Former Byford resident Katherine Williamson and her husband Steve Williamson welcomed their relative Gerry Moerkerken from Canada a few weeks ago and decided to show him the sights in the Shire of Serpentine Jarrahdale.
Despite the fact the group was turned away from Serpentine Falls at around 2pm, as the park was full, they were undeterred and determined to enjoy the picturesque surroundings of the shire.
Mr Moerkerken saw the Serpentine Dam, he experienced a drive through the bush, enjoyed the trails and stopped numerous times to take pictures of sheep, cows and bales of hay as said he did not realise there was more to Australia than beaches and sharks.
“I had no idea there was so much to see up in the Serpentine area,” he said.
“Some of the parts reminds me of Carolina in America but it was fascinating to see so many farms.
“My trip to the shire made me realise that there is more to Australia than the stereotype.”
However, Mr Moerkerken said one stereotype holds true after he found himself getting bitten by ants and mosquitos.
“Everything here really does want to kill you,” he said with a laugh.
The mosquitoes and ants did not put off Mr Moerkerken as he went trekking through the bushes eager to find dugites, but he did not see any.
“I had a really great time in the shire,” he said.
“I would love for my friends back in Canada to come and see it.”
Shire president John Erren said Serpentine Jarrahdale was ideally located for tourism as it was close to Perth but away from the hustle and bustle of city life.
“There are many tourist opportunities in the shire,” he said.
“We have an exciting opportunity to develop adventure tourism in the SJ Scarp area as we have an abundance of natural features including great trails and forests.”
