we've had a ball. We have loved everything about you.
We are going to miss the long coastal walks both north and south that took us from the Lighthouse and giant Blowhole to the pretty little East Beach Cove.
We're going to miss walking through the streets where terrace houses and eighteenth century buildings compete with the quietness of the Sandstone Walk
One our first day in Kiama we meet some lovely folks from Toowoomba who are also staying in the same van park. We shared a lot of information between the lot of us but one thing we did decide, after seeing their photos, was that we had to follow at least part of the Grand Pacific Drive. After looking at the map we decided to spread it out over two days, north of Kiama to Stanwell the first day, and south of Kiama to Jervis Bay the next day.
We took the Tourist Drive as much as we possibly could but you do have to divert to the M1 at a few points. Our journey took us first to Shellharbour then we skirted around Lake Illawarra on to Port Kembla. Port Kembla has seen many rises and even bigger falls in the 1980's. It is now a suburb of Wollongong and is an international trade gateway for agriculture, construction and mining industries. Next we arrived at Wollongong where we noted that even though it was one of the older towns in NSW it has certainly grown into a bustling metropolis with lots of kerbside restaurants and cafes.
We continued northward to Bullambi and Bulli, all the time stopping at lookouts to get different perspectives of the gorgeous coastline. Our next stop was for photos at the Sea Cliff Bridge that was very much a highlight of our road trip. The bridge is a remarkable engineering triumph and we were in awe as we drove across the bridge and looked up at the soaring cliffs above us and the ocean crashing below us.
Our last stop north was at the Hindu Temple at Stanwell Tops. Philip confessed that he was a bit "templed out" so I wandered around the perimeter and took in all the beautiful carvings. I didn't venture inside however as I know that it would have taken me hours to explore. Another time perhaps.
Stanwell Tops was our turn-around point so we retraced our steps and stopped at some of the viewing points that we missed on the way up. We were feeling the hunger pangs so a quick search online had us booked into Relish on Addison at Shellharbour for lunch. So glad we did as the meal was 10/10. I had some very fresh oysters Kilpatrick for starters while Philip (surprise, surprise), chose the Calamari and then we both ordered the Salmon for main. We didn't think we could eat three courses but after watching the waitresses deliver Eton Mess to tables around us we decided to indulge ourselves with a share plate. Wow.
The next day was a longer day because the Grand Pacific Drive south of Kiama zig zags in and out of the coastal towns and is a really lovely drive. The drive hugs the coastline and there are so many lookouts with incredible views. We pulled into most of them just to stretch the legs but we did find some hidden gems when we walked like this cemetery at Gerringong. I know that it might be morbid to some but reading the headstones that date back to the 1800's tells some really heartbreaking stories. We were surprised at how many Irish immigrants had arrived into this area.
Onwards to Gerroa and Shoalhaven Heads that must have a good reputation as a surf beach given the number of surfers in the water....brrrrrrr....Too cold for me..
From Shoalhaven we needed to get back onto the M1 and on to Nowra before once again turning off the highway and taking the Jervis Bay Road. Jervis Bay is now known as Booderee National Park and even though we just wanted to drive to the point where the nuclear power station was to be built, we still had to pay the $13 for the privilege. When we arrived at the point we took the short walk down to the beach where Jervis Bay is said to have the whitest sands in the world and the water the bluest of blues. The day was quite cloudy so I didn't get to see that colour but any photos that I have seen show it to be very beautiful.
We turned north again at Jervis Bay and headed to Huskisson for lunch at the Huskisson Hotel Bistro. Another scrumptious meal and we enjoyed walking it off around the bay area after lunch. There is a memorial on the foreshore dedicated to the ones that lost their lives in the collision between HMAS Voyager and HMAS Melbourne in February 1964. It is a beautiful dedication parkland and as we have just celebrated Anzac Day, the memorials had many wreaths laying at them.
We stopped off at Nowra on our way home at the Fleet Air Arm Museum. If you are ever in this area this museum is worth a visit. The Australian Fleet Air Arm Museum is a military aerospace museum located at the naval air station HMAS Albatross. The display covers all the RAN's planes from the late 1940's and includes 34 aircraft and helicopters. You would need at least a full day to read the literature and listen to the very interesting video presentations. Sadly we did not have that much time but thoroughly enjoyed the little time we had.
We finally drove into the van park around 5.00 pm just in time to watch the Super Moon rise over the cliffs. It was a fitting way to end the day.
We are now booked in to Kendalls Beach Side Caravan Park at Kiama and we will be here until Friday. The reason we chose Kiama was because of its location. It gives you easy access to the Southern Highlands and forms part of the Grand Pacific Drive. Yesterday we decided to explore the Southern Highlands.
We decided to ascend the mountains via Macquarie Pass. The drive up the mountain is not for the faint hearted and we would never tow the van up or down this road. It is both steep and two sections are single lane. But....the views! They are truly spectacular but sadly there is nowhere to pull off the road to take any photos. Once we reached the highlands we were gobsmacked. It is just so lovely and we timed our trip here at the right time. The autumn colours are spectacular.
Our first stop was at the Centennial Winery at Bowral. We had a wine tasting here and particularly enjoyed the Pinot Grigio and the Bong Bong Sparkling. The cold climate, where they do on occasion get snow, is especially good for Riesling, Sparkling and Pinot Noir.
By the time we purchased our wine it was almost lunch so we headed to Mossvale where the Bistro at the Mossvale Hotel is renowned for its chargrilled steak. We were very hungry by the time we arrived there and the steaks were as good as their reputation. After our hearty lunch we had a wander around Mossvale to walk off our lunch and also a spot of photography. Mossvale is one of the older towns in the area and we thoroughly enjoyed wandering around the streets. It is also very pretty with its autumn hues.
Next place on the list was Robertson where a stop at the Robertson Pie Shop is a necessity. We stocked up on a variety of pies for the freezer and indulged ourselves with apple turnovers while we sat outside in the sunshine. Their Portuguese Tarts also come as a recommendation but sadly they were sold out of them.
It is not very far from Robertson to Fitzroy Falls that was next stop on our road trip. Everything is in close proximity on the highlands and it was only a ten minute drive to the falls. We were surprised at how many people were here but then we remembered it was a long weekend. The walk to the falls is part of the West Rim Walk that is about 3.5km. We didn't do the whole walk but a fair majority of it. First stop on the trail was the suspended lookout over the falls. My hands are sweating as I recall standing on the platform as I tried looking out and not down. It was scary. I tried getting a few photos but the height just defeated me. The Southern Highlands have an elevation of around 800 metres and the Fitzroy Falls plunge 81metres into a very deep ravine. We continued on the track and came to another lookout that gave us a splendid view of the falls without standing on a suspended platform!
By the time we made it back to our vehicle it was time to once more descend the mountain range this time via the Jamberoo Mountain Road. A few kilometres down this road we saw a small sign pointing to Jamberoo lookout in the Budderoo National Park. It was a very sharp turn into the lookout and you would miss the sign if you were driving too fast. I'm so pleased we stopped here as the views from the viewing platform were spectacularly expansive from the rolling hills 800 metres below us to the Pacific Ocean.
The drive down the range was also not for an inexperienced driver. The road was windy and narrow. We meet a vehicle towing a trailer coming towards us on one tight corner and thank goodness Philip stopped because the trailer missed us by inches. No caravans or vehicles over 10 metres allowed on this road, understandably.
It was a perfect day albeit a little cool. The temperature didn't rise above 16 degrees however the sun shone for most of the day. The Southern Highlands are a place I would like to explore more in depth another time. The little towns have a village feel and Philip commented that if you shut your eyes you could imagine yourself in the middle of the UK. It is such a picturesque area with its cattle paddocks fenced with giant conifers and cattle grazing happily in those paddocks. The Southern Highlands have stolen my heart.
We drove the easy 180km from Denman to Lake Macquarie on Sunday. We tend to stay on the main highway and there is always a bit of debate about this. It is certainly much easier towing a van on the wide roads with passing lanes but the offset is that you don't stop at the little towns that are detoured off the main highway. What we have found so far is that it is a great idea to stay 5-7 days in an area, park up the van and do day trips from your central point. That is what we decided to do in Lake Macquarie.
When we were here twelve months ago to pick up the van it was the middle of Covid lockdown. You may remember that we had to seek special permission to drive down here to pick up the van. Of course there was no time to have a look around the area and even if we did almost everything was shut. So it is with relatively new eyes that we are back in this area to play the tourist. We stayed in two different van parks as I couldn't find one that could take us for six nights. It is heart warming to see so many people taking advantage of the amazing places in this great country but gone are the days where you could rock up at a van park and think you might get a site.......particularly on the east coast!
So, how did we fill in our time. Walking of course! Many, many kilometres! I always do lots of google research before we arrive in a new place and have our days mapped out. Our first day we spent walking around the Belmont area that encompasses Lake Macquarie. We followed the pathway around the Lake as far as we could. It was a glorious day and there were a lot of people out and about. We even saw someone walking their cantankerous sheep on a lead. I tried to get a photo but they were a bit too far away. It certainly had all the kids excited.
The following day was the van service and we had to be there by 7.30am, so once we unhooked we made our way to the little cafe in the industrial area that we were directed to on our trip last year. It is a great little establishment run by a greek family and they make the best bacon and egg rolls. The coffee is always double shot (yess!!!) and comes to you with a little slice of chocolate cake sitting on top of the lid. All of this for $6. We got talking to the owner and another patron and they gave us some good suggestions for places to walk. So on their advice we made our way to Merewether Beach and then on to Fort Scratchley (that was closed) and finally to Nobbys Beach in the heart of Newcastle. We walked along the ocean pathways and we were totally smitten. It is a very scenic place.
Newcastle is such a surprise to me. In my mind it conjured up the vision of coal mining and steel construction as we were taught in school. It is no longer the industrial hub of yesteryear but has somehow retained some of its former glory by some keen historians who have documented the area and turned the old to new. The turn of the century buildings have been restored magnificently and most of the existing hotels (of which there are many) have also retained their old charm. We went along to a talk at the caravan park by one of the local historians who gave us a remarkable insight into the history of the area. The slideshow he presented was extremely interesting and gave us ideas about our next walk. The Fernleigh Track.
So, we are leaving Lake Macquarie today and heading further south to Kiama. We have thoroughly enjoyed our time here and we feel that we have covered the area adequately. Of course you need many weeks to explore in depth but hopefully we will get to return to this lovely area another time to do just that.
Judi xx
