Western Australia was the first stop in our two month trip around Australia. We flew into Perth and were picked up by Bree, a travel friend from our TransAfrica trip over a decade ago. Bree offered up her lovely home as our base for the week and took time off to show us around. Highlights of Western Australia included Perth’s Kings Park and Botanic Garden, Rottnest Island’s quokkas (quite possibly the cutest marsupials in the world), the Giants of Mandurah (Thomas Dambo’s giant wooden sculptures created entirely out of recycled materials and hidden in the most obscure places), Gnomesville (a quirky roadside attraction with thousands of gnomes), Busselton’s Jetty (the longest timber-piled jetty in the Southern Hemisphere), Boranup Forest’s karri trees, discovering some of Margaret River’s 95 wineries, taking a dip at Injidup natural spa and swimming in the nearby “aquarium”, and seeing wildlife native to Australia at Caversham Wildlife Park. The majority of tourists to Australia skip Western Australia and after visiting, we think this is a big mistake! This state has so much to offer and even though we only scratched the surface, we would not hesitate for a return trip here.
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Evening view of Perth's city skyline from Kings Park
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Bree showing us the view of Perth from Kings Park & Botanic Garden
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State War Memorial (honoring the fallen from all wars in which Australia has participated); Kings Park
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Western Australian Botanic Garden
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Collage of flora on display at the spectacular Western Australian Botanic Garden in Perth
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Palm trees along Riverside Drive in Perth
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The Bell Tower, home of the Swan Bells (a set of 18 bells), is one of Perth's most unique tourist attractions
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Becky and Bree on bronze swan sculptures in downtown Perth
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Elizabeth Quay Pedestrian Bridge
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First Contact sculpture at Elizabeth Quay. This 5 meter aluminum sculpture welcomes visitors to the quay
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Street art in downtown Perth
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London Court is a four story mock Tudor open shopping arcade located in the CBD of Perth. It was built in 1937
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The General Post Office is a heritage landmark building in Perth
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Bronze kangaroo statues in Stirling Garden; Perth
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Bree and Becky next to a western grey kangaroo statue
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"Footsteps in Time" sculpture at St Martins Square in the Perth CBD
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Bird mural in downtown Perth
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Leafy sea dragon artwork at B Shed in Fremantle
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Aboriginal man greeting visitors to Rottnest Island
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Thomson Bay; Rottnest Island
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A cute quokka (a marsupial the size of a cat)
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No quokkas allowed inside a bakery on Rottnest Island
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A quokka begs for food; Rottnest Island
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Windswept trees on Rottnest Island
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Wooden staircase leading to Parker Point snorkel trail
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King's skink with a mouse in its mouth; Parker Point
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Smiling with Bree at Little Salmon Bay
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Bree and Becky at the beautiful Little Salmon Bay
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Rock formations of Fish Hook Bay; Rottnest Island
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Long nosed fur seals seen from Cathedral Rocks viewing platform
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Becky beside a quokka on the hop on/hop off bus around Rottnest Island
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A mother quokka with her baby
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Oystercatcher on Rottnest Island
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Hidden beach near Geordie Bay
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There are roughly 7,500 to 15,000 quokkas left in the world and most of them live on Rottnest Island
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A curious quokka hops into our tent!
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Staying overnight at Rottnest Island gives visitors a chance to be around quokkas without a bunch of tourists
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Samphire Rottnest beachfront area
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Our campsite had quokkas running around it all night long!
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The Basin is a popular snorkel spot on Rottnest Island. It is famous for its crystal clear water and naturally hollowed out reef
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View over Longreach Bay; Rottnest Island
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The stunning Mediterranean Shipping Company building in Fremantle
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P&O Hotel, a heritage building in Fremantle
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The Love Fremantle sign at the Fremantle Jetty
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Penny-farthing sculpture in Fremantle
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Octopus sculpture at the fishing harbor in Fremantle
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A monument to the fishermen in Fremantle
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Joe's Fish Shack; Fremantle
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Entrance to the historic Fremantle market
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The National Hotel in Fremantle
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City of Fremantle Town Hall
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Bronze artwork in Fremantle
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A purple flowered jacaranda tree in Fremantle
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Ceramic ceiling tilework on a building in Fremantle
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Music poster in Fremantle
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Wool Stores sign in Fremantle
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The Dingo Flour sign is a stylized silhouetted dingo in red on the side of a historic and heritage-listed working flour mill in North Fremantle
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A sculpture from "The Life Project" near the City Beach Surf Club in Perth
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Celebrating Bree's birthday with her family at Clancy's Fish Bar
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Sitting on one of the Giants of Mandurah
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One of the Giants of Mandurah by Thomas Dambo
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Swooping magpies warning sign - these birds are aggressive when they have young in the nest and will swoop from behind while striking the back of an intruder's head with their wings!
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Becky poses on top of one of the Giants of Mandurah
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Becky and Bree next to one of the giants of Mandurah
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Yield to kangaroos and emus sign
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Our favorite of the Giants of Mandurah
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Lunch stop at the Crooked Carrot
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Gnomesville is a whimsical place in the Ferguson Valley forest
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Garden gnomes donated by domestic and international visitors keep Gnomesville's population growing year after year
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Gnomes at the aptly named Gnomesville
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Meeting our friend Marc and his daughters for dinner at Tonic by the Bay in Broadwater
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Ceramic tile art at Bree's beach house in Busselton
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St Mary's Anglican church in Cowaramup
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Located in the Margaret River wine region, the town of Cowaramup is known as "cow town" because of its many cow statues and cow-themed decorations
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"Rump on a stump" cow statue poking fun at a nearby town's "chick on a stick" wine yard logo
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Artwork on a building in Cow Town
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Emu artwork for sale in Cowaramup
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Robby and Bree at Hamelin Bay
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Artwork of an aboriginal for sale at Boranup Gallery
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A body crushed by a ball - humorous sculpture for sale at Boranup Gallery
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Driving through Boranup Karri Forest at Leeuwin-Naturaliste National Park
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Tall karri trees at Boranup Karri Forest
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Becky and Bree hugging a tree at Boranup Forest
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Hungry seagulls at Gnarabup Beach's White Elephant Cafe
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Bree and Robby wait for our lunch to be served at Gnarabup Beach's White Elephant Cafe
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View looking towards Surfers Point
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Eurybia by artist Russell Sheridan near Surfers Point
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A license plate from Margaret River in Western Australia
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Surfers at Surfers Point in the Margaret River area
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Where the Margaret River flows into the Indian Ocean
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Colorful kayaks by the Margaret River
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Yellow-tailed black cockatoo
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Wall mural in the town of Margaret River
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Margaret River street art
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Banksia aroma pods, natural diffusers made from the seed pods of the Banksia grandis tree
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Statue of a Zygomaturus Trilobus, an extinct genus of giant marsupial
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La Scarpetta Trattoria restaurant serving homemade Italian cuisine in Margaret River
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"Jester Justice" artwork on display in Margaret River
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Prince mural; Margaret River
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Street art; Margaret River
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Street art of a pair of red-tailed black cockatoos
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Robby laughing with Brownie, Bree's neighbor in Busselton
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A beautiful sunset near Bree's beach house
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Enjoying the sunset with Bree and Brownie
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Robby in front of a Dunsborough wings mural
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Local award winning photographer Christian Fletcher's gallery
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Wall mural in the town of Dunsborough
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Metal bull in front of Eagle Bay Olives
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Olive oil tasting at Eagle Bay Olives
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Bree and Robby on the boardwalk at Cape Naturaliste
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After seeing 3 whales at "Whale Watch lookout point", we hiked from Cape Naturaliste lighthouse to Sugarloaf Rock along the spectacular coastline
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Beautiful views on our hike to Sugarloaf Rock from Cape Naturaliste lighthouse
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The highly venomous dugite snake
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Windswept trees of Cape Naturaliste
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Spectacular coastline near Sugarloaf Rock
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Wine tasting at Swings & Roundabouts Margaret River
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Swings & Roundabouts winery
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Our young but very knowledgeable French sommelier at Swings & Roundabouts
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Swings & Roundabouts was the first of several wine tastings today!
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"Chick on a stick" monument just outside Cherubino Winery
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A galah walks between rows of grapevines at Coward and Black vineyard
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Pink paper and common daisies
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Robby and Bree at the Grove Distillery
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Becky and Bree hug a wine barrel at a winery in Margaret River
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Our dinner feast with Darcy, Lynne and Bree at their beautiful beach house in Busselton
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Lynne made lamingtons for dessert - an Australian cake made from squares of butter cake or sponge cake coated in an outer layer of chocolate sauce and rolled in desiccated coconut. They were so yummy!
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Saying goodbye to Darcy and Lynne
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Kangaroos on someone's lawn off Balmoral road
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Our first sighting of wild kangaroos by the roadside
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The rugged coastline near Injidup natural spa
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Injidup natural spa is a hidden rock pool right on the edge of the turbulent Indian Ocean
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Enjoying a brisk swim at Injidup Natural Spa
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Becky and Bree at the Canal Rocks
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Jetty near a boat ramp at Canal Rocks; Yallingup
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Boardwalk at Canal Rocks in Yallingup
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Sandy path leading to "the aquarium"
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A cluster of Moonah trees, which are native to southern Australia and have a gnarled and wind-swept appearance due to their proximity to coastal environments
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The aquarium is a secret swimming hole with crystal clear water and fish near Yallingup
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A friendly blue-tongued lizard (shingleback lizard)
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Robby and Bree on the hike back up to the parking lot from the aquarium
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Wind swept coastline at Ngari Capes Marine Park
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Jazz festival in downtown Busselton
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Extending 1.841km out to sea, the heritage listed Busselton Jetty is the longest timber jetty in the Southern Hemisphere!
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We hiked out 1.841 km to sea on the Busselton Jetty. Home to one of only six underwater observatories in the world, this is undoubtedly Busselton's most popular tourist attraction
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The electric and solar-powered Busselton Jetty Train allows visitors to take a 45 minute scenic round trip ride along Western Australia's top tourism attraction
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We enjoyed our stroll along Busselton's Jetty. It was a beautiful day to check it out!
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Bree and Becky riding the kids' merry-go-round at Caversham Wildlife Park
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Kangaroos resting at Caversham Wildlife Park
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A possum licking its foot
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A galah (pink and grey cockatoo)
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A pair of playful pelicans chase each other
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Our first time seeing a koala and it did not disappoint! They are so adorable
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Getting our photo taken with a wombat
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An albino kangaroo with a joey in its pouch
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A possum munching on leaves
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Becky inside a kangaroo pouch at Caversham Wildlife Park
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Becky getting hugged by a koala
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A hopeful penguin tries to get extra fish from a zookeeper
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Two kangaroos resting after eating a meal
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Brush-tailed wettong (woylie)
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Northern red-faced turtle
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Robby washing Darcy's car as a thank you for letting us borrow it for the past week
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Bree relaxing after a busy week being our amazing tour guide around Western Australia!
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Hugging Bree goodbye before taking an Uber to the airport. Thanks for being the best tour guide!
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Goodbye Perth! On our way to Alice Springs
