Surf, Sand, Steak, Shiraz, Sauvignon Blanc....but not a lot of sun!

Friday morning we packed the hire car to the brim and after some great coffee at Jon & Jen's and some playing in the garden, we hit the road in convoy.

 

Margaret River area is about 3 hours south of Perth and there was some lovely landscapes as we made our way along the freeway. Lots of wetlands and pasture lands mixed in with bush, and many many cattle! And plenty of time for a nap!

 

We stopped in Dunsborough for a chilly picnic lunch which would have been unremarkable had Jon not been approached by a tv crew doing some filming for the local news! They were after opinions on the decision to fit shark nets around Dunsborough Bay, which had been announced that day, following one fatal and one serious shark attack there in the last year (5 fatalities in WA in the last year, normally just 1). They seemed to have assumed that everyone would be in favour, but I don't suppose they'd have counted on accidentally interviewing a Marine Biologist! Still, I guess being in the minority is a good thing if it gets you the last word! Check out the video here:

 

http://au.gwn7.yahoo.com/w1/news/a/-/local/19456851/beach-closed-after-shark-sighting-video/

We arrived at the house early afternoon, very pretty at the end of a cul de sac in the middle of nowhere, with Wendy house, swings and trampoline in the garden for the kids!

 

Jon had made a special trip to their local butcher before we left and, knowing what was on the menu for dinner, we decided on a beach walk to work up an appetite! So we headed just down the road to Injidup Beach. It was grey and blustery but beautiful and we had a great walk!

There were a few Bluebottle jellyfish washed up on the beach - they are smaller than your fist, but very potent as they are closely related to Portugese Man O War! I decided at that point not to take Crack's shoes off lol!

L found a fiver!

And then, at the end of the beach, we found a massive sand hill! Fun for the whole family x 2!

K descends at top speed! Well...part of the way anyway!

Crack enjoyed coming down more than climbing up (he wasn't the only one!). Click here to see the descent!

Jen's sharp eyes managed to spot some migrating humpbacks from the top of the hill and, although they were too far away for photos we watched them breaching and blowing as we walked all the way back to the car! A great start to the weekend!

Later that evening, with the kids in bed and the first of many fantastic bottles (over the weekend, not the night!) of wine breathing in a Brita water jug (rented houses....who'd have em? Fancy not having a decanter as standard in a wine region!?), dinner preparations were in full swing. VEGETARIAN? You have been warned......look away now! First night din dins, the biggest T-bone steaks you've ever seen!

Chargrilled on the barbie, then oven roasted to pink perfection! This may have been the best steak in the world.....EVER!

At this point I should probably mention that our occasional get togethers with Jon and Jen are usually referred to as Meat Fests, and previous events have included a lot of confit duck, wagon wheels of Cumberland sausage, Romney Marsh lamb and a whole suckling pig roasted in a pit we dug in the garden! We were a few members short this time, but determined to do them proud ;-D

Saturday dawned wet and grey and we donned our outdoor gear and headed to Gracetown to watch the numerous surfers and walk the coast path. It was nice but very cold and wet!

All the dots to the right of centre are surfers!

The braver ones looking for the best waves, which are very close to the rocks! You have to know what you are doing out here!

It was a gorgeous spot and a shame the weather wasn't better, the spring flowers were out in the coastal cliffs and dunes!

From there we headed into Margaret River town where we had an early lunch and a hot coffee in a bid to warm up! I'm sorry to say it didn't work for me, but I found a camping store with a sale on winter clothes and bought myself a fleece jacket that I barely took off the rest of the trip! I am seriously dreading the change in temperature when we come back to the UK, I was freezing at 14 degrees!

On the way back to the house, we saw our first wild kangaroos and stopped at the Windows Estate for a fabulous wine tasting. They really are making some terrific wines! The Shiraz was stand out so we bought a few bottles for Pie's collaborators and our hosts. Poor Pie missed out on the tasting, as he was driving and sat with Crack, who was napping in the car! But he did get more than a taste at dinner later!

Next stop, the venison farm and although that wasn't all they had on offer (something for everyone Marc?!), we did spoil ourselves with a whole rack of venison for the next stage of the meat fest...yes, sorry veggies, look away again now!

 

But actually, I'm getting ahead of myself here because before dinner Crack discovered the trampoline

And had a fab time!

 

Then he and K invented a game which I guess was a bit like kiss chase!? It involved a lot of chasing and giggling and finished with Crack giving K a big hug! He wouldn't play the game with L though - most unfair!

 

And whilst all this was going on Jon took Pie for a surfing lesson! Which the rest of us discovered the next day had caused a bit of bruising! I think Pie knew the first time he rolled onto his front in bed! Ouch!

 

Sunday morning dawned sunny and we enjoyed a leisurely breakfast whilst Jon took on the big waves at Yallingup! Pie spotted a kangaroo in the garden but he soon saw us and took off. We noticed a fluffy little chick who also appeared to be enjoying the sunshine on the doorstep to his nest box. He was there for most of the day and we finally agreed that he must be a tawny frogmouth. Unfortunately it was difficult to get a decent picture, this was the best I could do:

 

It was definitely a day to make the most of the sunshine and we soon headed to the beach at Canal Rocks. It was beautiful and the surfers were out in force, some of them not a great deal older than Crack!

Crack acquired a lovely pink wetsuit, thank you J,J and K!, and took to the water. Despite seeing the girls body boarding, Crack decided there was only one way to for him....the same way the big boys do it.....standing up!

 

But all too soon it was lunchtime and then we accidentally napped the afternoon away intending to read whilst Crack slept! Upon awakening we realised that we might run out of wine, and the wineries shut in 30 minutes, so Pie and Jen did the only responsible thing and whizzed down to the nearest for a quick tasting and a few bottles!

Dinner was to be slow roast milk-fed goat with apricot and herbs couscous but first starters with home-made dips all designed to use up leftovers....tough life!!

Yummy!

Monday morning and once packed up decided on a walk and lunch at Yallingup before going our separate ways...another beautiful day! But we somehow missed the Cape to Cape path and ended up going up quite a sheer slope before realising we'd have to back track! Exciting stuff!

But we made it safely back down to the beach where we explored the rocks and pools instead.

I love this photo, I think it's my favourite of them all so far! My happy guys, love them so much xxxx

 

After a lovely lunch (fish and chips and burgers!), we went our separate ways.

We all had the most wonderful weekend, so big thanks to Jon and Jen for organising the accommodation and for knowing the local area so well! It was nice not to have to read the guide book or plan a route but still know we were seeing some of the best the area had to offer! Relaxing weekend with fantastic wine, fabulous food and the best of friends!......what is it they say? "Good friends are like stars, you don't always see them, but you know they are always there." Thank you guys, we can see why you love it so much!

 

Next instalment to include dolphins, Quokkas, Fremantle and more!