Feature by Carolyn Beasley
Not only is the South West Edge a road trip of wild, untouched coastlines and towering unique forests, it also offers a surprising array of wheelchair accessible attractions. Join photographer, tour operator and wheelchair user Jaimen Hudson, as he hits the road with his family, discovering the unforgettable south west.
A pod of dolphins punches out the back of a turquoise wave, each one followed by a veil of wind-blown spray. It’s a moment of pure joy, captured by drone and destined to inspire thousands of people to travel to Esperance (Kepa Kurl), where the scene takes place.
The photographer, Jaimen Hudson, also runs a tour company here, but for Jaimen himself, travel is not always easy. At the age of 17, he became a quadriplegic and these days, he’s an accessibility advocate.
Thankfully, accessible travel is on the rise, and as Jaimen and his wife load their two young kids into the car, they’re chatting about the nine days ahead. Starting in Perth (Boorloo) and finishing back home in Esperance, they’re about to explore rugged coastlines, mighty forests and wheelchair-friendly attractions along one of the world’s great road trips, the South West Edge.
Heading south from Perth to Bunbury, visitors learn all about the town’s famous resident dolphins at the new Dolphin Discovery Centre, before the road leads to the striking Cape Naturaliste Lighthouse.
Set on a spectacular headland, the lighthouse forms the start of the multi-day hike, the Cape to Cape Track. Cape to Cape Explorer Tours guides visitors along the entire 123-kilometre track, or smaller snippets, like the first three and a half kilometres. This section is wheelchair accessible, with a bitumen and boardwalk path meandering through coastal heath, with pink-flowered pimelea bushes and tea trees buzzing with honeyeaters.
Cape to Cape Explorer Tours
For those that visit in spring, there’s an added bonus, sightings of humpback whales as they migrate to Antarctica along the ‘humpback highway.’
“There must have been a bit of wildlife luck on my side,” Jaimen says. “I’m someone that loves to film wildlife, and I had the whales popping up everywhere, and then when we got to Sugarloaf Rock, there were dolphins surfing the waves there.”
Just south of Margaret River, Amaze’n is a wheelchair-friendly hedge maze, just waiting to mess with visitors’ heads.
“We couldn't end up getting out of there,” Jaimen laughs. “So we ended up going back through the cheat’s way, it was good fun!”
Amaze’n Margaret River
As impressive as the attractions are along the South West Edge, it’s the availability of so many accessible accommodation options, sporting wide front doors, roll-in showers and beds at a convenient height that make this road trip so enticing for wheelchair users. One of Jaimen’s favourites is Redgate Forest Retreat, near Margaret River, where the friendly host helps Jaimen pump up his wheelchair tyres with a compressor.
Back on the road, the journey heads south east through the dappled shade of Pemberton’s tall trees, stopping by the Donnelly River. Here, the wheelchair accessible Donnelly River Cruises boat chugs through 12-kilometres of pristine marri forest to the coast.
Donnelly River Crusies
Continuing south east, the road gifts travellers one of the accessible highlights of the trip; the Valley of the Giants Tree Top Walk.
“I had no idea that it was accessible,” Jaimen says. “The name doesn't really lend itself to being wheelchair accessible, but you can go right up there amongst the trees, which is absolutely insane.” For Jaimen, being immersed in the canopy of the tingle forest, together with his family, is awe-inspiring.
When the tummy rumbles, visitors can stop for iconic south west eats in accessible cafes, such as the Marron Tale Café. The star of the menu is the mighty freshwater crustacean, the marron. It’s native to this region and farmed onsite, with melt-in-the-mouth flavour.
Valley of the Giants Treetop Walk
One of the final stops on this open road adventure is Albany (Kinjarling), home to the moving National Anzac Centre, and dramatic Torndirrup National Park. The views from The Gap are unforgettable, and the accessible, cantilevered viewing platform places visitors right over the coastal canyon and surging sea, into the salty wind spray of the wild Southern Ocean.
The spectacular nine-day road trip concludes in Esperance, but for Jaimen, the South West Edge has filled him with something many take for granted, the joy of inclusion.
“After my accident, I remember thinking I would never get to go anywhere ever again, and my life as far as travel goes, was over,” Jaimen says. “But thank God there's people out there that make things accessible to ensure people like myself can travel. It's important as a father, that I can experience these things and see my kids’ reactions. I don't have to miss out.”
Esperance
Published April 2024.