Up early to catch our personally-booked (as opposed to Princess ‘shore excursion’) with Albany Tours…guided around by the informative Chris. Had to catch a town shuttle bus first from the dock to the visitor centre. A gorgeous 25 degree day. The view back to the dock from a droney perspective in the town centre…..

We took in 360 degree views of the coastline from the summit and of the vast expanse of the Southern Ocean from Stony Hill @ Torndirrup National Park. These were the rugged coastal cliff lines the early explorers first encountered as they rounded the Flinders Peninsula for the sheltered waters of Princess Royal Harbour. Wildflowers (white, yellow and pink) were starting to pop out.

Next to the derelict whaling station and relaxed with scones and jam overlooking King George Sound. @ the Whalers Gallery Cafe. The whaling station set up in 1952, initially focused on hunting humpback whales, later shifting to targetting sperm whales, adapting to international quotas and changing whale populations. It contributed significantly to WA’s mid 20thC economy. Operations ceased in 1978, thank goodness. There’s a gorgeous photo display of ‘seafarers and their pets’ in the Gallery too…

Sent droney up for some lovely pics over the Sound……

We got closer to ‘the edge’ at The Gap and Natural Bridge – felt the power of the wind and water from the masterfully-crafted walkway lookout over the Gap; the waves pounded and thrashed the granite walls and surged through the narrow space formed by nature. Breathtaking!

Lastly, took in the view of the Albany Wind Farm @ stunning Sandpatch beach…those crashing breakers, wowsers!

We had ‘sweet’ tour plans for our stopover at Busselton. Our first stop was to be at Yallingup (tucked between the vineyards) and Gabriel’s Chocolate, WA’s first bean to bar choc maker. They import beans from as far away as Ghana, Sambirano and Rio Caribe.  Then Cowaramup – named after the purple crowned lorikeet Cowara that once inhabited the area. Originally a timber town in 1930’s,  and we were going to sample the famous almond and honey Niugaretto Licquer @ Margaret River Nougat Co. Lastly, delish fudge and honeycomb @ Candy Cow. None of this came to fruition…..Captain cancelled onshore excursions due to the swell and staff difficulty in launching (the ‘tenders’ attached to the ship) to take us to shore and then securing the tenders to the ship on our return. Bugger!

Amused myself by going to hear karaoke performers….some songs were totally butchered, some ‘spoken’ (like OMG, ‘The House of the Rising Sun’!!!), only a couple of dudes sang really well. Some very earnest singers, some attempting some awkward uncoordinated hand movements with the music ….goodness me. You have to admire their ‘pluck’ but not their sense of judgement/self-capacity assessment. 🙂

In Freo, Lynne had the most fantastic of times catching up with son John, and many relatives including grandkids and great grandkids. We gathered @ the Bridge Garden Bar, (with a ‘streets eats’ menu), only a hop and step from the Mandurah market along the Eastern foreshore. A delightful afternoon. Just made it back by 15.45 for the ship’s departure @ 16.00, phew!

And I loved these youngsters, we had a great time chatting away….