Day 11

In leaving Esperance this morning there are two things of note.

First you’d recall from Day 9 we reported a problem with the rear tyre on the bike. Tim and Sue of Power Plant Motorcycles and Scott Bezuidenhout did a fantastic job getting a new tyre trucked down from Perth in time to fit yesterday. In addition to the new Pirelli Scorpion 2 tyre the bike had a full check over oil change and service so is ready to go again. Many thanks to all the team at Power Plant! More on them later.

Scott, bike and new Pirelli

That’s what a tread should look like.

Secondly, having the additional day in Esperance allowed us to hire a car and drive out to the Cape Le Grand National Park. We’ve been lucky to see some lovely places in the world but with this one you start running out of adjectives. The beaches are amazing with the whitest sand (apparently in Australia) and very clear, turquoise water. It was a little grey at the start of the day but the sun came out after lunch and it was just stunning.

Lucky Bay, Cape Le Grand National Park

Getting back to the trip. We left Esperance at 7:45am after breakfast at Dome and having dropped off the rental car. A beautiful morning if not again cold requiring multiple layers to keep the wind out.

Spectacular sunrise

We rode out through open farming country with more traffic on the road than we have been used to. Huge acreages of grain, flat to slightly rolling country and straight roads. It was also very windy so we and the bike were buffeted about quite a bit.

Leaving Esperance

We got to Munglinup where we’d thought we stop for a cup of tea but decided to press on to Ravensthorpe. Just before the township the trees became larger with Salmon Gums lining the road.

More Salmon Gums

As we entered Ravensthorpe we passed a Shell petrol station, ummed and ahhed and decided to go to the next one, assuming there was one, which there was, a BP. Della went in to order tea, I filled the bike, parked it out of the way and went to pay. As I walked into the shop, someone said ‘Hello, Nick’. I turned around thinking it must be for someone else, but who should be there but Sue and Tim from Power Plant Motorcycles. What are the chances? They were headed to Perth where their son was to compete in a motor cross event on Sunday. Incredible coincidence.

We then headed to Jerramungup through woody scrub land with some interesting plants. Lovely flowering gums and a large silver leaved but squat eucalyptus lining the road.

Flowering gum

No, I have no idea which species

Jerramungup wouldn’t have worried a farrier for years! We decided to go to the local Cafe for an early lunch rather than the Roadhouse. Getting out of our gear takes some time but we eventually got inside and asked if we could get a couple of toasted sandwiches. ‘Sorry, no hot food on a Saturday’. We said ‘OK’ and headed for the door and the Roadhouse to many protestation about the ‘lovely cold quiche’. I mention this only because as we were finishing our rather good toasties at the Roadhouse, who should walk in but the woman from the Cafe to order ‘a tub of hot chips and two cheese sausages, please’!

From Jerramungup we headed straight to Albany only stopping to take a few photo’s. One of the Stirling Range which was on our right for much of the way. Most impressive after so much flat country for days.

Stirling Range – it’s topography, Della, but not as we know it

About 50km’s out from Albany at a small village called Many Peaks the countryside changed dramatically with the fields becoming very green.

Could almost be in NZ

We then hit the edge of the inevitable urban sprawl and headed into town which is quite substantial with a population of just over 30,000. We found our accommodation without trouble and checked in.