Margaret River, West Australia (Part 1)

 I had heard so many people talk enthusiastically about their trips to Margaret River that I just had to go to see for myself.  I had flown from New Zealand  to Perth to take a trip on the Indian Pacific train which crosses the Nullabor Plain to Sydney (more about this in a later post). Anyway I planned the trip to have a few extra days to explore the Margaret River region so booked a 3 day tour with McLeod's tours, a small family run business.  Always keen for a new adventure I, along with 9 other passengers, was raring to go early on the first morning. Our first stop on the journey south was at the pretty town of Mandurah where we had coffee and strolled along the very attractive waterfront enjoying a perfect morning. 

Mandurah waterfront

Further south we called into a wood turning artist's workshop where the owner gave us a very interesting talk on Australian native trees and their characteristics.

Note: No sign pointing to New Zealand

Lunch was at Busselton where we set out to walk the incredibly long jetty there.  At 1.8kilometres it is the longest jetty in the Southern Hemisphere. It was a lovely walk to the end  and back over pristine waters with excellent views of golden sand beaches on either side. For the less physically able there is a small train you can take to the end and back.                Busselton is a popular holiday destination for West Australians and I could see why, it has a number of attractions including a brand new Hilton Hotel and a large brewery close to the beach.                     

The Busselton Jetty 1.8 kilometres long.

Shelter Brewery, Busselton

Then it was back on the bus and on to the Margaret River Chocolate factory, the biggest chocolate shop I have ever seen with every flavour of chocolate imaginable.  I bought some treats for the family and then enjoyed a stroll around their pretty gardens. 

We were invited to visit the farm belonging to the owner of the tour company, Nick McLeod, and feed carrots to his horses. I absolutely loved it there, so peaceful, so pretty, just a genuine Australian farm.

As we came over the hill to Prevelly, where we would stay for the next couple of nights, we had a spectacular view of the Indian Ocean and, most unexpectedly, a small Greek Orthodox chapel on the hill to our left.  The chapel of St John the Theologian has a very interesting story behind it.  During the second world war a local man, Geoff Edwards, was taken prisoner by the Germans on the island of Crete.  He managed to escape and found refuge in a monastery with the monks of Preveli. He had the chapel built as an acknowledgement of the risks the local people of Crete took to save the lives of allied servicemen, in gratitude to the monks who sheltered him and as a gift to the Greek community in the area. He had earlier named the area where his large farm was Preveli but it was later changed to Prevelly after he sold the land for subdivision. Inside the chapel I felt as if I was back in Greece, all the religious iconography was authentic and had been donated by local Greek Families.

The Chapel of St John the Theologian, note the Greek flag

Our last stop for the day was our very pleasant accommodation at Margaret Beach Resort, Prevelly.  Several of us gathered in the bar to have a drink before dinner and all agreed we'd been delighted with our trip so far. 

NOTE FOR SOLO TRAVELERS. I have done several small bus tours solo and I find it a fantastic way to get around.  I have always met wonderful people on these trips, many I have kept in touch with over the years. If you are anxious about launching yourself into solo travel, don't be, try a small bus tour and you will be hooked.