Driving through the Boranup Karri Forest is one of the quiet, magical moments of a Margaret River tour — a natural cathedral of towering pale-trunked trees and dappled green light.
Towering Giants
Karri (Eucalyptus diversicolor) is one of the tallest hardwood trees on Earth, soaring up to 60 metres — taller than a 15-storey building. Their smooth, pale trunks glow orange, cream and grey as the bark sheds through the year, and the high canopy filters sunlight into shifting patterns on the forest floor. Driving the winding Caves Road and the unsealed Boranup Drive beneath them feels genuinely reverent, the light flickering through the leaves like stained glass. Karri grows only in the high-rainfall pockets of WA’s South West, which makes this forest a rare and special place.
Regrowth and Renewal
Remarkably, the Boranup forest you see today is regrowth. The area was heavily logged in the late 1800s to supply timber for construction and railways, and the mighty karri you walk among have regrown in little over a century — a striking testament to nature’s resilience and a reminder of why the forest is now protected within the Leeuwin-Naturaliste National Park.
Where Forest Meets Coast
Boranup sits between the vineyards and the sea, and the Boranup Lookout offers sweeping views over the karri canopy toward the wild coastline and the white dunes near Hamelin Bay. It’s a landscape that captures the extraordinary variety packed into this compact region.
Wildlife Among the Trees
The forest is alive if you know where to look. Western grey kangaroos graze in the clearings at dawn and dusk, brightly coloured parrots and honeyeaters flit through the understorey, and in spring the forest floor blooms with native orchids and wildflowers — part of the South West’s status as one of the planet’s great biodiversity hotspots. It’s a rich, living contrast to the ordered rows of the vineyards.
Peaceful and Humbling
Cool, quiet and green, the forest is the perfect contrast to a day of wine and coast. It slows you down and clears your head — the kind of place where conversation naturally drops to a hush. Boranup pairs beautifully with a visit to one of the nearby limestone caves, or a stop at Hamelin Bay where friendly stingrays glide through the shallows. Discover more in our guide to Margaret River’s caves.
Ready for the real thing? Our small-group 3-day Margaret River wine tour from Perth includes six wineries, cave and wildflower tours, cheese tastings, meals and accommodation — from $850 per person. Call 1300 456 788 or book online today.
