I have to pinch myself this morning because the sun is shining again! It's not for long, mind you, but it's a pleasant change. We were talking to a local today and he said that Albany is in a rain shadow and doesn't get a lot of rain but it does get a helluva lot of wind. We can attest to that as we hiked around the Albany Wind Farm this morning.
The wind farm produces 80% of Albany's power needs which is quite remarkable and just goes to show how we can utilise renewable power if we are in the position to do so. Western Australia is probably in a unique position, particularly in the south west, where there is a lot of wind and wind turbines are certainly the way to go. In Queensland, where we get a lot of sun, solar seems to be the answer. The only question Philip and I ask is what about the carbon footprint when those systems have to be replaced (they do wear out!). What do they do with the old ones? More landfill? Anyway those are question for another day as today we are just enjoying the walk along the cliff edge and getting up close and personal with these giants.
Can we talk about the colour of the ocean. There is every imaginable shade of blue in the ocean today and it is just gorgeous. Yes, it is a windswept coastline but that just seems to add to the attractiveness. We have seen these amazing ocean colours right along the Western Australian coastline from the Kimberleys to the South West.
While we were walking, right above us a paraglider was riding the wind. He was having a ball and came in very close to us at one stage and I feared that he would crash into the cliff! But he was obviously an experienced paraglider and had complete control of his parachute.
We walked up and down a lot of steps today but it was easy going with well spaced steps. Our last lookout (we went to six in total) gave us views towards Albany and in the distance the Porrungurups. It was a little hazy to really seem them clearly but still exciting to see. Along the path on this last walk we came across a little snake. It was the very first snake we had come across in the whole time we have been travelling which is quite remarkable really. I guess we will see more as the weather warms.
After we left the wind farm we decided to call into the Anzac Centre as it was on our way home. This particular centre has won many awards and I can understand why. You are given a card to scan at individual stations throughout the centre and you are following the life of a soldier from when he boards the ship at Albany (40,000 troops left from Albany in WW1 and only a third returned) to when he arrives at Europe. It then shows the war and the battles the soldiers had to face. It was certain death for many and it is a very moving story but well portrayed.
We are going to visit the Avenue of Honour later this afternoon so that I can get some sunset photographs over Albany. The clouds are starting to roll in though, so fingers crossed. I will post them tomorrow if I get some decent shots.
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