Sponsored by Tourism Western Australia 10 May 2021
Western Australia’s picturesque and rugged beauty was made to be explored by car.
Over the next week, we’re bringing you some of the dreamiest road trip itineraries so your clients can explore the state’s most beautiful spots.
The South West Edge is an epic road trip around, you guessed it, the south-western edge of WA.
The trip weaves between wine regions, towering forests and along marine life-rich coast, before returning to Perth across the outback.
It can be done in just 12 days and traverses 1,200 kilometres from Perth to Esperance, returning via Kalgoorlie or Hyden (Wave Rock).
On WAâs wild southern coast, Albanyâs geography shaped its past and its flourishing present
The idyllic Middleton beach in Albany, Western Australia. Photograph: Carolyn Beasley
The idyllic Middleton beach in Albany, Western Australia. Photograph: Carolyn Beasley
CarolynBeasley
Sun 9 May 2021 13.30 EDT
Last modified on Sun 9 May 2021 21.08 EDT
Perched on Western Australiaâs southern tip, Albany clings to the shores of King George Sound and the sheltered bays of Princess Royal and Oyster harbours. Granite peaks are surrounded by bushland, rich with wildflowers.
Itâs the home town of sisters Vikki Thorn and Donna Simpson, two-thirds of folk-rock trio the Waifs.
‘Are we progressive? My oath we are!’ A local’s guide to Albany, Western Australia Carolyn Beasley
Perched on Western Australia’s southern tip, Albany clings to the shores of King George Sound and the sheltered bays of Princess Royal and Oyster harbours. Granite peaks are surrounded by bushland, rich with wildflowers.
It’s the home town of sisters Vikki Thorn and Donna Simpson, two-thirds of folk-rock trio the Waifs.
Thorn describes her childhood as idyllic. “That was because of the topography of the place,” she says. “It’s very accessible to a lot of beautiful places.” Thorn married an American and usually lives in the US, but during the pandemic she chose to bunker down in her hometown.
Hamish McNeilly/Stuff
The 5-year-old explores the bizarre rock formations of the Elephant Rocks in Waitaki Valley By the time he s awake, we are nearing our first stop: the Takiroa Māori rock art site, near Duntroon. The place is deserted, smells strongly of guano thanks to hundreds of pigeons nesting in the towering limestone cliffs, and is surrounded by fencing to preserve the earthquake-affected area while keeping out those who just want to add their own “art”.
JOHN BISSET/Stuff It is utterly charming. And free. A double thumbs up.
Mytchall Bransgrove/Stuff
Ōmārama’s clay cliffs are a sight to behold.
A fearful teenager who found her freedom through travel, Marsha Jean left Hong Kong aged 18 and just kept going Marsha Jean in Sarek National Park, Sweden. The nomadic 23-year-old from Hong Kong has been on the road for almost six years, and has hitchhiked alone from Iran to France and cycled solo through Central Asia. Photo: Courtesy of Marsha Jean
Hongkonger Marsha Jean is not exactly sure where she is. I left Berlin a few weeks ago, by train to Frankfurt, then flew to Spain. Now I m in a little town one hour from Malaga, she says, referring to the province on the southern Mediterranean coast, in Andalusia. I had to have a negative Covid-19 test result to enter Malaga province, and quarantine is not required. Each province/ community in Spain has different rules.