We escaped Perth early on Friday afternoon and travelled south to Margaret River to visit another Canadian couple who is on exchange there. They have an amazing place that is on about 7 acres of property and includes resident possums, kangaroos and skinks (lizard-like creatures). As we drove in at dusk, we saw kangaroos at the side of the road and as we pulled into their property there was a possum hanging out over one of their windows. John got the flashlight and we all had a good look at the 'little guy' before he scampered up into the rafters. In the morning the resident kangaroos came right up to their garden area and Meaghan and Liam threw some bread to them and watched them feed. Pretty amazing!
After having a great pancake breakfast we headed out to see some of the sights. Margaret River is well known for being a surfer's paradise and Saturday didn't disappoint in this regard. The swells were huge and we were entertained by some awesome surfing and some wicked wipe-outs. The only downside is that most of the beaches were too rough for swimming or boogie boarding as there were very strong rips which can pull you out. We then went further south to a place called Hamelin Bay where the rays come in very close to shore. They are huge and you can actually reach down and touch them although you aren't supposed to. Meaghan was quick to remind us that it was one of these creatures that killed Steve Irwin (Crocodile Hunter) and that we better watch out!
We had lunch at one of the many breweries in the area and then went to the Margaret River Cheese Company where the kids got some ice cream and we did some cheese tasting. Between the wineries, the cheese factory, and the chocolate company, Margaret River is the place to go. Some of the vineyards even have play areas for the kids to keep them entertained while you sip away on the wine. Back at our friend's place, we had a BBQ dinner and Liam and Meaghan played pool and stalked the kangaroos some more.
On Sunday morning the surf had calmed down somewhat and although it was still pretty rough, we spent the morning body boarding. Meg and Liam were loving it but I have to say that I was a bit 'on edge' the entire time, worried about the rips. Luckily, John and Annette have a lot of experience with the ocean and educated Meaghan and Liam about where they should go and let them know if they were starting to stray too far out or too close to the rip-zone. Wow, what an experience! We are now going to take a family surf lesson to try out the 'real thing'.
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