Another few days have slipped by in Walpole. It certainly is a relaxing time here! The weather has been getting cooler still-we had the heater on for a while last night and I got a blanket out to watch TV. There has often been rain through the nights and the days are still clearing to sunny but cooler. Our original plan was to stay a week, but we quickly extended that to two. The park is pretty empty and the fish are plentiful so it seems a good reason to hang around.
Mandalay Beach
Last week we drove out to Deep River and on to Mandalay beach (very beautiful)so it was great to see it from a different perspective. We also took another trip to the Giant Tingle tree with our camera this time!
In the Giant Tingle Tree
Russ promised me a fish smoker for my birthday and we finally bought it at the supermarket here. We tried to make do with our wok, but it was a waste of time. We've been having a great time with the real thing and it gives us more ways to use that seeminly endless supply of fish we have.
Down at the Boat Ramp
We have been limiting our fishing time as we are catching too many! Yesterday we headed out with our lunch at 11.30 and came back in at 2.30 having caught 10 King George whiting (averaging 33cm), a good sized trevally and salmon. Russ filleted them all and our neighbours (a couple from Shepparton) scored themselves 6 beautiful whiting fillets for their dinner.
The Fish
We kept the trevally and salmon to smoke as they are almost the best fish we’ve been catching to do that with. I phoned Brice yesterday and suggested he needn’t think of defrosting anything for me to cook us Monday night as we’ll have plenty of fish with us that won’t fit in our tiny freezer. And Blair, Leah, Todd and Daniel can expect a few meals of fish and crab while we are there! When we were smoking our last lot of fish, a kookaburra flashed through the caravan awning within 30cm of me and stole a raw (but spicily rubbed) fish fillet off the rack waiting to go into the smoker! I found too, that when we were near the BBQ using the smoker, they swooped even closer. I think it is to scare people so they’ll step back and the birds can have a go at meat on the barbie. They really are very bold and quite aggressive!
Coming in Before a Storm on Nornalup Inlet
Today we did a couple of loads of washing early in the hope of getting them dry on the line. After we’d done that, we packed a lunch (fresh rolls made with our own home smoked chicken and avocado) and went for a drive to Mt. Clare where we ate our lunch before walking to the summit. That sounds more strenuous than it actually was. It was a 2.4km round trip, gently uphill all the way to the top, but downhill all the way back to the car! The walk through the tingle and karri trees was pretty and peaceful and at the summit, we were rewarded with beautiful views across the Deep river valley to the coast at Mandalay Beach.
On the Summit of Mt Clare
I had some great news today. We met a couple (James and Beth) when we were in Coral Bay last year. They got as far as Broome on their travels but I had an idea they were moving on at the end of June. I got an e-mail today to say they'd be there when we arrive on 7th of July. We were only to stay a week, but I called and extended that to a second week when I heard the news as I'm sure we will be able to fill in two weeks with them there for a bit of company occasionally!
Tomorrow we are taking the car in to be serviced, so will walk the 2 ½ ks home from the mechanics. That walk takes you round the inlet and it’s very pretty at the moment with lots of orange bottle brush in flower.
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