Emu Point to Ellen Cove Walk

 Thursday 24 September - 182116

Today we walked from Middelton Beach to Emu Point and back. I wore my hiking pack as part of my physio rehabilitation for my calf.  While this walk does not give continuous views of the beach, it is on a nice path with no traffic and through the coastal bush, with opportunities to look at the beach along the way. 

The most dangerous snake we saw today

Emu Point itself was quite picturesque.  

We stopped for a break at Middleton Beach and had morning tea.  I then put my pack back on and we walked up the Ellen Cove boardwalk towards Port Albany for a bit over a kilometre. We did not go the full distance to Port Albany, based on advice from the physio. This was the first time I have tried going uphill with my pack on and no heel lift in my shoes, and I was pleased with how my calf went.  Total ascent today was a bit over 100m, so still very mild.  Our timing was great as we had the opportunity to watch two tugboats guide a bulk carrier into Ataturk Channel.

Emu Point to Ellen Cove and Port Albany Walk

Middleton Beach

Ellen Cove Boardwalk

Ataturk Channel

We followed this with a swim at Middleton Beach. While this was still very cold, it was warmer than first thing in the morning with a noticeably warmer top inch or two of water.  A late lunch picnic in the park was the perfect way to conclude today’s adventures.

The afternoon was boring but necessary stuff – groceries, collecting stuff from the post office and general life administration.

Wildflowers and Walking

 Wednesday 23 September – 182096

The annual Albany Wildflower Show opened today – a fantastic opportunity to see samples of the different types of wildflowers from this area.  There were many wildflowers that were in fact closely related different types, but I had assumed were the same. My favourite types were predominantly banksias and proteas.  Albany Wildflower Show

This afternoon we walked the Irrerup Mount Adelaide Nature Trail (Distance 3.08km, Time 1h, Ascent/Descent 62m). This gave some lovely views in the fine weather this afternoon (contrasted with miserable drizzle this morning). As the sun had come out there were plenty of lizards basking on the trail, thankfully no snakes though. This walk wandered through the bush around the National ANZAC Centre and included a WW2 Command Post that overlooked Ataturk Channel.  We also stopped at a lookout over the water on the way back.  Trails WA Irrerup Mount Adelaide Nature Trail

Middleton Beach

Left: Lake Seppings, Right: Middleton Beach

Toilet Paper

 Ladies - and this problem is primarily a lady's issue - please do not leave toilet paper behind after you pee!  Walking on the hiking trails in South West Western Australia I have been able to tell the more popular trails, particularly with day hikers, by the sheer quantities of toilet paper.  The vast majority of this appears to have been left behind after a pee.  Men naturally have a huge convenience advantage over ladies when needing to pee while hiking, but we don't need to leave any more evidence than the men.

Please do any one of the following, whatever sits most comfortably with you:

1. Put your used paper in a sealable clippy bag and take it with you.

2. Purchase and use a reusable special purpose cloth that clips onto your backpack eg Kula Cloth or less expensive versions of the same concept.  Kula Cloth  Low Cost Pee Cloth  Personally I have two Kula cloths, one in the back of the 4WD for roadside stops where there is no paper, and one on my hiking pack.  I do not have any sponsorship or commercial interest, I just think it is a great concept.

3. Carry a small moist face washer in a clippy bag to use.

4. Drip dry like a bloke.

Just PLEASE don't leave a trace.

Back to Bushwalking!

 Tuesday 22 September - 182045

Again, I started the day with a swim at Middleton Beach. Today I learnt from some of the other ladies there about thermal swimming caps – apparently you wear the normal swim cap underneath and then this on top to keep your head warm, like a beanie for swimming.

Middleton Beach

Today’s physio visit resulted in an increase in the exercises I am to do, and a reintroduction to bushwalking. So, this afternoon we headed out to walk the Luke Pen Walk. This travels along the bank of the Kalgan River. I saw more wildflowers that I had not previously seen. I enjoyed having my SLR camera with me, rather than my phone camera. The walk was undulating, but not overly steep in any spots. My calf seemed to handle it well but was feeling tired when we finished. (Distance 11.53km, Time 3h 18m, Ascent/Descent 200m)

Trails WA Luke Pen Walk

Last up for the day was the Oyster Harbour Fish Traps. These need to be viewed at low tide. They were used until the end of the 19^th Century, but have since fallen into disrepair. Despite this it is still easy to visualize how effective they would have been.

Oyster Harbour Fish Traps