There are places in Australia that feel less like destinations and more like endings. Albany sits at the ragged southern edge of the continent where cold oceans collide, storms gather without warning, and the landscape carries an eerie sense of separation from the rest of the country. It is beautiful, distant, weathered — and strangely difficult to forget once you leave.
Apart from stunning beaches and rocky outcrops, its major claim to fame was its port’s involvement in World War I. Troop ships were launched from its safe yet expansive harbour, by their hundreds.
When it wasn’t deploying Aussie fighters across the globe, it served as a vibrant hub for shipping. I could mention something of the changes that have occurred over the decades, but I won’t. Albany may have been a busy shipping centre at one point, but there are faster ways to move goods around Australia without having to receive or dispatch goods through its faraway port. Many Australian harbours are close to major trade centres.
There are a few commercial fishing boats active in the port, but for its extraordinary size, this pristine harbour is a sleepy one. It makes the town sleepy, too.
It’s the way I like Australian towns.
Albany is on Aussie’s elbow, the bit that bends a western coast into a southern one. The port draws its water from the southern ocean, while the cliffs you see in the pic above enjoy the spray and foam of the Indian Ocean.
The cliffs have safety barriers, but that doesn’t stop the odd depressed soul from finding a way to end it at a place known as The Gap.
For those staying on this Earth awhile longer, they can skip the fall and, instead, view the jump site from above and look from a see-through walkway to the water. It allows a full view of the ocean below, washing and thumping its way into the cavern beneath their very feet.
I loved Albany. It’s not unlike parts of Strahan, Tasmania (without the suicide stigma).
Self-driven road trips are great. Stopping at other places along the way allows autonomous tourists to see more of the world than they would by bus. It’s a vast distance between places, so it’s worth stopping when you find something interesting and taking a look. Some of it is too good to miss.
Margo and I stop regularly to take tea breaks, look at towns and take photos. Here are a couple of extra snaps from those moments.
–Michael (Dark fiction. Author of SEETHINGS (the first book), free for a limited time)
P.S. Enjoy your day and don’t forget to get yourself a copy of my novel by clicking the link below.
SEETHINGS II follows the return of the Storm Killer as a body on a secluded beach in Moreton Bay, igniting fear and denial. While police dismiss the link, the media doesn’t. Mitchell Felding forms a dangerous bond with a man who understands his darkest impulses. When Natasha enters his life, carrying love letters from her murdered mother, intimacy deepens, and truth closes in. Some futures are inherited. Some have escaped.
Discover more from Michael Forman – Author of Dark Fiction & Drama
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