Fremantle and Margaret River
Fremantle is a city located within the Perth metropolitan area on Australia's western coast, at the mouth of the Swan River, 19 kilometres southwest of Perth's Central Business District. It was established by British settlers as part of the Swan River Colony in 1829.
I took the ferry to get there and cruised up the Swan River. There are some incredible houses you pass on the way including this multi-million pound one...
I hoped of the ferry and did some sightseeing. I walked passed the Maritime museum and saw the HMAS Ovens Submarine. I checked out Bathers Bay and the Round House.
The Round House, the oldest remaining public building in Western Australia, built as a gaol in 1830 - 1831.The Round House had eight cells and a gaolers residence which all opened up into a central courtyard. In the 1800s, bay whaling was carried out from Bathers Beach below the Round House. As part of the whaling operations a tunnel was constructed under the Round House to provide whalers with access to the town from the jetty and Bathers Beach. There is a secret side tunnel leading up to Gunners Cottage which was built when the Whalers Tunnel was used an air raid shelter in World War II.
Next I went to the Shipwreck Gallery where I saw the original timbers and treasures from the famous Dutch shipwreck, the Batavia. I also saw displays highlighting the mystery surrounding some of Australia's oldest shipwrecks.
Just before lunch I tried an award winning Pale Ale at the Little Creatures Micro Brewery before heading back to the port for a Whale Watching Tour. There was a chance we would see Hump Backed Whales but we didn't see a thing - a bit dissapointing. I was glad I'd took plenty of sea sickness tablets as the journey was very rocky!!
That night we headed out to the bars again.
My final trip from Perth was to Margaret River. It was a good trip although I was glad Nicky came along as it was full of OAPs.
We stopped for a coffee at Dawesville Channel before arriving at Margaret River and the Xanadu Winery. The Xanadu Winery is one of the earliest established vineyards of the region. We had a tasting there and it was hillarious watching the old people pushing in, thinking they might miss out - they couldn't wait for the next wine to be poured!!
Next we headed to the Eagles Heritage Raptor Centre where we had lunch. Set on 29 acres of natural bushland, is the largest area in Australia specifically set aside for eco-tourism based rehabilitation of birds of prey. Walking around we saw (amongst other things) Wedge-tailed Eagles, Peregrine Falcons and Black Kites. There was also a strange owl that nested on the ground.
After lunch we headed over to the free flight display where I got to hold Radar the Masked Owl.
We also saw the Kites grabbing food in mid air.
We headed on to Mammoth Cave, one of over 300 natural underground limestone caves in the district. There are lots of old animal bones preserved in the caves.
Travelling south we passed by stunning Boranup Forest, before arriving at Augusta’s famous Cape Leeuwin Lighthouse, a geographical point of significance marking the dividing point between the Southern and Indian Oceans.
Heading back to Perth we stopped for an evening meal at Busselton Jetty. At 2km long the Jetty is the longest timber jetty in the southern hemisphere.
We arrived back in Perth quite late. Although the trip had been quite a random collection of things it had been a good day.
On my last day in Perth I chilled out and bought some bits and pieces for my trip up to Broom.
I took the ferry to get there and cruised up the Swan River. There are some incredible houses you pass on the way including this multi-million pound one...
I hoped of the ferry and did some sightseeing. I walked passed the Maritime museum and saw the HMAS Ovens Submarine. I checked out Bathers Bay and the Round House.
The Round House, the oldest remaining public building in Western Australia, built as a gaol in 1830 - 1831.The Round House had eight cells and a gaolers residence which all opened up into a central courtyard. In the 1800s, bay whaling was carried out from Bathers Beach below the Round House. As part of the whaling operations a tunnel was constructed under the Round House to provide whalers with access to the town from the jetty and Bathers Beach. There is a secret side tunnel leading up to Gunners Cottage which was built when the Whalers Tunnel was used an air raid shelter in World War II.
Next I went to the Shipwreck Gallery where I saw the original timbers and treasures from the famous Dutch shipwreck, the Batavia. I also saw displays highlighting the mystery surrounding some of Australia's oldest shipwrecks.
Just before lunch I tried an award winning Pale Ale at the Little Creatures Micro Brewery before heading back to the port for a Whale Watching Tour. There was a chance we would see Hump Backed Whales but we didn't see a thing - a bit dissapointing. I was glad I'd took plenty of sea sickness tablets as the journey was very rocky!!
That night we headed out to the bars again.
My final trip from Perth was to Margaret River. It was a good trip although I was glad Nicky came along as it was full of OAPs.
We stopped for a coffee at Dawesville Channel before arriving at Margaret River and the Xanadu Winery. The Xanadu Winery is one of the earliest established vineyards of the region. We had a tasting there and it was hillarious watching the old people pushing in, thinking they might miss out - they couldn't wait for the next wine to be poured!!
Next we headed to the Eagles Heritage Raptor Centre where we had lunch. Set on 29 acres of natural bushland, is the largest area in Australia specifically set aside for eco-tourism based rehabilitation of birds of prey. Walking around we saw (amongst other things) Wedge-tailed Eagles, Peregrine Falcons and Black Kites. There was also a strange owl that nested on the ground.
After lunch we headed over to the free flight display where I got to hold Radar the Masked Owl.
We also saw the Kites grabbing food in mid air.
We headed on to Mammoth Cave, one of over 300 natural underground limestone caves in the district. There are lots of old animal bones preserved in the caves.
Travelling south we passed by stunning Boranup Forest, before arriving at Augusta’s famous Cape Leeuwin Lighthouse, a geographical point of significance marking the dividing point between the Southern and Indian Oceans.
Heading back to Perth we stopped for an evening meal at Busselton Jetty. At 2km long the Jetty is the longest timber jetty in the southern hemisphere.
We arrived back in Perth quite late. Although the trip had been quite a random collection of things it had been a good day.
On my last day in Perth I chilled out and bought some bits and pieces for my trip up to Broom.
posted by Phil at 8:04 AM
2 Comments:
More camping eh! Margaret River sounds good.
Jen
x
That wise old bird is giving you a good staring at Phil.Wonder what is going through his mind .....Could I borrow him to sort out the Michael Graham lot eh? I could also use one of those glasses of Shiraz right now. Dad xx
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