Sunday was lovely, hot but not oppressive, sunny but not fierce, perfect for a trip to the beach.
On the way to Gnarabup we rang a friend of Missy and invited her to join us, she lives in Margaret River and was on the way. A short detour and a promise to be careful on the beach and we were off.
The beach was perfect, we swam, the kids dived and found a huge supply of shells we used the boogie boards for over an hour and they still wanted more.
Mr Hojo and I were hanging for a coffee so we got the troops to move over to the sheltered beach for a swim where we could supervise them from the safety of a table, 2 chairs and some warm caffeinated beverages.
Thud, THUD, THUD oh my........ a trailer had unhitched itself and the guy who was hoping to collect some seaweed for his garden was in danger of squashing 4 children, one of whom didn't belong to us!
We watched in slow motion as the trailer bumped its way down the slope towards the children who sensibly stepped out the way and calmly helped him get the trailer back on the slipway! Way cool.
Kids all fine and back in the water we stayed on for a while until we felt we needed to go get the kids home and ready for school the next day.
We took friend home and stayed for a chat witht the parents, at no time did either of us think to mention we nearly got her squashed...I suspect they will trust us again.....?
Showing posts with label Gnarabup. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Gnarabup. Show all posts
Monday, March 14, 2011
Tuesday, March 25, 2008
Wave riders and Watersheds
Sunday 23rd March 2008 Easter Sunday
After a slow start to day we headed out towards Margaret River and then on to Prevelly which is supposed to be one of the top surfing areas in WA. We thought that there would be a beach but it was shallow rocks up to about 200 yards out and beyond that was where all the surfers were sitting waiting for that one elusive wave. We were quite high up on a cliff and had a really good view of it and some of the waves were quite impressive bearing in mind that the water was not particularly rough today but it was keeping the surfers busy and it was fun to watch.
After about 30 seconds the kids attention span had passed and they had decided that they would much rather be in the water themselves than be watching somebody else in the water, so after about ½ hour we moved on to Gnarabup beach about a kilometre (5/8 mile), we came here when we stayed in Margaret River last time.
When we went there last time the kids really enjoyed it and today wasn’t going to be any different, straight away they were in the water, swimming, using their wave riders and getting dunked by the waves on a regular basis. Fraser made a friend again today although this time it was a boy about the same age as him who we think had seen him so far out from the beach that he assumed that he was struggling and went out on his surf board to help him, Fraser was quite comfortably swimming quite a way out and in no danger but took the opportunity to have a chat out there and then get a lift back before playing together for the rest of the afternoon. Unfortunately like most friendships made on a beach it is not ever likely to go any further because this boy is going to be flying out to Hong Kong tomorrow.
We left the beach at about 5pm and drove back on the coast road which took a little bit longer but was far more enjoyable than the main road from Margaret River and you wouldn’t believe how many vineyards there are on that one stretch of road from Gnarabup to Yallingup, at one point every field appears to belong to a different vineyard but these places obviously do alright for themselves because some of the visitors centres are absolutely magnificent and must have cost a fortune to build.
When we got home we had a nice healthy chicken salad, when I say healthy chicken salad I don’t mean that the chicken was healthy because obviously it wasn’t as it was dead and had been cooked, I meant the salad was healthy and we had chicken with it. Sorry if I’m waffling on a bit but when I read healthy chicken salad I get this vision of us ripping apart a nice healthy chicken that just happened to be passing by, wrapping it in a lettuce leaf and devouring it and feel the need to make it clear that although we have moved to Australia we still eat our chicken cooked although in this part of WA everybody seems to sell cooked chicken and I am starting to wonder if they were ever alive in the first place or just come out into this world already cooked to please the Australian appetite.
After dinner we put the kids to bed and then sat and watched about 4 hours of adverts with clips of the film Pearl Harbour in between, the adverts don’t get any better although they do seem to be getting more frequent and more amateur in the making but we shouldn’t knock it too much because one day we might decide to make an advert for the Olde Chapel Café. If you have any ideas for an advert for the Café let us know but please take into account that they will be shown before the watershed whatever a watershed is.
I have often wondered what a watershed was, it sounds like it should be somebody’s personal reservoir that they keep at the bottom of the garden with the lawn mower and tool boxes in a wooden hut but it has got to be something more important than that and it is obviously very moralistic because some things can’t be shown before it. If anyone out there knows what it is and why it is called a watershed could they please let me know because I have been worrying about this for years and now that I am living in a country with no worries I don’t want to feel like the odd one out?
After a slow start to day we headed out towards Margaret River and then on to Prevelly which is supposed to be one of the top surfing areas in WA. We thought that there would be a beach but it was shallow rocks up to about 200 yards out and beyond that was where all the surfers were sitting waiting for that one elusive wave. We were quite high up on a cliff and had a really good view of it and some of the waves were quite impressive bearing in mind that the water was not particularly rough today but it was keeping the surfers busy and it was fun to watch.
After about 30 seconds the kids attention span had passed and they had decided that they would much rather be in the water themselves than be watching somebody else in the water, so after about ½ hour we moved on to Gnarabup beach about a kilometre (5/8 mile), we came here when we stayed in Margaret River last time.
When we went there last time the kids really enjoyed it and today wasn’t going to be any different, straight away they were in the water, swimming, using their wave riders and getting dunked by the waves on a regular basis. Fraser made a friend again today although this time it was a boy about the same age as him who we think had seen him so far out from the beach that he assumed that he was struggling and went out on his surf board to help him, Fraser was quite comfortably swimming quite a way out and in no danger but took the opportunity to have a chat out there and then get a lift back before playing together for the rest of the afternoon. Unfortunately like most friendships made on a beach it is not ever likely to go any further because this boy is going to be flying out to Hong Kong tomorrow.
We left the beach at about 5pm and drove back on the coast road which took a little bit longer but was far more enjoyable than the main road from Margaret River and you wouldn’t believe how many vineyards there are on that one stretch of road from Gnarabup to Yallingup, at one point every field appears to belong to a different vineyard but these places obviously do alright for themselves because some of the visitors centres are absolutely magnificent and must have cost a fortune to build.
When we got home we had a nice healthy chicken salad, when I say healthy chicken salad I don’t mean that the chicken was healthy because obviously it wasn’t as it was dead and had been cooked, I meant the salad was healthy and we had chicken with it. Sorry if I’m waffling on a bit but when I read healthy chicken salad I get this vision of us ripping apart a nice healthy chicken that just happened to be passing by, wrapping it in a lettuce leaf and devouring it and feel the need to make it clear that although we have moved to Australia we still eat our chicken cooked although in this part of WA everybody seems to sell cooked chicken and I am starting to wonder if they were ever alive in the first place or just come out into this world already cooked to please the Australian appetite.
After dinner we put the kids to bed and then sat and watched about 4 hours of adverts with clips of the film Pearl Harbour in between, the adverts don’t get any better although they do seem to be getting more frequent and more amateur in the making but we shouldn’t knock it too much because one day we might decide to make an advert for the Olde Chapel Café. If you have any ideas for an advert for the Café let us know but please take into account that they will be shown before the watershed whatever a watershed is.
I have often wondered what a watershed was, it sounds like it should be somebody’s personal reservoir that they keep at the bottom of the garden with the lawn mower and tool boxes in a wooden hut but it has got to be something more important than that and it is obviously very moralistic because some things can’t be shown before it. If anyone out there knows what it is and why it is called a watershed could they please let me know because I have been worrying about this for years and now that I am living in a country with no worries I don’t want to feel like the odd one out?
Monday, March 17, 2008
Yes Dad, the Southern Ocean is freezing
Sunday 23rd February 2008
We have decided that as it is Sunday and we wouldn’t be able to get much done business wise we would go out for a drive and spend a bit of quality time with the kids.
We decided to head South to Augusta and quite by mistake ended up on the coast road, it was beautiful, driving through Vineyards and Forests, from time to time we drove through an area that had been caught in a Bush fire and the Bark on the Trees would be totally blackened but there would be fresh green leaves and branches shooting out of it and where the ground had been blackened Ferns and Bushes had re grown, it was quite a spectacle to look at as we meandered along the road hardly seeing another vehicle as we went.
When we got to Augusta we carried on through the town until we got to a place called Flinders bay, it is beautiful, there were a load of older people sitting at the waters edge all dressed up in their Sunday best and a few other families scattered around on the beach. This is the Southern Ocean, we have got to go in it, so we got changed into our swimming gear and went into the sea, it was definitely colder than up where Sharon lives but unlike up there the water is Chrystal Clear and not very salty. Ian was swimming underwater with his eyes open and could see really well without any bother at all. The sun was starting to get hot and you can’t afford to spend long out in the open in the middle of the day so we dried off and headed further round the coast to have a look at a Lighthouse and what is left of a very old Waterwheel that was used to pump water to the building site when they were building the Lighthouse. Then we drove back into town where we found a Deli/Café where we had a most delightful lunch.
After lunch it was back in the car and off to find another beach this time it was Hamelin Bay, a beautiful Bay with Golden Sand and Crystal Clear waters, it was hot so we all went for a swim , this was still the Southern Ocean and we can’t get over the difference between the water down here and a couple of hundred Km up the coast. Again the sun is still hot so we are only there for about ½ hour before drying off and heading up the coast road again, we went down a few side turnings along the way and some of the views and houses out in this remote area are amazing, if you want to lose yourself somewhere this is the place to be.
We then went to a beach which is probably one of the Closest to Margaret River, Gnarabup, yet another lovely beach and as it was about 5pm and starting to cool down we were able to spend a bit more time there which pleased the kids. After a couple of hours we headed back to the Chalet and while the kids were getting showered Ian went to the supermarket to organise the evening meal, the kids favourite, Picky Bits, just simple nibbles that they can eat with their hands and then another early night.
We have decided that as it is Sunday and we wouldn’t be able to get much done business wise we would go out for a drive and spend a bit of quality time with the kids.
We decided to head South to Augusta and quite by mistake ended up on the coast road, it was beautiful, driving through Vineyards and Forests, from time to time we drove through an area that had been caught in a Bush fire and the Bark on the Trees would be totally blackened but there would be fresh green leaves and branches shooting out of it and where the ground had been blackened Ferns and Bushes had re grown, it was quite a spectacle to look at as we meandered along the road hardly seeing another vehicle as we went.
When we got to Augusta we carried on through the town until we got to a place called Flinders bay, it is beautiful, there were a load of older people sitting at the waters edge all dressed up in their Sunday best and a few other families scattered around on the beach. This is the Southern Ocean, we have got to go in it, so we got changed into our swimming gear and went into the sea, it was definitely colder than up where Sharon lives but unlike up there the water is Chrystal Clear and not very salty. Ian was swimming underwater with his eyes open and could see really well without any bother at all. The sun was starting to get hot and you can’t afford to spend long out in the open in the middle of the day so we dried off and headed further round the coast to have a look at a Lighthouse and what is left of a very old Waterwheel that was used to pump water to the building site when they were building the Lighthouse. Then we drove back into town where we found a Deli/Café where we had a most delightful lunch.
After lunch it was back in the car and off to find another beach this time it was Hamelin Bay, a beautiful Bay with Golden Sand and Crystal Clear waters, it was hot so we all went for a swim , this was still the Southern Ocean and we can’t get over the difference between the water down here and a couple of hundred Km up the coast. Again the sun is still hot so we are only there for about ½ hour before drying off and heading up the coast road again, we went down a few side turnings along the way and some of the views and houses out in this remote area are amazing, if you want to lose yourself somewhere this is the place to be.
We then went to a beach which is probably one of the Closest to Margaret River, Gnarabup, yet another lovely beach and as it was about 5pm and starting to cool down we were able to spend a bit more time there which pleased the kids. After a couple of hours we headed back to the Chalet and while the kids were getting showered Ian went to the supermarket to organise the evening meal, the kids favourite, Picky Bits, just simple nibbles that they can eat with their hands and then another early night.
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