South of the Great Eastern Highway , which joins Perth to Kalgoorlie, is the most climatically benign portion of Western Australia, supporting intensive agriculture and seaside towns, and with all points well-connected to Perth , the modern face of the state's wealth. East of the state capital, the Darling Ranges offer a number of appealing day-trip destinations, while south of Perth, the Margaret River Region 's uniquely mellow landscape is especially attractive, supporting orchards, wineries and numerous homey holiday hideaways in the giant karri forests around Pemberton . Both Albany and Esperance are engaging resort towns on the Southern Ocean's rugged coastline, where sea breezes take the edge off the summertime heat. They make ideal bases for exploration of their adjacent national parks, while the dreary Wheatlands , north of the coast, is a region to pass through rather than head for. Kalgoorlie , at the heart of the once-thriving Eastern Goldfields , is a colourful caricature of an Outback mining town and certainly deserves a stop as you travel east.