Stokes Bay to Cape Borda
Tuesday 21st - Friday 24th April
Distance: Approximately 60km
From Tom & Jakes Diary
After saying goodbye to the friendly staff at The Rockpool Café in Stokes Bay, we walked from one lovely beach to the next along gentle rolling hills. It's great to see that the rain is here because all the farmers need the growth for their weakening stock.We have to admit defeat to the ‘coastline challenge' as this north western end is simply too demanding to walk day in, day out, having to fight through thick scrub with low food supplies and 15kgs on your back.
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So from Pebbly Cove (just West of Snellings Beach) we took the track to Western River Cove, which has a great camping setup for families, a fantastic safe beach and rock fishing opportunities. We just hung around long enough to catch and cook a feed and then took another inland track to Snug Cove, getting there after sunset. Luckily it was still calm.
The morning after we got one hour of fishing in before the wind and rain hit us....hard! A local told us later that he got 57mm that day. We cooked up the freshly caught squid, crustaceans and fish over the day, spending most of it tucked up in the pokey two-man tent, hoping we wouldn't be blown back to Emu Bay!
But one day in such close quarters is enough. We are waterproofed, so when the winds were easing and there was a gap in the rain the next day, we jumped on another few tracks to Harveys Return - the old track where they used to chain up supplies for the lighthouse - and finally Cape Borda.
We've made it to the West. Hooray!!
This northern side should not be underestimated and no map will do its torturous hills and scrub justice. If you get a chance to access any of the numerous beaches, they're generally fairly protected and well worth a look.
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