Le Chic En Rose

There are so many beautiful coastal walks and recreation spots dotted along the coast near Denmark (Western Australia). One place highly recommended by our daughter Mlle (see here for her guest post) was the beautiful William Bay National Park, about half an hour’s drive out of town to the west.

The two best-known attractions are Greens Pool, a popular spot for families as the rock formations provide shelter from the force of the Southern Ocean and the nearby Elephant Rocks and Cove. However there are also a few other beaches and viewing spots such as Waterfall Beach and Madfish Bay (more how the latter got its curious name in due course).

We visited the park on a crisp winter’s day – the sun was darting in and out from the clouds (a harbinger of the rain to come). The car park and facilities had recently been extensively renovated in an eco-style to protect the fragile environment. We needn’t have worried about finding anywhere to park as, midweek and out of season, we had this unspoilt corner of the world practically to ourselves. The moody light highlighted the greys and soft greens of the vegetation and the sandy hues of the rocks.

It was such a peaceful and tranquil spot though the photos don’t tell the full story as the sea breeze was really starting to pick up.

There were several information boards, which told the story of the area and also the history behind some of the more curious names such as how Madfish Bay allegedly got its name (subsequently it has lent its name to a local winery).

We didn’t see any seals in real life but this photo seemed too cute not to share.

We walked along the path to Elephant Rocks where you can climb down a staircase through a chasm in the rocks to access the cove below.

There are warning signs here as you don’t want to get stuck at the bottom with the tide coming in! I would be especially careful too if we had had young children such as our granddaughters with us – it would be quite easy to slip especially on a wet day. We didn’t linger too long as the tide did indeed appear to be coming in quite fast so we headed back up the staircase the way we came.

We had also planned to visit Lights Beach at the eastern end of the national park. Unfortunately we soon came to a road blockade – the area was inaccessible due to renovations being carried out on the car parks so we will have to save Lights Beach for another day.

However we still had a very enjoyable afternoon in the William Bay National Park doing plenty of walking and savouring the outstanding beauty of the region.

Copyright © 2021 Rosemary Thomas Le Chic En Rose. All rights reserved.