Bremer Bay

Today is Sunday, the 4th of February and we have been here in Bremer Bay since Wednesday night. We've had a good connection and have been meaning to update you, but just haven't found the time.

The trip over here was a bit of a dud. We had to pick up maggie, stop at the bank, the supermarket, and run a few other errands before we really got on our way so it felt like we were in the car for ages before we got here, and we really didn't travel that far. Bremer Bay is about halfway between Esperance and Albany. When we finally arrived at the caravan park we pulled in to see if they allowed dogs, to find two men sitting outside and laughing at us. We couldn't imagine what could be so funny about our car/camper but when we got out of the car it became all too apparent.

As we were driving along there were birds on the road here and there, and as we would get close to them they would fly off. All except for one. There was one group of birds that flew away as we approached but one stayed on the road up to the last second. Mike lined up the car so that our wheels straddled him. We weren't sure if he had flown off in the end, and we both looked back and were relieved that we didn't see anything on the road, so we figured he must have flown off in the nick of time. As it turns out he somehow got stuck in something underneath our car and was hanging there when we pulled into the caravan park! To make matters worse, we read a bit about Bremer Bay where they touted it as a birwatcher's paradise. OOPS! When the park owner saw my reaction to seeing the bird hanging there he kindly offered to remove it for us.

We're staying at a Caravan Park called Bremer Bay Beaches Resort and Tourist Park, and it's a real luxury after the week in the national park. The first day was spent getting our clothes (and us) washed and doing some housekeeping and relaxing. The hot showers here are devine - clean with plenty of hot water and fantastic water pressure, and the park also has walking trails, tennis courts, a pool, a great camp kitchen, a cafe and shop along with the usual conveniences. We are really happy with the spot we are in and the park as a whole so decided to extend our stay here to a week rather than the few days initially planned. We are at the flat top of a hill on a huge site that they call "the heliport". We are so spread out and surrounded by trees that it doesn't feel like a caravan park at all, at least not in the area we are, yet has all the conveniences including a good phone/internet and tv connection.

Our spot - nice and serene.
It's approx 20x20 meters and raised so we have a great view of the surrounding park.

Bremer Bay isn't exactly a bustling town, and there is little more than a petrol station, general store and fishing/camping shop. But, if you are into fishing it's a great place. We've been enjoying the beaches, fishing, and taking the boat for a spin on the river. Speaking of fishing, it's so good here that even yours truly caught one! It was the biggest fish caught by anyone fishing with us that evening off the pier. Unfortunately it turns out that it was a Rock Cod which apparently aren't really good eating fish, so a quick happy snap, and my fish lived to see another day. Mike caught some herring which we are told are fantastic and sweet to eat. I've only ever had pickled herring, or herring from a jar with onions and cream sauce, so we're not sure what to expect, but they are waiting patiently for us in our freezer. They are quite small, so we may do some more fishing today so we can at least make a good meal of it.

(Not too shabby, huh Benny?)