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Trip to Busso for the swim andTrip to Busso for the swim and
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A 17-day adventure by Will Read more
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  • TravelerTrip to Busso for the swim and
    Day 1

    Perth - leaving

    February 8, 2019 in Australia ⋅ 🌬 29 °C

    Leaving home for our trip to Busso and beyond.
    Full of intentions for an early start on the road. But had not totally allowed for the time involved in getting every last spare spot in the caravan packed with something.
    We had weighed the caravan the previous day, with water on board and were slightly overweight already. Now I was witnessing a stream of other provisions and not so necessaries coming aboard. Just had to offer up a hopeful wish that the highway patrol were not going to be in our neck of the woods for our trip.
    Anyway, we eventually got away by 10am and there ensued a fairly uneventful tril down the freeway towards Busselton.
    Arrived at Amblin caravan park. A large park right next to the beach. Not sure how we managed it, but we had the prime site at the far end of the park, with a 50m walk to the beach. And close to other amenities as well.
    Easy set up and then spent some time down the beach and had a quick swim. Beaut weather and amazing ocean to swim in.
    A visit to IGA for some more provisions, since on the trip down, some of the on board provisions had been moved around and settled down, thereby creating some more space which needed to be filled!!
    Fabs and Mel and kids arrived at about 7pm. They were located down the other end of the camp near the swimming pool, and by all accounts, Fabs had quite a bit of difficulty getting onto a tight site, but managed it in the end.
    We all had dinner at our van - prawns and rice, which were a bit average, but no ill effects afterwards, thank goodness.
    Quiet night.    Read more

  • TravelerTrip to Busso for the swim and
    Day 2

    Busselton

    February 9, 2019 in Australia ⋅ ☀️ 27 °C

    Saturday in Busso.
    Started with a walk along the beach. Beut morning and calm ocean. Hope it is this calm tomorrow for the swim.
    Big brekky at the van, and then a trip to Busso for some window shopping. Also some shopping for caravan and car accessories.
    In the afternoon, went to the front near jetty to register for the swim the next day. Very well organised. Julia was trying to get entered into the one mile race but had left it too late and was unsuccessful.
    Spent a bit of time catching up with some club members, as they registered as well as some old friends.
    Then back to the caravan to start getting ready for the dinner that night. We had invited various people around to the park to join us in a bbq, etc.
    It was a good night. We had about 25 people around, including our family and Ian and Lyn's family. We had a great night and everybody seemed to enjoy themselves.
    Quiet night.
    Sunday in Busso - day of the swim. The weather was calm and the water looked great.
    Drove to Busso and got ready for the swim - along with 3,000 other participants and probably another another 3,000 spectators and helpers.
    Started the swim well, trying to keep up with Ian, who was steaming along at a good pace. I was using a new set of flippers, to try and protect my shoulders, and after swimming about a kilometre, both my legs began to cramp up. I spent the rest of the next 2.5kms, either on my back trying to ease out the cramp, or else on my front swimming very slowly without kicking. Got to the finish in my worst time ever and could hardly stand due to the cramps. But finished.
    It was really good to see that all the others in our group did very well.
    Ian, in his 24th swim, did amazing. One of his best times ever. And everybody else did PB's, so that was good. Well done Dom (under the hour) Pamela, Annie, Mark, Tom, Max, James. And in the mile race were Kerry and Jo.. 11 competitors from our club, which was a great effort by all.
    Met up with Eddie and Genny, and went to the Dome for a brunch of eggs, bacon, toast and lots of grease - wonderful stuff after a long swim.
    We then took Ed and Gen back to the caravan park for a coffee, etc and a chat. They left at lunchtime to head back home.
    Spent the rest of the day relaxing. And a walk up the beach with Ian and Lynn (they were camped on the site next to us) and joined their family for a swim. Very pleasant.
    Wine and nibbles for sundowner with the McCays - very civilised, and something I think we will be getting into in the future.
    Tried to extend our stay by another couple of days but could only get 1 extra, which we were grateful for.
    Monday in Busso - just a relaxing day around the park, and beach, and in Busso. The weather was still brilliant and the ocean was magic and calm. Nice way to finish a great long weekend.
    Summary - Amblin park is a great place to stay. The locals are very friendly. The location is superb. Only problem is the high price, at $65 per night, it was easily the most expensive park that we stayed at. Still easy to recommend though.    Read more

  • TravelerTrip to Busso for the swim and
    Day 5

    Pemberton, Western Australia

    February 12, 2019 in Australia ⋅ ⛅ 20 °C

    Arrived in Pemberton for an overnight stay, on our way to the south coast.
    Nice easy drive from Busselton.
    Stopped in Nannup on the way and bought a pepper steak pie at the bakery. They must be some of the best pies in Australia. We ate the pies across the road at the cenotaph.
    Good memories of Nannup after spending some time there in the early new year with SA family.
    Pemberton weather is perfect today.
    Got the setup down to 20 minutes - a record so far.
    Went for a drive to Big Brook dam. Then to a very well stocked hardware shop, followed by a walk through the forest. Beautiful spot.
    Park was good. Ablutions were clean and well resourced, despite reviews to the contrary. Roads narrow and potholes. Park taken over recently by info centre. Cost, $35.    Read more

  • TravelerTrip to Busso for the swim and
    Day 6

    Walpole, Western Australia

    February 13, 2019 in Australia ⋅ ☁️ 22 °C

    Drove from Pemberton down to Walpole.
    Very bumpy road along the way. Lots of thoughts as to what might be happening back in the van, but as it turned out, all good.
    Stayed at the Rest Point park. A large park, and well appointed. Easy access to the site and a quick setup. Our location was great - right near the estuary, lots of grassed areas around. Bit windy though, but not too bad.
    Our next door neighbours were a couple from Perth, travelling with 3 Border Collie dogs, that they took around from place to place to compete in agility trials. Lovely dogs and very well behaved. They were competing in Albany over the weekend.
    We spent 2 nights here. Very relaxing stay. Some good walks around the estuary and one evening we surprised a few kangaroos that were in the bush and down by the water's edge.
    Did a couple of short trips to Walpole.
    On the second day it was Valentine's day, so I thought I should treat Elvira to something special. So, I took her along to the Walpole Country club for a game of golf! Very romantic!
    Anyway, we had a good game there. They use the honour box system, $20 for a round of 18 holes which is very reasonable. We had the entire course to ourselves. the fairways were a bit rough, but playable. And they had synthetic grass greens, which I have never played on before. I was a bit sceptical, but they actually played very well. Putting was true and you could actually pitch on to them and it would hold.
    Anyway, all up, a good stay at Rest Point - recommended.    Read more

  • TravelerTrip to Busso for the swim and
    Day 8

    Denmark, Western Australia

    February 15, 2019 in Australia ⋅ ☁️ 25 °C

    Packed up from Rest Point and decided to only do a short leg today.
    Just down the road was the Tree top walk area through the tingle tree forrest, so we decided to pop into that, even though we had visited before.
    Managed to get on a free guided tour of the ancient forest area. Very interesting with a knowledgeable guide. Some great and splendid specimens of trees there.
    Back on the road to Denmark. Booked in to the Riverbend Caravan park, which is towards the back of Denmark. A nice area. The park is very basic, but we managed to get some power and water, eventually. We could have free camped right next door.
    Went into Denmark and had lunch and got some provisions. And a walk along the river area.
    Drove out to Ocean beach and had a walk by the ocean. A magic spot, as long as the wind is not blowing too hard.
    Back to the park for a relaxing evening and another walk by the river.
    Quiet night.
    In summary, a fairly rough and ready park and not very well organised. But a pleasant stay and the facilities are adequate. Recommended.    Read more

  • TravelerTrip to Busso for the swim and
    Day 9

    Cosy Corner free camp

    February 16, 2019 in Australia ⋅ ☁️ 16 °C

    Decided to have our first experience of free camping. Picked on Cosy Corner East, and took the recommendation of others to get to free camp early, since sites can fill up fast, especially in popular spots.
    Found the area quite easily, and a reasonable site was available. One further tip is - check around the camp/area before selecting a site, since there were a few better sites available. Our site was quite sandy and rocky. We put our ground cover down, which helped the situation.
    There were drop toilets available within walking distance, which was good. And the lower part of the camp, which was right next to the beach looked well organised with quite a few people who looked like they had been there for a while - 7 day max stay might be a bit stretched there.
    Spent the rest of the day driving around the area. First day of cloudy grey conditions and quite windy.
    Had coffee at a nearby cafe, in the middle of nowhere, but this was a gold plate winning cafe/restaurant - amazing to find that there.
    Did some walks along the beach. A nice area, and it would be magic with a good weather day.
    The van coped well with free camping, and we did not run out of battery power.
    So, all up, a successful first up free camping experience which gave us a lot more confidence in this aspect. Many more free camping episodes to come, no doubt.    Read more

  • TravelerTrip to Busso for the swim and
    Day 10

    Albany

    February 17, 2019 in Australia ⋅ ☁️ 17 °C

    Woke up to another grey overcast and cool day. First call of duty was a visit to the long drop toilets (smelly) and our time sitting there was made more interesting with the heightened anticipation of a bite on the bum at any stage.

    After a morning walk on the beach, we packed up ready to head to Albany.
    Short and easy drive and we had prebooked with Rose Garden caravan park at $38 per night for 2 nights. Much confusion with Site allocation due to people overstaying their booking but we got settled in a good site in the end. During the site shuffle around, front office obviously had more confidence in our reversing ability than was sensible, when they tried to get us onto an awkward battleax site. Once we had informed them of the error of their ways, they put us on a much easier to handle site.

    Drove to Albany for Fish and chip lunch, at multi award winning Ocean and Paddock shop. We can confirm that the awards were justified.

    We drove round to the Gap and Natural Bridge. Great experience, especially with the platform overlooking the Gap. Amazing to witness the power of the ocean against the rocks.

    We drove to the Blow Holes, but since they were a no show today, we did not walk all the way down.

    All of these attractions charged a fee, but our annual national parks pass was valid and we have already more than made up the purchase cost of $27.00 (with concessions).

    Back to town and a quick visit to IGA (the only shop open in Albany of Sunday)

    Bank to the park for a light supper and watched a bit of TV.

    On the second day of our stay, we popped about 500m down the road for a game of golf at the Albany golf course. This is a links course, right on the sea front, with some great views out over the harbour area. We had an enjoyable nine holes, with some of the holes having steepish sides sloping in to the middle of the fairway, which is the way I think all golf courses should be built. Certainly helped the score a little bit. The course was in great condition, and a recommendation from us.
    Spent the rest of the day around Albany and back at the park, relaxing. A walk down at the beach for a great sunset, before a quiet night.
    Overall, we enjoyed our time in Albany. Rose Garden caravan park is to be recommended, even if their site admin is a bit bonkers. Brand new ablution block and other facilities.    Read more

  • TravelerTrip to Busso for the swim and
    Day 12

    Bremer Bay

    February 19, 2019 in Australia ⋅ ☀️ 20 °C

    Left Albany after a nice relaxing 2 days at Rose Garden caravan park.
    Popped into town for some window shopping for Elvira. A lass can never have too much window shopping!
    Parked behind IGA. Walked up and down York st before popping in to Paperbark book shop - one of the best bookshops I have ever seen. One could lose yourself in there for hours.
    Then we found a cafe with devonshire tea - snuck into that quickly.
    Drove to Bremer Bay - about 200kms. South coast highway was quite bumpy in parts, but they are doing roadworks in various places to try and improve things.
    Arrived at Bremer Bay caravan park after lunch. Well organised. We got on to a good easy site and set up quickly.
    The park has a lot of grassed areas. Grey water goes on to the lawns, and they are doing well from it.
    The park has good amenities, and the ablution block is fairly new and well appointed. $34 per night with P&W.
    Took a drive to the nearby beach. The river estuary is very low and dry and a bit smelly. But the beach at John's Cove is great. Nice secluded cove with a platform in the water. And the rest of the beach spreads Eastwards for about 5kms. Amazing sight and the waters looked good on a sunny day. But the wind is constant, and can keep things a bit cool. Easy access to drive on the beach, and the sand near the estuary is firm and easy to drive on. Did not venture further along the beach without a driving buddy along.
    Back at the park to witness the daily ritual of the gathering of the soaks at sundowner time. It was quite incredible - about 4.30pm there is a migration of people from all parts of the park, folding chair on one arm and a glass of wine with some snacks in the other hand. They congregated in the eastern corner of the park, next to somebody's van, and the bulldust session started. Lasted about 90 minutes before they all gradually filtered (staggered) their way back to their burrows. Wonder what David Attenborough would make of it all - I am sure there is a documentary in it.
    That night, the power in our van went out. Tripped control switch. After messaging with Fabs, we managed to trace it back to the electric hot water system having some fault. Will get that fixed in Perth, and in the meantime we can use the gas hot water system where necessary.
    We were staying for 2 nights.
    The next day, we did not do much venturing from the van. Elvira did some washing (the washing machine is a gem). And I got on with some client work for a few hours. Managed to hook into the park's wifi, which was surprisingly good, and helped things a bit.
    Wind came up quite a bit around lunch, so we pulled the awning back in, in case of damage.
    Did a bit of a drive around Bremer later in the afternoon. Ended with a short drive on the beach. Very windy and cool. I don't think it ever stops blowing at Bremer.
    Impressions of Bremer Bay. Very different to what I expected. Town area consists of 1 general store, and hardware shop in their so called commercial area, and a lot of houses spread far and wide. Not sure what everybody does in Bremer, unless they all work at the caravan parks. Because that seems to be the only attraction here - the 2 caravan parks. and they are both nice parks. So, if you are happy to stay at a decent caravan park, and do some fishing or swimming at the beach, and nothing else, then, go to Bremer Bay. otherwise, I would not keep it on your bucket list. Glad to have crossed it off though, despite being a bit disappointed in the area. And remember the 60km drive in and 60 km drive out. Fuel is cheap here, though, so that helps.    Read more

  • TravelerTrip to Busso for the swim and
    Day 14

    Lake Grace

    February 21, 2019 in Australia ⋅ ☀️ 32 °C

    Leaving Bremer Bay, we started the drive back home and decided to work our way through the wheatbelt, with the plan to have an overnight stop in Pingrup. Used the satnav to tell us where to go, and that worked well.
    Had some drama with the car, when as we were heading up the road, on a steady incline (everything seems to be uphill when you are towing a caravan!) the car flashed a warning sign on the dash to refer to the manual, and then just gradually lost all power, even though the engine remained running. Managed to pull over, without toppling the rig into the bush off the side of the road, and switched everything off.
    Now what do we do. Could not see anything in the manual.
    Anyway, we think that due to the warm day (34 degrees) and having the aircon on and with the engine working quite hard getting up a long incline, there must have been a safety cutoff when something mechanically gets too warm.
    We switched on again, and gradually pulled away again, and an easy pace with windows down and aircon off. Everything was fine and we did not have a reoccurence of the problem. When back in Perth, I think I am going to have to have a very serious talk to Ford about the incident.
    Anyway, we progressed through the wheatbelt area, driving through various dorps that were not even worth stopping at, although we did stop, to give the car a breather.
    Entered Pingrup and exited shortly after - not a good place to stay.
    We ended up making Lake Grace, which looked at least habitable, with a decent main street, IGA and a tourist office.
    The tourist office were very friendly, and would not stop talking to us (I think we were their only customers for the day).
    Popped in to the caravan park. Nobody in attendance, but a sign said that we should pick a site anyway, and they will get back to us at some stage. Fairly laid back.
    Found a fairly good site, after nearly using the caravan to chop off a tree branch (note to self - we really must start using the walkie talkie radios some time soon!)
    The park was quite rough, ablutions not too bad, but some ferals floating around. One couple were immediately on hand and delighted to watch me almost mow down the tree when reversing, but straight afterwards were very shifty and would not even talk to us. Thought we had upset them, and maybe we did, since the tree was left intact.
    Anyway, it was a hot day, so we relaxed for a while in the van with the aircon running, which was very efficient, even if a bit noisy.
    Walked to town for pizza at the cafe, after using the tourist office wifi. The wifi was good, and we sat outside the closed tourist office on a bench seat, talking to Kirsty on Whatsapp. The pizza was good, apart from we were expecting to eat it at the cafe at one of the numerous tables and chairs, but it ended up coming to us in a takeaway box. Perhaps they thought we were dodgy, and wanted rid of us. Anyway, we enjoyed it back at the van.
    Lake Grace summary - better than a lot of other places in the wheatbelt, but rough and strange.    Read more

  • TravelerTrip to Busso for the swim and
    Day 15

    Back home to Perth

    February 22, 2019 in Australia ⋅ ⛅ 24 °C

    Decided to leave Lake Grace early, mainly so that we could travel through the cool of the day, since the forecast was for another hot day. But also to get the hell out of Lake Grace!
    First spot reached was Kulin, which actually looked like quite a nice town. Leading in to Kulin, they have a stretch of highway called the Tin Horse Highway. Never heard of it before, but quite interesting. Over a stretch of about 50kms, the locals have put together structures made out of old drums and tin cans, etc. Some of the items are quite quirky and inventive, and it is a welcome relief to drive along that part of the highway.
    We came across one area where there were quite a few of these sculptures, so we stopped off the road to take photos - Elvira one way and me the other. After a while I got back to the car, and Elvira had gone quite a way down the highway, so I started up to go pick her up. Only problem was, no flat area off the side of the road to park off, without toppling the rig into the bush. So, I carried on down the highway, looking for a flattish spot, with Elvira chasing after me. Must have looked a bit strange to any passing motorists - hubby in car driving off, having had enough of wife, who is chasing after trying to catch up!
    Our plan was to overnight in Brookton. But when we checked reviews of the park there, they were not good. Brookton looked like a nice town, but after having lunch at the local pub, we decided to press on to Perth, about 120kms further on.
    Part of the return took us down the Welshpool East hill. Very steep descent, and our first run down with the caravan. Put the car in 'S' mode and cautiously made our way down. The car was in second gear most of the way down at 40kms/hr, and that helped avoid using the brakes so much.
    Good to get home on Friday afternoon. And then started the unpacking and cleaning up, etc.
    Spent a couple of hours taking about 150kgs of provisions and bits and pieces, out of the van into the house, and that did not even include anything from the car. Note to self - Elvira to be watched like a hawk when we pack for the next trip, and all items going on board are to have a necessity check strictly applied to them, before being allowed through the door of the van.

    Anyway, that is the end of our first proper trip with the van. It was an enjoyable trip for both of us. The Busso, Pembo, and South coast part of the trip was great. Lovely areas to stay. We feel comfortable with free camping, even though we only did one day of it. The van performed well, despite the electrical fault with the hot water system. The car performed well, apart from the worrying power fade out on the one occasion. The trip back through the wheatbelt is a trip never to be repeated - boring as bats**t and hot and uncomfortable. Good if you are a wheat farmer, but otherwise, too much of nothing.
    So, we now spend a few weeks back in Perth and start preparing and looking forward to our next trip. Where to - who knows at this stage.
    Cheers.    Read more

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