A live bridge congress - it must be one of the very few held anywhere

We are indeed fortunate to be in WA where it is within the regulations to hold a bridge congress.  The small town of Kendenup, some 70 kms from Albany, held its annual bridge congress and we were fortunate to be around to play in it.  

There were 14 tables and some generous prizes.  The event was held in the Kendenup Agricultural Hall and Camping Venue and we stayed two nights and played bridge.  It was a very nice experience and we are very fortunate to be in a safe place where this event could be held.

People came from as far as Mandurah to attend.  The local ladies put on a lovely lunch of home baked pies and some great salads.  The morning and afternoon tea was typical of great country cooking and baking.  We all had a wonderful time and Andrew and I came third and our winnings were very generous.  

From here we return to Albany to attend the Melbourne Cup event being held at the bridge club there.  Some photos of that event will be posted in due course.

It is sometimes easy to forget how the rest of the country, indeed the world, is suffering such hardships during this pandemic while we are able to move around here in WA with no restrictions.  We regularly count our blessings.

Albany and environs

Some of the sights a few kms out of town.

The old whaling station which closed operations in 1978.  Andrew was the leading public servant on the Whaling Inquiry held in that year, to decide whether to close the commercial whaling industry in Australia.  He came twice to visit the station during the Inquiry.  During the course of the Inquiry the company decided to stop  whaling anyway due to lack of sufficient whales, and Australia then decided to adopt an anti-whaling policy.  When we were here 12 years ago we toured the old whaling station but we did not repeat it this time.

The Gap. One of the natural features carved from ancient granite by the forces of nature.  The Gap features a 25m sheer drop to the ocean.

Yet another natural bridge, this one seemingly more sturdy than the last one we saw.

Andrew did a walk to Bald Head.

The isthmus on the way to Bald Head.

The destination - Bald Head.

Albany

Here we are in Albany which is quite a big town but no Aldi.  I have been looking forward to having my Aldi fix.  I think the last one we visited was in Rockingham.  But on the other hand, we can play bridge - there is quite a big club here and they play three times a week.

Several views of the town from Mount Melville.

Princess Royal Harbour.

The Anzac Memorial at Mt Clarence.  Albany is where the Anzac battalions departed from Australia in 1914.

The Desert Mounted Corps Memorial.  It is a 9m mounted Australian soldier helping a wounded NZ soldier.  The memorial was original erected in Port Said in Egypt in 1932.  It was damaged during the Suez crisis in 1956 in anti-British protests.  The memorial was copied and put on the original mounted base on Mt Clarence in 1964.  Another copy stands in Canberra on Anzac Parade as the Mounted Memorial..

The clock tower which is part of the University of Western Australia.

The Albany Entertainment Centre.

A hotel.

This lovely building houses a cafe where we had morning tea.

The Town Hall.

The Brig Amity replica which stands outside the Museum of the Great Southern Region.  The ship arrived in Western Australia in 1826 bringing the first settlers to Albany two years before any Perth settlement

The Museum was having an interesting exhibition of Torres Strait ceremonial masks.

An unexpected pleasure and an invitation to a social activity occurred while we were camped in the Albany Bridge Club car park.  People came to a Rostrum meeting held on the premises weekly and they invited us to join them.  It made a welcome change from an evening in the motor home on our lonesome.  It was entertaining and quite fun.  Almost makes me want to join Rostrum on our return home.

The Lake House winery and restaurant in Denmark

We did not spend a long time at the delightful town of Denmark but we did visit a winery which we found by mistake, but it was a good mistake.  The Lake House winery and restaurant is located in a wonderful setting on the edge of a small lake with a magnificent garden, nice wines and a nice restaurant.  As it was after our lunch, we did not sample the cuisine only had coffee on the terrace.  

We were very taken by this establishment and noted it for future visit, should we be fortunate enough to make a return trip to WA.  We have a small problem of weight, so only bought one bottle of the gorgeous Cabernet Sauvignon we tasted.

Meandering along towards Albany

We did a nice walk in Walpole in the forest behind the Visitors Centre. The walk incidentally contained some wildflowers that were still new to us.  It just does not cease to amaze how new species still crop up.

This is a view of Walpole from afar.

 A fisherman at Walpole inlet cleaning fish - and with his pelican fan club.

Our next visit was to the Valley of the Giants: the treetop walk.  We did this on our last visit 12 years ago and it is as thrilling as ever, walking high above the ground neck to neck with the Red Tingle trees.  The highest point in the walk is 40m up.

Part of the Valley of the Giants is the Ancient Empire walk which meanders through a grove of veteran trees at ground level and it gives visitors another perspective of these magnificent giants.

We also visited Peaceful Bay, about 25kms from Walpole.

Northcliffe: Art and Nature Trail

Understory at Northcliffe is an art and nature trail that is inspired by nature.  Meandering through an ancient forest, this 1.2km easy walk circuit features more than 60 sculptures.  The range of original artworks are by over 40 local, state and national and international artists.  There is also the local flora and fauna to enjoy.  The trail contains a canopy of pretty coloured wildflowers.

In addition to the main sculptures, there are over 40 faces and figures are represented here commemorating the catastrophic bushfire of 2015.  The collective works are entitled "Rising from the Ashes".

Titled "Shades of Grey" - superglass corrugated sheet, steel and resin.  It is a reflection of the diversity of ideals and opinions about fire in the forest - asking the viewer to find the grey between the black and white.

Titled "Feeding" - metal rod and gold leaf.  A sacred myth from a past era when some of the tree, for one reason or another, decided to lie down and give generously to the future.

Layered forest folk - a series of figures made of marble resin, cement, iron dust and steel - representing the symbolic association people have developed with the forest landscape, itself an entity built layer on layer over time.

"Cascading Rain Shelter" made of natural steel and galvanised steel.  It is a shelter that echoes the form of birds' wings, leaves and shapes found in the forest.  Designed to provide shade and allow rainwater to cascade into a sculptural pond.

"Pathways" - jarrah and blackbutt timber and welded steel.  These branches grow out into the space available, linking the earth to the sky.  Is it a tree or a flower, a fungi, or a microscopic form?

"Whole, You Were Meant To Be Here" - a suspended halo representing a communion: the result is an energy field, a ring, a nest, a platform.

This sculpture is one in a series of wood carvings from jarrah created with chainsaw and chisel.  The wood was salvaged from firewood.

This is not a piece of art but a wonderfully shaped overturned tree root that blends in beautifully with all the other exhibits.