Perth – Whiteman Park & the Perth Zoo

Before we commenced sightseeing around Perth, it was first off to several Diff Specialists to get advice and quotes to fix my whining diff (not my whining wife – lol). Since we left Alice Springs almost 3 months ago, we noticed an unusual noise from the car. When the car was serviced in Darwin, we were advised that the noise is the diff and not to worry. Now 10,000 km later it’s getting louder and the last thing we want to do is break down crossing the Nullarbor. It’s booked in for repairs and the quotes ranged from $770 to $1800. Stay tuned for the final result before leaving Perth.

Whilst in Perth we are fortunate enough to stay at a mates house (Gavin – alias ‘Max’) which has given us a nice break from the confines of a caravan. We are still sleeping in the caravan in his backyard. However, the kids have now become addicted to Foxtel (deprived after many months with no TV). No, they can’t have Foxtel when we get home.

Whiteman Park (at the Swan Valley) is a unique recreation reserve which covers 4,000 hectares of natural bushland and leisure facilities. It’s a kid’s paradise with a wildlife park, children’s forest, a transport heritage museum, a motor museum, a tractor museum, train & tram rides, playgrounds and a village with shops (ie lolly, pottery etc). You could quite easily lose your kids here!

Sitting at the Children's Forest

I wanted this photo (which is rare for me)!

Next up was Perth’s Zoo. Located south of the city we enjoyed a day discovering the amazing native and exotic animals of the Zoo, with highlights been the African Savannah (lions & cheetahs on the move) and the Asian Rainforest (tigers, elephants & Orang-utan’s playing).

Jabiru - head of the food chain

A Numbat - never heard of it (hard to find too)

Milly was on a mission to get down from her tree and see the keeper
(must have thought it was dinner time)

He was determined to break this log into pieces

This little girl was a really playful & annoyed her Mum a lot
(sounds all too familiar)

Cheetah - fastest land animal on earth (120km/h)

Ok, whose family photo snuck in?

Just south of Perth is a great place to get a view of the city with some pretty impressive houses looking over the Swan River. I could just imagine the price tag in this area.

Fremantle

Firstly we just want to send a get well message to Michelle’s Dad (Pop). Unfortunately he had a fall from a ladder, which has resulted in Nan & Pop cancelling their trip to join us for a week in Perth. We miss you both and are so sorry you could not make the trip. Get well quick Pop.  

We have travelled to the home of the Dockers. I must say it’s not a bad town, apart from their footy team. It is full of history with its old buildings, port and now a great waterfront full of restaurants.

First up we visited the Fremantle Prison which was a real eye opener. Our tour guide provided us with a chilling insight into life in this maximum security prison which housed 1,000 prisoners. To think it was only closed in 1991 & the conditions were appalling (I guess though they are in prison, so you can’t expect too much).

The prison started from its convict origins in the 1850’s and has been the longest operational prison in Australia. We were shown the cells, exercise yards, a whipping post, the kitchen, gallows, solitary cells and the Church (still used today for weddings – what better way to start a life sentence of marriage). Just joking Michelle!

The Gatehouse

Amy & Hayley behind the second gates (officially as prisoners)

One of the exercise yards - it did have a tennis court

This cell block is the longest of its type in the southern hemisphere

This watch tower still has a ghostly presence today, where even the old guards won't go

A typical exercise yard with bolted down furniture

3 storeys of cells - the site of a 1988 riot

Prisoners had plenty of time on their hands (this
prisoner was an impressive artist, but had committed
shocking crimes)

A close up of his art work

This painting was painted the year the prison closed

Don't leave me in here!

Solitary confinement exercise yard (1hr a day in here with no communication)

To soak in the atmosphere and appreciate the waterfront, we decided to have a seafood lunch at Cicerellos. They claim to serve the best fish n chips in WA. We only needed 2 meals between the 5 of us, as the meals were quite large.

A view of Cicerellos & a ferris wheel

It was good!

We explored the port precinct on foot, where there was some serious money tied up in some of the luxury cruisers (& of course the fishing boats). There were also quite a few statues in the area, including one of the famous & late Bon Scott (ACDC lead singer) who grew up in Fremantle after arriving from Scotland at a young age. I even got to find the brewery of one of my favourite beers (Little Creatures Pale Ale).

The famous Bon Scott (& me - not so famous)

Should you be on this Matt?

Great beers in here

The Maritime Museum

The old streets had a Hobart feel about them

Jurien Bay & the Pinnacles

Jurien Bay is 220km north of Perth and is named ‘Jewel of the Central West Coast’. It is part of a marine park and a very popular holiday spot for people who live in Perth. Fishing is big here and in particular it is still part of the lobster industry from Geraldton.

Once again WA has come up again with a great playground for the kids in a prime location. You may notice that we have jumpers on now – it is getting colder and the reality is starting to sink in that we will be back in Melbourne soon.

Great spot!

Very clear bay

Just south of Jurien Bay (near Cervantes) is the famous Pinnacles located in the Nambung National Park. Our holiday parks pass has more than paid for itself as we avoid another National Park entry fee.

In the Pinnacles Desert there are literally thousands of limestone pinnacles which range in size up to 5m tall. They were formed thousands of years ago when ancient plant roots formed a weak cementation of calcite within the dunes and have been exposed by wind and shifting sands. The kids loved exploring the area on foot and looked for ones at their height

Our first candid photo together

Yep, this one is bigger than me

Near Cervantes is Lake Thetis which is one of only four locations in the world where Stromatolites can be found. You may recall from our visit to Hamelin Pool that these are living fossils.

School is in. Michelle & I will both tell you that to get the girls to do homework has been a real challenge and the catalyst to many arguments & grumpy kids (grumpy parents too!). They have been writing diaries and completing set school work, but at the end of the day what they have learnt on our trip will definitely make up for what they have missed at school. I think they will get a rude shock when they go back to school and can’t go exploring.

We have now just arrived in Perth.

Geraldton (lobsters galore)

We had a very informative tour of the live lobster processing facility at Geraldton’s Fisherman’s Cooperative. This is a multi-million dollar industry where approximately 99% of the lobsters are exported overseas, predominantly to Japan and China. These countries will pay top dollar for a lobster, however are very selective on the lobsters they receive. As an example, Japan only wants the smaller, darker ones (with no legs missing) where the colour red brings them good luck. China wants the larger ones where they will pay up to $400 for a lobster.

The processing plant had approximately 5 million dollars’worth of lobster ready for export. From the time they are brought in from the fisherman’s boat to being sorted (into size, grade & colour), held in tanks and ready for dispatch (still alive) it can take only 30 hours for them to be on a dinner plate somewhere overseas. A lot of back packer’s labour is used as part of this very impressive and efficient process.

One of many hundred holding tanks (already sorted)

Can I sneak him out whilst no one is looking?

The Chinese would pay $400 for this one

To get some more information on the tragic loss of the HMAS Sydney II warship (with its 645 crew) we headed to Geraldton’s museum. There was a lot more information about the battle with the German Ship ‘HSK Kormoran. It was interesting to learn that the German Ship posed as a merchant ship, gave misleading messages to the Aussie Ship and then when only 1.5km away put up its flag & fired upon the Sydney. There was also interesting facts on how the Sydney was finally located 67 years later by a research team (& left in its resting place out of respect of the sailors that died and at their relative’s request).

The museum also had a wealth of information and artefacts from the Batavia sinking in 1629, including details on the murder and mutiny at the Abrolhos Islands.

If you ever come across a Dome Café in WA, make sure you drop in for enticing meals and the world’s finest coffees. They need to open one of these franchises over in Melbourne. The kids loved their hot chocolate, fluffy koala and squashed frog (awesome chocolate drinks).