It had rained most of the night but it was dry when we got up. We had brekky to the gorgeous water view and then went into the centre of Albany to do some shopping. After this we drove inland about 50 kilometres to the stunning Porongurup National Park. We put our walking boots on and headed up Castle Rock to the Granite Skywalk. I did this walk back in November and really wanted to do it again as the view from the top was awesome. The first thing I noticed on the walk was just how lush and green everything was compared with back in November. It was about two kilometres to near the top from where the ladders go up to the skywalk around the granite at the summit. We passed Balancing Rock on the way. It is an amazing rounded piece of granite which does indeed appear to be very precariously balanced. From here it was a bit of a rock scramble and up the ladders to the viewing platform. By now most of the cloud had cleared and the sky was a deep blue. The view from the top was as incredible as I had remembered it. The view across the flat plains in one direction and to the dramatic Stirling Range peaks in the other direction was spectacular. The atmosphere and magic of the place was ruined though by a load of young French people shouting 'Le and La woop woop' all the time. Why can't people just quietly enjoy places of natural beauty? It would have been slightly less annoying to have encountered French wonders Ottawan at the top singing their cheery pop song D.I.S.C.O!! We then made the descent back to the car park. We had intended to stay the night at the Porongurup Range Tourist Park where I had stayed back in November as it was one of the best and friendliest caravan parks I have been to. We were therefore disappointed to see a sign at the entrance stating that they were closed until the end of August. This was a real shame. We now needed a plan B and decided to head towards the Stirling Range National Park about 50 kilometres away and go to the Mt Trio Bush Camp which was another great place I had stayed at back in November. As we got closer to the Stirling Range the view got better and better. The dramatic peaks of the rugged range looked stunning as they abruptly rose from the surrounding agricultural lowlands. We soon got to the Mt Trio Bush Camp which is next to a working farm and has the dramatic Stirling peaks as a backdrop. We went in the same spot that our little camper occupied back in November. The camp area is in a lovely bit of bushland behind the farm. The differences between now and then were that everywhere was a lot greener and that there were no flies. In November I had been held prisoner in the van by the flies that had been in plague proportions. The camp operates a self check in and we registered and paid our money in the table tennis room as instructed. Whilst there we couldn't resist a few games and we pinged and ponged to our heart's content. The facilities here were lovely and rustic with the camp buildings being made out of recycled materials. The tiles and hand basins were from the early 1900's and came from the local train station. There was a sign in the amenities entitled:-

LIQUID GOLD

Be it hands or teeth you're brushing
Please don't leave the water gushing
On and off just as required
To the city water we're not wired
In fact we feel disposed to say
Leave some for another day
In the shower make it quick
Soap then rinse, yes that's the trick
Rain comes rarely to our tanks
So for your caution, many thanks.

Apart from the moo cows mooing in the distance this site was lovely and quiet. There was only us and two other campers here. We chilled for the rest of the day.