March 30, 2022

Nature days and pinot nights in the Great Southern

Chiara Di TRAVEL, WESTERN AUSTRALIA Albany, Denmark, Great Southern, Wanderlust, Western Australia, William Bay National Park 0 Comments

Over the Labour Day weekend, Emily and I enjoyed a wander to the Great Southern region of Western Australia and were so spoilt with beautiful weather.

The trip started in Mount Barker, a four-hour drive south east of Perth, at the Mt Barker Country Bakery with one of their famous pies. We both had the truffle chicken and mushroom pie – it was delicious, although a bit creamy for me. It’s the first time I’ve seen such a line at a country bakery!

We continued on to Torndirrup National Park, surrounded by steep cliffs, rugged coastlines and stunning beaches. We started at Misery Beach (anything but miserable), recently named Australia’s best beach of 2022 by Tourism Australia and it didn’t disappoint. One thing that is a true luxury about Western Australian’s regional beaches is they are mostly quiet so you really feel like you can truly escape and have them all to yourself.

We had hoped to walk the Bald Head hike however part of the trail was closed for maintenance. We could still walk as far as Isthmus Hill, 1.2km return, which offered amazing views over the coast.

We also explored Salmon Hole, Goodes Beach, Stony Hill Lookout, and The Gap and Natural Bridge – all very picturesque!

We settled into our accommodation at Middleton Beach in Albany before dinner at Liberté in town, a Parisian inspired restaurant with Vietnamese cuisine. We indulged on prawn and pork dumplings, Albany rock oysters, fried whiting, crab noodles, chicken salad and pinot noir… it was a bit of a pinot trip!

The next morning we drove to Two Peoples Bay Nature Reserve, 50-minutes further east of Albany. We parked at Little Beach and walked the 5km return Baie des Deux Peuples Trail to the Visitor Centre so that we could jump straight in for a swim once we were finished.

The trail is designed to start at the Visitor Centre and the signage is definitely clearer from there. Starting at Little Beach took us a while to find the right track to start the trail. We first walked to the other side of Little Beach and found Waterfall Beach.

To find the trail path, walk down the path from the car park and keep walking up the path of the cliff edge. You will eventually reach a small bridge with signage as you walk around the cliff edge. Sounds so easy on reflection.

Once we got back to Little Beach, we enjoyed a swim and picnic lunch, almost having the whole beach to ourselves again.

It was time to taste some local wine so we popped into Wignalls Wine for a tasting at the cellar door. It was a nice cosy setting with a lovely gentleman leading the tasting.

We tried to become whisky connoisseurs at Limeburners Distillery but it’s not yet a taste I’ve acquired a liking for. Emily did much better than me – the trick is to add some drops of water so it’s not so intense.

We turned our focus to history and visited the National Anzac Centre, which tells the Australian and New Zealand stories of the convoys and conflicts of WWI.

The day ended with dinner at Rats Bar – don’t let the name put you off – where we had a delicious duck, mushroom and beetroot risotto complemented by a bottle of Abbey Creek pinot noir. The bar closed at 8.30pm, which suited our bedtime perfectly. It was also super convenient to walk home from.

Our last full day started with a walk along Albany harbour and a coffee at the Boatshed Markets. The markets also sell breakfast treats, and a range of art, craft, gifts and knick knacks… nothing specific that we needed.

We continue on with our day to Denmark, 40 minutes west of Albany. A little further west is William Bay National Park, home to the stunning Elephant Rocks and Greens Pool.

The entry into Elephant Cove is a cool experience – a small entry like tunnel between two huge rocks with the ocean streaming through – it almost gave me gorge-like feels.

We explored, relaxed, swam, snacked and snorkelled around the bay – the water was definitely on the colder side. The national park is so beautiful and we enjoyed our time at Elephant Cove most as it’s more secluded and less busy.

We had a booking (recommended) for lunch at The Lake House Denmark. It’s a picturesque winery with beautiful gardens around the lake – I almost felt like I was at the Italian lakes. The restaurant menu focuses on platters to share and we enjoyed the Madison Vineyard Platter complemented by pinot noir again.

Singlefile Wines was our next stop and is always a pleasure. We dined at a time of seated service and enjoyed everything about the wine tasting and beautiful vineyard.

We dropped into Castelli Estate but didn’t stay for a tasting as Covid capacities were full, so finished our Denmark adventure at the Denmark Chocolate Company. Denmark is definitely a very beautiful, sweet town.

Our final night in Albany was spent trying Western Australia’s best fish and chips at Ocean and Paddock, as voted by the Western Australian Fisheries Industry Council. We shared the seafood basket and a garden salad – we were a little overdue for some greens – and it was thoroughly enjoyable. All the seafood was seasoned and battered perfectly and we found it to be very reasonably priced as well.

The next morning it was time to pack our stuff and start heading home. We decided to start the day with a hike up Castle Rock in Porongurup National Park, 40 minutes north of Albany, especially as the following four hours would be spent driving.

The Castle Rock experience was one of my favourite memories from my trip to the Great Southern two years ago so I was more than happy to go back. It was a misty morning but such a beautiful way to start the day amongst the beautiful jarrah, marri and karri trees on the 4.7km return trail. The scramble up the actual rocks was much easier this time with my hiking shoes – honestly don’t realise what you’re missing until you start wearing them.

We went back into Mount Barker for a coffee at the hip Grocery Store Cafe and another pie at the Country Bakery. I wasn’t as happy with my cheesy pie choice this time – a bit too greasy. Then it was the long road ahead back to Perth.

I’m super excited that borders are open and to be heading interstate for Easter to catch up with my friends Amy and Luke on their lap around Australia. It’s been a well overdue two years since I have been on a plane!

Until then…

LWL xxx