Manjimup has a population of around 10,000. The thriving little community is home to agriculture, viticulture, sericulture and horticulture. It has magnificent centuries-old King Jarrah forests, the Donnelly River, wonderful wildflowers and visitors can enjoy bushwalking or fishing for marron and trout.
Jeanette Sturis, a local motel owner, bought a 1939 Chevrolet Street Rod as a 40th birthday present to herself. Visitors to the town spotted the car — it's red and white and shiny, hard to miss — and asked to ride in it. What began as picking up customers from the airport turned into a tourism venture. Jeanette is happy to plan an itinerary to suite all tastes.
The Getaway crew hopped into the Chevy and headed to Fonty's Pool winery. The luxury of being chauffeur-driven means you can enjoy a drop of local wine without worrying about driving.
The state-of-the-art winery is set against the backdrop of the vineyard and majestic forests. All is lush and green, providing the right conditions for many grape varieties — chardonnay, sauvignon blanc, semillon, verdelho, viognier, marsanne, pinot noir, cabernet sauvignon, cabernet franc and malbec.
There is an architecturally-designed cellar door and Fonty's will ship purchases to your home.
Next stop was the 51-metre Diamond Tree, part of a network of trees with the dual use of being fire-watch towers and a tourist attraction. Rails and platforms have been built so you can walk among the treetops without damaging the trees.
The last attraction is Dog. Sometimes called Barkham, Dog fancies himself as a soccer player and has learned a lot from watching Beckham. He's a mixed breed, part Old English Sheepdog, and so popular that he receives postcards from people who have watched his soccer-playing. He even has a business card and website.
