Day 166 - Fitzgerald River National Park

Fine weather again today so a drive to Fitzgerald River National Park seemed in order. Upon the advice of the tourist information we took the western route into the park. The park is huge, say 100km by an average 30km wide and is mostly inaccessible.

We passed through fields of wheat and canola on the way. The farms abut the National Park. The crops are about to be harvested and the canola had lost that vibrant yellow colour.   

Once we were in the park though we were bedazzled by the wild flowers.  These were not fields of yellow wattles, which we had come to accept as the norm further to the north, but rather pockets of diminutive, almost invisible yet colourful flowers, with some exceptions of course.  It consumed all of the morning as we hopped in and out of the car to photograph some of the flowers.

We detoured a couple of kilometres to Mt Maxwell, a humble 184m high.  Humble was the height but spectacular was the view.  It was a 360 degree view which enabled us to see the interface between the farms and the park but also the immensity of the park.

190914 Looking towards the grain fields from Mt Maxwell

190914 From Mt Maxwell - grain fields with Fitzgerald River
National Park in the foreground

190914 Fitzgerald River National Park from Mt Maxwell

190914 Mt Bland and West Mt Barren in Fitzgerald River National Park

We managed to get to Point Ann, about 40km north of Bremer Bay. The familiar white sands, rocks and beautiful, azure water were in evidence and very pleasing to the eye and to the senses.

190914 The beach to the north of Point Ann

190914 Point Ann

On our return we drove up to West Mount Barren but the walk it offered took 2hours so we opted out.

190914 West Mt Barren at the shoe cleaning station to prevent die-back

Much to our misfortune we decided to return to Bremer Bay by the coastal route.  We should have known we were in for an experience when we headed down the road to Trigelow Beach and the rubber conveyor belting strips (aid to getting up the sandy bits) were all askew.  Anyway, wisdom overruled the desire to get to the beach and we turned around. Then things got bad.

190914 Trigelow Beach north of Bremer Bay

190914 The road to Trigelow Beach.  At this point we turned
around - with difficulty

Apparently two years ago the salmon fishermen drove their trucks down this road in the wet and gouged huge ruts in the road.  The ruts remain but mud and potholes and the customary corrugations made the road a bit of a nightmare.  To continue on or go back the way we came was the question.  We decided to soldier on and 15km later we emerged triumphant at the white sand which comprised the inlet crossing at Bremer Bay. Our feelings of elation was short-lived when we saw the condition of the car.

In the nervous excitement of the rough trip trip back and the mandatory hanging on due to the buffeting we received, we forgot to take a photograph of the road  We are not going back to get one.

What a day!