Boranup lies within the Leeuwin-Naturaliste National Park between Caves Road and the coast, and creates a powerful contrast with the rest of the coastline. Tall pale-barked karri trees, reaching 60 metres or more high, dominate the hilly slopes and valleys. Gravel roads suitable for two-wheel-drive vehicles wind through the forest to picnic and camping spots. It's just a short walk to Boranup Lookout which gives sweeping views over the forest and the coast west along Boranup Beach to the strikingly beautiful Hamelin Bay.

This stretch of coastline is known for its excellent surf breaks, so it is a great place to stop and catch a wave or two, but is sufficiently isolated that you can often have the beach to yourself. But Boranup is an extraordinary place for several reasons other than its sheer beauty. This is the furthest west that karri, the third tallest tree in the world, grows.
The Boranup Forest is isolated from the main body of the karri belt, more than 100km to the east, by the grey infertile sands and lower rainfall of the Donnybrook Sunklands. Elsewhere in the South-West karri grows almost exclusively on deep red clay loams. At Boranup it grows in limestone-based soils.
The forest as we see it today is about 100 years old, as it is a regrowth forest. Though the last mill at Karridale closed in 1913, the development of the timber industry in this area was important to the State's economy and growth.
The former timber yard at Hamelin Bay is now an attractive camping area, shaded by spreading coastal peppermints. In 1961, fierce wildfires seared through the Boranup forest, and destroyed the last trace of the old timber town which once housed more than 800 people. Today's Boranup forest is testimony to the regenerative powers of karri.

How to get there: Boranup is situated in the south-west corner of Western Australia. It may be accessed from either Margaret River or Augusta. First, drive to the town of Boranup via Caves Road. At Boranup, proceed west along Anchor Road, then left into Davies Road which becomes Boranup Beach Road.

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