Denmark and Parry's Beach

Mon. March 7^th

As we neared Denmark, about 50km west of Albany, the trees were taller, the forests thicker and the rain heavier. Fortunately it stopped and we were able to explore the river at Denmark via a 3km walking track and walk around the streets of this busy tourist village. People, vans, dogs and kids everywhere, enjoying the last moments of the long weekend.

In the 1880s Europeans moved into this area to harvest the forest – in the 19^th century London’s streets were paved in timber blocks cut from Denmark’s trees – but they eventually killed the goose that laid the golden egg!

In the 1920s the area was one of the Group Settlement Schemes, where British WW1 soldiers who returned from the war to an economy that offered no employment were offered ‘free’ land if they cleared and settled. What a task for these poor families, as grubbing out the roots of these enormous trees would have taken enormous energy and the land would not have easily supported European crops ... until the days of superphosphate!

Denmark’s shops indicated an environmentally-aware community with a commitment to sustainability. The alpaca produce shop and vast array of boutique coffee shops, B&Bs, wineries etc. indicate that there is plenty of money in the Denmark region; agricultural industries and boutique businesses of such contrast to the light and heavy industries of Albany’s port.

Graeme was keen to settle into Parry’s Beach before mid-afternoon so we continued only to discover a ‘Camp Area Full’ sign! Following our experience at Lucky Bay with a ‘full house’ sign that didn’t mean what it said, I asked at the caretaker’s cottage and was told that we could have 1 night in the overflow carpark or go to a park further up the road. A quick check of the large, heavily treed, cool and shady camping area revealed a number of camp sites so back to the office to pay our dues - $7 per site per night – and we settled into the area. Fresh fruit and vegies were for sale at the entrance and mullet for sale at the salmon fishermen’s shack area. There is a 3-week limit for camping here and I suspect that many of the people here stay to the limit.

The salmon fishermen’s shack area was interesting as it is generally only occupied for the 3-month salmon season when the 5 families move from their homes and live here. Fishing is done by nets released from small boats and secured to tractors on the beach. The woman to whom we spoke said that it was good fishing as the salmon came in close to shore and only salmon were caught in the nets. The fish were taken to Albany for processing as bait or tinned fish.

A newspaper article on display at the caretaker’s cottage indicated that there has been a push to clear these corrugated shacks from beaches in the SW area, just as the Victorian Labour Government at one stage wanted to remove the boat sheds from the bay beaches. While I found the Betty’s Beach shanty town unattractive, this is all part of the heritage of the area and there are so few of them that I cannot see how it is fair and reasonable to demand their removal when they are still serving their purpose.

Having been spoiled by other pristine beaches, the one at Parry’s Beach was not outstanding and the fishing from the rocks on the point not successful!

Tues. Mar 8^th

Back to Denmark to explore, kayak on the Denmark River, take a bike ride from the river mouth into town and have a wonderful morning doing the things I love – thanks, GVS.    It was a beautiful autumn morning and the wait for a coffee was no longer 20 mins as it had been the day before. The ducks, cormorants, pelicans and egrets on the river and sand-blocked estuary were enjoying the sunshine too.

The afternoon was spent at the William Bay NP, amazing at the incredible Elephant Rocks and fishing on the rock platforms beside them. The water was crystal clear, as it has been from Esperance westwards, but never fails to amaze us. Sadly, the fish weren’t biting, so we eventually walked around to Green’s Pool, a beautiful protected swimming area where others were lying in the sun, snorkelling around the rocks, trying to catch fish or walking along the beautiful beach.

A perfect day!