I had read about a fancy, 5-star hotel situated in a very small town (population 3,764) in the Great Southern Region and thought that we must stay there: The Premier Mill Hotel in Katanning. It advertises itself as “a place where an 1890’s flour mill, aerated waters and cordial factory, winery and a power station come to life in a thoroughly modern boutique hotel”. 

Mick and I had never been on these roads on our previous visits, so it seemed like a good idea to explore this part of WA. Edward had suggested we should go through Bridgetown on our way, and we decided we would stop for lunch there.

When we arrived and checked into the hotel we at first thought it to be a little less than 5 stars. There was no fridge in the room, only a small cooling unit for water, and there was no coffee and tea making facilities. After reading some of the material in our room, I discovered there was a Guest Valet area where all of these items were available for the rooms on each floor.

There was also an underground bar in the hotel, which we visited before dinner in the adjoining cafe which sold local wines by the glass, large and small, as well as by the carafe. Very civilised, and very cheap.

Our stop in Bridgetown for lunch proved to be quite eventful. For a little town, it was buzzing, with loads of people wandering the old fashioned streets. We found a nice cafe where we had toasted sandwiches, and as we were heading back to the car, the penny dropped as to why there were so many people around.

The Black Dog Ride was parading through the main street, on its one day ride to raise awareness for depression and suicide prevention.

We estimated there were more than 200 riders go past us as we waited to cross the road to our car. I could sense Mick’s eagerness to join them as we both now hold our learners’ permit to ride a motorcycle, but of course that was not possible!!

My early morning walk before we departed Katanning revealed some surprising features about the little town.

It is obviously a service centre for the surrounding wheat and sheep properties because I noticed most services – a dentist, a physiotherapist and doctors surgery, to name a few, plus the usual shops, groceries stores and cafes.

On the outskirts of the town there was a huge wool processing plant, situated beside the railway lines.

Across the road from here was the grain silo.

The soil colour here varies from pale orange to a pale yellow, and it obviously has been very dry around here. So what surprised me immensely was how green the local park was. The sprinklers had just switched off when I arrived – water was lying around the footpaths and in the gutters. And this was no ordinary, small park. It was very new and massive.

It is advertised as a park for all ages, and it would have cost a fortune.

While parts of the town had been given a facelift, there were some relics of the original buildings. Aussie pubs always make for a great backdrop in these old towns.

If you are toying with the idea of visiting Katanning, I would very much encourage you to do so. It was a wonderful surprise and it even has one for these for you.