Fremantle, AU

Flying across the Australian continent from Cairns to Melbourne is 1440 miles, and then it's an additional 1697 miles to Perth. Our journey took a full day.  Funny that prior to this trip, we never realized how large this continent is.  Once arriving in Perth, we focused on the community of Fremantle just south of the city.  Locating an apartment in downtown, we were within easy walking distance to the center of activity and close to the harbor. 

Started in 1829, the founding fathers transported ten thousand prisoners to the island to build community buildings, churches, and their own prison.  The prison was closed in 1991 and is now a tourist attraction offering day tours and evening ghost tours.  Spending a few days exploring this seaport and fishing town, our favorite outing was a trip to the Fremantle Maritime Museum.  The museum houses the sailboat of five-time circumnavigator, Jon Sanders with 14 world records, and the Australian American Cup winning sailboat from 1983. The Welcome Wall, outside the museum, lists the names of families that have immigrated to Australia.  (A similar Welcome Wall is located in Sydney.)

One of the most popular day trips from town is a trip out to nearby Rottnest Island. Its name

Quokka family

came from the presence of quokkas, an animal that looks suspiciously like a rat but is actually a marsupial (like the kangaroo and wallaby)  Planning another snorkeling trip, we took the morning ferry out and then hopped on an island-wide hop on and off bus to travel to a snorkeling destination, Parkers Point.  This beautiful bay was supposed to be home to a pink coral, and one of the best snorkeling spots on the island.  Spending about an hour in the water, we enjoyed the snorkel, but never saw the pink coral (in fact, almost no coral).  Quokkas seemed to be fairly common, and a family of them joined us for lunch, hoping for a handout.  Kayaking, swimming, and sailing are available around the island and biking is the favored mode of transportation.  No private vehicles are allowed on the islands' limited roadways.

Penguin Island

Another side trip took us down to Rockingham to take a ferry out to Penguin Island to see the Little Penguins (the smallest of the species).  On the highway heading south, the influence of mining is evident in the heavy industrialization of the area.  Along the waterfront is a different world.  Arriving at the ferry, we realized, after a thorough search of our vehicle, that both our wallets were back in Fremantle.  Obviously, there would be no ferry trip.  Since we were in Western Australia, we wanted to take advantage of our proximity to the Margaret River wine region.  So, the next day we started the drive south.

Fremantle Prison

Welcome Wall

Maritime Museum

Parkers Point

Snorkeling at Parker's Point

Rottnest Island