This is the story about a place stuffed fondly in my childhood memories. Bluff Knoll, Albany.
This beauty is an actual mountain, and you can climb it. She is the highest peak in the Southern area of Western Australia and you will find her in the Stirling Range National Park, an area covering around 65km, and about an hour’s drive out of Albany. In 2006 this area was put on the National Heritage List due to it being one of the bio diversity hotspots in the world. Here you will find more than 1500 species of flowering plants, some of which are native only to this area, not found anywhere else in the world. There are around 150 bird species found in the area, 39 species of mammal and an array of creepy crawlies from reptiles, to insects to snakes…But best of all it snows on the peak of the Bluff. Yep, in the cold (and by golly it gets cold) winter of this South West haven, we get a little bit of snow each year. When we do most of the local population attempt to climb her to build snowmen. No, I’m not joking, they really do.
The climb to the top is about 3km, so 6km return and it takes between three to four hours. The first part of the path is relatively easy, then it gets steeper and a little rockier, but there is a clear path all the way up and is good for kids from as young as six – I would suggest. But the day I was there younger kids were flying up while exhausted parents lagged behind. I don’t know how far up they got, or how much of it they were carried. But I know my two would not manage unless I had extra Freddo Frogs to line the pathway with as incentive.
I remember doing day trips to Bluff Knoll as a child. I’d come out with my parents, sisters and grandparents and us kids would tear up the rough rocky pathway to a main point on the climb where there used to be a rather good mountain stream. The water would gush over rocks and form pools where big fat healthy tadpoles lazily hung out. We would use our hands to collect the icy cold water to drink, and this would be our reward for the climb. This point on the path is just over 1km up and from here the pathway becomes steeper and a bit rockier. We would then head back to the carpark for a picnic.
What I loved as a kid was that my grandparents – especially my Gran, who will soon turn 101 years old, knew the name of every single plant ever. We’d ask her over and over the names of the flowers we found. I don’t remember any of them…
Back in the day the carpark and walk were just a rough setup. I remember the heat of summer pummelling off the rocks, and the cold in winter is biting. I also remember standing and staring up at the mountain in total awe. Even as a child I seemed to grasp the magnitude of how special nature is. I used to imagine what it would be like to climb to the top, and my parents would say they had done it before but we were too little to go. I think they just couldn’t be arsed climbing up it again.
Many years later SB and I climbed to the top on a romantic trip away. I remember the heat of the sun bouncing off the cliff face, burning my hot sweaty skin. We made it to the top out of breath and totally elated that we did it.
When I visited Bluff Knoll recently, the day was a stunning sun-shiny day. I packed up my parents, the kids, a picnic and our thermoses. I was so excited to take the children to this place they had heard so much about and to meander along as they ran off ahead of us, up the path, the way I did as a child. We got there and it is pretty different now with a great area to sit and eat your
What will strike you when you start walking is the scent of our bush. Even without too many flowers in bloom you get that fragrance of the earth, of eucalyptus, the sap from the trees and the sweet sugar from the flowers. That cacophony of perfume fills your senses and you breathe it in deeply. The crisp cool air revitalises sore muscles and you must remember to stop every so often and look up at the majesty of the mountain. When the sky is bright blue in the background, it is really something. Also remember to always look back. Whenever you walk and explore you need to do this. Often you miss out on the best views if you don’t. I take the time to run my hands over leaves, tree trunks, feeling the rough bark or smooth veins of the plant.
The kids had a great time running ahead and climbing. I showed them a termite nest and we talked about how termites build them. We showed them an ant nest and talked about how the ants build using little sticks, stones and sand. I demonstrated – just like the mature adult I am, what the definition of a frenzy is, and I stuck my finger in the top of a nest so the ants spilled out like an overflowing soda bottle. Ants went ballistic all over the place and we laughed as I firmly told my kids how wrong it is to tease wildlife, even ants, and I made them promise not to copy my really naughty behaviour. Of course BB did, and he chuckled as his ants had a mental breakdown by his fingers poking at them.
The kids kept asking their grandparents and me the names of the plants, as they collected various seed pods, nuts, sticks, and leaves to bring home. Of course we had no idea. Where’s Gran when we need her?
The children and I love to do bush craft , and with all the rocks lying around, they were inspired to build small rock piles – or cairns. The kids would stop every few meters, finding the perfect position and collect the rocks from that area, building them into tall towers and constructs. They built eight in total. BB wanted us to carry rather large rocks to keep for his collection, and we would subtly thrown them back down when he wasn’t looking.
We finally made it to the point I used to climb to as a child. It took a bit to find it exactly because these days the gurgling stream has all but dried up. Mum said after heavy rains it usually had more water in it, but I remember when I did the climb with SB that it wasn’t much to see anymore, and that was over a decade ago. But we found a small puddle trapped in rocks, and trickles running down the rockface as a frog hiding in the plants bellowed at us. The children climbed over the rocks to explore and I looked down into the puddle searching for memories. The sparkles of light reminded me that back in the day, the creek was filled with flat shiny stones. They are the shards of what appears to be shale. The ash grey rocks have flecks of light colour in them and when wet they shine like jewels. As a kid I used to fill my pockets with these beauties. I’d put them in jars of water, bringing them back to life. I showed the children who got busy collecting just a few special pieces to bring home. There is so few now, I explained, we must leave them behind.
On our return to the carpark we ate our picnic and the children found a gravel embankment to slide down on their bottoms. Gravel covered kiddie bottoms were patted down before being allowed back in the car. I remember those days too, not much has really changed.
Details
Where: Bluff Knoll, Stirling Range National Park, about 80km from Albany (allow one hours drive each way).
Entry fee: Yes, take a few gold coins, or if you have a parks pass you can go straight through.
What to Take: Picnic, snacks and lots of water. Sunblock for when it is sunny, hats and wear good trekking shoes. Don’t forget your camera.
Dog Friendly: No
Mobile Reception: Not really
Kid Friendly: yes. If you want to climb to the top, I would say aged 6-7 is a good starting age.
Best time to go: Autumn, or Spring for the wildflowers.
Hot Parenting Tip
If you are taking young children, as hard as it is try to lose your adult drive to achieve and climb up the mountain as fast as you can. There is nothing more joyful for children than being allowed to explore. So many people trekked past us, huffing, puffing and marching on with the kids. They were determined to get to the top in good time. There is nothing wrong with that, but for me, my goal was simple – get to that point where the creek is in a relaxed and easy way. If we decide to go further then great, but it wasn’t an expectation. My kids spent their time looking around, searching the bushland looking for treasure and taking in the views. They learnt about the area (just not the names of the plants) and were so excited to build nature art. They had a wonderful time and this helps them build an affinity with the natural environment.