30. The one with swinging

Total distance travelled: 28,313 km (+1,367 km)

After the bright lights of Perth's suburbia, we relished the peace and quiet of a turf farm in Vasse, just 15 minutes from Busselton. As you would expect, we had a lovely field of grass on which to kick the footy and play games of cricket when we weren't off exploring the region.

Busselton boasts a fantastic foreshore precinct, with a huge skate park and playground which kept the kids entertained after meeting the Coopers there. Nearby is the famous 1.8km long jetty which we walked together, after some grumbling about the $4 per adult fee for the privilege. This turned out to be a bargain when compared with the Cape Naturaliste and Leeuwin lighthouses both charging $45 for our family to enter the grounds surrounding each landmark. This was despite one of them being covered in scaffolding! No thanks.

After receiving recommendations as far back as Port Hedland, we knew that visiting Next Level Monkey Business in Dunsborough was a must. Impressively, it lived up to the hype, with low- and high-ropes courses and zip lines which kept us all challenged and entertained for hours. We eventually left exhausted, muscles aching, and slightly rattled from slamming into our fair share of cushions at the end of zip lines, but thrilled and thankful to have achieved it together. In contrast, our visit to Wow Illusions was fairly average, as it seemed like a half-hearted mix of Phillip Island's "Amazen Things" and the Docklands' "ArtVo". Despite the place being empty, the manager was most annoyed with our kids for occasionally running between exhibits. Oh well, you can't win them all!

Eventually we needed a night in a caravan park to empty/refill and get laundry done, which led us to Gracetown Caravan Park. The added

bonus of staying here was access to a tennis court, basketball court and mini golf course. After exhausting himself on all of these, Josh then spent the rest of his time running away from a strange small boy who seemed intent on throwing a basketball at him! We escaped to the foreshore for a sunset walk, where we found the parking lots packed with hippies, their campervans, and their dogs roaming free. Yep, an interesting place.

From Gracetown, we went back off grid, moving to a farm just outside the township of Margaret River, which allowed us to park within their olive grove. With rows of olive trees separating each site, views across surrounding farmland, and horses in the neighbouring paddock to feed carrots, it very quickly inspired fond memories of Carolyn's aunty and uncle's property in Rhyll, with the weather also cooling down to match during our first few days there. Thankfully it warmed up again, and proved the perfect spot from which to base ourselves while we explored the region. The property even backed onto the actual Margaret River - a surprisingly modest river really, from which this world-renowned area derives its name.

Obviously it's the wine and gourmet food that's produced here that

brings most of the crowds. As such, we couldn't leave without experiencing it for ourselves! We chose the Swings and Roundabouts winery for its laid-back, family friendly atmosphere. It was a great afternoon with delicious tastings and a lunch to remember - outdoors, overlooking the dam and vineyard, delicious food and drink, sitting on swings, and our kids' hilarious reaction to the alcoholic jelly on the cheese board... oops, the menu said Rose, not Rosé! The Berry Farm in Rosa Glen was another favourite with its cottage gardens, delicious scones, cakes and drinks and a shop with an impressive array of preserves, fruit wines, liqueurs and gifts. Josh and Acacia had a great time picking mulberries, playing on their playground and giant checkers board, allowing Carolyn and I the chance for fruit wine tastings and a quiet lunch together.

While we didn't see any evidence of the surf that brings the world tour here each year, the coastline is still a fascinating place to explore with Hamelin Bay and the Water Wheel at Cape Leeuwin being our favourites. The significance of visiting Cape Leeuwin wasn't lost on us either, as it was our final view of the Indian Ocean and our first of the Southern Ocean on this trip. From here we would turn eastward, and onto the home stretch.