Boranup Forest, Margaret River, WA

Spend the next day exploring the incredible Boranup Forest. The forest is an easy 25 minute drive from Margaret River Town along Caves Road. Follow Boranup Drive through the heart of Boranup Forest (within the Leeuwin-Naturaliste National Park). This is a stunning 13km drive beneath towering karri trees, some as tall as 60 meters (third tallest tree in the world!). This drive is a mix of paved and unpaved roads suitable for 2WD however can have some bumpy corrugations and potholes at points. Take the drive all the way to Boranup Lookout for a view of the stunning coastline, Karri Forest and Hamelin Bay.

Spend the night in the heart of the Boranup forest at Boranup Campground. This is honestly one of our favourite campsites we have found! Boranup Campground is a small campsite beneath the beautiful karri trees, with only 7 available spots suitable for tents and small campervans only (if you have a bigger rig there are plenty of other campgrounds around this area). If you are looking for an insanely peaceful campsite, this is definitely for you! Each morning we woke up to the sun streaming down through the canopy, and emus wandering through our campsite. We loved having our MRT pantry fully stocked and a cooking station setup on our trundle drawer – it was the perfect location to cook up brekky before we headed out the next day. It is also a perfect location to base yourself if you are going to explore the Margaret River Caves, go hiking, or even mountain biking.

We knew Margaret River was famous for its wineries and amazing coastlines, but we had no idea that it also boasts some epic cave systems you can explore as well! There are a number of caves to explore including Lake Cave, Jewel Cave, Mammoth Cave, and Ngilgi Cave (all generally considered easy to explore). Our recommendation would be Giant’s Cave. This one is a little different and is definitely suited to the real adventurers out there. It is completely unguided (torches and helmets provided), and descends 86m beneath the surface – you’ll see large cavernous chambers, climb vertical ladders and rock climbs, descend down using ropes intermixed with some constructed walkways and the natural cave floor. Giants Cave is one of the deepest caves in the Leeuwin-Naturaliste Ridge Cave System. This one is so much fun! It takes about 45-90 mins to complete.