Albany Wind Farm
Albany
Directions - The Albany Wind Farm is located west of town, and to get there head towards Frenchman Bay Road, negotiating the new road upgrade on Princess Royal Drive (Google will be your friend). Follow Frenchman Bay Road around the bay until you reach the Princess Avenue turn-off. Turn right and continue along, turning left at the prison, as the road becomes Sandpatch Road. The car park is located at the end, with the trail head in the wooden information shelter in the main part of the car park.
The Hike - One of the most iconic locations around Albany, the wind turbines sitting on top of the coastal cliffs are a beacon for Bibbulmun Track hikers, and just recently, Munda Biddi riders, signaling the end of a long adventure. In a practical sense, they can provide up to 80% of Albany's power needs from the 18 turbines scattered along the coast, and that's a great thing in my book. Speaking of books, my latest visit to the Albany area was to visit some old favourites for the recently released Best Walks of South Coast WA (which can be purchased here), and I wanted to check out a couple of new hikes along the way.
I couldn't find out much about the walk trail at the Albany Wind Farm, apart from information that one existed, so the best way to remedy that would be to visit. One one of the hottest days of my three week trip, I visited the Castle Rock Granite Skywalk in the morning to familiarise myself with that trail again, and then ventured out here to see what was what. Having very fond memories of my final day walking into Albany to complete my sectional end to end of the Bibbulmun Track, I knew any section of this walk that was shared with the Bibbulmun was going to be great fun. Driving out there, I could see the new Munda Biddi realignment that thankfully takes riders closer to the coast on their final day, something I didn't get to experience in 2021. Reaching the car park, it was still very warm (low 30s), but given this was only a short walk, that wasn't such a big factor. Checking out the wooden information shelter, there is plenty of information about the wind farm, the role it plays in energy generation, and why it was built here.
First constructed back in 2001, it was one of the first large renewables projects in WA, well before it became as critical as it is today. Deciding to head down towards the coast first, I followed the path as it goes through the low coastal heath and Peppermint thickets, passing a smaller car park, before finally getting those sweeping ocean views. Arriving at the Whale Lookout, this is a great spot to have a seat and scan the horizon between July and October for migrating whales along the coastline. Albany has a checkered history with whaling but this coastline is now friendly waters for them, as they pass between Antarctica and the tropical waters in the north of the state each year. Unfortunately on this day there were no whales passing through, so I just stood there and marveled at the excellent views, with the beautiful turquoise waters below looking inviting. Walking down the stairs, I made a little side trip to the left, deciding to visit the Sandpatch staircase.
A popular surfing spot near Albany, the stairs lead all the way down the coastal cliffs and provides access to the line-up that you can see rolling in from the top of the cliffs. I walked down to the first little lookout platform and took some photos, in awe of this lovely stretch of coastline. Walking up the stairs, I looked at the sign pointing towards Sandpatch Campsite and remembered back to that visit, before heading back to the trail. Reaching the Whale Lookout again, I continued along the boardwalk, passing a wooden seat that featured in one of my favourite photos of the whole track, so I tried to recreate it. From here you have a brief stroll along the Bibbulmun, looking west along the coastline, with the wind turbines providing a nice feature as they stretch out along the cliffs. You don't follow the Bibbulmun Track for long, reaching a sign pointing you inland to continue the loop walk around the car park. Leaving the coastline views, I was visiting in spring and that meant a lot of wildflowers to enjoy to compensate for not being closer to the ocean.
Rising up the hill, you still get some great views looking west, along with views of the Porongurups to the north, as you reach one of many lookouts on this walk. Along the path, you'll find six distinct mosaics, each referring to a particular season in the Noongar calendar. I find these seasons a much better fit than the traditional summer, autumn, winter, spring model, which is no surprise given they were developed and used over thousands of years by those living here. Reaching a junction, there is an optional trail off the loop leading up the hill, taking you to two more lookouts. I wasn't going to miss out, so made the climb to the first one, providing views over the ocean, and to the second one that looks back at Princess Royal Harbour and the City of Albany. Returning to the main path, it wasn't long before I was back at the car park and the walk was over. The following evening I could see it was going to be a nice sunset, so paid another visit here and wasn't disappointed with the results.
Final Thoughts - This was a walk I knew existed in some form but I was just expecting an informal trail that used the Bibbulmun Track and maybe some service tracks for the wind turbines.
I was pleasantly surprised to find out there is a nice little loop full of lookouts, that is perfect for the whole family.
Your mileage may vary on what you think of the aesthetics of the turbines, depending on how much right wing media you consume, but for me, knowing what they are there for, I don't have a problem with them. Coming from a Bibbulmun Track background, they were always the first sign you were close to Albany, so harbour good memories from that perspective.
Albany is spoiled for great locations to watch the sunset, and this is another accessible one to take a stroll and enjoy the stunning views on offer.
Get out there and experience it!
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