ALBANY & DENMARK, Western Australia
- Apr 4, 2016
- 7 min read
Apologies...another long post!
This stunning region is the 'free campers' enemy! There are very few low cost or free camp sites and the caravan parks are overpriced and underwhelming. For these reasons we decided to make a whirlwind visit, sans camper, and rent a little farm cottage in Denmark for a few days. The dogs were left to enjoy their own mini-break in a pet resort; meeting loads of new friends, sleeping in real beds in 'hotel' rooms with heating, air-conditioning, TV and radio. They were even treated to a bath and blow-dry! (not our request...an ooopsy by the resort staff!)
After bidding adieu to the hounds on Friday morning, we headed south, aiming to spend the afternoon in the dramatic tree canopy at the Valley of the Giants Tree Top Walk. We were not disappointed. Walking 600m on a raised boardwalk through the 400 year old tingle trees, 40m above the ground was pretty amazing. Interestingly, is was eerily silent with no sign of birds or other tree dwelling critters. The views across the landscape were spectacular through the gaps in the canopy but perhaps even more incredible when you looked over the sides of the walkway to the forrest floor - not recommended for those with a fear of heights!
Once you've been awed by the tree tops, you're enticed into the Ancient Empire; another trail that meanders through a grove of these majestic giants. Their gnarly trunks show evidence of enduring centuries of growth, trauma and change. Some seem to have personalities - faces etched into their bark; others you sense are grasping to maintain their rightful place in the forrest after limbs have fallen or their trunks have been hollowed and now stand precariously amongst their peers. You truly feel like a fairy in a fairy garden as you walk amongst and through some of these incredible trees which can have bases up to 16m in circumference!
After the Valley of the Giants, we headed to Primrose Cottage, our temporary 'home' for a few days. One of the resident dogs, a Border Collie named Flossy, greeted us excitedly and was a welcome, regular visitor. The kids loved spending time with Lesley, the property owner, who let them feed the horses and assist with other farm work. The cottage was a cracker - a time capsule circa 1970's! It was likely to have been built as the original farm house in the early 1900's but there was evidence of extensions and updates that stopped about the time a new house was built on the property in the 70's. On the kitchen bench was a punch bowl, the pictures that hung on the walls were those we'd all had in our childhood or saw in our parents/grandparents houses. The lightshades were hues of the bright colours popular in the psychedelic era - oranges and greens! Even the toys and books they provided for entertaining the kids were original 70's - Tonka trucks, Dr Suess books, backgammon and building blocks. Rather than feeling like it was all too tired and passe, it was incredibly clean with a homely, relaxed feel. We had little time to relax though...we had but a few days to see stacks of stuff!
Our first stop on Saturday morning was the inappropriately named "Whale World" - sounds like a whale themed fun park but it was a genuine, operational whaling station until 1978. It has been a museum since 1980 and remains a pretty authentic relic of this part of our unfortunate history. Friends in Perth have recalled a visit there, circa 1977, remembering the horrific sight of the whales being hauled in from the sea and watching sharks tear huge chunks of blubber from their lifeless bodies. Unsurprisingly, however, their most vivid memory was of the pungent and overpoweringly awful smell. It's almost unbelievable to think whaling was even still happening on Australian soil in the 1970's but it's perhaps more bizarre to find it was considered a 'family' outing for tourists to the region! The friends still have a whale tooth as a memento of their visit!
Everywhere you walked revealed the confronting and gruesome history of whaling. The CHEYENNES IV, one of the last whale hunting boats in Australia, had deliberately been run aground, beached rather unceremoniously beside the old flensing deck. Tourists were given full access to the boat. The experience made more solemn by the photos and audio included in many of the rooms and on the decks. The tour exposed some remarkable information about the station and the people who worked there. It was interesting to learn that throughout the 26 years the station operated, the Albany community was opposed to its existence. They refused to buy the oil or any products made from the oil. Many mounted regular protests. The men who worked there were lured by the wages - 4 times higher than the average pay at the time, but they were ostracised and suffered terrible stigma. They also stunk!
Employees were not afforded the same industrial or safety conditions expected today and insurance companies deemed their toil too risky to insure. But, according to official and unofficial records, there were very few accidents. Our tour guide described three minor incidents at the station and one significant event on one of the whaling boats. Not a bad record for such a dangerous industry, especially when you consider much of the work, which required razor sharp cutting implements and heavy machinery, was done in thongs, singlets and shorts! Perhaps it's now part legend but the story of the serious accident on the boat was pretty fantastic. A harpooner's leg was caught in the harpoon's rope and after firing the weapon at a whale, his leg went with the harpoon while the remainder of his body was flung elsewhere into the water. His colleagues quickly realised their comrade would die without urgent medical aid but they were 8 hours from shore. The hunting party at the time involved 3 boats and a spotter plane. They brought two of the boats close together and slowed them until they were barely moving. The plane then landed between the decks of the two ships, collecting the injured man and flying him to hospital. He survived and became quite a character around the station according to the stories our guide has heard.
By the late 70's it was costing more to buy the crude oil to run the boats than could be recouped by selling the whale oil so the operation was shut down...but not before slaughtering 30,000 of these beautiful creatures - about 15,000 humpbacks and 15,000 sperm whales. This was considered one of the most successful whaling stations in the World. Indeed, in addition to the whale oil, they were making $2.5 million per day selling ivory from the whales teeth. However, they flooded the international market with so much ivory that within 5 years, it was worthless and they could barely give it away. They ended up stacking the teeth in buckets for the locals to buy for $2.00 (yes, two dollars!)
From the whaling station we went to the newly opened Anzac Centre. The history told through the photos and stories here will likely be more familiar to many of you. More than 41,000 Australian and New Zealand soldiers in WW1 left from Albany and the Centre is a fitting tribute to their naivety, mateship and bravery. Although sombre and emotional, it's a place all Australian's should visit. Allow a full day, taking in the visual and audio collections of artefacts, images, personal accounts and official records. The Anzac Centre is located within the Albany Heritage Park, which is also home to the Princess Royal Fortress. The Fort operated from 1893 until 1956 and was the first federal defence of Australia. It's two gun batteries, dug into the hillside of Mt Adelaide, clearly demonstrated the level of threat Australia felt was imminent in this strategic port. We explored the bunkers, the underground magazine, the restored buildings, museums and 'played' war games on the collection of original naval guns and torpedoes. After the closure of the Fort, the buildings were used for a range of purposes before being abandoned and falling into disrepair in the 1970's. Restoration work began in the late 1980's but not before a squatter had moved into one of the grandest buildings on the site. He remains there today having acquired the property under squatters rights! Apparently ownership will revert back to the Government upon the squatters death.
We were surprised by how hilly Albany was but loved the history and beautiful old architecture. We extended our stay an extra day and would have loved to bring the camper back for a longer holiday but the accommodation options were just not conducive to it. On our way back to Margaret River, we stopped at Greens Pool, a beach near Denmark recommended by locals and visitors alike. Huge granite boulders protect the beach from the ocean swells and is a perfect spot to swim or snorkel. The pics below of this amazing spot do not do it justice - it was quite special.
(Note: if you double click on the photos, it will open them in a larger format with the description included!)
Photos: left to right
the kids and me climbing the Tree Top Walk
the sign at the highest point of the Tree Top Walk - 40m above ground!
'Grandma Tingle' - she stands 34m high, is 12m in circumference & 400 years old
standing inside the trunk of a Tingle tree
again, inside the trunk of a tingle tree
the Cheyennes IV
the flensing deck of the whaling station - where whales were hauled from the sea and butchered
the 'cookers' underneath the deck of the whaling station, where the blubber was turned into oil
a beautiful sculpture at the Anzac Centre. The plaque reads "THE ANZAC SPIRIT - sharing the last of the water with my old mate, he deserves a drink as much as I before the charge"
testing the guns
Jesse inspecting the barrel of one of the big guns on Mt Adelaide
in the bunker on the side of Mt Adelaide
'Dog Rock' - self explanatory!
the beautiful Albany town hall
Greens Pool
Greens Pool
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