Think outside the vineyard… Inventive spots to pop the question

Everyone thinks Margaret River = vineyards, so if a bloke’s going to pop the question, he’s going to be dropping his knee among rows of vines with a sparkling lake in the background, with a bottle of bubbles and a checkered picnic rug at the ready.  Romantic yes, but to mix it up, we’ve collated some seriously adrenaline pumping, adventurous, and even dorky proposal stories that have taken place at some slightly unconventional spots around the region. Looking for inspiration? Read on…

Jesters Flat Horse Riding

Fiona from Jesters Flat filled us on what we reckon has got to go down in history as one of the most bizarre proposal coincidences of all time.  Two mates took their respective girlfriends to Jesters Flat for a casual arvo of horseriding, just hours apart. Both blokes had actually unwittingly planned to pop the question to their ladies at the exact same place – with a roaring campfire, a treehouse filled with comfy cushions and a bottle of wine, surrounded by HORSES (if that doesn’t scream romance then there’s something wrong with you).  Apparently both proposals had been engineered to the finest detail and both went off without a hitch (‘scuse the pun).  As the news broke on social media sites, it dawned on the friends that they had planned the same marriage proposal with the same horse ride and picnic, only hours apart. Now we’re curious to know if they had a joint wedding…

Cupid’s Corner at Ngilgi Cave

When I thought about writing this blog post, I remembered that a friend of mine from Perth had executed a rather quirky proposal move on his now wife. I was unable to resist the urge to shame him, so obtained his permission to include his scenario in my blog post. Rick, who has a long family affiliation with the Dunsborough area, took Gabby on a romantic trip down south for the weekend. Apparently several years earlier they had explored Ngilgi Cave together, an experience which Rick claimed had “brought them together” – crawling along the floor with headlamps (rightio). On their way home from a jog at Bunker Bay, Rick insisted on a detour to visit his “cousins” who were supposedly “at Ngilgi Cave”, despite much resistance from Gabby who wanted to go back and wash her hair after the run.  Ngilgi Cave has a spot called ‘Cupid’s Corner’ so the next part was apparently dreamy, however Rick described it as follows: “Dropped the knee, got the required response, legged it back to the accommodation”.  Good thing he doesn’t write romance novels.  To his credit, Rick had booked a swanky villa at Windmills Break in Yallingup and arranged for both their families to be there to surprise Gabby. They got back from the cave to cheers, tears and hugs from their families, lots of champagne, and an epic story to tell!

Southern Skydivers

This blog wouldn’t have been complete without a skydiving story. Amy from Southern Skydivers told us of a couple named Luke and Rachel who were on a working holiday in Australia, a long way from their home back in Wales.   They had missed out on the chance to skydive in New Zealand, so Luke contacted Southern Skydivers with his idea to skydive over Geographe Bay, then surprise Rachel by dropping his knee on the beach in Busselton just as she landed.  Luckily Southern Skydivers had a giant ‘MARRY ME’ sign (as you do) which they laid out on the beach, and Luke snuck the engagement ring to the ground staff for safekeeping until he landed – a smart move. To cut a long story short, there was adrenaline, laughing, roses, a bottle of bubbly and some seriously big smiles – and the story even made its way back to the local news in their hometown in Wales! View the YouTube video here.

Rockclimbing on Wilyabrup Cliffs

The last story we’ve got for you is that of a local lad, Sean Blocksidge, who runs a luxury four wheel drive/wine tour company called Margaret River Discovery Co.  Sean takes his guests hiking out to a spectacular spot called the Wilyabrup Cliffs, so when he decided to pop the question to his now wife Erin, this was of course his go-to spot.  He’s good mates with Mick from Margaret River Climbing Co, who took them to a private part of the sea cliffs where nobody goes.  It was a stunning morning and Erin tentatively abseiled over the edge to a shady ledge by the ocean, followed by Sean a few minutes later. Sean pretended he left his camera up the top so Mick roped it down, and when the camera case arrived he opened it and presented the ring. Sean’s next comment: “She had to say yes otherwise I would have left her at the bottom”.  Blocko, you’re a genius, and a big sook. Awww.