Wickepin

Wickepin is located 210 kilometres south-east of Perth and is an easy day drive or a relaxed weekend meander.

Wickepin has abundant and unique wildflowers in almost every reserve. Big skies. Lakes. Fauna. The Swan River springs from here, beginning as the Avon River. So does the Blackwood River. The endangered Freckled Duck and the Spider Orchid are among the many discoveries to be made.

Wickepin boasts boast rural living at its best with essential services close to hand.

Accommodation in Wickepin is available at the local Wickepin Hotel and caravan park.

Wickepin attractions

Albert Facey Homestead

Albert Facey Homestead celebrates the life of Albert Facey, and his bestselling autobiography ‘A Fortunate Life’. This is a unique opportunity to view and reflect on the harsh and simple lifestyle in the early 1920s.

Albert and his family settled in the Shire of Wickepin in 1922, assisted by the Soldier Settlement Scheme. A history of the Homestead and family can be seen at the site.

Opening hours 10am to 4pm - March to November 7 days, 10am to 4pm - December to February, Friday to Sunday. Keys can be obtained from the Wickepin Newsagency if a volunteer is not around to help. BBQ and toilet facilities available at the Homestead.

The Albert Facey Trail brings to life the story of his famous book 'A Fortunate Life' and makes a pleasant half day drive. The trail is yet to be fully signposted, but follow the Wickepin brochure map.

Yealering

The townsite of Yealering, 31 kilometres east of Wickepin, is nestled next to a picturesque lake and is thought to be the only country town in Western Australia with a lake within the town boundary. It is home to a wide variety of bird life. Take a walk around the town and call into the Yealering Hotel which was featured in the ‘Waltz through the Hills’ miniseries.

The land surrounding the lake was first released in the 1870’s and Yugoslav migrants began a market garden at the present townsite before it was officially recognised as a town in 1907. The BBQ facilities at the lake make Yearling lake an ideal place for a day out kayaking, windsurfing and enjoying nature walks

Accommodation in Yealering is available at Yealering Caravan Park.

Harrismith

Harrismith is recognised internationally for the wide variety of wildflowers that grow in the area. A well-defined walk trail surrounds the town and showcases the magnificent display of orchids, verticordias, grevilleas and banksias.

Visitors can enjoy a beautifully restored display of historical machinery and memorabilia assembled by the local community, including information on the Rabbit Proof Fence. The fence was built to protect Western Australian crops and pasture lands from the destructive scourge of the rabbit. It represents a unique response to an overwhelming environmental problem. Doris Pilkington’s book, Follow the Rabbit-Proof Fence (1996), has been adapted to film. This follows the story of young girls trekking along 2,414km of the fence.

Accommodation in Harrismith is available at the hotel and caravan park.

Lake Toolibin

Lake Toolibin is the last seasonal freshwater lake left in the Wheatbelt of WA. It is in the headwaters of the Blackwood River and is a wetland of international importance. Toolibin Lake has been recognised as providing important waterbird habitat, particularly for waterbird breeding, and meets the Ramsar criterion of supporting animals during critical stages in their life cycle. Up to 50 species have been observed at Toolibin Lake, which is one of the highest records of any inland south-west wetland. It is home to resident and migratory birds, including those species currently on the Environment Protection and Biodiversity List.

It has extensive stands of living sheoak and paperbarkacross the lake floor and is listed as a threatened ecological community. At all times the living vegetation provides habitat, now rare in the central Wheatbelt, for woodland birds and other animals, including invertebrate animals typical of mildly saline or brackish waters.

BBQ and toilet facilities available at Lake Toolibin.

For more information about Wickepin and accommodation options, visit www.wickepin.wa.gov.au

Follow Wickepin on Instagram: @Wickepin_Shire or via Facebook pages: Shire of Wickepin and Wickepin Arts.