South Coast WA 2026

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11 March 2026 – We got away today, the start of what we hope is a five or six month trip, taking in the Eastern States, a month-long side trip to New Zealand and a 4-wheel drive trip to Cape York. However, the specter of the Iran War driven fuel crisis hangs over us. Prices are spiraling and bowsers are running dry, mostly due to crazy people panic buying. We past one station at Bannister trying to sell ULP for $2.85 a litre, no doubt coming out of the same tank that they were charging around a dollar less only a few days ago. Out government keeps saying they are on the lookout for cases of price gouging, but taking some kind of action seems to be a different thing.

Our first committed date is April 18, when we are due in Melbourne to fly to New Zealand. Therefore, we decided to spend a couple of weeks on the south coast of WA before committing to the drive East, giving the World time to settle down.

Our first night was spent at a charming little free camp at the Boscabel Hall, about 3 kms of Albany Hwy. The old weatherboard hall is still in use but the nearby tennis club is well past active use. I chuckled at the inventive list of players chalked up on the board.

12 March – We awoke to a little river of water flowing through the van. We thought we had previously pinpointed a leak to a very slow seep from one of the kitchen tap connections but slow enough to put a take-away container under it to catch the odd drip. But this was more. I eventually tracked it a pipe disappearing up from the shower closet to behind the fridge, no doubt feeding the shower. It looked like removing the fridge was needed, a job well beyond this 73 year old body.

I Googled up the Albany Caravan Repair Centre with little hope of an early resolution and the knowledge that Albany is in the middle of their Bicentennial Celebrations. “Can you bring it in today?” the nice lady asked.

We packed up and headed south, amazed at our good fortune. We fueled up at Mt Barker, waiting in a line to the one operating bowser and paying $2.19 a litre. It seems to be going up by 10c a day. Once at the repair place, we got the news that the job was simple enough, as long as the fridge would slide out without disconnecting the gas pipe. If that happened, they would need a plumber to reconnect and certify. Even worse, the van was not allowed to leave the lot until that happened. Fingers crossed.

The day was spent wandering Albany, trying to keep out of the cold gale force wind, going through the museum near the Amith replica and a spot of shopping. When we got back to the van, we were thrilled to find the gas had remained connected, we had leaks fixed and a new mixer tap in the kitchen.

In need of a place to stay, we drove about 35kms west to Cosy Corner Campground, a beachside camp spot, only getting an overflow spot, but at least somewhere to sleep. If the weather was better, it would be a nice place to stay, especially for $10 a night.

13 March – With the weather forecast promising light rain and strong winds, we planned an easy day. Christine baked a lovely loaf of bread and some Anzac Biscuits, while I went for a walk to look at the windswept beach, getting no serious urges to try out the fishing in the conditions.

We drove west a bit to check out some of the other nearby spots, the best of which was Hartman’s Beach, accessible by 4WD down a very steep gravel track. There we spoke to a Darwin couple who were fishing without success. Amazingly, they had relatively little knowledge of the war in Iran, or exactly how things were being affected.

14 March – We decided that a move further inland might help escape the persistent strong winds. The rain would likely keep up but the wind was making things uncomfortable. Our route took us back to the Albany ring road and along the South Coast Highway to a stop at Manypeaks for fuel. Our strategy is to run on the small sub-tank and keep the large main tank in reserve. The one outlet in Manypeaks had ULP but no diesel, the owner telling us that the fuel that normally lasts a week sold out in days.

Our target for the day was the tiny hamlet of Wellstead but the turn-off to Cheynes Beach lured us to do a 20km side trip and check out the location, which we had never visited. After 10km, we came up behind a strange jeep-like vehicle with three occupants, sitting at the rear of a long line of very slow moving vehicles, converted VW Beetles, and a great many vintage Chamberlain tractors. It must have been some kind of rally. The road was winding and hilly and there was little chance of passing anything. We faced doing the next 10km at about 20km/hr. We took the option of turning around when a driveway presented itself and drove back to the highway.

The light rain continued. About 20km out of Wellstead, the road was being renewed, giving a kilometre or so of orange clay covered surface, all nicely wet from the rain. The car and caravan turned orange, covering everything in a nasty sludge.

Once at Wellstead, we filled with water, the local Wellstead Bush Camp only having bore water, and booked in for a couple of nights. We did what we could to clean the van and car of the worst of the mud and settled down to watch a bit of footy. The rain persisted, especially if we tried to do anything outside.

A highlight of the Wellstead Bush Camp is the camp kitchen, with its wonderful cosy ambience and collections of old memorabilia, car parts, locks and keys, kerosene lanterns and much more. It would be a wonderful place when the weather was right and the camp full of people. Right now it was deserted.

15 March – The rain persisted throughout the night and greeted us again in the morning. Today is our fifth day away and fifth day of grey skies and drizzle. The forecast suggested some lifting around noon so we packed a bit of food and headed off to explore a few areas. We checked out the Pallinup River, which had a lovely free camping area on the north side of the bridge, but the river was little more than a few smelly pools. On the south side, the river broadened into a good reach that was probably worth fishing, but access to the few camp areas was too rough for our van.

We moved on to the next spot, Miller’s Point Reserve off the Bremer Bay Road. We have been to this spot a couple of times before and done well for fish, although recently thre have been concerns for the health of the Beaufort Inlet because the bar to the sea has not opened for more than seven years. There were only a few vans present and some lovely camp sites so we made the decision to come back tomorrow with the van.

We drove back to Wellstead and on through along a 20km gravel road to Cape Riche. Here there is another nice camp, about half full, with good beach access and some lovely white sand beaches, rocky headlands and clean water. Access with our van could be a bit tight. We set up a hotplate and indulged in a couple of fried sausages and onions in a wrap, washed down with a coffee.

Back at Wellstead, we decided to top up with fuel, a good decision because the lady in the shop said the price was rising tomorrow, not her choice, but that of the owners. It is the way of it at present.

When we returned to camp, we had a nap and then watch the Gold Coast demolish the Eagles.

16 March – My back was protesting through the night and in the morning so we decided to stay on for another day and let it rest. This proved to be a good decision because the rain returned and settled in, giving us our wettest day to date. We did nothing. Read, lazed, watched a truly awful old movie called “My Super Ex-Girlfriend”, surely Uma Thurman’s worst performance. By the late afternoon, the sky had cleared and we finally began to get views of the Stirling Ranges, still cloud covered, but at least partially visible.

17 March – We only travelled 50km today, to a place called Miller’s Point, a camping area on the Beaufort Inlet, where the Pallinup river enters the sea. The estuary is noticeably low after a long hot summer. The bar has not broken through for 8 years or so and the water in the estuary is murky and a bit green, certainly not inviting as a swimming possibility. I have seen calls for the bar to be opened to help restore the estuary.

We found a lovely camp spot with views to two parts of the inlet. I headed down to fish with little confidence, given the appearance of the water. However, I was very pleasantly surprised to catch three nice bream, two just size and one quite big one. I was shadowed by a large pelican the whole time I fished. He knew the difference between me reeling in to re-bait and reeling in a fish. When I had a fish on, he would get in front of me, trying to snatch the fish of the line as it came in. I had to have a little pile of rocks to ward him off. Later, I found that picking up a thong was enough. Obviously, it had experienced the old thong treatment before. When I released the small bream, I had to throw them far enough away so that the pelican wouldn’t get them. Let him catch his own.

18 March – We left the van closed up and drove the 50km into Bremer Bay to explore and do a bit of shopping. It is a pretty little town situated on the shores of the Wellstead Estuary. This estuary appeared to be open to the sea, at least a little, with a noticeable current flowing in. The caravan park in town was around half full and looked beautiful, with the estuary just across the road.

As is the case with most towns that are on the end of a road, prices in the shop were high, as was the fuel cost. There was a tanker in filling the bowser tanks so at least they are getting supply.

We drove out about 8kms to the Fisheries Beach Small Boat Harbour, passing another even nicer looking caravan park along the way. The tiny harbour was protected and had three or four fishing boats at anchor. It is also the departure point for the Bremer Bay Orca Watching Tours, and judging by the number of cars in the carpark, a successful operation. All in all, Bremer Bay looks to have possibilities for another visit with a small boat sometime in the future.

Back at Miller’s Point Camp, I tried the fishing again, catching three more good sized black bream, so a few fish meals were assured.

19 March – A restful day, doing a few minor repairs, reading and listening to all the talk of fuel supply problems on the ABC. So far, we have not been affected by supply problems but the cost is certainly having an effect. We did a bit of forward planning to settle some dates that we would commit to the Nullabor crossing if thins allow it.

One of the things we did was get the generator out. We haven’t used it yet. It is not needed for general power needs because our solar has kept us going so far. With no access to mobile phone in this camp, we have relied on our Starlink service, which is very good but a little power hungry. Also, we were curious to see whether the generator would supply enough power to run the airconditioner in the van, should conditions demand it. We were very happy with the results, The Redback 3.5kVA proved very quiet and only showed 50% load with the caravan (including battery charger) and airconditioner going. It is good to know it is there. Later in our trip, we plan to live off grid a lot and don’t want to miss any creature comforts. Some people love to rough it like bushies. We have moved beyond that point.

20 March – Today was a relocation day. We packed up and headed off for the 50kms to Jerramungup. We hadn’t planned to do much there, saving shopping and fuel purchase for the larger town of Ravensthorpe. However, much to our surprise, one of the two fuel outlets in Jerramungup was selling fuel at 30c/l cheaper than the other or those in Ravensthorpe. There was a well-stocked supermarket too, and it proved a good choice because little did we know that there was currently no supermarket operating in Ravensthorpe. “Jerra” also had a dump point, but no water fill that we could find.

The drive to Ravensthorpe, another 100kms further along, was through country with little to recommend it from a beauty perspective. Ravensthorpe itself is a difficult place enjoy, it being built on a series of hills, no doubt due to its mining origins. We found the watering point, exchanged a gas bottle with a very friendly chatty fellow, topped up the fuel again and turned south towards Hopetoun. About 20kms down the road, we stopped for the day at the ruins of an old mining town called Kundip, quite a lively spot back before the Great War but now just a series of tracks and clearings that make a good free camp area.

21-23 March – We drove south to Hopetoun, doing a little more shopping for things we forgot in Jerramungup and having morning tea out on the harbour breakwater. The breakwater provides a sheltered place with a jetty and a launching ramp and looks to be an excellent spot for rock wall fishing.

From Hopetoun, we turned west and drove out across a good bitumen road to the Fitzgerald River National Park, a large park covering an area of outstanding floral diversity and having a number of small mountain ranges, with some spectacular peaks. We stopped at the entrance to the park to check that we had the right booking details and parks pass before heading up a 17% incline climb up the sides of Mount Barren. The car struggled and we crawled in low gear to a lookout and pull-over area. On getting out, I could smell burning. Oops, the hand brake was on. No wonder the climb was hard.

We checked out the views and admired the plants, especially the abundant royal hakeas, that stand tall and get their display from the many hued leaves rather than flowers.

Our camp site was at the Hamersley Inlet, the estuary of the Hamersley River. The inlet has a reputation for good fishing, bream, whiting, flathead and cobbler, but the water levels are currently so low, and the water so saline that there was little possibility of that. The salt was crystallizing out on the sand and rocks. There was very little bird life and no sign of any fish. We resigned ourselves to taking in the sights in the surround area.

The next few days were forecast as overcast and wet and we started to notice the power drop, especially as we like to do things like watch football on TV through the Starlink. The generator came into use to take the place of the sun. We haven’t had to use it much but it is good to know we can catch up on power when we have to.

Christine baked her most successful bread rolls yet, using a 50-50 mix of white and whole meal flour. Other than that, we went for a drive, walked a fair way and caught up on some writing.

I took the 3km walk to the ocean at the mouth of the river. It was easy, sticking to the edge of the estuary. Early in the walk, I was surprised to see an echidna walking within three metres of the water on the salt flats. He curled himself into a tight ball on my approach and headed back towards the bush after I passed by.

For the return trip I chose the marked walk trail, which proved quite tortuous, going up hill and down dale, but at least giving some terrific views across the inlet.

24-25 March – With the batteries low we decided to book in for a night at the caravan park in Hopetoun, especially as its right on the beach. We were given a lovely secluded spot right on the beach access path so we upgraded to two nights. We plugged in, did a load of washing and used the dryer then tried the beach for some herring. I managed one lonely one, frustrated at the surf action taking the line into weeds.

The next day I tried my luck at the breakwater, on the protected side. No herring, only a sweep and a wrasse, so I decided to try the beach again. The conditions were kinder and I easily caught 8 herring, enough for tea with some to pickle for snacks with evening drinks.

The weather remains grey, drizzly and cool. Frustratingly, the seaward horizon is blue sky, but the clear weather just does not come into the land.

26 March – We drove a whole 85km today to the little town of Munglinup, where they have a free rest stop opposite the roadhouse. We had a very lazy day, watching a movie, reading and seeing all the comings and goings of the passing traffic. The wind was up over 20 knots and causing minor dust storms in the unsealed pull-in area. We had wisely parked at the bottom of the cleared area, well away from everyone else but to windward, so we did not experience the red storm that erupted every time a road train breezed through the parking area. Some did not even stop. I think they were getting revenge on caravanners.

27 March to 3 April – With the high winds continuing, we relocated to Esperance for a few days, to see out the coming severe weather in some comfort. The tail of Cyclone Narelle was due to come down through the SE Coast on Saturday night, bringing strong winds and a fair bit of rain. We chose the Pink Lake Caravan Park, about  2kms from the Pink Lake but they had to name it something.  It is a lovely park but we were given a tiny site more suited to a camper van than a caravan and car. We squeezed in.

Esperance meant access to a Bunnings for a few fixit bits and a Woolworths to replenish food stocks. Esperance has grown a bit since we were here last and looking prosperous. There are tourists everywhere and lots of cafes and coffee shops.

Saturday morning showed the cyclonic rain more to the west, Albany to Bremer Bay copping the brunt of it. It was a matter of enjoying the fine bits and hunkering down during the rainy/windy times. It is the South Coast after all.

The ABS warning light has been coming on a fair bit when the car is first started, probably a warning of bad things to come. We decided to extend our stay in Esperance and try to source some help, although worried about the approaching Easter break.

On Monday morning, we took the car to BSL Mechanics, highly recommended via Google Reviews, and especially praised for helping out desperate tourists. The earliest booking we could get was for the Wednesday, with a prognosis of a failing accumulator pump ($1000) being the most likely.

We spend the remaining time driving along the West’s version of the Great Ocean Road, featuring some amazingly beautiful beaches and sparkling turquoise water. Sunday was warm and calm, and it seems like most of Esperance was on the beaches, many even swimming. The water was way too cold for us oldies. Some claim that Esperance has the best beaches in Australia, and I would agree that they must give the title a big shake.

 

The Pink Lake was not pink, mainly because it had very little water in it. It is only occasionally pink, when a special algae blooms. There was one just out of Dowerin, so we got used to seeing the effect over the last 20 years.

Another day we headed out to Beadon Creek and tried fishing, managing only three yellow-eyed mullet and a herring, but all small so returned. Once again, the location and the ability to drive right down onto the beach made it so enjoyable.

On Tuesday we went to the movies, Esperance boasting a three cinema complex. We watched “Reminders of Him”, a bit of a tear jerker and very well done.

Wednesday finally came and the car was looked at. The diagnosis was much better than thought, with a gasket showing a slight leak and loss of pressure. That replaced, the light remained off and they could find anything more. The bill of $200 was a big improvement on the $1000.

On Thursday, we tested the car with a trip out to Cape Le Grand National Park. This would be a beautiful place to camp, but it is insanely popular and bookings up to six months ahead are necessary. Little wonder. The beaches are even better than the Esperance ones, and the imposing mountains of granite dominate the landscape. It is a very spectacular place. Even better, the car behaved itself.

Esperance is the end of our South Coast trip. On Good Friday, we set off to cross the Nullabor, the recent drop in fuel prices and Government efforts to guarantee supply making us fairly confident that we can proceed, although with a bigger budget than planned.