The first night on the farm!This year we have decided to head down to Albany for Easter to camp by the banks of the Kalgan River on Paula’s family farm. Originally the group was going to be Paula and Steve, David and Sophie and Ashleigh. Due to a change in plans however we have also been accompanied by Glenn and Tricia and Karina and Luke and their little dog Jethro.
We arrived at about 3pm on Wednesday – Just Glenn and Tricia and us and did a basic set up and then settled in to enjoy the evening. On Thursday morning we set up the full awnings on the campers, collected some firewood and water and set up the tent for David and Sophie. That afternoon we put the kayaks in the water and went for a “peddle” and a fish.
Steve had no luck at all – only catching a few trees with his
Glenn at the altar of the Black Bream lure! Glenn on the other hand was more successful, bagging several small bream, one good one and a couple of small mulloway. Late that afternoon, Karina and Luke joined us and we all settled around the camp fire to enjoy a few drinks and soak up the warmth. The weather has been warm and fine, but the nights have been pretty cold!
On Thursday we had a slow start to the day. Steve decided to bake a cake on his Weber Q (it was delicious!) and we waited for David Sophie and Ashleigh to arrive. They made it here in good time (about 10.30am) and we spent the rest of the day relaxing, kayaking and just making the most of the lovely weather. Glenn of course spent most of his time fishing! We will keep you posted on what we get up to as the days roll on!
Saturday
Steve's first bream on lure.Today the shops were open in the town 
Dave and Sophie fishingso guess what the women did? Well they went grocery shopping at least. Whilst they were gone, David and Steve decided to use the opportunity to try to catch some bream on lure from our kayak, something neither of us had done successfully before. For this trip we had a total of 4 kayaks available. We took our Hobie Oasis – a tandem kayak that we both love. Glenn and Tricia took a Hobie Outback and a Finn Cuda. Luke and Karina took Luke's K-1 that he has used to complete the Avon Decent in the past.
David and Steve spent a number of very pleasant hours on a millpond like Kalgan, throwing lures where-ever they could. It was not the most successful trip ever, but it was nice spending some time together. Steve did manage to land one reasonable Black Bream using a blade lure so he was pretty chuffed! Glenn was very successful with his fishing rarely failing to bring something home. He caught a number of very nice mulloway on lure over the trip!
When Paula, Sophie and Ashleigh returned, David and Sophie made the most of the bait that they bought with them and headed out in the Oasis returning with at least one nice fish. Sophie loved fishing and her pink rod was used often over the trip with some impressive success.
Sunday
Easter Sunday! Of course we had to start off with some chocolate! Once that was over we set about the usual routine. We ate breakfast, relaxed, used the kayaks and just enjoyed “the vibe of the thing”! (Sorry about the constant “Castle” references.) In the afternoon, Paula and most of the gang headed over to the farmhouse to catch up with family. Steve was taking a ‘nana nap” in the Quantum, but when he awoke he jumped in the Oasis and headed over via the river to say hello. Luke and Glenn were out on the river fishing. After a brief catch up with the family, Steve headed back out on the river solo with camera in hand and got some nice shots of Glenn happily fishing. Another magnificent day!
Monday
Anzac Day. Overnight the rain started and unfortunately it persisted for most of the day. It was the only wet day of the whole trip. There was little to do but relax, watch the odd movie and just “chill out”. Perhaps the weather was fitting, for Glenn received news that his Mother had passed away that morning. We know the news was sad for Glenn, but he was very stoic about it as the news was not unexpected. He had travelled to Sydney just before Easter and had said his farewells – nevertheless, the weather must have been reflective of the day for Glenn and our thoughts were with him and his family.
Unfortunately our satellite receiver decided to pack it in and that meant that we couldn’t watch the Dockers play against the Western Bulldogs. We had to make the most of the radio coverage around the campfire that night. (The weather thankfully cleared so we were able to once again enjoy the campfire.) Although the coverage ended just short of the game concluding, we were able to celebrate a good win!
Karina and Luke had a look at the forecast for Tuesday and decided to call it quits and head for home. They were only in a lightweight tent and the rain made things very difficult for them. They and Jethro headed off back home – just as the sky cleared. It was nice having their company over the weekend and we know that Tricia and Glenn enjoyed having them with us all.
Tuesday
Contrary to predictions, the weather was absolutely superb again. Along with Glenn and Tricia we decided to paddle upstream to the bridge on the Southwest Coastal Highway. Glenn and Steve both ensured that their rods were with them – Glenn was a lot more enthusiastic about the fishing than Steve who was also busy with his camera. The weather was glorious and there were many pauses in the trip while we waited for Glenn to catch up – it wasn’t a chore! Steve managed to catch a couple of herring (or salmon trout) and a small mulloway just by trolling a lure behind the yak. On reaching the bridge we beached the kayaks and enjoyed a snack by the banks of the river before beginning the trip back. Glenn decided that he wanted to spend the rest of the day fishing his way back to camp, so Tricia, Steve and Paula made more direct progress towards home. Steve and Paula wanted to head into the nearest shopping centre to organise a few things so that we could celebrate Sophie’s birthday which was Wednesday, but as Ashleigh, Dave and Sophie were leaving on the same day we wanted to celebrate a little early.
That night we had a little bush birthday celebration for Sophie who was turning 20. Glenn and Steve even did a little ukulele serenade for the occasion! It was another beautiful night by the campfire.
Wednesday
Sophie’s birthday!
Today was Sophie’s 20th birthday. It was wonderful to share it with her in the bush in the south of Western Australia. It was also a little sad as David, Ashleigh and Sophie were heading back to Perth, as were Glenn and Tricia. David and Sophie intended to celebrate a little more in style, and Glenn and Tricia wanted to be home in time to allow them to go to the Eagles' game on Thursday.
Pack ups are always sad, but the kids were organised and away by about 9.30am. Their tent was left for us to pack up and as it was wet from rain and dew, that wasn’t completed until after lunch. Glenn and Tricia had a leisurely pack up and left at about 11.30pm. We had decided to stay another day and head home Thursday. We had intended to pack up a little over the afternoon, we managed to load the car, however some heavy showers rolled through and that ended the idea of packing up the annex. Instead, Paula wandered over to say goodbye to her mum. And Steve pottered around the camp. We still managed to have a nice campfire that night, but eventually showers forced us inside.
Thursday
We took things very easy today. The weather was lovely and sunny and we slept in a little as we were in no rush to head home. Packing up is always a little sad! However we had things to do at home and it was time to go. The Quantum is a wonderful machine and we love using it. It is easy to set up and even the full annex is not a major trauma. The Weber Q was used nearly every night and we love it – we use it at home at least a couple of times a week. The Hobie is also a wonderful addition to our list of toys and we loved having the river nearby to use it regularly. Best of all, by far, was the company of our kids – Ashleigh, David and Sophie, and of our very good friends Tricia and Glenn and their kids, Karina and Luke (and Jethro!).
We can’t wait until our next adventure!