Having reacquainted ourselves with urban life in Geralton we moved on to the lovely twin villages of Port Denison / Dongara about 80kms south. The Seagulls stayed on in Geraldton to finalise some plans for their upcoming trip back to the east coast for a wedding, a grandchild and a sneaky campervan tour of the Great Ocean Road with friends of theirs. And also to get their Pajero thoroughly cleaned and detailed. We would catch up with them on a day-trip to Greenough before meeting up for a few days in Cervantes before their departure.
We stayed at the Big4 Dongara Denison Beach Holiday Park. It was a pleasant caravan park and we had a large but tricky site at the back that looked directly onto the beach below a rock wall behind us. The only downside was a basket ball court nearby that was a constant source of thump-thump-thump from morning to dusk. Still… better than a jumping pillow and squealing kids.
Port Denison and Dongara are pretty postcard towns centred on crayfishing and tourism. The entry to Dongara features a big ‘rock lobster’ and you can walk from one end of each town to the other along a beautiful coastal walk with the towns seprated by the Irwin River and a wetland area.
The wetland backs onto a hill with a lookout at the top that provides a panoramic view of both towns and the ocean. We were treated to some beautiful W.A. sunsets while we were there and some stunning salmon coloured clouds while we were at the lookout.
The van park was located a short walk from the marina, which also had a seafood processing facility and shop. We wandered down to get some fresh fish one afternoon only to discover that they only had frozen fish due to the weather preventing them from going out. In any case we bought some frozen fillets that were superb done on the Weber.
Port Denison / Dongara also boasts a boutique distillery… Illegal Tender. They focus on rum and gin and have won world class awards. Rob, being a rum fan, did a tasting and could see why they are award winners. Their “Distiller’s Cut” was a very polished and clean rum spirit that leaves your standard Bundaberg Rum for dead. Unfortunately Rob couldn’t buy a bottle because they had run out at the cellar door… not surprising!
Although we didn’t expect to see the Seagulls until Cervantes they surprised us by cutting their Geraldton stay short and lobbing into Port Denison / Dongara unannounced for two nights. It was a welcome surprise given that Cervantes marked the point where they would be temporarily heading back east.
So… When we drove from Geraldton to Port Denison / Dongara… we passed the town of Greenough. At some point between Greenough and Port Denison / Dongara our pool noodles, which were riding in the tray at the front of our van, blew out onto the side of the road because they weren’t there when we arrived. Very sad… we had history with those pool noodles…
The Seagulls, who were still in Geraldton, agreed to meet us in Greenough for a day trip with us coming back from Port Denison / Dongara. As it transpired on our drive to Greenough Rob noticed a flash of blue in some long grass under a wire farm fence and then a flash of pink in more long grass about 1 km later. Unable to stop because of traffic behind us we continued on to Greenough…
Greenough Historic Town Site
On the outskirts of Greenough is the famous leaning tree of Greenough, one of many, many leaning trees growing throughout the region and that we first came across at Linga Longa. These trees are perfectly healthy but grow sideways because the persistent winds and salt spray burn the leaves one side causing them to die off and the opposite side to become heavier causing the trunk to bend and ultimately grow horizontally.
These trees are a striking feature of the Greenough region and we can vouch for the fact the winds are strong, persistent and salty…
The Greenough Historic Site, Hamlet, is a preserved town consisting mainly of stone buildings from the early 1800’s. It is mostly managed by the National Trust and is kept in a very well preserved state.
The buildings of the hamlet hinted at a spartan and remote life with few comforts but most of the necessities such as the Community Hall, School, Store, Courthouse, Hospital, Police Complex and Cells. The School Bell still stands and at first glance looks a bit more like a gallows than innocent school bell…
The police complex, court and cells are very well preserved and do exude a very heavy atmosphere as you walk through and around them, as does the hospital, which is very basic and really just a few beds with curtain walls.
Western Australia is chock full of these convict era ruins and Greenough Hamlet is a particularly notable example. It was similar in many respects to Cossack, which we visited near Point Samson, except that Greenough Hamlet is a closed museum site whereas Cossack still has a small number of residents and economic activity.
Greenough Museum
Not far from Greenough Hamlet is the Greenough Museum and Gardens. This is a historic homestead surrounded by gardens and yards full of historic farming equipment, much of which is restored to new or working condition.
For a fee you can wander through the homestead at your leisure, viewing the various artefacts and curios, and getting a glimpse of what would have been a particularly comfortable but otherwise austere lifestyle in that period.
One of the more unique exhibits was a fully restored, horse-drawn, automatic rabbit bait spreader/dispenser used to keep the vermin population under control. Yet another innovative but cumbersome colonial technology that seems to be completely over-engineered when compared with today’s lightweight power machinery.
Perhaps the most intriguing exhibit was the double thunderbox… a two person ‘brick shithouse’. A classic white-washed stone dunny with two long drops for sharing the joy… Can’t see a revival of this architectural gem coming back in the future…
The Greenough Museum and Gardens was a thoroughly enjoyable way to spend a couple of hours and imagine life back in that period. Back when things were both simpler and more complex at the same time…
The Drive Back To Port Denison / Dongara
After seeing the Seagulls off back to Geralston, we headed back to Port Denison / Dongara and as you may have guessed we stopped twice on the way and reclaimed our long lost pool noodles, which had suffered no damage in the three days they lay in grass beside the road, It was a happy reunion and they now travel in the back of the car behind the seats…