Step 54 Augusta – Margaret River 116km's

Tuesday 8^th March

Started the day with a trip out to Cape Leeuwin, the most South Westerly point in WA and home of the tallest mainland lighthouse. It is also where the Indian and Pacific Oceans meet (It must have been hazy, because we couldn't see the join line though).

Pacific ocean to the front, Indian in the back (of this picture)

Then it was off on the Caves Road as recommended by the Caravan and Motorhome Magazine and DVD and very pleasant it was too.

Stopped at Jewel Cave, but didn't go in for the tour.

Who needs a four wheel drive

Still driving through forest country but Epping Forest it is not, you don't get trees like this 20km's from London!

Next stop Caves Works where we checked out the displays and Steve rapelled into the caves

while Di checked out the intricate formations, hundreds of metres below ground

Do these shorts actually make my bum look smaller

What? You don't believe us. Good choice, but the photo's of the posters on the wall came out really well didn't they? Come on, 300 steps down into the dark, cramped, enclosed spaces underground. Does that sound like Steve & Di?

Now while Margaret River is famous for it's wineries and wine, in particular Chardonnay & Cabernet Sauvignon, it was previously a sleepy surfer's hangout. Judging by the crowd at Surfers Point it still is. There were some seriously gnarly dudes just chillin on the cliffs watching their bro's carving up the tubes. Man it was awesome, left hand and right hand breaks on either side of the point. Editors note: I have very little idea what those last two sentences mean but it was very pleasant sitting in MM eating lunch whilst watching the surf and the board riders.

Some of the surfers looked like they might have been to the Pemberton Berry Pancake house, more than once, including one guy who looked like he had had an extra panel sewed into the stomach region of his wetsuit. I'd swim next to him if the sharks arrived, I believe Great Whites like to supersize their seal meal deal whenever possible.

In what is shaping up to be a very pleasant day indeed our next stop was the Cape Mentelle Winery. Back in the day, when I was gainfully employed, and when coffee breaks and long lunches were part of my job description, I could take a glass (or three) of Cape Mentelle Cab Sav in my stride. Luckily, like riding a bike you don't forget these things easily and Di & I managed to work our way through the tastings. However in a sign that we are becoming acclimatised to Chateau Cardboard and Deux Dollar Cinquante Rouge (or as they call it in the Dan Murphy's, $2.50 Cab Merlot) we actually preferred the $16 “Budget” Cab Sav Merlot to the $84 Cab Sav, vineyard speciality. I'm sure I will be able to re-train myself at some point.

On Vicki & Herb's recommendation our next stop was the Voyager Winery. Now this is what my country residence shall look like when I hit the jackpot. This place is truly amazing

While I initially thought it looked like a French Chateau, apparently it is based on a South African Estate. The gardens that surround the buildings are maintained by six full time gardeners.

Editors note: In talking to locals later, their feeling was that one of the reasons the Margaret River took off as a premier wine region so quickly, was that the owners concentrated not just on the vines and the wines but also the presentation of the wineries. So all of the wineries seem to be beautifully presented. Having said that, some of the wineries had the advantage of being set up by people with a lot of cash to splash. Voyager for instance was founded by a guy who was Lang Hancock's business partner. Rather than marrying the housekeeper this guy invested his time and money into the vineyard and estate.

EDITORS NOTE: Vicki and Herb doing all this travelling has been nothing less than outstanding for us. Not only have we had the benefit of a Torquay “holiday house” for the last few years, but now we don't even need to do travel research on this trip. We just check V & H's notes and their recommendations in our RACV Caravan book and re-read the “Travels with the Taj” blog. Thanks V & H xxx

In a sign of how well the day is going, we tried to check into the Top Tourist Van park in Margaret River but it was full. However the Family Parks park we did get into turned out to be better.