29^th December 2016

The weather was warm enough to take breakfast on the veranda and promised to get even warmer as the day progressed.

Breakfast on the veranda

Becks had spotted a dead spider on one of the chairs and "reliably" informed us that there are no deadly ones in Western Australia. Not sure Sheila would take her word for it.

Aussie eyes are watching!

Sheila and I headed up to Dunsborough Lakes Golf Course about 40 minutes north of the house. We paired up with a couple of guys who had played the course once before and with some effort remembered how the fairways linked up. One was an Australian and the other Maori and both lorry drivers by profession.

The course meandered around a housing complex so each fairway was disconnected along its length from the next and boarded on both sides by smart looking houses. Some of the houses even had no boundary fences or hedges so some residents could easily walk straight from their garden onto the tee. True to its name there were plenty of lakes and a few streams.

Dunsborough Lakes Golf Course

Sheila in action

The other odd aspect of the course was that the golf range was a lake. Apparently range balls have a lower density than normal golf balls and float.  The bar of the tavern is orientated so that clientele can watch the action from the comfort of their chairs.

Golf Range Lake

When we left we picked up a text message from Phil that he was going out windsurfing at Surfer’s Point so we headed there to see some of the action before driving into Margaret River to pick up some provisions.

Phil catches air at Surfer's Point

28^th December 2016 Margaret River

I woke at 5am as the sun was rising and spotted at least 6 kangaroos in the distance, two blue wrens and three green parrots. By the time that the rest of the household had surfaced the wild life had dispersed.

The wind speed was low, and not sufficient for windsurfing, so we decided to walk part of the Cape to Cape coastal walk from Gracetown to Ellenbrook. This is only 7 km but mostly through sand and passes through the Leeuwin-Naturaliste National Park.

The intrepid travellers

 We stood for a few minutes watching the surfers on the coast near Gracetown before starting on our trek. 

Surfer catches a wave Gracetown

On route we spotted a couple of large monitor lizards as well ants nearly an inch long.

Monitor Lizard

Fringe Lily

(each flower only lasts one day and 

its yummy fibrous roots is a source of food)

After lunch Sheila and I stayed around the house while Phil and Becks took a bike ride to Surfer’s Point.  For a time I managed to get my iPod working with the car sound system but it is not very repeatable. Strangely enough we had exactly the same type of car that we drove from Melbourne to Brisbane, although the current one is newer, and the iPod worked fine. Reading the blogs it sounds as though others have been having similar problems.

In the evening we headed to Cape Mentelle, a winery, to enjoy a cheese platter, a glass of wine and to watch the film called Sully at their open air cinema. 

The gang at Cape Mentelle

Sully was all about the plane that came down in the Hudson River. This treat had been provided by Annabel, Barrie, Amanda and Jon for a Christmas present for the four of us. The cinema was outdoors but the tickets provided full body length bean-bag and blankets, very civilised and a great film.   

All tucked up and ready to roll!

27^th December 2016 North Coogee to Margaret River

We left North Coogee a bit late because the property manager was arriving to go over one or two of the problems that Phil & Becks had found with the property.

North Coogee to Margaret River

We stopped off on the way at Busselton near the jetty and had a picnic lunch and then headed off to Margaret River. Phil was keen to get on the water so we dumped bags at the house and drove down to Surfer's Point near Prevelly.  The wind was very strong and only the very experienced were out on the water.  Phil sailed for about an hour. There are some significant reefs both for launching and returning so one has to be careful.  The launch window is probably 3-4 feet wide and when coming back in one has to ride a wave to stay above the reef.

Phil (blue sail) sailing at Surfer's Point

The house is on Horseford Road, which is just off Burnside Road near Margaret River. It is very spacious accommodation with three bedrooms and halfway between the beach and Margaret River.

26^th December 2016 North Coogee

Phil and Becks were hosting some friends over from the UK so Sheila and I went off to Point Walter Golf Club on the south side of the Swan River estuary. We thought that we had played there previously in 2014 when we last came over. A few days back I had purchased a Western Australian Golf discount book at the local post office and was able to use one of the vouchers on this course. This saved me $50, half the cost of paying for 2 rounds of 18 holes, plus club and trolley hire. The voucher book only cost $30 so a great saving and with many more vouchers to use later.

Point Walter Golf Course

Later in the afternoon Phil and Becks headed up to Cottesloe, their old hunting ground, so that Phil could go windsurfing off the coast while Becks went for a walk and read a book.

After finishing golf Sheila and I headed over to Cottesloe to join up with Phil and Becks.  Phil was just pack up his gear so we left the vehicles were they were and walked into Cottesloe for dinner in the local hotel. 

One kite surfer still left on the water

A stroll up the beach road

The stroll back to the vehicles was a bit breezy and warranted wearing our hoodies. The sun was also low in the sky producing some great silhouettes.

Ships waiting to enter Fremantle Port

25^th December 2016 North Coogee

Morning started with Eggs Benedict, tea and coffee. Phil then distributed the Christmas presents in penny numbers and these were duly opened. We were fortunate to be able to contact both Amanda, who had stayed up late in Chicago, and also the Cambridge fraternity on Skype to exchange Christmas greetings. Sam and Ben were in high spirits and had been up very early in the morning to open their stocking presents but were given strict instructions not to wake Barrie’s Mum.

Phil ready for action

... and Becks get ready for the beach

.

Later we took a stroll down to the beach for a swim. There was quite a wind blowing so the sea was fairly rough but this didn’t discourage anyone and once in the water the temperature felt acceptable.

The boys get wet

The girls assembled the Pavlova to take to the Christmas dinner, which was being hosted by Bethan and her husband, chief cook, Nick, while her brother also called Nick entertained us all on the details of alcohol both wine and beers. Bethan’s parents were also present as were Bethan’s two daughters of 4 years and 12 weeks.

Pavlova

The secret Santa event was a great success and since no proper dice was available we used Phil’s mobile phone as a digital dice.  Within a few passages of the “dice” around the circle of nine adult participants all of the presents had been distributed. Then came the bit where by throwing a six one was able to swop a present previously allocated to someone else. This proceeded for 15 minutes when the time for swops ran out and each was left with the present in their possession.

Llewellyn, Nick, Bethan, Becks & Phil 

24^th December 2016 North Coogee

 

We had a few final bits of shopping to do for Christmas Day so Sheila and I went down to the local supermarket (Woolworths) and Phil and Becks went looking for clothing.

Sheila standing on the balcony of Phil & Becks 3rd floor apartment

After lunch we all headed out to Lucky Bay and found the wind conditions in much better shape than two days earlier. Becks was out first and soon tearing across the water at a rate of knots followed by Phil and I.  Sheila acted as resident photographer and when not employed quietly read her Kindle in the shade.

Phil (L) & Mike (R) have a blast

Running repairs by Phil

Resident photographer takes a break

After returning to the apartment, and taking a quick shower, we headed out to South Beach where there was the regular food market with live music. Venus was in the night sky and there was a pink tinge on the horizon.

23^rd December 2016 North Coogee

I had a haircut booked at 11am so sorted out the bikes with Phil before he left for work and then rode down to the barbers.

Phil & Becks' Apartment to Fremantle

When I got back Sheila and I cycled down to Fremantle along the side of the beach on a dedicated cycle path, a distance of only 3 km each way. 

Fremantle trawlers in harbour

We stopped for a latte and walked around Fremantle looking for two “Secret Santa” presents, These were going to be provided for the Christmas celebrations on Sunday. 

Fremantle sculpture

Having been successful in purchasing two presents we cycled home, acquiring some stones on the way back for potted plants on the apartment balcony.

Sheila & bikes

In the evening Sheila and I we ate a meal at the local curry restaurant while Phil and Becks went off to a friend’s BBQ.

22nd December 2016 North Coogee

After breakfast Sheila and I went off to the local shops to get a few provisions, partly for Christmas since we had all been invited around to Bethan and Nick’s for Christmas. Last time we were in Perth Bethan & Nick and their daughter had joined us for Christmas Dinner and we together with Phil and Becks had hosted them at the house where we were staying in North Fremantle.

After getting back from shopping we headed off to play 9 holes of hole at the Fremantle Golf Course and once there realised that we had played there before, a relatively tricky course with plenty of trees to cause problems.

After golf we headed back to make a picnic lunch and then drove over to Lucky Bay on the south side of the Swan River, where I tried out the windsurfing kit that Phil had provided. The wind was a bit fickle and gusty with holes in the wind but good enough to get wet windsurfing for the first time in two years.

Beach start at Luck Bay

Mike gets powered up at Lucky Bay (blue sail)

 Phil didn’t get back from work until around 7;30 pm so we headed out to a pizza restaurant just a walk up the road. They produced some excellent pizzas but what made it for me was the Mount Langi Ghiran. Billi Billi 2013 Shiraz. 

21^st December 2016 (Wednesday) – North Coogee, WA

Today was a case of recharging the batteries, doing a bit of shopping and preparing for the next few weeks of travelling plus purchasing some last minute Christmas presents.

We took a walk down to the local shopping area with the temperature well up in the 30’s. By the time we came back it felt like walking into a hot hair blower. Whilst we didn’t confirm it the temperature was due to rise to 41C, the hottest we have ever experienced this trip even in the Northern Territory.

After lunch we headed off by car to a hardware store to locate some paint rollers and masking tape. The store turned out to have a few other interesting items, which we purchased as well as some plants for the balcony.

When Phil got back from work we loaded a windsurfer into our car with sails and boom etc ready for a trip out the following day.

Phil's storage area inside the underground garage

Mike's car loaded with windsurfing kit

In the evening Phil and Becks cooked a BBQ, which was eaten on the balcony. 

20^th December 2016 (Tuesday) – Hope Island to Perth

In total we had driven 2424 km (1515 miles) since leaving Melbourne and 2975km (1734 miles), including the Northern Territory trip between Darwin and Jabiru and around Kakadu National Park.    

The following morning we finished our packing and headed to Brisbane Airport to catch a plane to Perth.

Brisbane to Perth

The flight was fine, although noisy.  I tried out the Qantas app that allows one to watch a film via wifi on one’s own tablet.  The picture was of a better quality than normal but the sound was diabolical. Definitely need noise cancelling head phones for Christmas/birthday if anyone is reading this blog!

Once we had landed we collected our luggage and picked up a hire car. Phil arrived and guided us back to their new pad in North Coogee, just south of Fremantle. In the evening we went for a stroll along the beach up towards Fremantle Harbour, had a drink and then headed back.

Sheila, Phil and Becks on South Fremantle Beach

16^th - 19th December Hope Island

Friday (16th) - Hope Island

Hope Island to Tweed Head

As we left in the morning we spotted three dolphins in the water just around the corner from the house. They hardly surfaced but enough to spot the backs and fins.

Dolphin near the house

Fred kindly drove us down the coast going south identifying all the key points and places where Helen and Fred had either lived or owned property while Bert and Helen reminisced over the places they had stayed during past holidays. The trip took us along the Gold Coast, through Burleigh Heads, Coolangatta and onto the Tweeds Heads just north of Fingal Head.

Sheila, Bert, Helen & Fred with Gold Coast skyscrapers in the background

In the evening we had a BBQ that Helen and Fred had prepared. Following the BBQ we sorted out the surround sound hi-fi system. The main issue was that quite a few of the 5.1 DVDs were playing background music but had no vocals. This issue was eventually resolved and a pair of WiFi linked tweeter speakers were coupled to the system. We fully tested the system the following evening by watching the latest version of Dad’s Army.

Saturday (17th) - Hope Island

The plan was for Sheila and I to drive up to Beenleigh Historical Village and Museum with my Uncle Bert and meet with my other cousin Carole and Jim, as well as meeting their adopted daughter Tima and her newly born child Alanna. I set up the route using Google Maps on my mobile phone and somehow between setting up the route, checking it with Fred, passing it to Sheila to relay to me while I was driving it got changed to a Seaworld destination! How that happened we will never know. Seaworld is on the coast and miles from Beenleigh and by the time we got there and realised our error we were miles from Beenleigh and at least a 40 minute drive away. I promptly rang Carole, apologised for the delay and explained our error and headed north.

Settlements in Beenleigh started about 1860 and the museum is a collection of the old buildings from the town, including the church, boot maker’s shop and fire engine shed, with a wide range of memorabilia, some of which were familiar since they were still in use in the 50s and 60s.

After the visit we headed into the nearby town for lunch and meet up with Tima and her six week old daughter Alanna.

Coopers & Co.

We managed to get back to Hope Island without any mishaps and after a cuppa walked around to Doug and Anne’s house, two doors up to take part in a Christmas drinks social.

River view from Helen & Fred's

Sunday (18th) - Hope Island

On Sunday we headed up towards Brisbane Airport for the matinee performance by Cirque du Soleil of Kooza, a combination of clowns and acrobats. The location was close to a large mall, which allowed us all to do a bit of window shopping, although some did part with cash.

Cirque du Soleil

Monday (19th) - Hope Island

Route to O'Reilly's Rainforest Retreat & Tamborine

On the Monday Fred generously offered to take us all on a car trip through Cangungra to O’Reilly’s Rainforest Retreat followed by a drive over to Tamborine Mountain. We stopped off in Cangungra for a coffee and spotted a stick insect climbing a post.

Stick insect

The route took us through regions were Fred & Helen used to live and ride their horses and in the final few miles it was incredibly steep and twisty with one very narrow singe track section. We stopped off at an alpaca farm to take a look at the animals, feel their fur coats and take a look at some of the clothing that is produced from their wool.

Alpaca

View from Alpaca Farm

The rainforest retreat had a number of lorikeets and parrots flying around. These were very tame taking seeds from the hands of visitors and flying into the gift shop. 

Smiles all round from Bert & Helen

We took a walk on a treetop gangway and were a little unlucky to miss the opportunity to see a python devour a small creature within the rain forest area only a couple of metres from the path.

A stroll in the woods

After a picnic lunch we headed to Tamborine Mountain. This area is rather cute with a number of craft and speciality shops but with some very attractive houses and plots around the upper sections of the mountain. We spotted a bamboo clothing stall and headed for it. I had become aware of the benefits of bamboo and cotton material for clothing whilst in Ayers Rock so was keen to pursue this material further. The vast majority of the clothing was for women, although Fred found and bought some white socks that were supposed to be cool to wear and moisture absorbing. 

We narrowly missed the opportunity to take a look in the cuckoo clock shop. By the time we had finished viewing the bamboo clothing it was 4pm and the cuckoo shop had closed, a disappointment to Bert who in his younger days had worked for a few months on clock repairs.