The Vagabond Hiker

Hiking, trekking, and climbing the world

Hikes and Walks in Western Australia

Returning to Australia after a nine-year hiatus, I chose to base myself in one of the two remaining states that I had not yet visited, Western Australia (WA). Over 7 weeks I did several hikes in the nearby Perth Hills, numerous local bushland walks, as well as three hikes on a road trip excursion to the wine-growing region of Margaret River to the south. Finally, I flew to Adelaide in South Australia to watch some tennis, and enjoy a couple of walks in that city, which I took the liberty to include in this post.

Local Walks

From my base in Queenspark, in the southern suburbs of Perth, I had direct access to some local bushland for walking. Perhaps 4-5 mornings a week when I had no great motivation for hiking would find me walking either here, or in nearby Canning River Park, which had the great advantage of being only a couple of minutes’ drive to either of the supermarkets I frequented.

Bushland balcony view from my apartment in Queenspark
Mr and Mrs Galah from my balcony (zoom), drying their wings on a rare rainy day
Queenspark bushland pond. Note the viewing platform on the far left.
The artistic Queenspark bushland viewing platform
Snakebush in flower, Queenspark bushland
A rather poor photo of Candlestick Banksia. The austral spring would have been much better for wildflowers, most of which by midsummer were but distant memories.
Dawn from my balcony, overlooking the local park adjacent to the bushland
Canning River park view from one of the bridges
A duck line in Canning River Park
Rainbow lorikeets in the early morning at Canning River Park
Compacted feather-flower, Canning River park
Reflections on a Canning River morning

Hikes in the Perth Hills

A major advantage of my location in Queenspark was the easy access to numerous trails in the Perth Hills just to the east. The closest was a 20-minute drive, and all the following photos were on hikes no farther than 40 minutes from my apartment. Most were between 8 and 12 km with 300 to 400 m elevation gain — perfect for some morning cardio before the temperature became too excessive.

A rock eating a tree, Helena River loop, Kalamunda & Beelu National Parks
Pink mulla mulla (Ptilotus exaltatus), looking a lot like feather dusters to me, Helena River loop
Helena River
View towards the Ellis Brook Falls. The falls were completely dry by this point in the summer.
Panorama towards Perth in Lesmurdie Falls National Park. Along with the adjacent Mundy Regional Park, this was the nearest park in the Perth Hills and I did several different loop hikes here.
Lesmurdie Falls, actually still flowing a bit in the high summer
The stream above Lesmurdie Falls
Lesmurdie Falls plateau vista with eucalyptus
Landscape with grass-tree gum, Kattamorda Track and Lion’s Lookout loop, Korung National Park
Fuscia grivellia, Korung National Park
A typical forest path, Korung National Park
A panorama on the Kattamorda Track and Lion’s Lookout loop

Adelaide, South Australia

Obviously not Western Australia, but the tennis fan in me could not resist three days at the Adelaide tournament. About 2100 km from Perth, Adelaide is the nearest city. (Indeed, Perth is considered the most remote city in the world). Some early morning walks along the Torrens River were definitely in order.

Torrens River heading downstream (East) from my hotel, Adelaide
A Dusky Moorhen along the Torrens River
The Torrens River, upstream (West) from my hotel. I fortunately left early to beat the Saturday 8 AM Park Run crowds.

Margaret River

Seven weeks in Western Australia wouldn’t have been complete without at least one road trip, and a three day excursion to the secluded south-west Australia wine growing region of Margaret River was mine.

Approaching the beach and dunes, Boranup Beach Loop, Leeuwin Naturaliste National Park. Here the Indian Ocean is exhibiting lovely shades of blue.
Carpobrotus virescens, Boranup Beach
Boranup Beach with kelp. For the most part I had the entire beach to myself this mid-week day.
Cowarawup Bay, Ngari Capes Marine Park, on the Cape-to-Cape Track. My hike was to and from Wilyabrup Cliffs, 15 km round trip
Cushion fan-flower, Cape-to-Cape Track
Sea spurge, Cape-to-Cape Track
A stream on the Cape-to-Cape Track
Indian Ocean vista, Cape-to-Cape Track
Ghost trees along the Margaret River. A portion of my walk was in the Wooditjup National Park. Another early morning start allowed me to beat the 8 AM Saturday Park Run.

Well, I made it back to the UK from Malaysia on a 14-hour non-stop flight from Kuala Lumpur. A few days here and then onward to Utah for some warm and dry weather. Enjoy the spring wildflowers,

The Vagabond Hiker

Comments

  1. Thank you for documenting our beautiful planet with your hikes and photos. I particularly enjoy the photos of flora. Cheers, in envy, Dawn.

    Reply

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