Bassendean – a main street that in the best traditions of main streets, reminds me of all the country towns I’ve lived in and driven through.

Best Walk:

2^nd Hike Collective – making a good walk as much about mental health as physical health.

1^st West Perth – a middle of the city walk that gives you a great park (Harold Boas), the seat of government, a seat on sliding grass and jaffles.

Best Urban Art:

2^nd Joondalup Urban Art Trail – Including a sculpture that’s a love shack for moths and the worlds biggest periodic table

1^st Mirrabooka Mural – Shaping the Future is about loving the diversity in the place you live by showing local faces from many backgrounds.

***Urban art is one of Perth’s great hidden treasures***

Best Free Tour:

2^nd Coogee Common Garden Tour – feel like Peter Rabbit in Mr McGregors garden (without the terror).

1^st Sunset Coast Explorer – Feel like a tourist as you sit back in a double decker bus up the coast from Scarborough.

Best Surprise:

2^nd Community Gardens – Discover where communities come together to grow vegetables, make compost, look after chickens, teach sustainability and just relax while you potter about.

1^st Staycations – You really can relax just 15 minutes from home.

The pandemic might have been the inspiration for Hidden Treasures but don’t let travel restrictions be the reason to turn your gaze towards exploration at home, make exploration at home a part of your travel life, a regular outing or roadtrip or staycation somewhere in your city that you haven’t been to.

It’s there and it always will be if we support it.

As Published in Have A Go News Newspaper … There’s Hidden Treasure on Wadjemup Island!

December 7, 2021Posted in perth, Perth tourism, rottnest island, travel, Wadjemup, Western Australian TravelTagged #perth, #Perthnow, #rottnest, #rottnestislandwa, #thisiswa, #wanderoutyonder, #westernaustraliaLeave a comment

23dec357 Download

Enjoy the story above, published in the summer edition of Have A Go News Newspaper. Have A Go News has a circulation of more than 80,000 copies around Western Australia and is also available online and on your favourite social media platforms.

This story features a weekend adventure with my son Tom to do the stuff you might not know about. Some of it has always been there and some of it is new.

Next time you’re on this amazing island, do what you always like to do and do something new as well.

***That’s a whale and seal watching face, and a slightly drenched face as well!***

ABC Saturday Breakfast Rides the River

December 4, 2021January 4, 2022Posted in abcperth, abcperthsaturdaybreakfast, Claisebrook Cove ferry, Elizabeth Quay, Elizabeth Quay travel, perth, Perth kayak adventure, Perth tourism, Swan River, Swan River ferry, Western Australian TravelTagged #abcperth, #perth, #swanriverseaplanes, #thisiswa, #wanderoutyonder, #westernaustraliaLeave a comment

Whether it’s to try out a new Christmas present, a family day out, being a tourist for the day or showing off our city to a visiting friend, there is one place that is guaranteed to make it special, one place that is our most treasured place. It’s not hidden, but there are hidden treasures to be found on it. Where are we going? The Derbarl Yerrigan. The Swan River. Our river.

Some of our Hidden Treasure stories have included elements of the Swan River. It was when I looked around Bassendean that I first thought about a river story.

We talked about the confluence of the Helena River and Swan River and the thrill of watching people fall off stand-up paddleboards and I watched kids swinging on a rope and tyre tied to a gnarly old tree sticking out of the bank on the Guildford side.

Our Hidden Treasure this morning is for all of us who love the river, love getting on it, but don’t have a boat. Here’s a few things you can do to get you on the water on one of the world’s great city waterways.

We’ve already mentioned stand up paddleboards as a spectator sport and tyres on a rope as an age-old pastime on the river but let’s get to my list of ten things for riding on the river if you haven’t got your own boat.

Surfcats: I can remember as a kid watching cricket on tv and the camera would pan across to people on the river in surfcats and they would sometimes blow over when the Freo Doctor was in and then you’d see people stand up. I also remember Tony Greig baiting Bill Lawry about going out on a surfcat, knowing Bill couldn’t swim. These days the surfcats are stronger and a family of four can enjoy sailing and imagining they’re winning the America’s Cup.

Transperth Ferries: This is probably the best way to see the city, the river and all of the activity on it. For just a couple of dollars you can hop on at the Mends Street Jetty in South Perth or ferry terminal at Elizabeth Quay. At both ends of a ten-minute journey you’ll find ice cream shops and cafes, or something finer if you like. You can open the windows and have your head out in the breeze, watch cormorants on the navigation markers with their wings spread wide, drying them in the sun.

Electric Ferry: For a different type of ferry, a tesla on water, try the Little Electric Ferry Company which also operates from Elizabeth Quay. This little fleet is fully electric and looks like something Gatsby would go boating in. They travel up to Claisebrook and tie up in the inlet and give you enough time to duck into the pub for a beer before heading back down the river and sometimes they stop off at the pontoon wharf outside Perth Stadium, just up from Matagarup Bridge.

Zipline: Also up from Matagarup Bridge, literally, is the recently opened zipline which launches you from the bridge and across to the east bank. It’s a great way to fly like a bird, scream like a banshee and land like James Bond.

Nautipicnics: Staying with the electric theme on water, if you want to get your dog on the water and have a go at being a skipper for a day, even without your Skippers Ticket, you can take out the groovy little Nautipicnics boats.

***Nautipicnics … no Skippers Ticket needed … but watch where you’re going!***

Perfect for exploring the banks around Maylands and Bayswater, chugging alongside a pelican as it’s taking off like some 1930’s flying boat. They’re set up with a central table and a shady bimini so you can glide around the river and graze your way through a cheese platter with cheese of a better quality than my days working for Boat Torque.

Water Wanderers: These guys do sunset tours, wetlands tours and Leonie will find little spots to pull into and give you amazing desserts served in Mason Jars, designed to top up your energy levels for your adventure. I did a tour with Leonie as a Father’s Day adventure with my kids and my brother Jamie. Matilda and I would line up Jamie and Tom and yell ‘Ramming Speed’ and then bump against Tom who would get cross with his Uncle Jamie for not avoiding us while Leonie would just laugh, mostly.

***Try ‘Ramming Speed!’ with the Water Wanderers***

Water Bikes: For a completely different way of being on the water, how about riding a bike on the water. These are the only bikes you don’t need to wear a helmet for. Tom and I recently headed down to the little beach near the Narrows Bridge on the South Perth side and took a couple of these out with Penny and Nev and while they know their history and can answer lots of your questions we were happy just to watch Tom look up as we pedalled under the Narrows Bridge, hearing from underneath all that frantic and rumbling activity of north and south bound traffic and trains. The bikes have two pontoons and are lightweight and easy to move through the water although my little legged companion started to get a bit weary as we turned for home so Nev tucked his pontoons under Toms bike and did the pedalling for both of them. These guys can do the taste test style experience or longer up the river and sunset tours.

Swan River Seaplanes: Just around the corner on the South Perth side you’ll find the opportunity to take off from the river in a real seaplane. Taxiing across the water, picking up speed and bouncing into the air is exciting and not something you can do every day. Their destinations range from up and down the coast, across to Rottnest or back on the river for a picnic. Check out their website, http://www.swanriverseaplanes.com.au, for more information on taking to the skies above Perth and along our amazing coastline.

***What a way to roar across the river! Take off in a seaplane this summer!***

Pedal Boards: Jeff operates from near the jetty at Point Walter and let’s firstly take a look at his pedal boards. These are a cross between a stand-up paddle board and a penguin. While you stand on a board with handlebars, there’s two little flippers under the board that do their best impression of Happy Feet and send you along in whatever direction you steer.

Swans: Swans on the Swan. How can life get can any better than pedalling a swan on the Swan this summer? Forget the tube of sunscreen, you’re going to need a big tube of Voltaren the following day but honestly, it’s not because they’re hard to pedal, it’s just that those muscles aren’t working out enough each day. Jeff is busy launching and retrieving his swan pedal boats and pedal boards but still has time to show me his pride and joy, a recently painted black swan that is ready to be launched this summer. I think he needs a red swan because as we all know, red means it goes faster.

***Swan Pedal Boats. Fun doesn’t get much funner!***

The Swan River is a hidden treasure because of these activities. I bet there are things on this list you’ve never heard of and I bet there are some on the list you’ve heard of and never done. The Swan River is more than a glorious view to drive past or walk along.

Get on it and feel the treasure.

ABC Perth Saturday Breakfast: Snake pits to sunsets in Scarborough. There’s so much to see before you get to the sea.

November 25, 2021November 26, 2021Posted in abcperth, abcperthsaturdaybreakfast, best sunsets, cityofstirling, perth, Perth tourism, Scarborough, staycation, Western Australian TravelTagged #abcperth, #perth, #Perthnow, #sunsetcoastexplorers, #thisiswa, #wanderoutyonder, #westernaustraliaLeave a comment

Scarborough? Why is Scarborough a Hidden Treasure? It’s got one of the most famous beaches in WA and Australia stretching along our coastline. For locals and tourists alike, Scarborough provides relief from the summer heat and for generations has been the place to go.

Whether you’re a widgie or a bodgie, a skater or a surfer, a bruncher or a luncher, Scarborough is the beach precinct we pack out every summer. So, I was set the challenge of finding Hidden Treasure in a known treasure and this is what he found. Enjoy the audio link below and enjoy a bit of reading as well:

hidden-treasures Download

Scarborough. What I found was that you can enjoy Scarborough without getting the sand between your toes or anywhere else, or that pesky saltwater stinging your eyes.

There are buses, there is Aboriginal urban art, there are walking tours to clear the mind, lookouts to blow your mind and snake pits and whale skeletons to explore.

There’s even a hill just for watching the dying of the days light. And there’s enough burgers or fish and chips or ice cream for before or after all that activity.

Let’s start with Saturday Morning on the foreshore promenade where you’ll find Perth’s newest market.

You might be familiar with the iconic Sunset Markets but if you’re up and about early you can try the Scarborough Beach Farmers Markets full of healthy local fresh fruit and veges and breads and brightly coloured vans and stalls selling cookies and crème brulees and deep fried cheesecake!

***Put some headphones on and listen to ABC Saturday Breakfast as you explore the Beach Farmers Markets on the Scarborough foreshore.***

Before we come back to the foreshore, let’s walk off some of the mornings treats with Bush, Beach and Bubbles!

Fun Fact! The sand dunes in the Trigg area (we’re calling it Scarborough today) are parabolic. Try a walking tour with the Hike Collective which is as much about mental health as it is about just a little bit of physical exercise.

So, back to the foreshore and still keeping our toes away from the sand and water and not giving the lifeguards anything to do, let’s have a walk through the giant Whale Playground which is great reminder of just how big whales are and just how much fun we can all have in a playground.

The playground flows into the grassy Sunset Hill and some really cool Climbing Walls and of course the iconic, notorious and infamous Snake Pit where my mum use to trek to Scarborough from Midland to dance as a widgie and then cool off with a swim and a malt milkshake that hopefully some boy would buy her.

These days the Snake Pit is for skaters, scooters and even little bikes if it’s not too busy. Tip that beanie back on your head, put a scowl on your face and if I’ve got my skater lingo right, “fill your dives to 3.5 metres and hit the ramps, rails and banks.”

Around the foreshore, take some time to follow the Tjunta Trail, an urban art trail that tells the story about how a spirit woman finds a group of children who go missing. There are five locations around the foreshore that tell the story although when the markets are on you might find them hard to see.

Is that enough walking about for a while? Let’s hop on the newest tourist experience in Perth that ….. drumroll please …. is free! It’s free!

It’s so free that queues are starting to form as word gets around of the double decker bus, the Sunset Coast Explorer, that makes its way from the Scarborough Pool and winds its away along the sunset coast.

***The Sunset Coast Explorer … wave at the locals and their lattes***

The bus has a crew of conductors to answer questions and tell you to sit down if you’re clowning around up the top in the fresh air. It’s a hop on hop off service and is running all summer every Saturday and Sunday. Be a tourist, have some fun and wave at the locals at the all the cafes.

***Watch the local wildlife in their natural habitat***

One of Perth’s best hidden treasure museums has to be the Mount Flora Museum. We’ve spoken previously about museums that only survive because of volunteers and Local Government support. This is one of the best if you’re interested in the social history of the area. Exhibitions feature ‘windows into the past’. Check online for when they’re open or call the City of Stirling.

On top of the museum is one of Perth’s best lookouts and we really are going to have to do a Hidden Treasure on views of Perth because it’s little wonder this lookout on top of the museum used to be an observation post during World War II. The lookout also has a really vivid mural that encircles you in a complete 360 degree burst of colour and representation of Australian wildlife.

***A brilliant and joyous, vibrant lookout with no smell of wee, old ciggy butts and beer cans***

Scarborough is a hidden treasure because there’s a lot to do and see before you get to the sea. Places to walk, places to sit, markets to explore, bus rides to whoop for joy and wave at the locals, local and ancient history, lookouts with views to forever all make Scarborough a staycation destination that I’ll tell you a more about next week. But that’s a story for another day.

Leopards and Lifesavers on ABC Saturday Breakfast

November 6, 2021November 7, 2021Posted in abcperth, abcperthsaturdaybreakfast, perth, Perth tourism, Western Australian TravelTagged #abcperth, #perth, #wanderoutyonder, #westernaustralia, WA travelLeave a comment

On ABC Saturday Breakfast we discovered Port Kennedy and Secret Harbour. There’s no port and there’s no harbour. But there’s still a lot to do and for us to talk about.

When I was a boy, the area was wild and the only inhabitants were an odd collective of shack owners and my girlfriends family had a holiday shack at what was then known as Long Point and the sandy track needed a real four drive to get out there.

I tried desperately to reach her in my Ford Escort and failed miserably. Merrilee’s dad had to come and rescue the little Escort from a sandy grave.

These days there are boat ramps, golf courses and a golf pro shop that is unique in Australia as the only golf pro shop to sell pies and sausage rolls. They’re not made by Titleist or Callaway, these are freshly delivered by the Pinjarra Bakery! You can buy a few new tees for your golf bag and sneak a sausage roll into the side pocket. Just don’t drop your crumbs on the green.

Port Kennedy has a Leopard tank! Nearly 10 metres long and 42 tonnes of steel tracks, turret and gun barrel. A bunch of these steel behemoths were gifted to communities across WA and expect to see them on your travels through our towns, including Esperance, Geraldton and Bunbury but this is a great stop during your trip to Port Kennedy and Secret Harbour and I know it’s not quite a battleship but sitting on the barrel like Cher makes a great photo.

The tanks never left our shores, never fired a shot in anger and were used to train army personnel and feature in exciting tv recruitment advertisements.

Scientific Park sits alongside the sea from Long Point and extends down to Secret Harbour. From a science perspective the area provides a record of sea level and shoreline changes going back 7,000 years and from a visitor perspective the park is one of the Bush Forever sites that we last talked about when we discussed Mirrabooka so low impact recreation is allowed, like walking on paths and not running up and down the dunes.

Our good friend and activity, geocaching, is also on offer in the Scientific Park. Download a geocaching app and see what you can find in Scientific Park and also in nearby Lagoon Park where you can also usually find some black swans hanging around.

Remember when playgrounds were just at the corner of ovals and featured a steel slide that even in winter had families using them as barbeques?

There are lots of good playgrounds around Perth but this summer, for a daytrip with your kids or the grandkids, the day can kick off with a bang at the Harbour Playground. There are big things to climb up, jump off, scramble through and swing down and has an underwater theme with seaweed ropes, whirlpool nets and a giant octopus guarding its lair.

It’s a very accessible playground for kids with disability and the interpretive signage is also written in braille. It’s great to see councils investing in playgrounds that capture inclusiveness as well as imagination.

It is a great warm up act before walking through the dunes to the beach less than a minute’s walk away.

Would you like to meet the surf lifesaving crew with the biggest smiles in Perth? The Secret Harbour Surf Life Saving Club.

One of the reasons is that one of their members is 81-year-old Alan who joined as a young ‘un when he was 73. Rebecca runs the Nippers down there and is famous for training her up and coming lifesavers to never stop smiling, even when people are doing the wrong thing on a beach that is famous for always having waves. Thanks for calling into the show Rebecca!

Secret Harbour is renowned for having the only beach in Perth that has waves all year round that is perfect for skim boarders, boogie boarders, beginner and professional surfers. It’s a very popular beach on Boxing Day for debuting for all those Christmas present boogie boards.

It’s a wide beach that’s nearly 6 kilometres long so plenty of room for everyone to relax, paddle, splash and smash without getting in the way of other people.

Port Kennedy and Secret Harbour have Rockingham to the north and Mandurah to the south. Both of those destinations are loved by Western Australians for the fishing and other aquatic activities from boats, jetties and beaches.

***Utes, boats and jet ski’s are Port Kennedy institutions***

Port Kennedy and Secret Harbour are a Hidden Treasure because if you spend some time there this summer, between the two bordering tourist hot spots of Rockingham and Mandurah, you’ll find a quieter spot and you’ll find a car spot closer to the beach and playgrounds and you’ll also find a great pie from a golf pro shop, just don’t walk in there with sandy feet.

As published in Have A Go News newspaper and online … don’t let the players on the field have all the fun when you visit Optus Stadium

November 5, 2021November 8, 2021Posted in abcperth, abcperthsaturdaybreakfast, adventure tourism, perth, Perth tourism, sports tourism, sports tours, travel fun, Western Australian TravelTagged #abcperth, #haloperth, #optusstadium, #perth, #Perthnow, #theozoneperth, #westernaustraliaLeave a comment

halo Download

The Romans knew the value of a good stadium didn’t they? Can you imagine doing a tour of the Colosseum when it was at its peak? Game day at the Colosseum may have had more on the line for most of the participants but just to have walked through the service tunnels and holding cells and then maybe walking around the top, seeing up close the linen sails that extended outwards on elaborate rope and pulley systems to provide shade for the audience, would have been amazing.

Having zipped up my Ozone ‘Ghostbuster’ jumpsuit and climbed into my harness and adjusted my straps, I walk with the other members of our merry band through the bowels of Optus Stadium, past crates of plates and all sorts of things destined for what is above. There are no lions, gladiators, Roman centurions or terracotta amphorae filled with wine, but there’s still a lot going on.

But we’re going higher than those who are sitting in the seats and corporate boxes, we’re even going higher than the stadium’s halo roof, a continuous fabric cantilevered structure that circles the stadium, providing valuable shade and spectacular lighting displays.

We’re heading more than 40 metres off the ground to a small row of seats where harnesses keep you safe but can’t restrain your excitement as you watch a match unfold from a perspective even Roman Emperors couldn’t dream about.

This is what amplifying your experience is all about when you come to Optus Stadium. Getting as much out of your experience as possible and being a part of the narrative of your adventure, not just relying on the teams playing on the field below you to provide all of the drama and excitement.

If the height and the view is not quite enough of a challenge then you can always do the lean out, relying on your tour leaders’ instructions and your harness to prevent your fall. With your back to the field, you inch your way backwards, right to the very edge, and hold your harness line and then lean out and let go of your harness.

A few photos will be taken that show you holding your arms out or pretending to handball a footy. I’ve already decided to do the tour again because I want to do the lean out and pretend I’ve gone up for a big mark of the footy.

This experience is all about levels. Literally and metaphorically. You literally go up to the highest level of the stadium to reach your seat. You ride a lift, climb 78 steps, emerge through hatches and at each level the view gets better and better. On a catwalk alongside the stadium lights, you walk around the stadium until you’re at the eastern end.

This is where you’ll find your seat, the highest seats in the house and if you think it can’t get any better that’s when you can take it to the next level and lean out over the edge.

From a sporting perspective I enjoy my footy but have mates who love it more. I couldn’t help thinking of my mates, not just for the excitement of the experience, but for the perspective you have with an aerial view.

Every twitch of a player, the transfers of play, the switches and flow of the game is entrancing. It’s like watching the coach’s magnet board come to life!

As a precinct, get ready to do more than watch some great sport when you come to Optus Stadium. Get ready to participate. Get ready to lean out off the edge of the most beautiful stadium in the world and let rip with a huge scream.

With the HALO experience, Matagarup Bridge climb and soon to be launched 400m zipline, plus Aboriginal cultural tours and stadium behind the scenes tours, there’s so much you can do with your time when you visit Optus Stadium.

There doesn’t even need to be a game on. Optus Stadium is more than a beautiful sporting arena, it’s already got history and atmosphere and even though it’s new, it has that rite of passage feeling about it that means you want visit it, whether you’re visiting Perth or looking for a day out if you live in Perth.

Want to Know More?

The Ozone booking office and merchandise store is located at the western end of Optus Stadium and their website is www.theozone.com.au.

Verdict

With only a moderate level of fitness you can do the game day rooftop experience all year long, or on a quiet weekday with no sport. The HALO experience will meet your need for an awesome view and level of excitement with great staff and great harnesses. And you get a free cap!

ABC Saturday Breakfast Discovers Hidden Treasure in Bassendean

October 30, 2021Posted in abcperth, abcperthsaturdaybreakfast, perth, Perth tourism, Swan River, travel, Western Australian TravelTagged #abcperth, #perth, #wanderoutyonder, #westernaustraliaLeave a comment

Hidden Treasures is coming off an amazing exploration last weekend of jetties around Western Australia and this weekend we thought we might slow down the pace of things.

A bit like when you’re on the country highways and hit those little towns that require you to slow down from 110 to 60, our next Hidden Treasure is about swinging in off a busy road and slowing down to the pace of life in a suburb that might remind you of growing up, or perhaps just visiting, a favourite country town.

Like those big entry statements that our country towns love, let’s give you a big ‘Welcome to Bassendean’!

Let’s start at the outskirts of Bassendean where you’ll find more trains than a Thomas the Tank Engine book. And carriages as well!

The Railway Museum in Bassendean is on the north side of the tracks and is as much about restoration as it is exhibition and is open every Wednesday and Sunday afternoon.

There are steam engines like the beautiful Katie, that began her service in 1881 on the Fremantle to Guildford line and big old diesel engines and carriages in various states of restoration and all with dreams of hauling people and cargo once more.

This year has been very important to the museum as it marks 150 years of railways in Western Australia when the first track was built in 1871 down near Busselton.

Just like so many heritage museums and sites around Western Australia, the Railway Museum would just be a scrapyard without volunteers to light the place up with enthusiasm and skill and the work they put into making the museum interesting to kids is wonderful, particularly the birthday parties in an old 1947 dining carriage.

Crossing over to the south side of the tracks, it’s just a short drive along Guildford Road to the intersection with Old Perth Road which is where you will find the main street of Bassendean.

I’ve been told to move on from banging on about jetties so I’ve picked a new subject to get all misty eyed about … main streets.

Bassendean is like a country town for lots of reasons but right up there at the top is its main street. While the old Bassendean Hotel is still finishing its renovation there are shops and urban art on this street that are really enjoyable to explore and mooch your way through.

The main street of Bassendean is just like the main street of country towns. Last week I spoke about jetties being the first opportunities for independence, being allowed to be on a jetty without my parents, armed with a tackle box and a couple of handlines.

***Old Perth Road, the main street of Bassendean***

Main streets are the same. I was allowed to walk down my hometown main street, looking at the book exchange, newsagency and ask the butcher for a slice of polony. As Sue and I had an earlier chat about, her kids could walk into the shops of the main street in her town and they were known as her kids, just as she is known as her parents youngest daughter even now when she goes home.

Last weekend I walked down the Bassendean main street. There were cafes that serve polite conversation. Really. The sign out the front advertises coffee, food and polite conversation. There was a butcher, a book exchange, gift shops selling gorgeous local products, including the weirdest candles I’ve ever seen and will not be drawn to describe them further!

There’s urban art that is turning those unattractive bits of our environment into something more as part of the Whimsical Art Project, adding life and colour to street poles, drains and broken paving.

For some great outdoor areas in Bassendean head down to the river and if the river isn’t enough for you to enjoy then here are three reserves on its banks. Beach Reserve has a couple of small beaches perfect for kids and are also popular launching spots for stand-up paddle boarders. Just up from Beach Reserve are the native bush expanses of Bindaring Park and around the corner, near the bridge that leads to Guildford is Swan Reserve which has some great mosaic sculptures in a bush setting, it also overlooks two rivers (Fun Fact: it’s called a confluence) and there’s a group of geese that will hiss and lower their heads at you but still take your bread crumbs.

***Geese at Swan Reserve*** ***(alternative title ‘Old Ducks Surrounded by Geese’)***

It is so good of me to find time to mention Bassendean Oval. Although they are the home to an average footy club, the ground is well above average.

Like all good WAFL grounds, it’s open to run onto and enjoy a kick to kick with a mate or your kids or just to walk a few laps around and look at the beautifully maintained heritage of two of Perth’s greatest grandstands, the Bill Walker Stand and MacDonald Stand.

***The Heritage Gates to Bassendean Oval***

Bassendean is a Hidden Treasure because it’s a reminder to me of everything I love about regional Western Australia and ‘savouring familiar sights’.

Little shops with staff who love to talk, people sitting on park benches watching the world go by, houses with verandas, streets with kids playing cricket, bush to explore and a footy oval close by, a main street close by and a community close by and not closed off.

ABC Saturday Breakfast Explores Perth’s Smallest Suburb

October 16, 2021Posted in abcperth, abcperthsaturdaybreakfast, perth, Perth tourism, Western Australian TravelTagged #abcperth, #highgateperth, #hydeparkperth, #perth, #Perthnow, #wanderoutyonder, #westernaustralia, WA travelLeave a comment

With just over 2000 residents and an area less than half a square kilometre, you might be forgiven for thinking there couldn’t be a lot to see in our next Hidden Treasure on ABC Saturday Breakfast.

Like some of our other Hidden Treasures, our next discovery sits quietly alongside some bigger neighbours but doesn’t rely on their crumbs to survive.

With a strong community, an iconic park and exciting laneways behind cafes and bakeries bulging with donuts, let’s take a walk through what is very possibly Perth’s smallest suburb and find out what one of Perth’s most loved treasures likes about this hidden treasure

Highgate!

By absolute coincidence, our Hidden Treasure this weekend shares a lot in common with last week’s Hidden Treasure, where we discovered South Fremantle.

There is a backbone, or artery that is the focal point for activity for locals and visitors. Where South Fremantle has South Tce, Highgate has Beaufort Street. Where South Freo has South Beach, Highgate has Hyde Park. And where South Fremantle has a big neighbour in Fremantle, Highgate has Perth City and Mount Lawley.

But when I visited South Fremantle I found iconic history with the Mills and Ware biscuits but in Highgate I found a living icon, a living treasure, who, more than just loving a quiet coffee in Highgate, loves the ABC and he loves Hidden Treasure … Dennis Cometti!

***Mr Cometti loves the ABC and Highgate***

For Mr Cometti, Dennis to me, Highgate cafes are just a bit quieter than the cafes up the road in Mount Lawley and he looks for one with lots of tables so he can sprawl out a newspaper.

Let’s take a walk around Hyde Park in glorious Kambarang sunshine. Hyde Park is always filled with walkers, kids birthday parties, turtles and birds and is full of big Moreton Bay Fig Trees with massive buttress roots, perfect hiding spots during Hide and Seek.

As well as its current appeal for picnics and birdwatching and festivals and food trucks, Hyde Park is a significant historical site for Whajuk Noongar People who loved living by what was then more of a wetland area.

Facilities include benches, barbeques, water playgrounds, stages, fitness equipment and lots of grass and walking paths.

Across the road from Hyde Park heading east is Perth’s darkest street, Mary Street. Completely enveloped by the canopies of huge trees, this street is more like a scene out of Harry Potter than a Perth suburb. It’s gloriously dark and cool and leads straight through to Beaufort Street.

As you walk down Mary Street and just before you hit Beaufort Street, look for Mereny Lane which is completely muralised on both sides of the road. Follow the laneway and enjoy the colours and opportunities for all those insta worthy pics.

***Highgate laneways are full of urban art***

A bit further along Beaufort Street on the Highgate end, keep a look out for a little accessway that links Mereny Lane with Beaufort Street that has some tech urban art. Little pictures on muralised walls that have QR codes that when opened on your phone play music and tell you more about the artwork and interact with it beyond just looking at it.

If you know Highgate or have just driven through, you’d probably be aware of the huge landmark on Lincoln Street, the ventilation stack. Built in 1935 as a sewer vent it’s a 38-metre art deco vent and the second tallest poo chimney in Australia (biggest is 40 metres in Sydney).

Next to the big vent is the Police Museum is on Lincoln Street and only open a couple of days a week on Tuesdays and Fridays but the old Highgate Police Station has old uniforms, handcuffs and batons and tactical response armoured cars and old motorcycles and speed cameras and an interesting history as a secret wireless station during World War II.

Given the stereotype that police love donuts, it’s probably not a coincidence that the police museum has been set up in a suburb that is the donut capital of Australia with more bakeries and cafes selling donuts per resident than any other suburb in Australia.

Highgate is a hidden treasure because there are layers and spaces between your destinations in this suburb that need exploring.

Highgate proves that being small and having big neighbours doesn’t mean you only get the crumbs, you can bake the bread as well.

Have fun with a camera in arty laneways. Have fun with your phone by hovering it over techy urban art and see what happens. There’s Perth’s darkest street and one of Perth’s most loved parks.

In Highgate you can have your donut and eat it too, all in a space that’s more like a little country town than a suburb so close to the heart of the city.

***Highgate urban art … walk the suburb and find your colours***

ABC Saturday Breakfast Discovers Biscuits, Bulldogs, Bare Feet & Jam Tarts!

October 9, 2021October 11, 2021Posted in abcperth, abcperthsaturdaybreakfast, Fremantle, perth, Perth tourism, Western Australian TravelTagged #abcperth, #perth, #wanderoutyonder, #westernaustralia, WA travelLeave a comment

For ABC Perth Saturday Breakfast we discovered one of our smallest suburbs is walkable and adorable.

If I was to tell you that you could walk or drive down the main drag of this suburb and stop and chat to adults lying on the verge in hammocks and other variations of swing chairs, what suburb comes to mind?

Our next hidden treasure was once famous for its biscuits and its bulldogs but these days there’s a few other reasons to make your way to a suburb worth wandering about and taking it easy. Maybe take a hammock.

South Fremantle.

This is a suburb that I used to visit every Sunday to listen to the Jam Tarts back in the day at the Seaview Hotel. Rockabilly pop was so cool and the Jam Tarts were the coolest.

Exploring South Fremantle reminded me of those days because I have a daughter who is soon to be a world famous musician and I like sending her photos of things that would make great album covers and that’s another reason to enjoy a gentle suburban exploration of South Fremantle because it is full of album cover worthy scenery.

South Fremantle by coincidence more than design has the layout of a fish skeleton. There is a big backbone that has most of the weight and then the ribs coming off the backbone are smaller and lighter and filled with cottages with more geraniums than my nana’s concrete swans. For South Fremantle the backbone is South Terrace which begins further north in Fremantle and then flows through the heart of South Fremantle.

Park your car somewhere along South Terrace and start looking around. A bit like how the green cactus in Forrest Place is a meeting point in the CBD, the zebra mural is a good meeting point for South Fremantle locals or visitors to the area.

The two zebras face each other with all the colours of a kaleidoscope and written above them is ‘Ootong and Lincoln’ which may be the names of the two zebra but also happens to be the name of the premises the mural is painted on and inside you’ll find everything to fill your retro heart; colourful 1980’s phones stuck on the wall, old trikes and my nana’s dining table and chairs; glorious Laminex in pale greens, blues and pinks and plenty of space to sit with your kids or a Zoom meeting on your laptop.

That’s what South Fremantle is all about, people who get out of their houses and meet up on South Terrace.

Outside Ootong and Lincoln, take a jump to the left or jump to right, avoiding fellas reclining in hammocks and swing chairs, and you’ll find small boutiques with racks of vintage clothes and that’s another important feature of South Fremantle, lots of small shops. Small shops doing big things for locals and visitors.

***Small shops where there’s lots to be discovered***

It used to be the opposite. South Fremantle used to be about being a big employer with big factories, including the Mills and Ware Biscuit Factory – home of the little suitcase full of biscuits that you’d buy at your local show.

Mills and Ware was the biggest supplier of biscuits in Western Australia and the South Fremantle factory, barely off South Terrace, opened in 1899 and closed in 1992.

The biscuit factory are now apartments but there’s a park and there’s enough of the original factory structure to make it a pilgrimage for those that remember their favourite biscuit. Biscuit. Not cookie.

To please the pilgrims there are large sculptures of biscuits in the park and you can try and remember the names of your favourite biscuit. Unfortunately I couldn’t find a representation of a gingernut biscuit. The king of biscuits.

Back on South Terrace there are fresh seafood shops and seafood cafes with fresh prawn tacos that remind us of the fishing boat harbour not more than a fishing rods cast away. These days the fishing boat fleet is smaller but any walk around boats and jetties is always interesting and watching hulls being scraped and masts being rigged in the shipyards is a day out any day of the week.

My next stop is probably the number one reason to come to South Fremantle, particularly as the sun starts to warm us all up.

The South Beach Recreation Reserve is the end of the line for the suburb and throws all of its eggs into a basket of summer fun for everyone. It starts with a dog beach and playground at the northern end of this little precinct and then opens up into sprawling lawns with lots of shade and a perfect beach for all ages, looking out to Wadjemup, Carnac and Garden Islands.

There’s a café that your kids can walk into barefeet for a drumstick and in summer there are night time markets on Saturday nights that are described as being community based for young and old and lovers and friends and when you walk through South Fremantle, everyone won’t be a lover but everyone will be your friend.

South Fremantle is a hidden treasure because it’s completely walkable in thongs, down streets with sleepy men in hammocks to retro cafes and vintage shops with laughing barefoot kids.

There are nostalgic memories of old biscuits, old phones and old bands playing in old pubs and swimming and markets on balmy summer nights.

The only thing it doesn’t have is a 2021 Premiership WAFL team, but there’s always next year.