Denmark to Albany

This is only an hour’s drive, but we were tired after our long lunch. Pepper and Salt was extremely busy and the late bookings were queuing to get in. The nice waitress begged us to vacate our table, as two other clients were jumping up and down with annoyance at having to wait! 

In the afternoon, Val wanted to call in at her son's house in Albany. He was away working but his wife was happy to give us a cup of tea and show us round. It is an absolutely stunning house, designed by them, and worthy of an appearance on Grand Designs. It has an incredible view over the water. M is an artist and has her own studio, linked to the house. There is also a restored cottage for guests. I should have taken photos, but I felt a bit awkward about doing this and anyway it was pouring with rain and blowing a gale at this point.

We continued on our way to our Albany accommodation: My Place.  That's its name! This is a converted colonial house just off York Street and in walking distance to the town centre. I had stayed there before and knew it was OK. I'd like to have booked for 2 nights, but it was fully booked at the weekend. We later discovered that the Albany Agricultural Show was on. It was a freezing cold night, just like the middle of winter, so no photos were taken. The owner had put on the heating for us in advance, for which we were very grateful.

Next morning, Val was booked to fly home, so I drove her to the airport which is only 15 minutes out of town.  She was keen to get back to her dog and her husband who has Parkinson's. After that I was a free agent so I had a coffee and went to the new public library to warm up and blog. I made a quick foray down to the harbour:

The Police seem to be interviewing people on this boat.

The new Hilton Garden Hotel.
It opens next week.

It was too cold to linger, so I went back to my car and drove to Middleton Beach (10 minutes away) where I had a cabin booked in the caravan park. The route along the cliffs had amazing views. I stopped at an information board:

Some history about Albany Port.

View from the same spot.
Piles of wood chips waiting to be loaded.

Across the road, I took a few pics of the wildflowers:

A wild and windy view of Middleton Beach.

Denmark galleries and lunch

We visited a couple of galleries in Denmark. There are many artists, potters and other craftsmen resident in this area, keen to display and sell their wares. The following are from a textile and needlework exhibit:

Detail of the collage above.

Needlework picture of a waterfall.

Placemat made from rope.

The next 3 pics are in the Old Butter Factory gallery:

Then we drove to Ocean Beach and sat in the sun for a while watching the surfers:

Sun is rare in these parts!

Same spot.

We had a splendid lunch at Pepper and Salt, a top restaurant at a winery. I’d booked it two weeks ago as it’s impossible to get in at the last minute.

Val is enjoying her entree here:

Scallops.

Lamb rump in black bean sauce.

Chimes Spa Retreat, Denmark

I had booked a 2-night stay at this up-market retreat in Denmark. After checking in, we began to make the most of the facilities. Val filled up the spa bath and had a long soak, whilst I went for a massage. I hadn’t had one for years and was pleasantly surprised how good I felt afterwards. Then it was time for port and nibbles in front of the log fire. This was very welcome as it was a freezing cold day with a cold wind coming in from the sea. We soon discovered that all the restaurants in the area were closed in the evening, apart from at the weekends (a staffing issue, we were told), so I had to produce some food from my emergency stash. We enjoyed miso soup, avocado, cheese and biscuits and a glass of red: we didn’t starve!

Our room with a small balcony is 2nd from the left.
The dining room for breakfast is on the right.

View from our balcony.

Next morning we went for a walk from the town centre to the caravan park at the river mouth, where we had both stayed in the past. There was a new cafe there, so we ordered a plate of F and C.  The local King George Whiting was delicious!

The wildflowers on the riverside walk were still blooming, even though it’s now late in the season.

Two pelicans amused us near the bridge:



Gum nuts galore:

Pemberton to Denmark

We really enjoyed staying at Forest Lodge Pemberton. It is right in the middle of the forest, surrounded by tall trees, kangaroos and bird life.

We also saw a baby kangaroo desperately searching for its mother (video on Instagram).

We tried a selfie on a cold morning.

On a swing seat overlooking the lake.

Giant sequoia tree

It was a long and winding road through the forest towards Walpole, where we stopped for a picnic lunch near the Visitors Centre. There was a large carpark displaying prominent NO OVERNIGHT CAMPING signs. The town had experimented with free camping for four self-sufficient caravans, but the privilege had been withdrawn because it had been abused, they said.

After lunch Val wanted to visit the elderly parents of G, who is one of her son's friends. He runs daily boat tours around the inlet. They have 8 grandchildren and about 13 great grandchildren and own some interesting antique furniture brought out from England in about 1900.

Oak sideboard with interesting shell carvings.

Matching dining chair.

We need Antique Roadshow to give us more information. Val told me how they first met: she had come out from England to be a governess on a cattle station and he was working there as a roustabout. They fell in love ... and the rest is history!

Their house overlooks the inlet. It was a freezing cold afternoon with a strong wind off the water. I took a quick photo and jumped back in the car to warm up:

Choppy water in the inlet.

Perth to Pemberton

We left Perth at 9.30 am. I picked Val up at Leederville Station and we were soon on our way. We stopped at Manjimup to visit the State Timber Museum, a magnificent new building with a nice cafeteria:

Giant jarrah:transported here in two sections.

How to cut logs efficiently.

Tree ring window looking at the giant jarrah outside.

The following interactive board allowed visitors to see the decline of the industry, There is now only one working timber mill in WA. (shown in a green light). The other faint dots of light show how many there were originally - over 100, I think:



We saw lots of timber trucks coming north on the road, but mainly carrying pine logs.

Our home for the night: Forest Lodge Pemberton.

View from our cabin.

Away

Tomorrow I'm going on a road trip to the south coast with my friend V.  We have also been attending some  lectures at MALA (Mature Age Learning Association) on Russian History and the rise of Putin. Some years ago, before COVID, we were in China and passed by a waxwork museum:

Guess who I saw there!

Apparently Putin is sensitive about his height, or lack of it.  For the record, I am 167 cm tall. He is a bit bigger, but not much.

A little unrelated joke, which I saw on another blog:

Robbery in plain sight

My handbag was stolen this week. I was taking a shower at Beatty Park Swimming Pool. In 3 minutes my handbag was pinched, even though there were others in the changing room at the time.

When I went to the foyer to report the theft, the staff were all standing around looking outside. Apparently the police had already been called. An aboriginal couple had been shouting at one another and fighting over the booty. The management had called the police to break up the fracas! I saw the paddy wagon arrive and then set off in pursuit of the couple, who had escaped on foot down the road. Unfortunately, the police were than diverted to attend a more serious incident so they were able to get away.

The staff then started to watch the CCTV footage. There are many cameras around Beatty Park, but of course none in the changing rooms. I was allowed to watch the footage (even though legally the victim is not supposed to see it, in case they take the law into their own hands). I saw the woman going into the ladies changing room and the man into the mens. They came out very quickly, but the man was empty handed. The woman had a backpack and another bag. 

I was in a state of shock and couldn't think what to do or who to call. The staff helped me to cancel my credit card right away. My car keys were gone, as was my mobile phone. I couldn't remember anybody's phone number, as they are all on speed dial nowadays. Finally I spoke to my daughter, but she said she had gone to work on her electric bike and would take an hour to get to me. Finally her boss lent her his brand new Renault to come and rescue me. She had spare keys to the apartment so we had to drive there to find the spare car keys and then back to Beatty Park to retrieve the car - what a palaver!

Next day, the first thing I did was go to the Apple Store to buy a new phone. It took them 1.5 hours to transfer all the files from the iCloud onto the new one. Even so, I still have to re-enter a bunch of passwords. Then, amazingly, I received a call from my bank to say that my handbag had been handed in. When I went to get it, everything was there except the phone, and in addition there were car keys belonging to another victim from the changing room.

Now, on the Camino nobody leaves their valuables unattended. People place things in a waterproof bag and take this into the shower. Why didn't I do this at home?