Posts Tagged ‘albany’

Melbourne Cup At The Dog Rock

Wednesday, November 11th, 2009

 

We hosted the Radio West Function at Lime 303 this year and are pleased to report it was a huge success. We had a lovely email from one of the attendees of the function and it was much appreciated to hear that everyone had such a fabulous time.

It is alway great to hear praise and we love to share it with our staff as we are well aware of hard they work.

As for personal fortunes on race day;  none of us know a race horse from our elbow but despite this we had some minor success. Hope you fared well.

Enviromentalist Loss, Surfers Gain

Friday, October 9th, 2009

 There was an interesting story in the local press this week, regarding a company that was looking at using Albany’s waves as an energy source.

Apparently the company had been conducting a feasibility study to assess the potential of using the power of  the waves off Albany’s Sandpatch Beach to produce zero-emission renewable electricity. To do this though they needed some periods of relative calm. Their study concluded that our waves are too consistent.

Lots of these waves got to a good thing for surfers

Lots of these waves got to a good thing for surfers

Bad news for enviromentalists, but excellent news for surfers.

Albany Fishing

Friday, October 9th, 2009

Sorry for the short break in transmission, I have been enjoying a lovely break holidaying in some of the areas not too far from Albany, the South West really is a beautiful place even for those of us who have lived here all our lives.

Before I left I had been doing some fishing with small children in the Albany area and I wanted to let you know what I thought of some of the spots we visited and their relative merits.With the closing down of the town jetty I was a little stuck for ideas at first. (More on the town jetty at a later date)

Watch out they steal your bait, and your spearmint milk!

Watch out they steal your bait, and your spearmint milk!

The first place we tried was the Kalgan river. Apparently a great place for catching black bream and the much sort after muloway. We had no luck here but I am a rank amatuer and I think that showed. I saw a guy pull in a couple fo lovely sized black bream while we were there. He clearly knew what he was doing.

Overall I would say it is not a great place for kids to actually enjoy the fun of pulling in a fish. However, if the kids are more interested in playing with a ball or running around then there is a great lawned area there for them to enjoy. If you know what you are doing in the fishing department then you can happily fish and keep an eye on them at the same time. Plus there are great BBQ facilities for cooking up the fish after you haul them in.

Next we tried the groin  at Emu point. This turned more into a fun fest than a fishing trip with the kids wanting to build sand castles and play in the water as it was a nice day. I am reliably informed by those with more experience

Lots of room for kids to play

Lots of room for kids to play

 that this is a good place to fish when the tide is coming in. It is certainly tons of fun and fish or no fish you cannot go wrong.

Lastly, we went to the Middleton beach jetty and here we struck pay dirt in terms of actually catching fish. We pulled up a flathead, a whiting and a couple of skippy. Only the the skippy were size for eating but the kids nearly popped with the excitment of catching a fish all on their own (nearly). We also had a visit from a huge stingray that did lazy circles around the jetty to the kids delight. Middleton is beautiful and a bit of fishing followed by fish and chips on the beach watching the sun set really cannot be beaten. Tons of fun!

Great for catching fish and having fun

Great for catching fish and having fun

Albany Wildflowers Are A Big Draw Card

Thursday, September 24th, 2009

Having lived here in Albany since I was a little kid, I guess I have always known that it is an exceptionally beautiful place but you don’t tend to dwell too much on why that is.

wildflowerNow that I am a bit older I am able to appreciate that some of the beauty comes from the amazing wildflowers we enjoy in this region of Australia.

Since we have been here at the Dog Rock I have also realised how many people are willing to travel great distances to get a glimpse of this flora. we regularly have people pass through our motel whose sole reason for coming to Albany is to see the amazing wildflowers. I like to think the discover some of the other great things on offer in our town while they are here but the fact remains that our wildflowers are a top draw card for the town.

 

 If you are interested in experiencing the colour and natural beauty for yourself you should check out this link http://www.albanytourist.com.au/pages/wildflower-hot-spots-in-the-albany-region/where people a lot more knowledgable than myself will let you in on the kind sof things you can expect to see. If you are thinking of catching the show this year there is still time as the season runs from August to December.

So Much Free Fun In Albany For Kids

Friday, September 18th, 2009

 

 

So much fun for kids.

So much fun for kids.

Keeping my five nephews entertained can be a full time task, and if you are not careful you can spend plenty on kids entertainment. Recently I have been trying to watch the budget and all of the stuff we have gotten up to has reminded me that Albany is the perfect place to have fun with your kids in nature and it does not have to cost a cent.

The other day one of my nephews and I spent the day at Emu Point beach and it was a fabulous time. We went fishing from the rocks, there are lots of whiting and herring to be caught from this spot and kids just get so excited when they reel in a fish or even when they see you catch one. There so many of these cool areas for fishing in Albany; places where kids are able to gain access easily and safely and learn about fishing.

We had a break for lunch after the fishing and used the BBQ facilities to cook up a storm, though a seagull did make off with one of our sausages!

The afternoon was spent swimming in the ocean, building sand castles and digging very deep holes for the fun of watching them fill up with water. My nephew even pointed out with excitment all the pink galahs that surrounded us.

Beautiful Wildlife

Beautiful Wildlife

I know it is a terrible cliche, but sometimes the best things in life really are free, especially in a place with as much natural beauty as Albany

Amazing Albany Whale Watching

Wednesday, September 16th, 2009
Awe Inspiring

Awe Inspiring

Some of you may have seen the pictures of the amazing display a pod of whales put on just off the coast of Albany a few weeks ago. It just so happens that our family had chosen that day to make our first ever whale watching trip. After thirty years in Albany that is a fairly shameful admission but sometimes you don’t get around to the things right on your doorstep.

Anyway, how glad were we that we chose that day to accept the hospitality of John and his fabulous crew at Sail-Away, we really saw something special. We were not on the boat where the picture that graced the front of the West Australian was taken but I can honestly say the experience was even better than it looked. With all due respect to the photographer who took the snaps  it is true to say that the pictures, though magnificent, are miles from doing the whole thing justice. Even the four year old we had with us, previously more interested in the lovely refreshments going around, was awe struck.

The thing about the pictures is that they cannot capture so much of what we saw and heard.Obviously in the photos you can only see one whale at time but from the boat it was clear that there were several including a calf, and then two more giant males started racing in from the south to join the fun. And the sound was almost indescribable.  The female  kept slapping the water with her tail to encourage the male whales speedy approach and the result was a  thunderous boom that seemed to shake the air.

This is something you have really got to experience so if you are thinking of visiting Albany or even if you live here and have not been  Albany whale watching in awhile you must get out there. I highly recommend Sail Away, we had a fabulous time. http://www.albanywhaletours.com.au/

Welcome To Beautiful Albany

Tuesday, September 15th, 2009

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This is so exciting, to have a blog associated with our website!

So, what are we all about? We want to let people know about  all the amazing things that Albany WA has to offer. The people who own this motel have lived in this town for most of their lives and we are passionate about promoting its amazing attractions.

Of course we also want you to experience the very best of Albany accommodation by choosing to stay right here at the Dog Rock. We think you are going to love the whole package.

A plea to any locals who find there way here, please contact me to let me know any local news you think is worthy of letting the world know about, I will be on the look out for interesting fodder for our blog.