Caves and vines

Between Cape Naturaliste and Cape Leeuwin in Western Australia there are three outstanding features: surfing beaches, limestone caves and vineyards. Joining them together are winding lanes shaded by giant trees, orange soil and a brilliant blue sky. Cape Leeuwin, some say, is where the Indian Ocean meets the Pacific Ocean, but I didn’t see the fence-line myself. Did see lots of other wine-lovers in this grape valley.
I also had the privilege of seeing two most astonishing underground limestone caves – Mammoth Cave, so named because it is so dog-gone big, and Lakes Cave, because (you guessed it) it has a lake in it. They were both beautiful.

These pictures capture just a fraction of the beauty. Lakes Cave in particular was spectacular – due in part to the electric lights that have been installed in the cave. It is silent, except for dripping water, and cool, and the lights reflect off the lake at the bottom and off the crystals in the limestone. These are just two of the underground caves discovered in the area over 100 years ago. The porous limestone in the area has made it possible for underground rivers to carve their way through the rock to the ocean, and centuries (or millennium) of dripping water have created the incredible stalactite and stalagmite formations.

So after cave-visiting in the mornings, Joyce Chris and I would hit the vineyards, starting off with a beautiful lunch at cellar door. Joyce has a very nice way of getting people at one winery to tell her which other winery (apart from their own, that is) they think is the ‘best’ in the region. That’s how we found all the best places – the industry folks never led us wrong. My favourite winery and lunch, I must say, was at Leeuwin Estates. This vineyard produces Australia’s highest rates chardonnay – the 2005 Art Series Chard – and we were quite happy to sample it, even at $18 a glass, for lunch! Other beautiful vineyards included Voyager, Vasse Felix, Xanadu and Mad Fish. This is a picture of Chris in camouflage at the Voyager Estates where they have gorgeous rose gardens built over-top of their underground production and cellars. But I tell you we also took the lead from our good friend Serendipity and found some out-of-the-way treasures – Were Wines, Cape Naturaliste and Pierro are outstanding little vineyards with tiny cellar doors AND beautiful wine.

I can now answer the question – can you have too much of a good thing? Why yes. For a while there JC and I thought we might have to go into rehab when we left the Margaret River. But I can you – rehab is for quitters, and I’m no quitter!!