Nullarbor Traveller: Secrets of Esperance

After a quick stop off in Perth that included a very early walk to the hostel, a glorious bag-free wander of the city centre and a trip to gorgeous Fremantle, it was time for another adventure. I was ready for group travel again and had signed up for ‘Secrets of Esperance’ rather last minute when I realised my timing would work out!

On the first morning of the tour, I walked from the hostel to the pick-up point and was glad to find myself first. After introducing myself to our guide, Sean, I bagsied the front seat, left my bag and went to grab some snacks. A few minutes after clambering back on board our awesome overlander, our group was complete. There were fourteen of us heading off to explore the South West over the next six days.

Naturally, I had a nap almost immediately as we set off towards Western Australia’s oldest inland town, York. We had a quick pit stop and I felt like I spent most of it waiting on my chai latte in the aptly named Grannies Café. However, this long wait did give me time to chat to some of the others on the tour before we all had to hop back on the bus. Although it felt like a lot of driving, this was our longest distance to travel, and Sean played some great music along the way. We passed the Rabbit Proof Fence (reminding me of Year 10 English!), and a dog cemetery. Next, was a stop to marvel at a marshy landscape that was actually multiple salt lakes surrounded by colourful wildflowers.

Now for the main attraction of the day… I had already seen pictures of Wave Rock, but it was something else to see it in front of me! The curved rock in Hyden really did look like a wave, albeit a massive one. It was 15 metres high, and 110 metres long. It was rounded over years of weathering and erosion that had undercut the base of the rock and left an overhang – the crest of the wave. We posed for a few pictures as a group, “surfing” the wave, and were then told that we were allowed to climb up and over the formation.

I was amazed to find a reservoir full of drinking water atop the rock, but the incredible view out across the outback soon took my mind off this peculiarity. We could see over to the salt lakes, which looked much clearer and brighter with distance. Then there were the smaller boulders, rocks and dips with us at the top that all added to the wonder. I loved to see small yellow flowers sprouting from between the cracks and crevices on the rough granite, reassuring me that nature always finds a way!

Back down the other side, it was time for some lunch and a cool off in the shade of the picnic shelter, unfortunately joined by a lot of flies. Nevertheless, we were still able to enjoy our mini feast before we visited another interestingly shaped geological formation – Hippos Yawn. Very self-explanatory, the rock really did look like a hippo opening his mouth, pretty cool. We had a little time to take some photos and stretch our legs before another long drive.

Another long drive of course meant another long nap for me and, before I’d barely registered that we had left the wave and hippo behind, we were in Ravensthorpe. This was only a quick stop to visit the facilities, buy some bus snacks and help Sean with the groceries. I was glad to be on the last stretch now, towards our home for the night at Fitzgerald River National Park. The views were spectacular, I particular enjoyed the road across the isthmus which would flood at certain times of the year. We were very lucky to be able to cross, with the Great Australian Bight on our left, and a lake to our right. Reaching the viewpoint at East Mount Barren, we could fully enjoy the landscape we had traversed. Wow! It was beautiful, with the brightest blue sea I ever did see. WA was fast becoming my favourite state, the contrast from here to a mere few days previous was overwhelming.

A short drive back along the coastline to Hamersley Inlet Campground, we set up a few tents and divided the swags and sleeping bags between us. After some very questionable quality sleeping bags in the past, I was over the moon to be provided with a brand new one. I also decided that I would give the tent a miss, any opportunity to sleep out under the open sky was not to be missed! But first, we had dinner to cook. We chatted amongst ourselves as we all chipped in to prepare burritos, I was onion chopper.

Several burritos, a stint of washing up, and a cuppa later, I was pooped. I wrapped myself up in my sleeping bag, climbed into the swag and watched the stars up above. It was only 8 o’clock, nevertheless I drifted off almost immediately. The moon was so bright that it actually woke me up in the middle of the night – I thought I’d slept in!! The serene moonlight did allow me to visit the toilet without the assistance of a torch though, which was handy as I’d lost mine to the foot of the sleeping bag.

~

We were up with the sun, quickly getting changed and packing up swags and tents. With my stuff packed away, and muesli already eaten, I was on toast duty. I may have been distracted by comparing sleep with the others and burnt some, oops! The plan for the morning was to climb to the summit of East Mount Barren, but after driving to the lookout Sean decided it was a tad too windy. We still got to enjoy the early morning haze over the, now familiar, landscape before leaving it behind and heading east to Esperance!

We had another stop off for lunch groceries, and I stocked up on some much-needed sugar. While Sean got some petrol, we all helped clear the windscreen a little and clean up the bus – we had attracted a fair few bugs (trying to hitch a ride clearly) along the way. Esperance was a lovely little town, and it seemed idyllic place to live. With ridiculously white beaches, the clearest water and wildlife on the doorstep, what more could you want?

I could now add another National Park to my list, as we crossed into Cape le Grand and parked ourselves at Hellfire Bay for a spot of lunch. Sausage sizzles were on the menu, one of my favourite typically Aussie meals. It was starting to cloud over and the difference on the colour of the water before us was shocking. I mean, it was still gorgeous, but definitely a more muted teal colour; even the sand looked more grey than white. Nevertheless, I decided to brave it, and stripped down to my bikini to run into the sea. There was a crowd of older people further down the beach who must have thought I was mad. I splashed about a bit before I got too cold and had to quickly dry off and put my layers back on.

We were all ready for our hike along part of the Coastal Trail, the plan was for Sean to start with us (and make sure we set off in the right direction!) before driving to meet us at our campsite for the night. We didn’t realise at the time, but it was a hell of a long way. Naively setting off up on to a path between the rocks and amongst the wildflowers, we were glad to see the sun reappear, sparkling blue waters being our last view of Hellfire.

We soon split off into groups, I was quite happy to take the rear with a few others. We didn’t feel the need to rush off and were instead enjoying the views as we clambered over the rock face (the path had quickly disappeared) following the sporadic white trail-markers. Small rock islands littered the coast, looking like large animals. We had fun imagining what they could be. The sea breeze was picking up, and I was adding layers as we went, trying not to eat my hair as it inevitably whipped across my face.

Our next landmark was Little Hellfire, a gorgeous cove with turquoise water and squeaky white sand. These beaches were something else! With the view out over the ocean, and the incredibly diverse wildflowers that scattered the route, it felt like we were inside a postcard. The sun was back out now, and I had built up quite a sweat over our hike. Time for a quick wardrobe change. Swapping my t-shirt for a vest, I felt much better getting a breeze to my pits!

We had a long stretch climbing up and down the cliffs before our next beach came into sight. Another beauty, Thistle Cove gave us motivation to keep going. We had been hiking for a fair few hours now, and I was definitely wishing I had brought snacks. Coming down onto the shoreline, I took my shoes and socks off and enjoyed the soft sand between my toes. Paddling in the water and writing our names in the sand, this was exactly what we needed! It was very windy though, and knowing we had nearly made it, we marched up to the rocks waiting on the other side of the cove. Up here I finally saw what I had been waiting eleven months to see in the wild… a snake!

Lucky Bay was famous for regular visits of sunbathing kangaroos, and we were excited to see if any would be waiting for us. Finding a proper pathway for the last leg, we began our descent with a view of the campground but, alas, no roos. We reunited with the rest of the team, glad to get a cuppa from Sean. Some of the others had gone to paddle in the sea, or sunbathe, I was looking forward to sitting down for a while! I wandered down to the beach and relaxed on a rock before heading back to help with dinner.

I was so tired, I was glad to have a good meal and get to bed early. We had another big day ahead of us!

~

It was another early morning, the sun had barely risen and we were all changed, fed and watered ready and raring for a “challenging” hike. Frenchman’s Peak, so named as it looked like a beret was perched on the summit, came with several warnings. A sign at the beginning of the trail states “the trail is extremely steep in sections with bare rock, loose surface and drop-offs. Loose rocks, slippery surfaces and strong winds are a risk to walkers.” Not only that, it also mentioned feral bees! This should be interesting.

I had known it would be hard graft, but golly gosh, this was difficult. I was literally scrambling up a rock, with the hot sun beating down on my neck, trying to follow the others above me. I was trying really hard not to look down, and settled for looking around, and up, instead. I couldn’t believe how flat the ground was beyond the mountain, it just rose from nowhere! About halfway up, the rock seemed to level out a bit and we were able to take a break.

I took the opportunity to enjoy the view, it was remarkable! I could see our tiny bus below, a golden sliver of a road we had driven in on and, right out on the horizon, the beautiful blue sea. Some of the others had found a cave type thing, a hollow section that opened the view to almost panoramic. We were there so long, we missed the experts carrying on up. Now not knowing where I could safely put my feet, I decided not to risk ascending further, and stayed sheltered from the wind.

We now just had to be patient and wait for the others to come back down to follow them. Apparently we hadn’t missed much at the top; it was so windy they didn’t hang about too long on the little beret. Climbing back down was easier, but now there was the added challenge of having to actually look down. I tried not to look at how high we were, or think about the warnings from before, and just take one step at a time. Easy.

All safely back on the ground, I was feeling very accomplished. I may not have made it to the top, but it was before midday and I had completed some serious rock climbing! Next was a drive along what was fast becoming my favourite route, ogling the coastline as we wound alongside it. Sean called this “The Great Ocean Drive” - I thought this was just affectionate terminology, but it turns out it really is called that, and for good reason.

Our first beach of the day was the stunning Twilight Cove that backed on to Lovers Cove, with rocks and sand dunes in between. Twilight was gorgeous; I paddled in the clear water and wandered up and down the shore some. I much preferred the smaller, and less busy, Lovers Cove. Here, I lay my towel down and decided to go for a dip with a few of the gang. I was so glad to find the water a lot warmer than at Hellfire, once my shoulders were in at least! It had been a while since I’d enjoyed a proper dip, and it was great fun swimming right up to the rock islands that littered the shallows. Sean soon appeared with a snorkel mask, and we took it in turns to peek at the little fishies swimming amongst us.

We had a long drive from Dalyup to the North Stirling Ranges filled with great music, terrible karaoke and some questionable dance moves from all of us! Of course, I was also free to indulge in a nap for an hour or so. We were staying at a private campsite tonight, the Mt Trio Bush Camp. The red dirt road that took us off the beaten track was everything I wanted it to be. In front of us we had the North Stirlings, rising out of the bush and dominating the skyline. They looked very imposing, and so strangely shaped, not like the simple triangular mountain we all sketch. I was excited to learn we would be venturing up to explore them the following day! On both sides of the road were golden corn fields scattered with the odd gum tree. Sean was the perfect guide and stopped the bus so we could enjoy some of golden hour with this picturesque view.

We arrived at camp in time to watch the remainder of the sunset, and it was a beauty. The clouds turned orange, red, and then purple as the silhouettes of the trees and mountains became darker and the sun slowly disappeared. I would never get bored of these glorious sunsets! After we had set up camp, I was once again avoiding a tent and swagging it for the night, we helped prepare dinner.

We ate around a campfire, quickly washing up and tidying away so we could return - Sean had brought his guitar out! I had known he could sing, sitting right behind him over the past few days, but didn’t know he played. We were all very excited and suggested songs to sing and all joining in, for better and worse. I wasn’t the only one shocked to find the answer to the classic “Do you know Wonderwall” was a “No!” The French girls taught us a song, and we even managed a round of the classic “Kookaburra sits in the old gum tree…” I surprised myself by performing the cup song in front of everyone, and not messing it up! It was a perfect end to another great day.

~

I wasn’t the only one up before the sun this morning, there were a fair few of us eager to see the sunrise. We didn’t have to wait long to see the sky illuminated, noticing a kookaburra on the other side of the fence providing the soundtrack. Time to eat up, pack up and get on up a mountain!

We drove to the car park, the mountains seeing much taller from the bottom. I was glad to see there would be a proper trail to follow today, no scrambling! Mount Trio was three separate peaks linked by a plateau, 856m at its highest. According to the sign, it would take three hours to get to the North peak and back. We’ll see.

We started with a nice stroll amongst the wildflowers at the foothills, with a gentle incline easing us into our hike. Once again, I was happy to hang back, help the others and just enjoy the view. I had never seen so many weird and wonderful flowers and plants; I couldn’t remember what any of them were called, so I looked them up. According to the Trails WA website, there are over 1500 species of flowering plants in the Stirlings and roughly 80 of these are unique to the area. The bright red mountain bell, or Darwinia Lejostlya, is the most common on Mt Trio, and I have a lot of pictures to prove it!

About half-way, at a wild guess, we did begin to flag a little especially when confronted with stairs. My old enemy was back with a vengeance, these wooden “steps” were so haphazardly and unevenly built, each one brought its own challenge. Helping each other, and doing a decent amount of lunges and bum-shuffling we were back on the flat. Climbing higher now, it was getting pretty hot as we followed bend upon bend hoping to rejoin the others. We had just passed our second peak when we were surprised with two of our gang heading back already. They had reached the top, only to find a lot of bees and had decided to put their allergies first and leave!

Now knowing we were very close to the peak, we increased our speed. We were now coming out of the trees and able to see down and around us, and most importantly up to the trail end! I was so happy to meet the others at the top; they had waited for us so we could have a group picture. But first, I had to take in the incredible landscape. I could see for miles, the peaks we had already traversed, the flat farmlands, the tallest Toolbrunup peak and other mountains to the south, and through the haze over to the horizon and the ocean… it had definitely been worth the hike!!

Naturally, the climb down didn’t seem anywhere near as long or as difficult and we were all back at the bus together in no time. We were now en route to Albany to see some geological formations along the coast. It was an hour drive, and I was glad to be able to rest my legs, and my eyes, after quite an exhausting morning!

Torndirrup National Park hugged the coast, and was full of sheer cliffs and impressive granite formations caused by the ferocity of the Southern Ocean over thousands of years. A brand new lookout facility was waiting for us, a remarkable boardwalk that jutted out over the rocks to give amazing views of the white water 40 metres below. Natural Bridge was, quite self-explanatorily, a collection of granite rocks bridging the gap between the larger cliffs, with the water gushing below. The sheer force of the waves was unbelievable, looking out across the ocean it looked so calm, and yet here the water was beating the rock face. At The Gap, the waves were rushing in and out like I’d never seen before; the water was almost just froth and foam. The noise was insane!

Another hour down the road and we were in Denmark, at William Bay and the beautiful Greens Pool. Thanks to round boulders along the shoreline and in the shallows, the cove was protected from waves and had the stillest, crystal clear water. Of course, we had to have a swim! I loved how the beach sloped and slowly eased you in. Sean told us that swimming lessons were often held here as it was a slow introduction to open-water swimming. Bliss.

At the far end of the beach was another attraction that we were all excited to see, Elephant Rocks. Climbing over the dunes and along a trail, we stopped at a large boulder look out to see the large stone elephants staring out to sea. I have to admit, it took me a while to see the actual elephant shape, all I could see were ma-hu-ssive orange stained rocks sticking out of the beach. The water was shades of green and blue here too, and as calm as the beach we had just left. With no one on the beach itself, it looked peaceful and idyllic. The rocks themselves were so grand; they made me feel pretty small and insignificant in comparison!

Our next journey took us inland slightly to Walpole-Nornalup National Park, Tingledale, and the Valley of the Giants Tree Top Walk. We entered a forest of tingle trees; endemic to the South West, these trees are some of the tallest found in the state. The walkway was like Salcey Forest on steroids, it was very impressive! The 600m long walk erected 40m above the ground and over a small creek was constructed in order to protect the shallow roots of the tingles, and minimise human impact on them. The trees were so tall that, even elevated in the canopy, they towered over us. Once we had walked, and bounced, our way through the tingles, it was time to head down and see them from ground level.

The Ancient Empire Walk took us around a grove of some of the oldest tingle trees; some had been standing for more than 400 years! I got a kink in my neck trying to look up to the treetops. I found it fascinating how fat the trunks were, as the trees had seemed so skinny from above. Some of them also had knobbles and bobble that looked like faces, and there were a few hollow ones. We took lots of funny pictures hiding in the trees (it had to be done) and were on our way.

Quinnup Caravan Park was our home for the night, and Sean gave us two options of where we could set up camp. We could be closer to the toilets, but also the midges, or further away up a mound with a smaller chance of midge attacks. We went with the mound option and busied ourselves with the kit - there were only three of us now who were just in the swags. Sean warned that it may rain in the night, so we put another tent up just in case and sealed our swags up tight.

Despite our best efforts, we got back to our swags after dinner to find lots of tiny midges all over them. I did my best to shake them off, then curled way down into my bed and hid from the oncoming rain.

~

Had a major panic this morning; I woke up and couldn’t really see anything. I crawled out of the swag and found my way to the toilets to see that my eyes had swollen up; I must have some sort of allergic reaction. I then remembered all of my tiny bed mates in the night - could it have been from the midges? Desperate to grab my bag and find some antihistamines, I was annoyed to find that I was the only one awake and I couldn’t even get into the bus. I washed my face as best as I could, but quickly realised I didn’t even have a towel out. It just wasn’t my morning.

When a few more people were awake, I felt a bit more justified in knocking on the bus to wake Sean up. Finally, we were in and I was lucky to source my first aid kit, wash bag and some fresh clothes without having to rummage too much. To add to the drama of the morning, another of our group had also woken up with a pressing concern…  She had a tick bite! It’s safe to say it wasn’t our usual calm start to the morning.

On our way to the Margaret River region, we had a stop off at a Karri tree forest. The karri is the tallest tree species in Western Australia and the third tallest in the world. I couldn’t believe these were even taller than the tingles, growing up to 90 metres high in about 100 years. The light shining through the trees was beautiful, sending ripples throughout the forest. We were there to visit one tree in particular though - The Diamond Tree. This wasn’t just another tree in the forest; it had been singled out for a very important job in 1940. It was pegged and a cabin built at the top so it could be used as a fire lookout tree. We now had the chance now to climb up the 52 metres to the lookout!

On the first attempt, my legs were shaking so much that I only made it a few metres off the ground. The pegs just seemed so far apart, and not the slightest bit safe. However, after watching a few others persevere and disappear out of sight up the tree, I decided to try again. My jelly legs and appalling upper body strength somehow got me to the top!! What a great view, and a great sense of achievement. Of course, I hadn’t considered that we would eventually have to come back down… This did take a little longer, but we all made it down to solid ground in the end.

I was really excited to get to Margaret River and sample all of the glorious local goods - free food!! The dream.  We had one more stop to make first, after a gorgeous 90 minute drive through forests and bush land. Hamelin Bay Beach was known for attracting sting rays and we joined a crowd gathered around the boat ramp to spot a few in the shallows. They were very brave, so close to the shore!

Our culinary tour of the stunning Margaret River included Vasse Virgin Oils, Temper Temper Chocolate, Margaret River Beverages, and Margaret River Dairy Company. Basically everything I could ever want! I tried several different flavoured dukkah, relishes, oils, chutneys, and honeys - and that was just the first stop. Then came the delicious chocolate drops from all over the world, my favourite being the 65% Nicaraguan. Delicious. A palette cleanser of wine for the others (I bought a berry soft drink) and it was on to the cheese. Mouth-watering award winning cheeses; brie, camembert, all of the cheddars - I took a fair few extra samples of the vintage!

With our appetites satisfied, we headed to Surfers Point to watch the surfers riding the crashing waves. We sat on the dunes, near the many fishermen out in the shallows, and enjoyed the glorious sunset.  After taking the cutest group photo, we piled into the bus and headed to our last campsite, Big Valley Caravan Park.

As it was our last night, we had the liberty of basically eating everything we had left. It was a real feast; Sean had even purchased some cheese from earlier on in the day as a treat for us all! We discussed our week together so far and everyone’s future plans, I was sad to think we only had one last day as a group.

~

We were up early to pack everything away for the last time - I was going to miss my comfy sleeping bag and swag! We wanted to get out early so we could fit in a quick beach visit before meeting Josh of Koomal Dreaming for a cultural tour.  Evidently, we finally had the rolling, squishing and stacking techniques perfected, as we were already driving back through the forest and towards the coast by 7.40!

In Dunsborough, we had just over an hour to chill on the Yallingup Beach. Here, we found lots of really cool rock pools in a lagoon, and across over the shallow reef there were some serious waves, which of course meant lots of surfers! We watched for a while, I was going to climb down closer to the surf, but the rocky reef was a bit too sharp for my liking. Luckily for me, Sean of course knew a way on to the beach that didn’t involve getting stabbed by rocks. We were soon on the sandy part of the beach, and I was free to dip my toes in the clear water.

It was nearing 10am, so we had to leave the beach behind and make our way to Ngigli Caves. I was excited to meet Josh, a Wadandi custodian, and get a real insight into the culture and traditions here. The Noongar culture, made up of the Wadandi and Bibbulman people, is as rich and varied as the countryside itself; they have walked the ancient land for over 50,000 years. The Ngigli Caves was WA’s first tourist attraction, drawing crowds since 1899.

We began our tour, descending into the ground and into the cave. I did not expect it to be so big, or for us to be so far underground! The first chamber was like walking into a concert hall, and it was in fact nicknamed “The Amphitheatre” due to the impeccable acoustics. Josh gave an amazing didgeridoo performance that could be heard ricocheting around the space, it was transportive. The cave was decorated with hundreds upon hundreds of stalactites, stalagmites, helictites and shawls in pink, white and orange shades of limestone. The many interesting shapes that these had formed were beyond belief; one looked like a giant wedding cake, another like an organ, then there were the bacon-looking shawls all around, and the jagged jaws rising out of the dark.

Back in the sunlight, Josh took us on a short bush walk whilst sharing the Dreamtime story for Ngigli. He also pointed out lots of different plants that could be used for medicines, teas, or foods. We were then shown how to create body paint using stones - the different mineral compositions gave different colours when mixed with water. There were the three main colours that I remember; ochre, red, and white. Now to make fire traditionally using sticks, bark, and leaves. First, a deep round dent - not quite a hole - was made in the larger stick, and then another is quickly rubbed between the hands (and in the hole) to make a spark which lit the leaves, and twigs. Fire!

I was sad to leave Josh behind; he had taught us so much in such little time, but it was time to start slowly making our way back to Perth. Of course, we had to stop off at one last beach first: Meelup Beach. It was, of course, another ridiculously picturesque beach with deep turquoise water, gentle rolling waves, white sand and tanned Aussies. I enjoyed our last sun bake and paddle, revelling in the natural beauty that had become the norm along our journey around the South West. I did have to laugh when we passed a smaller cove and spotted a couple floating on a unicorn inflatable, such was their trust of the calm waters.

The last drive didn’t seem to take long at all, of course I was asleep for a large chunk of it, but I was still surprised by how quickly we seemed to arrive back in Perth. As each of us was dropped off in turn at different hotels and hostels, we arranged to meet that night at the Old Shanghai for one last hurrah altogether.  I had booked back in at the Old Swan Barracks, so I didn’t have far to walk that evening. This meant I could actually treat myself to a shower and take a little time to plan my next adventures. First on the list: move hostels - the carpet was disgusting and the bed wobbly. I had had enough of sleeping in dingy places and decided I would treat myself to a YHA for my last few days in Perth.

Everybody made it to Old Shanghai that night, all looking considerably fresher and neater than we had all week! A food court of sorts, with an extensive selection of options, I struggled to decide on what to eat. In the end I settled on a special noodle dish, but cheated and ate with a fork. We were all very impressed to see Sean eat his whole rice dish only with chopsticks! A great deal of reminiscing, eating, and drinking later, it was time for bed. I was so glad to have had another amazing journey with such a great group of people!