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Oh dear, Melnq8, you're trying to sabotage my weight-loss plans with your descriptions of delicious food. Loved the sound of the petting zoo - they are so wonderful for 'city' kids to meet farm animals.

I gave up on worldisround as most of my photos couldn't be uploaded even though I had compressed them! I have now installed Picasa 3 on my notebook, and have finally started a web album. I am taking a leaf out of your book and doing a section at a time. I am also going to make an album of the unknown birds in the hope that someone can name them for me!

Looking forward to your next instalment of Savouring the Southwest.

Melnq8

Eating more of Denmark:

We wake to a beautiful, cool sunny day. Bill is craving Eggs Bennie, so we drive to town and settle in for breakfast at the Denmark River Bistro. I want something light, but they don’t do light here, so I select the only non-meat, non-egg offering…pancakes with ice cream, maple syrup and mixed berries (yowsa!). I know even before I see my food that I won’t be able to finish; a little bit of pancake goes a long way for me; but I still gasp when my heaping plate appears. It’s good; I do my best, but very little gets eaten, there’s just no room ($29 total with two large flat whites).

We walk the streets of Denmark, noticing that there are a surprising number of cafes for such a small town (we count five).

Back in the car, we meander. We follow Inlet Drive to the river mouth, where we walk a path to, well, nowhere; it just abruptly ends past a caravan park. We watch a large cluster of pelicans out in the water feasting on something, and then continue our drive, following Inlet Drive to no where in particular, stopping for several unidentified short walks along the way. We eventually join Ocean Beach Road and explore Ocean Beach Lookout (where the Wilson Inlet and the Southern Ocean meet), and every other nook and cranny, until we reach the end of the line, Sinker Bay.

We backtrack to Lights Road and join the South Coast Highway. Our destination is William Bay National Park, some 14 kilometers west of Denmark. Although we’ve been here before, that first glimpse of Greens Pool makes me catch my breath. It’s stunning…shallow turquoise water, white sand beach, smooth granite boulders, all fringed by hills of dark green. The colors and textures simultaneously contrast and complement one another. It’s a sight to behold, it truly is.

We soak up the glorious views. We walk across the boulders to Elephant Rocks and soak up some more. Two youngsters brave the cold water and frolic in the sea beneath us; they look like they’re having a ball.

I could stay here all day, but we move on, driving east towards Denmark, and then wending our way to Scottsdale Rd via a network of country roads. Pastures are green, lambs are plentiful, grape vines are beginning to bud. Our destination is Karriview Wines, yet another favorite from past visits; we have fond memories of some nice lunch platters from here. As is our luck, they only offer platters during the summer months, but having heard the magic word ‘chorizo’ we do the next best thing and order the dips plate for two. We settle in at a table on their patio overlooking the somewhat bleak-looking vines, celebrating our last full day in the Southwest with a bottle of Panchame, Karriview’s answer to champers.

We’re brought a plate of dips, some of which I recognize from the grocery store. There’s also a small dish of chorizo, some marinated capsicum, pepper dews and bread. It’s a bit of a disappointment. We pass on dessert, suspecting we’ll have better luck elsewhere. We’re charged $50 for our food, which hardly seems good value ($76 total with champers).

Next up is nearby Harewood Forest, where we follow the easy 1.2 kilometer path through the trees. It’s a nice little walk with information boards that explain the area’s history and flora. This is a great walk for those with limited time.

Late afternoon finds us at The Lake House for that aforementioned dessert. The setting is glorious, flower filled gardens, a lake with ducklings, distant grape vines. We share a slice of decadent chocolate mud cake with mulled red wine sauce at a picnic table on the lawn – the perfect fattening end to a beautiful day ($18 with two large flat whites).

We’re winding down, but I can’t leave without a drive along Mount Shadforth Road, for what I consider the best views in Denmark. We stop near the former Observatory Resort to gape down the valley. It’s a feast for the eyes; sweeping green pastures which drop to the forest and join the Wilson Inlet, which is separated from the Southern Ocean by the Nullaki Peninsula. Wow.

Photos 97-113

http://www.worldisround.com/articles...7/photo97.html

Denmark to Perth:

It’s time to go. We’re up and out early. We drive to town and then walk through it, looking for the busiest café, figuring the locals know where to go. McSwenney’s it is, poached eggs with salmon for Bill, a savory muffin for me, flat whites for both. It’s just okay, nothing special, so much for our locals theory. ($25 total).

We’re on the road by 8:30, following the South Coast Highway towards Albany, and then turning onto the Denmark-Mt Barker Road, which leads through a tunnel of trees fringed by green pasture. We enter the Shire of Plantagenet, first surrounded by forest and agricultural land, then mile after mile of vineyards. We zig on Muirs Highway to Mt Barker; amazed at the sheer number of naked grape vines, which appear to stretch on forever.

We pass humongous West Cape Howe Winery, turn left onto the Albany Highway and settle in for the 353 kilometer drive to the Big Smoke. The vines disappear, replaced with field after field of blindingly bright yellow canola; I must stop for photographs.

The Stirling Range appears to our right, then more swaths of eye-popping, knee deep canola; it’s sensory overload. The number of roadside crosses is disturbing, particularly those in clusters. It’s a poignant reminder to take care.

We make a wee stop in Kojonup. Some poor guy is scraping off the remains of a ring-necked parrot, which apparently tangled with his headlight. Messy. Kojonup looks interesting, but we push on.

The big trees gradually disappear; the lush green is gone, the landscape looks thirsty. The canola is back with a vengeance as we pass through Williams; the bright yellow a startling contrast to the muted colors of the countryside.

The Darling Range comes into view as we approach Bannister; we notice considerably more kangaroo carnage than we saw further south, and a heck of a lot more traffic.

The city chaos is back. We make a second attempt at collecting local walk trail information from the Visitor’s Center in Armadale, successful this time.

Five hours after leaving Denmark, we’re home. It’s time to start that diet.
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