24 May 2014
Lowlands Beach, beautiful blue water and a massive surf on a windy day
It is only about an hour’s drive from Denmark to Albany, so there was no need for an early start. My cousin Tim and his wife Meagan had invited us to their home for morning tea after we had finished our packing, and they had taken their children to football and ballet. They currently live in a home overlooking Wilson Inlet, million dollar views! It was great to see them again before we headed off on our adventure further east.
The beaches along the southern coast are spectacular and we wanted to call in to see some more. Most of these beaches are accessed off the main road, and often with graded roads. The first was Lowlands Beach, which is quite secluded with a fresh water creek flowing across squeaky white sand. Lowlands Beach is located between West Cape Howe and Wilson Inlet. There is a viewing platform for watching dolphins and whales and the magestic cliffs. The tide was wild, the waves crashing against the rocks sending up sprays of surf metres high.
Secluded Shelley Beach with wooden platform for the hang gliders
Then we discovered Shelley Beach in west Cape Howe where the dramatic rocky headlands plunge into the sea. There are spectacular views from the Lookout, the beach below is popular for fishing, camping, and there is varied flora and fauna. It is a favourite spot for hang gliding and paragliding and we saw the wooden platforms where the brave souls take off. Today was certainly not suitable for either, the wind was so strong it nearly blew us away! The beach lies along the waters of Torbay, and is a popular but remote destination located just south of Cosy Corner. There are views across Torbay and Torbay Heads to the south, and Torndirrup Peninsula, the Albany Wind Farm and The Gap across the water to the west.
By now it was about 2pm so we returned to a little cafe that we had passed earlier, the Cosy Corner Cafe for some soup and toast. It was a very cosy retreat from the wind that had come up, and we enjoyed our stay there. Next to our table was seated a young man who was drawing in a rather thick book that appeared to have some drawing and art work and the tiniest writing I have ever seen, he was using special pens. I asked him if it was all his art and he said he had been doing it for years, the book was a diary where he wrote down his feelings. He is now studying architecture. There was no specific name for the type of art he was doing, but it blew me away, and really made my day to meet such a talented young man and see the wonderful art work he had done.
Cosy Corner Store, a welcome sight for a late lunch, with the resident dogs keeping guard.
It was only a short drive to Albany, and we were soon settled in our Sleep Well Motel (I’m sure we will sleep well tonight!) by about 3.30pm. We drove back into town to explore the main shopping centre and find a restaurant for dinner. We chose York Street (funnily enough on the main street of York Street!) and made an early booking for dinner, which was delicious. Tonight was cooler than we have experienced so far, but hoping for a fine day tomorrow when we intend to explore the area around Mount Barker to the north west of Albany.
