Last weekend Nadia and I had a parents only trip to Albany, a town located about 400km SE of Perth on the Southern Ocean. Albany and the surrounding area are known for beautiful cliffs, wonderful beaches, lush forests (by WA standards), spectacular scenery and amazing wildlife. We had 3 days in Albany and area and we certainly made the most of it.
The Albany Highway provides a straight 4 1/2 hour drive from Perth to Albany. You can also choose to drive the long way along the coast, via Busselton and Margaret River. Since we've been in that area a few times now we chose the direct route and we were pleasantly surprised that it was a relatively scenic drive, despite going through farmland and some desert.
The "Gap" is not just an overpriced clothing store. It is also a geological formation near Albany. Above, Nadia is standing on a platform on the top right overlooking "The Gap": a deep crevasse where the ocean surges powerfully between the cliffs. The Southern Ocean is often unpredictable and several people have died in the area from rogue wave sweeping them out to sea. So even from 10 meters above the water, one must be vigilant in this area. The power of the swells hitting the cliffs was really unbelievable.
The ocean is so powerful and relentless that it is able to carve to coastline. A few steps away from the "Gap" is the "Bridge". This is a natural formation where the ocean swell has eviscerated part of the limestone, leaving a natural bridge in it's place. It is dangerous to walk on this particular bridge, not because the rock itself is unstable but because a sudden swell could sweep you into the Southern Ocean. Not far from this area is a phenomenon known as the "Blow Holes". The ocean surge has eroded the very bottom of the cliffs over the millenia. So, the swell now goes under the cliffs in some places. In a couple of those places there are small openings on the surface of the cliff. So, when the water surges under the cliff it forces air and water up through the openings and it has the effect of a little geyser. Also, it makes the rocks sound like a whale exhaling. It's a pretty cool experience.
Albany is really lovely in the Summer, which is now in the Southern Hemisphere. Because it is south of Perth and on the coast it is a little cooler that Perth making it a very comfortable place to visit in the summer. In the winter, it is not quite as pleasant as the average high is around 16C with Antarctic winds and wetter conditions. However, for several months over the winter this makes Albany a perfect spot for several whale species to migrate and hang out. Albany is considered one of the best whale watching areas in the world and was originally a whaling station. You can still see the remnants of the whaling industry in Albany which shut down only recently in 1978. Unfortunately, we didn't see any whales but we did see the usual wildlife like kangaroos, birds and lizards. Also, we almost ran over a tiger snake on the way home. But our most interesting encounter was when we were walking through town and something scuttled across our path. When we got it in the light it turned out to be the biggest spider I have ever scene outside of a pet store. I'm not 100% sure but I believe that it was a Huntsman spider which look nasty but are relatively harmless to people.
Albany has some rugged coastline but it also has some amazing natural beaches. One of them, known as "Little Beach" (above) is considered one of the top 5 beaches in Australia. It was a little difficult to get to due to the high tide but when we did it was absolutely spectacular.
The beaches are beautiful, the sand is white and the water is clear...and cold! Perth is on the Indian Ocean which is relatively warm. Albany is located on the Southern Ocean which it shares with places like Antarctica. So, the water was certainly a little cooler to be in. Even so, it was really nice to experience. Apparently, in the winter whales often rest in the spot where Nadia is swimming even though it's very shallow.
About 45 minutes west of Albany is the town of Denmark. It's a lot like Albany except a little smaller and more quaint. The best natural attraction in Denmark is called "Greens Pool" which is a bay surrounded by boulders which act as a natural sea break. As a result, the bay has become a large, calm pool where you can swim and snorkel. We arrived as the weather was starting to cool so we didn't spend too much time in the water but we hope to come back and explore the bay with our snorkel gear.
To the north of Albany is a small national park called Porongurup. From the indigenous language this translates into "let's see them try to pronounce this" (not really). It's a tiny little "mountainous" (by Australian standards) forested park surrounded by farmland and full of great hiking trails. The hiking trail we chose was short but challenging. When we were there it was overcast which gave the place a bit of a spooky vibe. The animal skull and bleeding trees added to the overall charm of the place.
In fact, the place was quite lovely and the view from the top was spectacular. It even had decent data reception.
We hope to go back to Albany and area again. We definitely want to go back to see the whales and we may go back again in the summer to explore some other areas. But now we feel like we've now explored all of Western Australia except for the northwest portion...coming to a blog near you in early May.
