This morning after a cheap breakfast sitting outside in the sunshine at a lovely little cafe in Denmark which is a town that grew up in the late 1800's with logging all the karri trees. In the early 1900's the town was nearly dismantled when the trees were all felled but survived as a sleepy agricultural town until the 1970's when it became a haunt of a more bohemian nature and tourism. By now the wine industry had started and the forests regenerated naturally. We drove up into the forest areas and had a very good wine tasting at one of the wineries dotted about in the hills. We had a nature walk in one of the regenerated forests. After the trees were all felled,many uk citizens were encouraged to emigrate and live off these cleared lands. However most were ill equipped or unable to survive and the land reverted back to bush.
Looping back through Denmark to refuel (£30 to fill the tank!) we stopped at their brewery for a tasting and lunch .The brewery has been so successful the original winery has taken a bit of a back seat but they are quite delicious as well.
Now it was time to head for Albany,the largest town in the area and the site of very early european settlement in the 1820's. An hours drive through flat farmland brought us to a large crescent shaped bay which must have been a godsend for shipping in those days. A huge granite and rocky outcrop protects the anchorage where an old whaling station is an attraction but we preferred to look at some interesting rocks all in the Torndurrip national park. The gap,a little steep inlet with great meaning to the local indigenous people,with a suspended metal walkway over half of it. The natural bridge,next to it. Water crashes through a big hole in the rocks. Lastly we walked down to some blowholes. We could hear the waves crash beneath us but they were not powerful enough to come up through the fissures. Finally we went to frenchman bay,a lovely sheltered spot,protected by the headland,as it was close to sunset it was almost deserted. Then it was time to drive into Albany itself to find our motel,a supermarket to find some food for the wines we had bought.