We set off at 8.45am in the direction of Busselton & decided against using the South Western Highway, feeling that the lesser roads would be more scenic. The countryside did, indeed, look very lush in its Spring mantle & we enjoyed the drive. Beautiful clumps of white lilies grew in the meadows, along with masses of small yellow flowers. A group of cows came to stare at Bob as he took photographs - eventually, more & more arrived until he had quite an audience! What sticky-beaks they are.
Much of our route was hilly & forested. Nannup was a very attractive little town with a couple of cafes, a bakery, a small church, etc. - we turned off there, towards Pemberton. It was difficult not to enthuse about the wildflowers, as they continued to provide a never-ending display.
It was tempting to stop at a place advertising cheese platters, but it was down an unmade road, so we decided against it. We travelled through karri forests where the trees grew straight & very tall! Several lakes began to appear in the landscape & we saw numerous signs advertising holiday cottages.
Our caravan park, in Pemberton, was situated in a lovely area - just off the main street of the village, on the edge of the forest. We settled into our shady spot, then went for a drive to explore our current environment, which was very hilly. Bob managed to find a steam train on display in the historic area - no longer in working order, but still looking good. We also drove to a lake, in the forest, which was dammed to retain water in the dryer season but which was currently overflowing into smaller lakes.
At the Sports Club, where we'd called for a drink, we met Fred, a very friendly chap who was eager to relate tales about his family. Apparently, his father had come to Pemberton in the 1920's, from Northumberland, England, to help to clear the land. He & his fellow workers had been promised that they would be able to buy their own properties within 4 to 5 years - in fact, it took far longer that that! He'd borrowed over £50 for his family of five to travel to Australia (a lot of money, then) & it took 20 years to pay it back. It was a hard life, but Fred's mother lived to the very advanced age of 106! As we enjoy the comforts of modern life, it's hard to imagine the hardships suffered by earlier generations.
In the evening, we had dinner at a local hotel & just managed to return to the caravan before it began to rain heavily.
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