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While adventuring ‘on the road’ one Aussie fall, we discover that as long as you have some time up your sleeve, Australia road travel is the very best way to see this country and a great way to meet the people who live there.

Day 3

This morning our Australia road travel adventure takes us into our third state, New South Wales.  Pick ups in Australia are called ‘utes’ abbreviated (like much of the Australian language) from ‘utility truck’ and when we arrive at Denliquin we notice a ute atop a pole.  We learn that Australia’s annual ‘ute muster’ is held here.  Must get that next time!  We move on to Junee where we are taken aback by the main street which looks like its come straight out of the late nineteenth century.  Cootamundra is close by and the local pub there serves the biggest steaks we’ve eaten for years!

Day 4

Instead of heading up and over the Blue Mountains we travel a little north across rolling hills, past happier fatter sheep and paddocks of lush green wheat to the inland town of Orange in the New South Wales rural heartland.  We spend a day in Orange (no orange groves in sight) and enjoy some wine tasting (yes another wine district) that afternoon.

Day 5

The Blue Mountains are spectacular and yes, very blue.  The bluey haze from the mountain tops seems to go on forever.  We spend the day winding through mountain villages lit up by the red, orange and yellow of fall leaves not seen in warmer parts of this country where native trees display none of this dramatic change. 

We stop for afternoon coffee at Katoomba near some rock formations called 'The Three Sisters' and reflect on our 5 day Australia road travel.  We decide that this was by far the best way to see the countryside and meet local Aussies between these cities.  We will always remember the guys at Tailem Bend who offered advice about our newly cracked windscreen and made us laugh.  If we’d taken a plane we would have missed them and the Aussie farmer we saw ploughing his paddock after sunset on a tractor with lights.  We’d never have seen the kangaroos hop along side us at dusk or heard the locals regale their ‘yarns’ over a beer in every country pub we called in to. 

We’re glad we decided on this Australia road travel adventure.  We could have taken longer and should have but the lure of Bondi Beach and the Sydney Opera House had us heading to Sydney before the end of Day 5.

Warm regards

Rowena French

For theteam@MightyDigitalDownloads.com

Transforming Lives, One Person at a Time

Rowena French has traveled Australia extensively, exploring much of this vast and very diverse country. If you’d like to read about Part 1 of our Australia Road Travel Adventure – 5 Days from Adelaide to Sydney go to our website at www.AustraliaTravel4U

You can still enjoy the thrill of whale watching from a number Australian towns as this part of Australia's coast is the migratory path for thousands of whales each year and a haven for whale watchers.  If you coordinate your Western Australia travel with whale migration there you can enjoy the breath taking spectacle of whale watching as well as land-based exploration.

At the end of April, humpback, southern right and even rarer blue whales travel north along this coastline towards warmer breeding grounds.  They leave their food laden southern ocean behind but later in the year make their way back south to grow and develop there.

There are whale watching cruises and land based lookouts available from each of these Western Australia travel destinations; Albany, Exmouth, Hillarys, Denham, Broome, Geographe Bay and Kalabarri.  The likelihood of sighting these magnificent creatures is high at the right time of the year, especially around noon.

If you visit Western Australia in June you can see humpbacks and southern rights around Augusta on the south coast.

Albany had a large whaling station right up until the early 1970’s but has turned this into an impressive interactive whale watching museum.  The best time to see whales in nearby King George Sound is July through October.  Albany is ‘Grand Central Station’ for humpback and southern right whales as they mate and calve around this area.

Dunsborough is just north of Margaret River and a popular destination for viewing some of the less prolific blue whales and thier calves in nearby Geographe Bay during September.

About mid-way up the very long Western Australia coast is Kalbarri.  Kalbarri is a little north of Bussleton a well known wildflower area around spring, (September, October and November).  At Kalbarri, especially from vantage points at Eagle George, Red Bluff and Natural Bridge you can see humpback whales swim north from June through November.

Probably the most spectacular of all whale watching experiences is at Ningaloo Marine Park about 100 miles south of Exmouth on the North West Cape.  This destination is over half way up the WA coast about 800 miles from Perth.  It’s worth flying there from Perth unless you have plenty of time and drive a 4-wheel drive.

On offer from late March through June each year is an opportunity to snorkel there with whale sharks. Yes this is possible!  Snorkeling at the Ningaloo Marine Park is one of the best snorkeling experiences you’ll find anywhere on earth and although whale sharks grow up to 60 feet in length they are harmless!

If you enjoy water experiences with water creatures and include Ningaloo Marine Park as part of your Western Australia travel, consider stopping en route or as you return south to Perth at Monkey Mia.  Monkey Mia is near Denham on the Peron Peninsula about 500 miles north of Perth.  Every day, friendly bottlenose dolphins from a pod of around 330, swim to shore to interact with visitors from around the world at this unique part of Western Australia’s coastline.
 
The Kimberley Coast is way north in Western Australia and this is yet another of the Western Australia travel destinations that promises extraordinary whale watching experiences; this time humpbacks as they move off the coast of Broome to give birth to their young from June to November.

Warm regards

Rowena French

For theteam@MightyDigitalDownloads.com

Transforming Lives, One Person at a Time

Rowena French has traveled Australia extensively, exploring much of this vast and very diverse country. If you’d like to read more about our favorite Western Australia travel destinations, or our other Australian travels, read our website at www.AustraliaTravel4U.com

When traveling Down Under we find its best to adopt the policy of ‘When in Australia, Do as the Aussies Do’. These Australia travel tips reflect what the Aussies ‘do’ in their country even in the ‘outback’ where you are most likely to encounter Australia’s wildlife in its natural environment. 

Road Travel. Aussies travel on the left hand side of the road.   Obtain an International License if your own license is not likely to be accepted.  Hitch hiking is illegal and dangerous so don’t!  Speed limits are 100-110 kph on highways and 50-60kph in towns and cities. Take care when entering a flow of traffic that will come from the opposite direction to what you generally expect.

Watch out for kangaroos hopping across country roads especially at dawn and dusk when they are most active.  Keep an eye out for them sitting on roads where they like to enjoy the warmth of the bitumen during winter.  If a kangaroo hops in front of you while you’re traveling at high speed, don’t swerve to miss it.  A head on hit is likely be a safer outcome than ‘rolling’ your car as you leave the road.

Avoid leaving young children in a locked car in hot weather as dehydration commonly occurs in this situation.  Take care to ‘Stop, Revive and Survive’ every two hours to avoid driver fatigue.

Another important Australia travel tips relates to safety in the ‘bush’ or ‘outback’.  Avoid traveling on outback roads without others who know the area well or at least with a reliable means of communication.  Australia’s outback is vast and being stranded if you break down in an isolated area is just not worth the risk. 

Banks and Shops. There is some limit to the number of shops open on Sundays in Australia.  Most tourist centers provide 7 day trading.

Banks open between 9 am and 4pm Monday through Friday.  Most towns have automatic teller machines for 24/7 transactions. There are facilities in all cities for changing foreign currency.

Safety. Protect your skin by wearing 30+sunscreen, especially in summer as well as a sunhat and protective clothing.

Aussie beaches are some of the best in the world but to stay safe when you visit them follow beach safety rules and only swim at patrolled beaches and between flagged areas where local lifesavers patrol daily.  Avoid swimming in northern Australia because of the presence of marine stingers (box jellyfish) October–June. Only swim in stinger protected beaches. To avoid the painful and sometimes fatal sting of well camouflaged stonefish, always wear thick sole shoes when walking on a reef or in shallow waters.

Air Travel to Australia is a long flight.  Reduce the impact of this by either requesting a seat with extra leg room near exit doors if possible, moving around the plane often or even by breaking the journey with a stop-over in Hawaii or even Fiji.  A stop-over will ensure that you arrive fresh and ready to start your vacation here having minimized the effects of jet lag.

Warm regards

Rowena French

For theteam@MightyDigitalDownloads.com

Transforming Lives, One Person at a Time

Rowena French has traveled Australia extensively, exploring much of this vast and very diverse country. If you’d like other Australia travel tips to help you plan your vacation here, go to our website www.AustraliaTravel4U