Australia Day long weekend 2023

 Participants

An extended weekend at Karridale for the Australian day long weekend has developed into a happy club tradition thanks to Penny and Spence hosting us on their property.

Spence and Penny arrived early to mow the grass to encourage the snakes to move on, thanks I am not a fan of them, and to decorate their place.

Their house and garden decorated with Australian flags provided a very pleasant and shady area. It was big enough to accommodate all of us.

Twelve camper trailers, 2 roof toppers, 3 caravans and 3 swags provided comfortable accommodation for everybody, all 38 of us.

• 

Lamb and pies were on the menu to celebrate all things Australian.

Camping at Karridale enabled the club members to launch a number of activities catering for different interests amongst its members.

On Friday morning the drizzle did not hang around long enough to spoil the day or the fun we had. It was cool enough for some to need jumpers in the evening and a welcome change from the heat in Perth.

Thanks Penny and Spence for your great hospitality. We had a great weekend. Watch for more stories.

Don and Jane

Trip report for the Black Point and Lake Jasper on 27th January 2023

The day started at 9am as 11 vehicles assembled in the Karridale Tavern carpark for a briefing from Spencer. 

We headed towards the Blackwood State Forest and aired down before entering. Spencer then led us towards the National Park with only one error, driving onto a private property. He realised after a few shouts over the radio about the private property sign that he drove straight past, so he turned around and back to the track. 

The track conditions in the park ranged from corrugation to soft rutted sand, the type that would’ve had Anna screaming the “F” word over and over with her fractured arm. 

• 

• 

All vehicles got through without any trouble, except for mine (Pajero) that decided to shut down the electrics to my 4×4 dash indicators. A tip from Gary was to shut the car off and restart it. The reset worked and we were back on the road again. Thanks Gary.

We reached Black Point and stopped to enjoy the amazing views from the lookout and some morning tea. If you have never been here like Michelle and I, you really need to make the trip, the view from the lookout was stunning to say the least. 

Once we got back in our vehicles, we started heading towards Lake Jasper. This proved to be harder than first thought, as Spencer spotted a driver training a convoy of around 14 vehicles coming in the opposite direction.

Normally this wouldn’t have been an issue, but our convoy of 11 had started up a narrow hill from a T intersection. Part of the convoy had to pull over, some of us had to reverse back down the hill while the remainder had to remain still untill the training mob had passed. 

Onwards to Lake Jasper we travelled, the track wasn’t difficult but it was entertaining in some of the longer soft sandy hills. 

We arrived at Lake Jasper in time for a spot of lunch. For some it was a bite to eat, relax and enjoy all the beauty the lake had to offer, some went in for a dip, while others went kayaking and stand up paddle boarding.

Unfortunately for Simon, or shoud we call him Hunny Bunny? (Who are we to judge), he took his kayak all the way from Karridale to Lake Jasper, but managed to leave his paddle back at the camp site. 

Fishing, snorkeling, Diving and a Shark Sighting.

One of the many pleasures we have in Karridale is, our early morning’s fishing expedition. With a convoy of 5, we had set off down Bob’s track. Airing down at the start before making our way to the beach.

• 

• 

• 

Parked up on the beach, the rush was on to set up and start fishing. I can’t recall who caught the first fish.

The water was perfect, calm, warm and very inviting.

We may not have caught a lot of fish today, but we certainly enjoyed the trying. Fish filleted, and everything packed away, we encountered our first breakdown of the day.

A flat battery. Shane says, if you want the battery, you can have it, its free of charge.

Returning back to camp, we quickly dumped all our fishing gear for swimming gear, saddled up and headed off to Canal Rocks for a dip. Canal Rocks car park was packed, fortunately we all found spots to park.

Time to get wet. The warm water was inviting, we all enjoyed ourselves. From swimming, snorkelling and jumping off the bridge.

To scuba diving, enjoying what’s under the water line.

Leaving Canal Rocks, some of us headed back to the house, while others stopped for an ice cream. The “Ice Creamer’s” took a while to get back to the house, one of the cars decided that a split intercooler hose was on the menu.

• 

• 

Overall, everything was perfect, we all had a ball.

A big thanks to Penny and Spence for opening your house to the Club once again.

Story by Dave F.

Aussie Day Paddling

Attendees:
Naomi & Richard, Lee & Keely, Stuart & Michelle

We sunscreened, got all our kayaks ready to go. As the river way flowing upstream, we
paddled with the current initially.

• 

• 

It was great to see a different view of the Blackwood and awesome that most boaters were
respectful and slowed to pass us (thanks peeps – you made our morning much more
enjoyable).

With the promise of a country bakery (Stu was VERY excited!!), we packed up and headed into
Augusta for the obligatory pie on Australia Day.
Cheers
Naomi

Boranup Forrest

Attendees:
Naomi & Richard, Tony & Anna, Diane

We walked along Caves Road looking for the track into the forest. It’s amazing how well the
forest has recovered after a huge bush fire just over 12 months earlier.

Check out the Youtube vid from this great trip