Tue 9th Jul: Palgarup
My panama is looking pretty tragic and I swore I would arrive in Albany wearing it so it is time for some repairs. Out comes the epoxy. The result is pretty good, except that I must have got the mix slightly wrong and the epoxy never quite cures. For this trip I will be accompanied by the faint scent of uncured epoxy.
Once again I drive down to Dad’s place and stay the night. Tomorrow I will drop the Subaru in Northcliffe and then Dad will drop me in Pemberton.
Wed 10 Jul (Day 30): Pemberton to Warren
It is about 10am when Dad drops me at the crossings bakery. I have plenty of time and I am not going to have any coffee for a few days so I grab a coffee at the bakery. They have all these prizes up on the wall for their pies but for some reason I decide to buy a vanilla slice. I don’t know why, nostalgia maybe. It is okay but really big – too thick to bite. I need to use a spoon, which is pretty messy with a vanilla slice. I share some of the pastry with the local fauna.
Pemberton is a pretty attractive town and most of the buildings date back to the timber milling days. From the edge of town a 1.5km sealed path leads to the Gloucester Tree. I have climbed the tree several times in the past and I decide to move on. Besides, what would I do with my pack while I was climbing?
Shortly after leaving the Gloucester Tree I meet a father and son heading North. He says he saw several sheep on the track. I wonder whether I could fit a sheep in my tucker bag?
The track heads steeply downhill, following a local walking loop from the tree. At the bottom of the hill it leaves the loop and follows walking trails and rail formations. The weather is cool, overcast, slightly damp but not actually raining. If you had to summarise this country in a single word it would be hard to get past “damp”. It is too early for wildflowers but there are some pretty colourful fungi. Pretty much everything is covered in fungus, moss or lichen. Sometimes all three.
It is nearly 1pm when I arrive at the cascades, a picnic area on Lefroy brook. There is plenty of water running at this time of year and it is a nice place to wander around. The railway track runs nearby – unlike most of the rail in the southwest the track has been restored and is used to run a tourist tram. I never saw the tram but I have been hearing its horn echoing through the forest all morning. Either that or it was some sort of large prehistoric creature.
There is an interesting information board describing the lampreys which travel up the streams from the ocean once a year to breed. Very odd creatures. I kept my eyes open but I never saw one although it is the right time of year. Apparently they can form a solid mass of slimy eel-like bodies as they work their way up the rocks of the stream.
I eat lunch under the rail bridge and then move on, following mostly rail formations through established forest and then through regenerating karri.
At about 3pm I skirt some farmland. It looks extraordinarily green, and the wide views seem weird after walking through forest all day.
The track descends to the Warren river. It returns to the river bank several times before ascending to the Warren campsite.
There are two young guys at the site when I arrive. They aren’t very talkative, I guess they were hoping to have the hut to themselves. There are the sad remains of a fire in the fire ring. The ground is sodden and, although firewood has been provided it is pretty green. I chop a lot of kindling and manage to get a decent fire going, which I need because I have sausages for dinner. Someone has pinched the bbq plate so I have to cook the sausages on a stick – not ideal. Dinner is edible but not particularly gourmet.
Thu 11 Jul (Day 31): Warren to Schafer
I make a bit of a false start this morning. I thought the campsite was on a spur trail, so I head back up the spur towards the main trail. I get about 1km before I realise that the track actually continues through the camp site so I am walking back to Pemberton. I turn around and walk back. Could have been worse – I have heard of people who have walked all the way back to the previous campsite before realising they were going the wrong way.
I cross the Warren river on the River Road bridge, a pretty impressive wooden rail bridge that was built for log hauling in the 1930’s.
The track crosses a few creeks and follows the river for a while. I stop for lunch somewhere around blackberry pool.
About 3pm I pass some farmland, and soon after the track follows a dam wall before arriving at Schafer campsite. The camp overlooks the dam which is mostly on private land but a portion has been roped off for swimming. I really wanted to have a dip but my feet start to go numb as soon as I step into the water. I manage to get as far as my waist but that is all I can bear. I have the camp to myself. Dinner is venison with rice noodles.
Fri 12 Jul (Day 32): Schafer to Northcliffe
The track skirts private land for about 6km before leaving the forest altogether and following sandy roads through pasture land. Dairy country. I saw a large fox in the distance but he was too far away to get a photo.
I follow the Gardner river for a while with farmland on my left before crossing on a footbridge next to a ford. I stop here for lunch.
I climb away from the river and follow a road for a while, passing the Twin Karri picnic site. About 1km later I pass the Northcliffe dam picnic site, which is probably pretty popular in summer but you wouldn’t want to swim there now.
The track passes through the Acacia picnic site and follows a boardwalk for a while before emerging at the railway in Northcliffe.
Today’s leg has been less than 15km but my feet are really painful and I am glad to reach the subaru and get my boots off. I drive past Dad’s house on the way back to Perth but I don’t stop because I know he has an appointment in Bunbury this afternoon.
Bruce of the Bibbulmun 