We drove down Indian Ocean Drive (the coastal route) to Perth using "Lady Garman" and didnt have any trouble finding the caravan park where we had arranged to store the van for a few days. We unloaded the items we wanted to take with us and drove to Marg & John's new town house in South Perth. It was great to see them and we spent the remainder of the day catching up with them.
In the morning we drove out to Cottesloe and had breakfast at a lovely cafe on the beach. John then drove us out to Freemantle and dropped us off there as he had to go to work. We walked around Freemantle looking at the sights, but the weather was wet and cold so we didnt stay too long, and caught the train back to the city. We ate an enjoyable dinner that night at an Italian restaurant in South Perth and caught up on some Olympic viewing when we returned home.
Up early the next morning and walked down to the ferry terminal and caught the ferry over to the city where we purchased tickets for Rottnest Island on the Rottnest Express Ferry. First a bus took us to Freemantle to board the ferry. The day started out overcast and rainy and the ferry ride across to the island was extremely rough. Lucky we are good sailers!!!
We decided to take the Bayseeker Bus to see the island as you can hop on and off wherever you wish. The bus takes about 45 minutes for the round trip. Our first stop was Parker Point where we did a loop walk to Little Salmon Bay and Salmon Bay. We were joined by a young French backpacker whose name was Cedric and who was travelling around the world for 12 months. He had a camera with a huge lens and was taking lots of photos. We had only walked a short distance when a rain storm blew in from the ocean. We had worn our rain jackets, and they got drenched as there was no shelter at all in this area. We remained dry underneath, if a little uncomfortable. When the rain stopped, out came the sunshine and dried us pretty quickly and we found the osprey nest we were looking for on a large rock surrounded by water, with an osprey sitting on the eggs.
We jumped on the bus again for a short ride to our next walking spot, Wadjemup Lighthouse where we walked up a steep hill and took took the guided tour to the top. Unfortunately I only made it up to the 2nd level (there was 4 levels), as my vertigo took over and I waited there for the others to return from the top. Apparently the view from the top was awesome.
Back on the bus again and we completed the circuit of the island. We were ready for lunch by this and Cedric joined us at The Dome Cafe for a tasty lunch and a glass of wine. After lunch we walked around the village and came across some of the local quokkas (the protected furry little mamal).
The boat trip back to the mainland was pretty rough, but not quite as bad as the morning one. We were taken back to the city by bus and then caught another ferry across to South Perth, where the heavens opened again and we had to shelter before we could walk home.
On our last day in Perth we went to visit some old friends who we first met in Johannesburg in 1970 and who now live in Perth. The last time we saw them was 11 years ago. We spent the morning with them and it was great to catch up. We did some packing in the afternoon and caught the bus into the city to meet John and Marg for dinner. Had a drink at "The Moon and Sixpence" pub and ate at Ecucina Restaurant - a great meal.
We really enjoyed our time in Perth and it was great to spend some time with Marg and John (and Muzzy!!!!) Although we had a lot of rain during our stay it didn't prevent us seeing the sights.
Cheers
Rhonda (Sam) & Pete
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