Perth to Augusta - Margaret River Region

The long journey back to Perth passed quickly and we were greeted with something quite unusual - clouds and rain! We hadn't had that at all lately. Down here in the southwest, autumn had already arrived, which was evident during our remaining days on the west coast. A constant mix of rain, wind, cloudy skies, and little sun. It didn't dampen our spirits, but unfortunately, all those turquoise-colored bays that were pictured in all the brochures were not as visible. We got pretty wet here and there. But the strong wind brought high waves and there was plenty to see along the coast.

For the remaining five days, we drove from Perth to Bunbury, Busselton, Margaret River, and Augusta, and then back. In Bunbury, we saw some creative street art and took a short detour inland. Honeymoon Pool and Black Diamond Lake looked absolutely stunning in the brochures. But unfortunately, due to the bad weather, they were just two simple lakes without spectacular colors, too bad... At our next stop in Busselton, we walked along the longest wooden pier in the world. It was quite a long 1.8 km walk. We had plenty of time to get thoroughly soaked by the rain. And when the sun finally came out, we took a stroll through the Tuart Forest. Deep in conversation, Simon suddenly stopped and said, "Kangaroos!" And sure enough, there were two kangaroos sitting less than five meters away. It seemed like they were just as surprised as we were. After observing them briefly, we decided to walk around them as they were just too big for us. A few steps further, we saw a group of kangaroos with a little baby in their pouch. It was then that we realized that we had completely forgotten our camera in the car.

At Cape Naturalist, we admired some bays and crashing waves along the cliffs. Some signs warning about snakes made me a bit nervous. Especially the snake on the sign looked so dangerous. Over time, the waves have washed the stones along the rocky coast, creating natural small pools where you can enjoy a great swim in good weather. But with our weather, it was more like a real danger to life. The sea was crashing against the rocks, spraying meters high, and you could feel a light spray of salt on your face.

Next, we went underground. In Ngilgi Cave, we descended 37 meters and saw impressive stalagmites and stalactites. This cave was discovered in 1899 and it was the first tourist attraction in all of Western Australia.

The next destination was Margaret River. There is a great spot where the river flows into the sea and regular World Championships are held at Surfers Point. However, we didn't see any surfers because there was a shark warning. In a small chocolate shop with its own production, we found super delicious white chocolate with chai, chili, and turmeric flavors. Something completely different, but really tasty. Then we went to a huge maze, which was a lot of fun. Right at the entrance, Simon went left and I went right. After a few minutes of wandering around, we ended up facing each other again and continued getting lost. At Contos Beach, we marveled at the crashing waves once again and thanks to the sunshine, we climbed the rocks along the coast. Unexpectedly, it turned out to be one of the most beautiful spots. We discovered a huge rock that was split in the middle. Afterwards, we drove through Boranup National Park. This is where the Karri trees grow, and I couldn't get enough of looking at them. The light-colored trunks and the sun shining through were really amazing to see. We decided to spend the night at the campsite in the middle of the forest. At first, it was a bit eerie to be alone in the middle of the forest, but it didn't take long before we were joined by two Germans.

The final stop on our tour was Augusta. This is where the Blackwood River flows into the sea and we had great success, in the truest sense of the word. In the riverbed, we spotted a stingray, some dolphins, and a huge pelican. We also managed to capture some photos of the pink cockatoos that fly around here.

The penultimate day arrived and we started our journey back to Perth. It was slightly sunnier than the previous days, so we revisited some spots that we didn't get out of the car to see due to the rain. On the last day, we had fantastic weather and visited Scarborough Beach and Cottesloe Beach in Perth. As typical Aussies, we had fish and chips as a snack and a deep-fried Mars bar for dessert.

As we strolled through Fremantle City, we noticed yellow lines painted across the buildings everywhere. We thought it was modern art. But shortly after, we reached the point where we understood the whole concept. See for yourself, the pictures explain the riddle. As a final treat, we indulged in a feast at a Brazilian grill restaurant. At first, we didn't quite understand how it worked until the waiter explained it to us. We could eat as much as we wanted, which sounded really good. The meat skewers that were rotating on the grill were brought to the table repeatedly and we were served different types of meat. The side dishes piled up on our table. We couldn't believe all the food that came with it, so we took a picture of the menu. Stuffed to the brim, we returned our White Flash and off we flew to Cairns - sunny East Coast, here we come!