Our family of 5 went on another lovely camping trip. Tenting is what we love! The 3 boys aged 9, 4 and 13 months are our priority and we aim to make it as much fun for them. So mapping out an interesting route that is family friendly is our aim. I have rated the sites out of five which you can see next to the camp name using (*) The ratings refer to the fun we had and the quality of the camp ground. Our trip starts from Wellington Dam.
Wellington Dam, honeymoon pool. ( 2 hrs from perth ) ***** Flushing loos, swimming, canoeing, walking trails.
Our drive to Wellington Dam was lovely. We stopped in Harvey for an ice-cream at the G-spot ice-creamery which is part of the Harvey Cheese building. I had the passionfruit sorbet, scrumptious! They had a lovely selection of cheeses, olives etc as well as organic bug repellants and candles. A varied range of goods all made in Harvey. A must stop on the way through!
Once we got to Wellington Dam the kids were very excited to find a lovely river with a platform to jump off :) We pitched our 12 person, 3 room tent. Kids in one room, us in the other and the kitchen in the middle. The kids fit perfectly with a camp stretcher each for the older boys and the porta-cot for the bub. We sat at a park bench near our tent to have our well deserved lunch before heading to the river for a dip, which was about 10m from our camp site.
The water was like ice! But it didnt stop any of us, except the bub... Our eldest enjoyed jumping from the platform, as did us grown-ups :) We also enjoyed a few lovely walks through the bush seeing rapids, wildlife and wild flowers. Ther are also lots of large tree trunks on the ground for the kids to climb. Overall the place was lovely, not alot of mozzies or marchflies. Thoroughly recommended.
Ferhook Falls, Mount Frankland NP. *** Mountain climbing, some walk trails are wheelchair accessable as is half the mountain climb although i'd reccomend a motorised wheel chair, long drop dunnys, wild flowers.
We drove through Collie then Boyup Brook (lovely drive) before stopping at Bridgetown for lunch on the blackwood river. We picked up some sausages form the local IGA and had a bbq there which was lovely. The kids had a ball on the playground. The toilets and bbq had just finished being cleaned when we got there. bonus!
We got to Fernhook Falls and about 2:30pm. The place was lovely and quiet. Long drop loos wheren't too bad, i've smelt worse! There were a few mozzies and march flies so bring repellant! We also hang up one of those mozzies coil cages from the hooks in the centre of the tent to keep them out of the tent so the kids dont get eaten. The bush walks were nice. They advertise a lovely river and falls although when we were there it wasn't flowing much and the water was horrible so no swimming this time! Plenty of wildlife such as the Bung Arrow.
We Climbed Mount Frankland the next day which was just brilliant. The perfect climb for anyone carrying a baby! My 4 year old almost got taken out by a kangaroo trying to make its way down the mountain so take care and keep the kids close at all times! The veiw at the top was nice - minus the fire watch tower.
Parry Beach, Denmark. ***** Beach swimming but be careful of rips, fishing, walking trails, flushing loos, solar showers, caravans welcome.
Deciding to take the 4-wheel drive route through walpole was a little confusing as the roads were blocked by gates, so perhaps stick to the main drag as these gates aren't shown on the maps! We grabbed supplies in Walpole before going to Parry beach. One of our fave camp spots, although it gets VERY full in the holidays, especially xmas so make sure you have a back up plan. Parry is close to William Bay NP which is a must see. Greens pool is lovely for the kids to swim in and my hubby and I even had a snorkel there. Elephant rocks is beautiful too, also a must see. If Parry Beach is full and you must stay at a caravn park dont stay at the big 4 caravan park in Denamrk. The big 4 had no baby change facilities in the family shower rooms so I had to dry my bub in the sink! There is no swimming pool which is a big 4 requirement apparently and the playground was pretty poor. Hopefully you get a spot at Parry Beach!! It's just lovely. The last time we stayed there, they even had a country band playing. Nothing better than relaxing with a cold beer and a country band by the beach!
Cape Riche ***** Swimming, flushing loos, cold showers, drinking water available ( boil first ), fishing, scuba diving, snorkelling, mountain trails and bush walks.
A busy privately owned campsite, but a lovely spot for the kiddies. We spent most of our time on the beach in our screen dome tent. If you have a bub, forget a beach shelter. Get a screen dome so you can plonk bubs in it so he/she stay out of the sun when they have had enough. The campsite here was cheap at $10 p/n for all of us. Great snorkelling, the eldest isn't terribly strong at swimming but here we were able to take him on a reef which is part of the shore line! He loved it The 4 yr old spent his time riging the waves in his swimming vest and the bubs played in the smaller waves on the shore. There a lots of Kangaroos that hop through the camp so that kept the kiddies happy too.
We also climbed Mount Melville. I dont recommend taking the 4km walk though as the path is degraded and hard to follow. We saw a Bobtail Goanna on our walk and some lovely wildflowers. A lovely view of the beach, Cheyne Island and river from the top. Cheyne Island offers great diving so bring a boat!
Cape Le Grand, Esperance. ** Swimming, Walks, wildlife. Free if camping at Dunn Rock. The other sites require a fee.
While the beach was beautiful and pristine, the camp spot was as small as our city back yard with about 10 tents crammed on it. This was at Lucky Bay. The Cape Le Grand site looked to be better with designated camp sites but it was very full this time of year. We camped at Dunn Rock, a lovely spot but VERY windy. You need to be 100% self sufficint here. No toilets, no drinking water, no bbqs. So bring your dunny shovel, bog roll, water and a camp stove! The water is absolutely lovely and we had fun climbing up the big rocks on the shoreline. Look out for snakes though.
Twighlight bay was a nice stop although there a large waves and rips so be careful with the kids. Jax Snax fish and chips is great and a well deserved treat after eating camp food for a week and a half.
Quagi Beach, between Stokes NP and Esperance. ** Swimming, good stop over. flushing loos, cold shower.
Nice little campspot only $2 per person. Honesty box. Lovely swimming but be careful of rips, sheltered campsites. Not alot for the kids other than swimming
Stopped back at Cape Riche because we loved it so much and the kids wanted to go back! Then on our way home we passed the Stirling Ranges. A beautiful sight. Then stopped in Wagin for some lunch at the Giant Ram. It is worth stopping for a pic, but keep driving! We were absolutely eaten alive by mozzies so the only pic I got is of us legging it!
So Overall the kids fave spots were Honeymoon Pool at Wellington Dam, Parry Beach and Cape Riche.
