Ocean views in Denmark (WA)
Waking to views of the ocean. Under a bright blue sky, and sandwiched between the verdant green trees that flourish in this part of the world. Watching the swell crash against the beach, roll out, and return. In the same way it has done for thousands of years. Nowhere to be. Nothing to do. Other than just being the ocean. Day after day. There is something quite meditative about it. A simplicity.
And this simplicity will be how we spend our weekend in Denmark. A drive south of Perth of just under five hours, we were spending three nights in a Heyscape tiny cabin, This one named “Sand”. One of three cabins in a large paddock, some 12 kms out of Denmark.
Tiny Cabins of Western Australia
We have had a few weekends across Western Australia in these tiny cabins, and this was our first in Denmark, a place we last visited in 2022. Just last year, on our European holiday, I had my first visit to the Scandinavian Denmark. Not to be confused with a country some 13,000 kms away, the local version was named in 1826, after Alexander Denmark of the British Royal Navy.
Whilst the very impressive coastline will not have changed much since those naval days, our stay is sure to be very different to the last time we were here, passing through on a holiday exploring the Great Southern. You may remember the disaster we had with our hire car on the way south of Perth, and how our good friend rescued our holiday.
This visit was to be very different. And the first time (I think) that Denmark (WA) has made an appearance on the blog. <<checks the blog archives>>.
Road Tripping the Great Southern
With the hire car fully stocked with all we needed for three nights, minus the wine we were sure to buy locally at the excellent cellar doors, we were off and heading south. The road south, the Albany Highway, was quiet, and we made good time, rolling in to Denmark just after our 4 o’clock check in time.
Cracking open a cold beer, sitting out on the deck of the cabin, I noticed how warm it felt. Being autumn, and about as south as you could get, we were hoping for some cooler weather. It is rare that we get to wear anything other than t-shirts and shorts in Perth. There appears to be two seasons. Summer. And waiting for summer.
Apart from loving the seclusion. And the simplicity of a tiny cabin. There is one massive draw for us on these weekends. When the sun sets, and the stars come out. Wow. No words. The night sky is all the entertainment we need. We just sit and stare, having a competition on who can spot the most shooting stars. With our homemade meat and cheese board finished, I drained the last of my whisky nightcap, and we called it a night.
Mornings in Denmark
Morning started as they often do on these weekends. Coffee on the deck taking in the natural surroundings. The first whiff of eucalyptus. Heaven. That first morning included kangaroos and a host of different birds, prompting a reflective conversation on whether we would like to come back in an afterlife as a bird. Quite appealing, I am sure you would agree.
After a traditional bacon and egg butty cooked up on the BBQ we drove the short distance to Elephant Rocks and neighbouring Greens Pool. Both are spectacular. Strolling along the quiet path we surprised a small mob of kangaroos.
Wine Tasting in Denmark
Leaving the kangaroos to get back to their morning routine, we made plans for the day. Denmark is well known for its wines, and there were some favourite cellar doors we wanted to revisit, and plenty of new places that we had not yet discovered. One such place was Rockcliffe winery. Entering the cellar door, a couple were just finishing a tasting and leaving. We sat at the bar, noticing that the owner, Steve, seemed to be a million miles away. We exchanged a furtive glance, without words, saying “what are we doing here?”
We needn’t have worried. Steve warmed up, and whilst he remained a cantankerous Englishman, looking for a way to move to Italy, we had a great time sharing stories with him. He told us of his frustration with running a business in Australia and how he was ready to leave. I secretly suspect that he will still be there when we next visit, whenever that happens to be.
Our next visit that day was to Monkey Rock, which turns out to be a winery, brewery, and a cidery all in one. We tried a few of the wines but it was a four pack of the excellent preservative free apple cider that we walked away with.
Beers at Boston Brewing Company
One local institution that is going nowhere is Boston Brewing Company. Having been closed when we passed through in 2022, this was our first visit. A large brewery with an impressive outdoor space to go with a massive indoor bar and restaurant.
Being in a region renowned for its food and drink, one of us has to be the skipper. What I am now wondering is, why is it that when I write a blog, the skipper always seems to be Victoria. I also do some of the driving. I promise.
I savoured a pint of the excellent Great Southern IPA. If there weren’t so many other places to visit I could have happily stayed there for the afternoon. But we had places to be, specifically, The Lakehouse for lunch. This was our second visit and once again lunch was one of their excellent shared platters and a glass of their finest wine.
After a busy afternoon how to best unwind? In the outdoor bath with a bottle of local sparkling wine, of course. What started out as a novelty, then a trend, and now the norm, is the practice of including an outdoor bath at these remote cabins. You will struggle to now find one that doesn’t offer one. Saturday afternoon had us soaking in bubbles, drinking bubbles.
Returning to Albany
Some 52 kms from Denmark sits Albany. A town with beauty and character that we always love visiting. Not only for the LimeBurners whisky tasting, or the Wilson Brewery and their fine range of beers, but also because it has what Victoria has deemed to be the best Indian Restaurant in Australia. Knowing we would be so close on this weekend in the Great Southern we couldn’t resist another visit and we booked ourselves in for dinner.
Before gorging on excellent Indian food we had a walk around Emu Point and Middleton Beach to see how it had developed since our last visit. There is always some development going on and the touted hotel we saw advertised a few years ago still hasn’t materialised.
Beer and Curry a Perfect Combination
Wilson Brewery has shifted to a new, large, town centre location since our last visit and whilst the beer remains just as good I couldn’t help feeling that the brewery has lost a lot of its charm and magic. A couple of pints and it was time for that dinner.
And how excited we were. Being English there are not many things I enjoy as much as fish and chips. Curry is one of them and tonight we were making our third (or was it our fourth) visit to Albany Tandoori. Through the meal there was a little hiccup with our order. It was taking a long time to arrive. Had they forgotten the order? Victoria enquired, sharing that we needed to be getting back to Denmark and “would the food be long”.
It wasn’t long. And when I paid the bill I was told that the price of our drinks had been removed. Due to the “hiccup” and that we were “locals from Denmark”. I didn’t have the heart to tell her we were tourists. A free drink is a free drink. Walking back to the car, rubbing our tummies, we agreed that Albany Tandoori remains top of the curry pile.
Time to say Goodbye
All too quick, our final day had arrived. Checking out by 10am we called in at the nearby Denmark Chocolate Shop. Had we had more time I would have definitely settled in with a couple of their delicious looking scones, cream and Berry Farm jam.
As it was, we had somewhere to be, so we left with just a couple of bags of chocolate buttons. The place where we were headed was Singlefile cellar door. A return visit as we love the location, and the cellar door so much. Deciding against tasting the whole list, which is a lot of wine, we sampled a few excellent whites and a very good pinot noir. Yes, before you ask, we did walk away with a few bottles.
Sadly, it was time to head home. Being a long drive back we called in at Plantagenet Wines in Mt Barker, where we had lunch and a glass of wine. A lovely old building that used to be an apple shed, and is now a thriving winery and restaurant. A simple lunch of pizza was just what we needed.
Our thoughts return to Albany Tandoori
Heading back up Albany highway, wine bottles rattling around the boot of the car, we finally pulled into Perth around 6pm, reflecting on such a great weekend. And the conversation over dinner that night? When can we go back for another curry!
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