Dunsborough, Busselton & Yallingup
Both kids and Matthias were sick with the lurgy by the time we came to leaving Margaret River, so they took advantage of the newly opened drive-through clinic and got themselves swabbed for Covid. Our new hosts at Christian Brethren Campsite were kind enough to take us in even before our test results were back, asking only that we sanitise any communal surfaces that we touch. Isolation proved a bit tricky but just as well at 5pm the following day we were given the all clear and everyone was back to full health.
The Christian Brethren Campsite is one of a string of Christian camps making up the locally dubbed "Holy Mile", all perfectly located on the Geographe Bay shorefront between Dunsborough and Busselton. The "no alcohol" rule didn't appear to discourage people from staying. But perhaps, like me, they were all hiding their tipple in their coffee mugs under the cover of darkness!
We were given a hearty welcome by our very curious and social neighbours Summer and Sienna who weren't deterred by our masks and remained as friendly as the March flies during our four night stay. They provided good occupation for the kids and shared good tips on activities in the area.
In a big moment for us we put up our awning for the very first time since being on the road. For various reasons we haven't troubled ourselves with the awning at all. There's always been alternative shade or the wind risk has been too high. But with Mum and Dad planning to meet us at the end of April, and likely sleep under the awning, we thought we'd better skill ourselves up in advance. Our marriage survived the experience! Although it really wasn't that tricky to put up, having it didn't provide us any great advantage. I don't think we'll be making a habit of it until we get further north where shade will likely be hard to come by.
On our first day we drove out to Cape Naturaliste Lighthouse and did a coastal loop walk around the Cape, spotting seals in the distance. We had an exciting trip to Busselton Kmart to pick up our new inflatable kayak and spent a lovely afternoon and evening on the Busselton foreshore. The ship wreck playground by the jetty is up there as a favourite and the "big girls" diving backwards off the jetty provided great entertainment as the sun set pink over the bay.
Now in possession of an inflatable kayak, we wasted no time setting it up and getting out on the water. Hugh took to it like an old salt, but Claire screamed blue murder. We put it down as a success!
Our next two days were filled with food, wine, beer and more beaches. We stopped in at the Yallingup Cheese Co to say hello to a fellow Adelaidian and sample some of her beautiful artisan cheeses. I found a little side-kick gourmand in Hugh who was delighted by the idea of a picnic rug and cheese platter on the grass. At Aravina Estate Winery we emersed ourselves in Aussie surfing history at their very cool surf museum. Then we were lucky enough to watch a private helicopter take off from the winery lawns.
At Yallingup Beach Lagoon we ran into another travelling family we'd met at Munday camp in Augusta. Hugh hit it off with Méabh and Fionn who we hope to cross paths with again. I fitted in some wine tasting at Windows Estate. The kids almost killed me with cuteness sharing ice-cream cones at Gabriel Chocolate. Matthias threw himself into the surging water at Canal Rocks and finally we enjoyed a cold beer and playground Wild Hop Brewing Company. This little pocket of the South West was leaving a strongly positive impression on our travelling family!
Sadly, our last evening at CBC went down with a bump; a bump to Claire's head and a trip into Busselton emergency department. She slipped in the shower and although it wasn't a nasty cut we felt better getting it checked out. An hour later and a bit of glue and she was tucked up in bed sleeping it off.
