Well, Here we are just moving right along the south coast of WA.  We’re in the town of Hopetoun between Albany and Esperance.  This is a little tourist/vacation spot with nice beaches and a nearby National Park.  

Prior to this we were in Albany on the coast for a few days in Denmark.  We really liked it there.  We were in a campground that was right on the beach and we were luck enough to be able to back into a space and have a little view of the water.  Previously we spoke of the wineries and breweries but we finished up the Denmark area with a stop at a “Meadery.”  There were 4 different types of Mead to taste and quite frankly all were pretty nasty.  Mediciney and sweet.  yuck...  We won’t do that again!  On the bright side though we got that taste out of our mouth with a stop at a little Toffee Factory.  SWEET!!  There were lots of samples to try, and we did.  Actually ended up buying several flavors and even some “chili peanut brittle.”  We were expecting maybe some cayenne or chili powder but oh no, there were actual bits of chili peppers in the candy.  You couldn’t really taste it but the heat lingered in your throat after you swallowed.  

We then left Denmark and headed north to Hyden and the home of the Wave Rock.  Yup, It’s a huge rock that has been eroded on the side into the shape of a wave, kind of like this (.   It’s 45’ high and over 300’ long.  It was quite cool and well worth the drive up to it.  We also toured a cave with old Aboriginal art on the walls.  Very cool too.  The only campground for the area was quite a surprise as it was well kept and very well appointed.  A little place in the middle of nowhere and it had free wifi.  I know that we take wifi for granted in most of our campgrounds back home but over here they are still few and far between. So, It was a nice surprise.  

Latest in fly wear

One thing we really hadn’t expected is the fly problem they have here.  We even broke down and bought a couple of nets to go over our heads to keep the little pests off our faces and out of our ears.  They have some bigger ones that are similar to our horse flies or deer flies that bite but mostly it’s just the little house flies that are just thick and annoying. It doesn’t matter if it;s warm or cool, if you’re outside, the flies are with you. Makes enjoying a walk or hike a little difficult.

Moving east along the coast, we stopped in Esperance. This small town, aren’t they all, is a holiday mecca during the summer. It’s also the gateway to one of the more popular national parks. All along the coast, it’s dotted with national parks. Quite a few of them only have dirt roads, or unsealed, and are for 4wd, some 2wd cars. The coastline in Esperance is quite stunning. We have had 2 days of stormy weather but took a drive along the coast and if the weather clears up, there are some nice beaches to walk to and tide pools to explore. Besides walking the piers and ports areas, we went to a fish leather factory. Pretty fascinating, making leather out of fish skin. It starts out as fish skin and through the process of tanning comes out just like leather. Then they make belts and wallets and some unusual stuff.

Soon, we start heading north up to the gold country, Kalgoorlie open pit gold mine, then turn towards Perth. Our time is almost over here and in a week or so we head back home.