Day 36 Saturday 11th April 2015, Showers Gwelup, Perth We take a short drive into Perth and find the city surprisingly quiet. We are in the city to buy a new camera as my trusty old Nikon DSLR snapped its last down in Albany. It had been flashing up all manner of error messages since Kalgoorlie and totally disgraced itself in the Super Pit. I really can’t complain as it was 9 years old. The new one (another Nikon) will take a bit of getting used to though. We join C & C for lunch at Cicerillo’s fish market in … Continue reading Go West, Day 36 – Gwelup, Perth

Day 35 Friday 10th April 2015 Australind to Gwelup, Perth It has been raining solid for almost 24 hours and we’ve had an estimated 50mm of heavy plopping rain courtesy of a cyclone out in the Indian Ocean. Woody said … Continue reading Go West, Day 35 – Gwelup, Perth

Day 34 Thursday 9th April 2015 Augusta to Australind We intend to stay in the Wellington National Park near Collie so we cut across the South West diagonally to Nannup and then on up to Donnybrook. To Nannup we pass through forests for most of the way. After Nannup we miss our turn off so just take the next available road which becomes quite interesting if not a little bumpy. We see hand written signs for “Chookinup”. Well I guess everything around here ends in UP anyway. Eventually we find a free-range chicken farm with hundreds of chooks scratching about, … Continue reading Go West, Day 34 – Australind

Day 32 Tuesday 7th April 2015 Yallingup to Augusta We wake to light drizzly rain. Yuck that means a damp pack up, what a pity for the tent campers. We farewell the Ollies who have decided to stay another day so that Shirley T can have more treatment on her pesky shoulder before heading north to catch up with friends and family in Perth. We head south down Caves Rd it’s only 83kms to Augusta, an easy drive. The rain enhances the grass trees and the creamy flowering gums. As if overnight, the vines have started turning to autumn colours. … Continue reading Go West, Day 32 – Augusta

Day 31 Monday 6th April 2015 Yallingup After such a sunny Easter we wake to grey skies and a fierce cool breeze and locals rugged up in jumpers and woollen scarves. Now come on folks it’s not cold, just not … Continue reading Go West, Day 31 – Yallingup

Day 30 Sunday 5th April 2015 Yallingup, WA We sleep in and spend most of the day trying to feel remotely human again. Until late afternoon that is when we return to Dunsborough for a post wedding BBQ. Tomorrow most of the guests will have to return to their daily lives. The party drifts upstairs and down and across the lawns to the beach when someone calls out “quick there’s a red moon”. We drop everything and run to the beach and to the north there is a perfect red moon rising over Geographe Bay, its golden light shimmering on … Continue reading Go West, Day 30 – Yallingup

Day 29 Saturday 4th April 2015, Yallingup, WA Is it April already? We meet the wedding bus at the little wooden hall on the next corner. Shirley Temple and I are hip hopping along the sandy roadside in ankle breakers trying to dodge the roo poo. Walking on the bitumen is out as there is far too much traffic. Thus, on a perfect afternoon on the lawns of Cullen Wines in Wilyabrup surrounded by vines and loved ones, Jordy and Megsy are wed. We all cry buckets, even the groom when he catches sight of Megsy in her pearl studded … Continue reading Go West, Day 29 – Yallingup

Day 28 Friday 3rd April 2015 Yallingup We all meet at Clancy’s Fish Pub and it feels like we’ve taken the place over there are so many of us. The pub is a large industrial space that opens onto a deck and overlooks a dam and bushland. It feels so West Australian, but don’t ask me to explain why. Once more we return to the villa and party time and we watch the sun go down over Geographe Bay. It is a warm evening under a full moon and D who hasn’t been home from London in two years gazes … Continue reading Go West, Day 28 – Yallingup

Day 27 Thursday 2nd April 2015 Yallingup As Woody will be the MC it is Wedding Rehearsal Day. After shopping in Busselton and lunch in the sun we scoot down to the vineyard (Cullen Wines) for the rehearsal on the lawns with the wedding party. As I’m just a hanger on, I and two other partners must stand on the lawn like statues pretending to be the aisle. It’s not a bad gig I must say, standing in a vineyard on a warm sunny day sipping exceptional wine. We all adjourn to Lamont’s on Smiths Beach for dinner and it’s … Continue reading Go West, Day 27 – Yallingup