Porongurup NP, WA

31 May:Travelled: 238km via Ravensthorpe, Jerramungup to Borden RV parking (-34.072450, 118.261298)

The heavens opened up last night with torrential rain and gusty wind. We were happy to have stayed in Hopetoun and only had to contend with water soaked bitumen rather than slippery gravel roads as we made our way to Ravensthorpe. We had a short stroll in between showers to discover that this rural town has a history in sheep and wheat along with gold and copper mining. Although the mines have closed and reopened several times in the past, at the moment mines for nickel, lithium and gold are operating. 

As we continue in the A1 we pop in to a few road side attractions…

The T Tress ….

We stop in Jerramungup to have some lunch. 

From here we come off the A1 and head to Borden, a small town on the edge of the Stirling Ranges. As the weather is still inclement we decide to stop here for the night and hope tomorrow is a better day to explore the National Parks.

Surprisingly enough it is set among the thriving Wheatbelt and has a staggeringly huge grain storage facility with a capacity of 107,100 tonnes of grain. 

Close by there is the Lily Dutch Windmill, one of Australia’s largest, built with recycled bricks and timber from the Albany jetty. 

If you have ever noticed blue trees and wondered why…well it’s a project encouraging people to paint a tree blue in memory of a friend who has lost their life to depression or battled the illness…

Travelled: 165km via Stirling Ranges NP, to Porongurup NP Castle Rock Granite Skywalk to Bettys Beach East of Albany. As per most NP in WA a day entry fee is payable. 

Although the weather improved over night (no rain or windy squalls) the clouds were low over the Stirling Ranges and especially the Bluff Knoll which is a 6km + strenuous walk. We also decided not to do the 42km scenic drive west along the gravel road.

 So we continued on to Porongurup NP to do the 4.4km Granite Skywalk. An amazing suspended walkway around a huge granite outcrop which offered tremendous views across the undulating farmland to Albany. The last 100m was a little tricky but definitely a 5 stars experience for us. 

Back at the carpark we did the 1km Walitj Meilleur walking loop trail which offered insight of the flora, fauna and history of the park. 

We then drove to the Tree in The Rock picnic area and had lunch. There are a few decent walks from here but our legs were still recovering so we decided to just have a look at the tree and do the short Bolganup Loop trail through Karri forest.

Large termite mound

After consulting Wikicamps we picked Bettys Beach as a possible spot to spend the night before we made our way into Albany. We tried to have a look at Normans Beach but after the heavy rain that flooded the roadway we did a uturn.

We were fortunate that no one else was here and managed a great spot next to the day area overlooking the beach. Later we were joined by a few more… we ended the day enjoying a roast dinner. 

Old fish shacks