South West Life

Some time back we looked at the Mt Lennard mountain bike trail, and talked about the chance to get out in the bush, and experience some of the south west in some healthy and pretty exciting ways.

Youth bands in the South West are being urged to get in quick with their registrations to battle it out in the City of Bunbury BANDiT Battle of the Bands competition in September.

The summer festival season is so close we can taste it. And it tastes delicious! The prime course on this festival menu is Southbound, WA’s only superb and sustainable music, camping and arts festival. Proudly presented by triple j and returning to Busselton from the 1st - 3rd January, Southbound is the perfect way to bring in the new year.

Celebrated tenor and composer David Hobson will join Australian theatre and television stars Rachael Beck and Ian Stenlake in headlining the 12th annual Jalbrook Concert this November.
 

CowParade has almost moo-ved on from Margaret River but the spectacular big-top finale is still to come. The world’s largest public art exhibition officially wound up on Sunday 27th June and the herd is now being rounded up for final touch ups before the Cow Charity Auction.  

Western Australia, and indeed, Australia’s most prestigious mx event is back on the motorcycling calendar with a vengeance. The 30th anniversary of the event lived up to all the media hype and expectations with big name UK riders Brad Anderson, Billy Mackenzie and Bryan McKenzie having fantastic battles with the likes of local heroes, Louis Calvin, Dean Porter, Paul Humbertson and Michael Addison.

The Southern Right and Humpback whales are about to make their annual splash in the waters off Cape Leeuwin, Augusta.Celebrate their return with the inaugural Whalesong Augusta Festival over the Foundation Day long weekend, June 4th to June 6th, 2010.

The Bibbulmun Track Foundation is recruiting for teams of four to compete in its annual Mountain Designs Bibbulmun Team Challenge, to be held between the 7th October and 14th November. 

This Thursday, 20 May, CinéfestOZ is proud to present for one special screening, Australia's most explosive true story 'Beneath Hill 60'.  The Directors of CinéfestOZ believed that the movie was of such importance that it must be shown in Busselton as part of a special review screening.  They’ve commandeered Ace Cinemas for Thursday evening, 6pm.

The Astronomical Society Of The South West has regular open evenings held at the Bunbury observatory for budding star gazers.

Bunbury theatregoers will have the opportunity to enjoy another innovative production from Stark Raven Theatre this month, with their newest offering of Rotto Boys. Furthering Stark Raven’s commitment to produce locally written works for the theatre, Rotto Boys is written by English teacher and long time member, Les Pearce.

If you like a bit of history to go with your camping, then Belvidere is the place for you. Belvidere campsite is located on the western side of the Leschenault Inlet, around 15km drive from Australind.

Margaret River band, Frankly, have won the honour of opening the MASS Music Festival on Saturday at Nippers Oval. On stage with the likes of Gyroscope and Cog, Frankly will have the golden opportunity to play to a festival crowd.

The XXXX Gold Bunbury Cup 2010 was held on Thursday March 11.  The event lived up to its well-known reputation - residents from around the region converged on Bunbury for the South West Racing Calendar’s biggest one-day party.

A time back we ran a story on a great walk to be experienced in the South West.  This month we’re introducing a guest writer, who has taken up residence in WA from Seattle in the USA.  Renee Bergere walked the trail and is giving us a day by day account.

If you don’t live near the beach, it’s nice to know there’s still somewhere to cool down in the heat of summer. Brunswick Junction residents have just such a place: the Brunswick Pool.

I have always enjoyed bushwalking, especially in our South West. If you are familiar with bushwalking then you would have heard of the famous and feared “Bibbulmun Track”. Along the Bibbulmun track there are mysterious wooden huts approximately every 20 kilometres along the track. One of these huts I used was the one at "Grimwade".

Just within the boundary of the south west, around 20km north of Walpole, lies a great little recreation and camping area alongside one of the south west's most purest rivers.

Recently a class from the school I work at ventured down south (Margaret River area) to abseil, as a part of their Outdoor Education Studies. I was required to support as a staff member but not required to go down the cliffs - but ended up doing so, to my anguish, yet sheer delight!

At the risk of sounding un Australian, I’m not really a beer drinker. As it happens, there are one or two among my acquaintances though, and so there are times when a trip to a brewery is in order, and I’ve decided it’s another of the great moments that can be had around these parts

Within the adventurous Wellington District lies a great recreation site, named Potters Gorge. It is a popular picnic and camping area located on the shores of Wellington Dam.

Well, well, well. Mostly we don't spend a lot of time recommending a private business in our do this section, but for reasons which will remain secret I was taken by my beloved on a getaway for the weekend recently.

Ever been camping in the south west and looking for a new destination? Why not check out Conto’s camping area.

Ever been caving? There are over 300 known caves in our southwest. One of these is the amazing Giants Cave. This cave is found in the Boranup Forest, near Witchcliffe. It is located on Caves Road, and has been on records going back to the year 1900.

Last week I got away to lovely Bridgetown, for a short break in our South West.  During our stay in the town I wanted to do one of their many bush walks. After visiting their Tourist Information Centre I was given a free pamphlet of some local bush walks, which was very informative.

I’ve had it said to me that you’re into motorsport or you’re not.  If you are, and you feel a need to go round a track as fast as you can with glee and terror alternating as your primary feelings, I recently saw something that might be just for you.

A while ago I found myself with four delightful children during the school holidays and wasn’t quite sure what to do with the weasels.

Get a new perspective on the south west... from the air! There's so much to see and do in the south west, that I challenge anyone to say they've "seen it all". I reckon you'd have to live here 100 years to see everthing that's on offer.

Although the SWAN dive wreck is divable 10 months of the year, it's generally agreed that the best times are from November through to May, so make sure you plan a trip to this great artificial reef over the warmer months.

Fancy a walk along the beautiful south west coast? The Cape To Cape Walk Track is a 135km trail that runs along the Leeuwin-Naturaliste Ridge between the Cape Naturaliste lightouse (near Yallingup) and the Cape Leeuwin lighthouse (Augusta).

While in the Margaret River area recently we popped into the Eagles Heritage Raptor Wildlife Centre, and by fluke we had arrived 10 minutes before one of their daily flying demonstrations. When I saw the word Raptor on the sign I thought I was going into Jurassic Park and going to see dinosaur bones. Needless to say - I learnt a lot during that morning.

Close to 500 dignitaries, sponsors, artists and media attended the much-anticipated launch for CowParade Margaret River 2010 at Colonial Brewery on Sunday 21st February.

Sit back and enjoy a coffee or tea while the kids get lost. In a maze, that is. Or join in yourself!

With an estimated 400,000 recreational fishers in Western Australia, it's clear that fishing is a popular past-time for many people.

With over 100 wineries located throughout our scenic forests and coastal areas, the south west is a great place for a wine tasting tour. Here's a recipe for a great day out.

It's been talked about in many circles, and even been discussed on Rove Live. Let's take a look at the unique and interesting tourist phenomena that is Gnomesville.

I grabbed CALM’s "Bushwalks in the Southwest" book and decided to choose a short walk as my partner and I weren’t in the mood for too much strenuous exercise. The bridges walk at Hoffman Mill seemed perfect, only about 30 minutes from Bunbury and just 11 kays from Harvey.

As I sit down to write this article it is pouring with rain, and has been for several hours. Everything outside is green and wet. And it reminds me of one of the joys of living in the south west during winter.

The push bike is the most efficient form of land transport known to humanity. It takes roughly a third of the energy to ride a bike one kilometre as it takes to walk the same distance. If you want to drive you’re expending around 18 times the energy.

If you’re sitting at home one Sunday and thinking what to do, then let me suggest taking a cruise out to Wellington Dam. It’s the perfect Sunday drive.

The Bibbulmum track is possibly one of the best ways to see the huge range of plants and wildlife in the the south west.

When you've grown up in Western Australia, there's a routine celestial event that you miss out on every day - the sun or moon rising over the water.

What do you after you've captured a pirate patogonian toothfish vessel? Blow it up and turn it into a dive wreck of course!

Living in the south west I've come to love the local agricultural shows we have. Compared to Perth, they have such a community feel about them, and they are fantastic value for money. At very little cost, our family can have a great day out, see a wide range of exhibitions, and the kids (and some of us adults) can try out the rides, showbags, and treats

Last Saturday was a celebration of mammoth proportions with over 1000 people attending the Survey 2010 opening at the Bunbury Regional Art Galleries. Exclusively featuring South West artists, the 2010 ‘Over There’ exhibition has received strong accolades with 67 artists selected to exhibit and a number of these being first time exhibitors in the annual exhibition.

Where on earth can walk 2km out to sea along the southern hemisphere's longest wooden jetty, and then descend 8 metres to the seabed floor into an amazing marine world of fish and and coral? And all without getting your feet wet?

Touring the main roads of the south west often takes you through some pretty countryside, passing via vineyards, grazing pastures, tall tree's etc, but the real fun happens when you have a 4WD and have the opportunity to get off-road.

A while ago we ran an online survey on South West Life asking you what kind of marine creatures you would most prefer to swim with. Stingrays came in dead last - only about 3% of you opted for that choice. Not surprisingly, dolphins and whales came in towards the top.

In an online survey we conducted several months ago, we found that two thirds of you live less than 10km from the beach, and almost 90% live within 50km of the beach. The ocean lifestyle is one that most of us enjoy in the south west, and many of us take for granted.

Camping in the south west is as easy as heading out your door. With the right things in hand of course.

Ever spent a Saturday afternoon wandering around short bushwalk tracks - past billabongs, over creeks, and listening to the water flow and the odd frog croak?

The most decorated tourism town in the south west is also one of the most beautiful. Whether you're after dense forest with massive trees, or a secluded white sandy beach along a rocky coastline...Pemberton has it all.

The south west of Western Australia has a huge variety of wild life. The mammals and birds of Australia are world famous, but there are also much smaller, and at first less obvious, forms of life that are just as amazing.

The south west is of course littered with hundreds of registered walks and bush tracks, and thousands more unlisted ones. Depending on where you go, the scenery can range from dense forest, to ocean cliffs, to grass plains

There's always a reluctance to share the location of a secret "beauty spot", where the swimming is great, or the fishing, or the views, or the serenity. But this one you really have to know about.

Find out why "triking" is the fasting growing aviation sport in the world. And the safest. Leonardo da Vinci is quoted as saying "Once you've flown you will walk the earth with your eyes turned skyward, for there you have been, and there you long to return." Were da Vinci alive today, I'm sure his choice of airborne vehicle would be a Microlight.

With hundreds of caves along the coast, the south west offers a range of amazing tours that will take you underground into a very different world of dark caverns with beautiful decorations.

It's free, it's easy, and it's lots of fun. And you can get into snorkelling all along our beautiful coast. And you'll never realise what's under the waves until you put on the goggles and have a look around. You'll be amazed at what's been underneath you all along.

There aren't many places in the world where you can interact with wild dolphins that show a genuine interest in you. The south west is one such place, through the Dolphin Discovery Centre at Koombana Bay in Bunbury.

When you think of thrillseeker adventures, tree climbing isn't normally what first springs to mind. But this is a tree with a difference.

Armed with my camera, food, water, and a pair of good walking boots, I'm out in the middle of nowhere. And I'm looking for flowers. Pushing aside any niggling thoughts that this kind of activity is an assault on my stereotypical Aussie male sense of masculinity, I move onwards as I slowly become tuned in to the vast array of flora, fauna, clear streams and silence. And then I see them - south west wildflowers. Let me tell you folks, there are some amazing sites in our local forests, and they're all right on your doorstep.

Ever looked into the eye of a Southern right whale as it majestically glides along-side your boat, trying to get a closer look at you? If not, then you're missing out on a truly unique "south west" experience that many of us down here take for granted. Whale hunting is back! With a camera, that is...