Western Australian Travel – Chris Parry Writes For Us

Have A Go News newspaper: Wildflower Season In The West

October 19, 2017October 9, 2019Posted in bunbury tourism, dryandra travel, dryandra woodland village, Geraldton tourism, Goldfields tourism, Perth tourism, Western Australian Travel, Western Australian wildflowers, wildflowersTagged perth, Tourism WA, Western Australian Travel, Western Australian wildflowers, wildflowersLeave a comment

As published in the newspaper, Have A Go News, October 2017.

When I was a kid growing up in the country there was a time of year when I wasn’t allowed to spend the weekend with my mates, playing cricket or football or lazily riding our bikes around town looking for sources of adventure, like stealing mulberries from a tree and flinging them at passing cars.

It was that time of year, the only time of year, when Mum wanted to go bush. That one time of year when we went bush and didn’t take a chainsaw to chop up firewood.

Wildflower season.

I look back now and picture in my mind the sheer rolling hills of my childhood, a mass of pink everlastings that changed the colour of the landscape so greatly that even the snow gums picked up a pinkish hue from the reflected colour of this explosion of flora.

I didn’t enjoy it as a kid. You’ve seen one hill of everlastings and you’ve seen them all. Hunting for orchids was worse. Softly walking through the bush in search of something I can’t ever recall finding. The others found them. Eyes down, concentrating and walking slowly. I was more intent on filling my bucket with kangaroo poo to later throw at my friends, if I was ever allowed to play with them again.

I guess that’s how it is with some kids. I now take my own children on bushwalks of varying distances and they love it but I don’t know that they’re really interested in flowers. It’s about climbing to the top of a big rock or finding a big spider or finding their own animal poo to have fun with and then stopping in a country town for a Peters Drumstick.

If you love wildflowers and you want to share them with people who don’t love them as much as you do then build a trip that easily includes a lot more than petal-spotting.

Pick a direction to head in and just go for it.

How long is your trip going to be? A day trip? A weekender?

Let’s spin the bottle and pick a few destinations that mix it up for everyone in the car.

The Bibbulmun Track has a lot of opportunities that can be explored for periods of time ranging from a few hours to a few weeks. For a day trip, a drive up to the Kalamunda hills will put you in beautiful country for wildflowers and the fresh green growth of our own Perth hills. Kalamunda has a great range of art galleries, mountain bike trails and of course the famous Kalamunda Hotel for lunch and a cold refreshment or two.

If you feel like heading north for a daytrip then the Nambung National Park, home to the iconic Pinnacles, is an ideal wildflower daytrip with plenty of time to see plenty of other sites. As well as the Pinnacles, there are the dunes of nearby Lancelin and the township of Lancelin itself with good beach walking and swimming.

To turn this daytrip into a gorgeous weekender, head east to Carnamah, Dandaragan and the Coomberdale Wildflower Farm just to the north of Moora where wildflowers are picked, boxed and shipped all over the world. From there you can make your way back to the coast by travelling through the Coalseam Conservation Park which from September to November is simply a carpet of wildflowers that stretches to the horizon. From there it’s just a short drive for an overnight stay at Dongara.

Further east and an absolute WA bucket list is to get stuck into the Goldfields and do a tour of a region that’s not that far away and bursting with more colour than the Perth Skyshow. More than a daytrip, more than a weekender, give yourself at least a week to travel well throughout this region that is full of history and remarkable people and landscapes. Adjacent to Kalgoorlie-Boulder is the Karlkula Bushland Park, comprised of 200 hectares of bushland and very popular with bushwalkers.

An easy daytrip from Kalgoorlie-Boulder is to head 133 kilometres north to the small town of Menzies and then travel 50 kilometres west to Lake Ballard where the 51 statues by artist Antony Gormley are located.

For a south, maybe south-western spin of the bottle, head down the Albany Highway to a part of the world I’m proud to have grown up in, the Wheatbelt. The golden canola, dusky dryandra and fields of wheat that might bring on a few sneezes will also bring out the photographer in you.

Dryandra Woodland, 164 kilometres south-east of Perth and just to the north of Narrogin, is a wonderful land of wildflowers, emus, kangaroos and maybe even the elusive numbat. There are a number of well-marked trails to explore and the Dryandra Lions Woodlands Village manages a number of various sized woodcutter cottages if you want to turn an easy daytrip into a very relaxing weekend.

For those in your group who are bored sitting by the fireplace or walking through the bush then you can arrange to visit Barna Mia, in the heart of Dryandra, where you can do a night time tour of the sanctuary for all sorts of wildlife that you can watch under the stars.

Finally, if you can’t leave Perth there is one of the greatest wildflower displays in Western Australia right in the heart of Perth. Kings Park is so renowned for its annual wildflower display that there’s a risk of complacency because you expect so much. With a variety of species and colour to dazzle our eyes and cameras, plus the nature playground, various cafes and walking trails and only minutes from every Perth CBD activity it’s little wonder that Kings Park is the centre of Perth’s universe from September to November.

So my tip for a trip to see the wildflowers this year is to remember what else there is to see. Enjoy the wildflowers but try and enjoy something else to go with it. You don’t need to be a kid to enjoy a Peters Drumstick as you lean against the bonnet of your car in the main street of a country town that’s not so far from home.

Further Facts

For further information on local tips to find wildflowers, best places to stay and local attractions, have a look at the following websites or contact Chris through chris.parry@westnet.com.au or his website at www.chrisparrywritesforus.com

For Kalamunda walk trails and wildflower locations check out: http://www.perthtourism.com.au/Trails

For Nambung National Park and Coalseam Conservation Park check out the Department of Parks and Wildlife website at: http://www.parks.dpaw.wa.gov.au

For everything Goldfields, including the best spots for wildflowers, visit: www.kalgoorlietourism.com or call (08) 9021 1966

For accommodation at Dryandra Woodland look at: http://dryandravillage.org or call (08) 9884 5231

To find out what’s going on at Kings Park look at: www.bgpa.wa.gov.au or call (08) 9480 3600

Please remember that however you choose to travel make sure you are safe and prepared. Much of Western Australia is remote and you should always carry what you need to survive including medications, water and suitable clothing. Please be aware that mobile telephones may not work in some locations featured in this story.

A Day on Mandurah Waters

December 19, 2016December 19, 2016Posted in boat hire, family travel, Mandurah, travel, travel writing, Western Australian TravelTagged boat hire, family travel, mandurah tourism, WA travel, Western Australian TravelLeave a comment

Taking the opportunity of a summer holiday day trip to Mandurah, I’ve hired a Bowrider Runabout from Mandurah Boat and Bike Hire. The drive from Perth to Mandurah takes less than an hour on the Kwinana Freeway and exiting at Mandjoogoordap Drive will lead you directly into Mandurah.

Driving a boat around the Mandurah canals and estuary isn’t as relaxing as being on open water. It’s a busy waterway system and even though you don’t need a Skippers Ticket to hire a boat from Mandurah Boat and Bike Hire, I’m glad I’ve got mine and know a few of the rules to keep things safe and friendly.

Less than a minute from leaving the jetty and while the kids are still laying down their towels on the bow lounge seats I spot dolphins ahead of us, just relaxing in the water in front of the huge Moreton Bay Fig tree at Stingray Point.

The tree was planted in 1930 and has been surviving well until in recent years too many cormorants have been nesting in the tree and the toxicity of their droppings has been burning the foliage.

After a slow chug through some of the nearby canals, admiring boats as big as houses and houses as big as castles, we head out to the estuary. At Boundary Island we cut the engine and drift up onto the beach. It’s a popular spot to stretch your legs and have a swim, although walking through the shallow water may result in undesirable interaction with the resident crabs.

Heading out into the broad expanse of the estuary the kids jump off the back of the boat and do a couple of laps of the boat before climbing aboard. We make our way back to our departure point at the same time as a lot of boats are heading back to various pens and ramps.

Many of the boats on the water are pontoon hire boats and look to have two or more families on board. Fully shaded and with plenty of seating they look perfect for a day on the water with plenty of room to move about. Typical of my ungrateful mob, I am derided for not hiring a pontoon boat so I nudge our bow into the wake of a passing boat, slip sideways and allow a nice amount of water to spray over the bow and drench the wretched children.

Before returning the boat we take another look in the canals and easily locate more dolphins. I idle the engine and let the kids spot them surfacing, taking bets on where they’ll surface next.

After we return the boat we walk along the boardwalk, admiring the public art on display, and enjoying some Cicerello’s fish and chips and Simmo’s ice cream before heading back to Perth.

It’s an easy day trip break that hasn’t broken the bank or left us completely knackered. I reckon we’ll be back again next year but I’m guessing we’ll be on a pontoon boat with friends. That’s fine by me.

A Summer Freo Weekender is the Way To Go

December 13, 2016Posted in family travel, Fremantle, travel, Uncategorized, Western Australian TravelTagged family travel, Fremantle, Western Australian TravelLeave a comment

Beginning a weekend escape in Fremantle is tough. Markets? Museums? Fish and chips? Coffee? Ice Cream? Suddenly, with a burble and then a roar, a new contender emerges to kick off our weekend like a cork leaving a bottle; jet boat.

West Coast Jet Boat met my brief for some fast speed action by cranking up an 80’s soundtrack of Aussie rock classics as the throttles were pushed forward on open water. As Midnight Oil’s Beds are Burning pounded the ears, the boat stopped and spun, pounding us with a tonne of water that rose up from the bow.

As we circled the Duyfken like some dorsal finned predator from the deep, I recalled the significance of this little replica ship. In 1606 the original Duyfken sailed around Cape York, met Aboriginal Australians and chartered 350 kilometres of the Cape York coast.

Albeit of less historical importance, our jet boat ride was a great experience for the family to share, enjoy and to get wet. With the amount of water coming into the boat it’s surprising there’s any water left in Gage Roads. Through salt blasted eyes, I notice Matilda in the row in front of me throw her arms up while I grip the rail behind her seat to keep myself steady. It’s a great ride and slide that lasts longer than I expected and is the perfect way to kick start our Fremantle weekend.

Leaving the boat, we walk, dripping wet, across to Esplanade Park. Before checking into the Esplanade Hotel Fremantle by Rydges, we have a ride on the Tourist Wheel Fremantle. Installed in 2013, this impressive wheel has comfortable gondolas to view Fremantle from a height of 40 metres. It’s a great way to look down on the port city and put everything in perspective; the harbour, museums and old west end are to the north of the park, shops and markets to the east and just below and to the west of us is Fishing Boat Harbour, sometimes called the fish and chips precinct.

With our ride over we continue across the park and enter the Esplanade Hotel.

The first time I was at the Esplanade Hotel was in 1987. It was the Americas Cup and I was in the lobby when Marc Pajot, skipper of French Kiss, burst in through the entrance, brushing aside anyone in his way, including me. He’d just lost a race to KZ7, the New Zealand challenger, and was a bit upset.

Arriving now with my family beside me, it’s a very different feel from 1987. There’s not the chaos of 1987 and there are less Lacoste shirts and deck shoes as well. What I pick up right away is that wonderful sound you get when you enter atrium style hotels. It’s a hum. There is a life to this hotel. It makes you feel a part of it right away and the warm sunlight streaming in from windows high above the centre of the hotel add to the light, active atmosphere.

As I make my way across to the reception I find myself singing the WA tourism jingle from the late 80’s, “G’day from WA” (Give a smile and say, G’Day from WA!).

It’s not that the hotel reminds me of the 80’s, it’s just that it was a defining moment in our states history and the history of this hotel (the America’s Cup, not the jingle) and I’m finding it hard to shake (the jingle, not the America’s Cup).

There’s so much to do in Fremantle but we’ve elected to choose an easy path for this weekend. I haven’t got a bad word to say about Fremantle museums but for this trip I haven’t got any good words either. We’ve decided to stay away from the Museums and spend some time in the hotel pool. While the kids launch a giant inflatable pretzel, their parents enjoy a drink from the poolside bar before fighting the kids for rights to lay on the pretzel.

As the sun sets on our afternoon by the pool, adjoining rooms provide plenty of space for all of us to get ready for dinner. We walk up to South Terrace and meet some friends for dinner at Pizza Bella Roma. Even though the sun has set, there’s still that floating summer evening light and it’s easy to see just how many people are out early for dinner. Along with the throng, cars drive slowly down the strip not for pedestrian safety but so that their drivers can imagine that everyone is remarking on what a wonderful job they’ve done polishing their cars all afternoon and making sure the stereo bass goes up to eleven.

After bruschetta, pizzas and vast veal schnitzels we search desperately for room in aching stomachs for ice cream. Resurrected by the summer breeze on the Cappuccino Strip, we make our way just up the street to Dolce Vita Gelato. No Neapolitan here. This is quality ice cream with a great choice of flavours and plenty of space to pull up chairs and all sit together. As I enter the age that my father was when I was a small boy I am now enjoying the flavours he did that I didn’t. Spearmint milkshakes. Rum and Raisin Ice cream.

With barely the energy to bid goodnight, we part company from good friends and mosey our way back to the hotel, just a short walk away, not quite enough to burn off even the tip of my waffle cone.

The next morning it’s off to the Fremantle Markets. Refurbished and revitalised in the mid 1970’s, the markets draw locals and tourists together.

As a kid, I used to love the market shops and hated the time mum would want to spend choosing the fruit and veg. Now the fresh produce is what I’m drawn to and I have to drag the kids along, telling them we have to look at all the fruit before picking the best and cheapest.

Within the markets, stall owners spruik and buskers of all ages seek a coin for their talents. Outside the markets there are street performers who are engaging and enthralling. Thankful for having my carefully chosen grapes to snack on, the kids sit down to watch as flaming torches are juggled, swords are tossed and spectators are heckled in good fun.

Back at the hotel, there is time for another swim before the Esplanade Hotel High Tea. Three tiers of scones, sandwiches, mini lemon meringue tarts and crème brulee’s in little pots with shortbread lids is the flourishing finale to our Fremantle weekend. What began with a wet, wild rush has ended in splendid, indulgent elegance.