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GLOUCESTER TREE, VALLEY OF THE GIANTS AND ALBANY
Left Margaret River yesterday morning sadly... We drove through forests of huge karri trees to get to the Gloucester Tree, the tallest of the lot. Some years ago, people decided to put metal poles up the side so it could be climbed and used as a lookout. Climbing it is easier said than done - I'm sure this thing would be illegal in Europe and America, because it is quite possible to fall off... But we all made it to the top, had a look around and then got safely back down again.
Next we drove to the Valley of the Giants - a forest of equally huge tingle trees where they have built a walkway about 40 m off the ground, to see the trees from a different angle. The walkway is designed to sway, to mimic the motion of the trees while you are seeing them from this different angle... unfortunately after a little while I started to feel a bit seasick and had to get off, but can say that the trees are impressive, especially when seen from firm ground.
The night was spent in Albany, a small town in south WA, apparently it was meant to be the capital but Perth stole the title. Since it was Sunday night, there was not much entertainment to be had. And also, sitting on your ass in a bus all day is actually more tiring than it would seem, so we hit the deck quite early.
The next morning, early start for a drive around Albany's coastal features, which were quite stunning. Look at the pictures. Then we drove all the way back to Perth, with a stop at a winery and also a small detour to a stereotypical outback town called Katanning, which features 4000 inhabitants and a weekly sheep-shearing festival.
7 hours later, we got to Perth. The distances are huge in WA. I am spending a couple more days in Fremantle before heading up north.
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