Harvey

Half an hour up the highway toward Perth, Harvey is the heart of the region's irrigation country — a green pocket of dairy farms, orchards and hills that makes an easy half-day trip or a worthwhile stop on the Perth–Bunbury drive.

Harvey Dam

Just behind the town, Harvey Dam is one of the South West's most pleasant picnic spots, with sweeping grassed banks, barbecues, an amphitheatre and lookout points over the water. It's also a popular spot for freshwater fishing.

Food country

Harvey has been synonymous with WA dairy and beef for over a century, and the district's citrus orchards supply much of the state's oranges — celebrated, in true Australian roadside fashion, by the Big Orange. Farm-gate and producer stops around the district make good browsing for local cheese, juice and seasonal fruit; look for what's open as you pass through.

Stirling Cottage

In the town's gardens by the Harvey River, Stirling Cottage is a reproduction of the 1880s homestead where author May Gibbs — creator of Snugglepot and Cuddlepie — spent part of her childhood; its tearooms and grounds are a gentle stop before the drive home.