Western Australia: Overview
To say that Western Australia is immense is something of an understatement. The water pipes that stretch from Perth to Kalgoorlie are the length of England. The state boundaries enclose an area three-and-a-half times the size of Texas and could contain the Netherlands 70 times over. You can drive for hours along the desert roads with¬out seeing another car. Yet most visitors, like most Westralians, never see more than a fraction of it. Of the state's 1.7 million people, 1.3 million live in the Perth area, and most of the rest are close to the coast, among the vineyards of the southwest or along the .surf-pounded capes of the northwest. Perth, WA's capital, is a modern city com¬plete with shiny skyscrapers, four universities, and—in the words of the American consulate - "the kind of weather that California thinks it has."
From cute quokkas in the south to camels and saltwater crocs in the north, WA is home to a range of uniquely Australian wildlife. The state's interior is covered with miles and miles of desert, spinifex grass, and sandy plains, but to tourists, WA is best known for wildflowers and woods. Between August and November, 8000 flower spe¬cies bloom in carpets in the Pilbara and along the coast south from Exmouth into the Great Southern. Southwestern WA is the domain of old-growth forests. Among the world's largest trees, the majestic karri reaches heights of 80m and stand in defiance of the state's thriving wood-chipping industry. In the north, the desert gives way to the nigged tropical vegetation of the Kimberley. Though drenched by monsoons dur¬ing the wet season, this region is gorgeous, if inaccessible, from April to November. A few rough roads carve through the huge expanses of rainforest, unearthly rock formations, and spectacular waterfalls that cascade into the Indian Ocean.
Sheer isolation reinforces Westralians' independent nature. In 1933, a state referen¬dum revealed a two-to-one preference to separate from the Commonwealth of Aus¬tralia. Secession never became a political reality, but the self-sufficient spirit that bred the movement remains a subtle undercurrent. While many proud Westralians depend on heavy industry for their livelihood, a growing number are fighting for the protection of their state's natural resources. Ecotourism and promotion of natural attractions have begun to edge out the fishing and animal husbandry industries; tour¬ists certainly prefer swimming with the dolphins at Monkey Mia to visiting the mas¬sive open-pit mines of die outback. But resource exploitation is unlikely to cease, and the continuing debate suggests that sometimes a state just can't be large enough.
WESTERN AUSTRALIA HIGLIGHTS
- Sunset camel rides down miles of sand on Cable Beach, Broome
- Gazing down on a lush canopy of giant redtingle from the Valley of the Giants Treetop Walk near Walpole
- Testing your windsurfing skills against the gales at Geraldton
- Wading in the dark at Tunnel Creek in the Kimberley
- Springtime wildflowers, anywhere, especially along the rigorous climb to Bluff Peak in Stirling Range National Park
- Swimming with whale sharks at Ningaloo Reef, Exmouth
- Picnicking with a view over the Swan River from Kings Park, Perth
- Sipping local wine after a long day exploring Margaret River's caves
- The unearthly shape of the Pinnacles rising from desert-like dunes
- Spying on dolphins from the wind-beaten cliffs of Rottnest Island