It was the Queen birthday long weekend, and Dr KY invited us, another colleague and her husband and another Doctor to go to Rottnest Island on his yacht on Sunday 29th.
We met up at the Royal Perth Yacht Club in Nedlands at 9,30 with a view to departing at 10am.
Before we boarded, KY showed us Jon Sanders Perie Banou II, the yacht where the then 79 year old Perth man completed his 10th solo circumnavigation in 2018.
Navigating on the Swan River, we left the city behind, cruising past beautiful houses with river views, tiny beaches, riverside parks...
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| Fancy houses by the river. Can you spot the house with the sunflower murals? And the Rainbow containers?(links below) |
About half an hour later we sail past the Western Australia Maritime Museum, the green South Mole lighthouse and the red North Mole lightouse, gatekeepers to the Fremantle harbour, and join the Indian Ocean on the way to Rottnest Island just 18km away.
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| WA Maritime Museum, South Mole lighthouse, and North Mole lighthouse |
Forty five minutes later we dropped anchor at the designated mooring, the boys got the dinghy down, we all climbed aboard and steered towards Thomson's Bay.
At the outdoor bar of the Hotel Rottnest we sat down for a drink, with a glorious view of the bay.
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| View of Thomson's Bay from outdoor bar at the Rottnest Hotel |
We spotted the first Quokka, and shortly after a peacock came strutting towards us.
When we left the bar area a lot more quokkas were around, some just resting in the shade, others just looking for food, and all around them dozens of people taking photos of this cute creature.
I didn't manage a selfie, but I got a photo with a sleeping one :)
We ate lunch at Frankie's on Rotto - pizza and Caesar Salad for the 6 of us.
After lunch we walked to Pinky's Beach Club, where the $20 million glamping 83 Eco-retreat was opened in March this year. With 83 eco-tents, this was the first accommodation to be built on the island in the last 30 years.
With the lighthouse and the Pinky Beach Bay as a stunning backdrop, there is also a grassed area with day beds, a dining area with views, and a small pool and bar for the lucky guests.
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| Pinky's Beach Club - the eco-tents, the restaurant, the pool |
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| Sculpture at the entrance of Pinky's Beach Club |
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| Pinky's Beach with the lighthouse to the right |
From Pinky's bay we walked back to Thomson's Bay, fabulous views, turquoise waters, white sand, hundreds of boats, holiday mood ... bliss!
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| Sign at the school gates |
It was time to go back to the boat, the boys hauled the dinghy back to the water, we climbed aboard and steered towards the yacht.
Once aboard, the boys hauled the dinghy to the top of the boat, while the ladies lay out snacks and drinks, and then we all sat down on the back deck, and chatted.
I spotted this guy roaming around on his dinghy, totally relaxed 😉, what a good life.
And all good times have to come to an end, so by 4,30pm we prepared to lift anchor and return to Perth.
The sun was setting by the time we arrived in Perth.
The city in the distance...
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| Back at the Royal Perth Yacht Club |
We will return to the island in December when my daughter, son in law and his French family visit for Christmas. Not in style, but with the ferry :)
FOR OTHER SIGNS please go over to Tom's blog.
Related Posts:
House with sunflower mural:
https://sami-colourfulworld.blogspot.com/2019/02/monday-mural-sunflowers.html
The Fremantle Rainbow:
https://sami-colourfulworld.blogspot.com/2017/04/driving-around-swan-river-coast.html
I didn't manage a selfie, but I got a photo with a sleeping one :)
