Silja: Bunburry - Busselton – Margret River

After having posted the last blog at the library in Mandurah, we experienced the worst thunderstorm ever: Over 5 hours of constant lightening and we were right in the middle of it the entire time! The thunder was so loud that the campervan vibrated.  Lightning struck several buildings around us, causing power cuts at the library and McDonalds – so no more internet …

We moved on to Bunburry, which has a Dolphin Discovery Center where Lisa and Niklas had wished to celebrate their birthday. The main attraction of the center is the beach, which wild dolphins regularly pay a visit. They had been there every day of that week – apart from when we were there, so the only living dolphin the kids got to see was Louie the fluffy dolphin. There was other cool stuff at the center though, like a 3Dmovie and a digital dolphinarium. The beach was good for swimming without dolphins, too. We were told that we might have better luck at “The Cut” – and we did! Lisa and I spotted a few dolphins and she even saw one leaping out of the water.

Our next maritime adventure was in Busselton, which is known for the longest timber jetty in the Southern hemisphere. Next to that jetty is a great sandy beach, perfect for snorkeling. We saw crabs and fish – but we never saw the jellyfish that stung Niklas on the arm. I drew the crying boy with me to the next fancy restaurant on the beach front and asked for vinegar. The treatment seemed to help and Niklas stopped crying. It was then that I realized: Not only had I walked into the restaurant in just my bathing suit but with Lisa’s pink snorkeling gear still on my head!

We discovered some more fantastic beaches on the way to Cape Naturaliste, saw another dolphin and found more abalone shells (which are called Paua in NZ) near the Canal Rocks.  It was fascinating to watch the swell coming in, gushing through the canals (that have given the rocks their name) and shooting water and air through a blowhole.

We then turned further inland to Margret River. The whole area around this lively town is full of limestone caves, of which we chose to visit Jewel Cave. It was an amazingly decorated cave in which they did a short lightshow.