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(>Pictures at the bottom)
…from Albany to Perth
The repairs in Albany took a little longer than we had planned, and in the end we were somewhat disappointed with the garage. Or was it more our “mechanic warranty”, which we had purchased for a lot of money from our car supplier in Sydney? I still don’t fully understand the warranty system, which excludes pretty much everything. Oil seals and electrical connections are excluded, and we soon wondered whether this insurance was just window dressing for the customer.
After much back and forth, we got our car back from the repair shop. Everything should now be sealed again at the front, on the front differential. The garage couldn’t fix the starting problem when the engine was warm. They wanted to replace the fuel pump, which would be covered by our insurance, but I suspect the problem lies elsewhere. In the meantime, I also know how to start the engine when it’s warm. It was time for us to finally continue our journey and we were glad to finally leave Albany behind us.
The south coast to Augusta offers many worthwhile destinations that every – or almost every – tourist must or should visit. We were also part of this herd and followed the appropriate signposts or the recommendations of the relevant travel guides. Although there were many people at each of these points, we enjoyed the experience. Although we had already seen huge trees in Tasmania, here too the giant trees were always worth marvelling at and pausing for a moment. These trees are often over 400 years old – from a time when we Europeans didn’t even know where Australia was.
The countless national parks along the coast, where one park follows the next, kept drawing us back for long drives to the coast. There were also always paths that guaranteed a certain amount of adventure, and we got stuck in the sand several times. But the places we stayed overnight were wonderful oases in the middle of the bush and eucalyptus landscape.
In some places, there are wonderful bathing bays or pools between the rocks, and even the Aussies know these places. At weekends, the campsites in the national parks are very popular, and those who leave it late to find a place often miss out. For us Europeans, it takes some getting used to; a lot is allowed in the parks, i.e. you can drive around on the road network with a motorised vehicle and driving on the beach is not prohibited here either. In any case, the V6 or V8 engines roar merrily in and around the sand dunes at the weekends. Yes, the little boys in men!
The south-western corner around Augusta and Margaret River are real tourist hotspots. We weren’t the only ones enjoying the beautiful weather; there were lots of people everywhere at the various attractions. In addition to the sea, bushland and eucalyptus forests, the countless caves are also worth a quick visit. The karst mountains were the basis for many sinkholes and underground cave systems, which you can visit today for a few dollars.
We liked this landscape in the south-western corner of Western Australia so much that we spent several days there. There were so many things to marvel at and experience. Even the surfers waiting for their wave in the Indian Ocean or the countless Japanese bus passengers climbing over rocks in their light shoes. It was exciting!
Less exciting, however, were the online reservations for the respective campsites in the national parks. In addition to a sufficient mobile phone network, a lot of patience was required for such a reservation. Since June 2025, all bookings have only been possible online, step by step, but the system often reached its limits when we tried to book, and the waiting time strained our nerves several times. Making a booking at midnight would be easy, but by then we should already know where we can park our car so we can crawl under a warm blanket. The alternative to camping in national parks would be the many private providers. However, these are usually three to four times more expensive and you are parked vehicle to vehicle; pure mass processing (…quote from Chantal)!
From an Australian perspective, Perth was only a stone’s throw away, and we settled in there for a few days. In addition to doing our laundry, we had other things to do that are better done in a big city. Of course, we couldn’t miss out on a city tour and a trip on the Swan River. To our surprise, we liked Perth immediately; this modern city has a certain magic that captivated us right away. Whether it was just the beautiful weather or the peaceful atmosphere in and around the city, we don’t know.
In Perth, we also visited the Backpacker Cars branch that sold us the car in Sydney. We just wanted to say hello and get some advice on the starting problem with a warm engine. The Perth branch operates completely differently to the one in Sydney, and we were made to feel very welcome from the moment we arrived. Although they couldn’t solve the starting problem satisfactorily, they carried out further maintenance work for us at short notice and got the car ready for the next 10,000 km.
This gave us the opportunity to explore the historic district of Fremantle and delve a little into the dark past of the British Empire. Fremantle, located at the mouth of the Swan River, was an important place during colonisation. 100,000 prisoners were forcibly deported here. The rebellious indigenous population was decimated by the Empire, and those who escaped the bullets or knives were deported to Rottnest Island. Delving into this recent history helps one understand the behaviour of today’s British ruling class and their view of world affairs.
After the city tour in Fremantle, we were allowed to pick up our car again and turned our backs on the Perth metropolitan area. We had had enough of the city! As another weekend lay ahead of us and all the campsites by the sea or in the vicinity of Perth were fully booked, we looked for a quiet spot in the forest in Avon Valley. We were looking forward to a new and peaceful night.
Chantal and Tom/February 2026
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