Dec 2008

Found the nice sleepy village of Yamba pleasant and easy to enjoy. Tranquil sandy beaches, surf for those requiring a greater thrill and lots of boating activities made it easy to find some water activity that suits. Dogs abound on all beaches, even those with NO DOGS clearly marked on the signs. Dogs are welcomed and patted by all staff at all cafes. Something that took some getting used to after so long in Queensland.

We enjoyed the day by the beach. Steve took a kayak out, having withdrawals after so long between paddles. He took the dog out for a short paddle which she thoroughly enjoyed. We also tried out her new cushion which we got from a bring out your dead back in Noosa. It worked a treat. Steve then dropped her back and went for a longer paddle out to the ocean, over to the other side of the bay and back up the river.

The dog and I enjoyed a walk back into town for coffee (me) and food collection (her). She scored a beauty and thoroughly enjoyed the outing. Found a great pie shop opening tomorrow so must go back for the opening…

Lazed the day away and read and relaxed. I could get used to this…

Had a nice enjoyable sleep opposite the primary school. Thinking we’d scored big time, we missed a sleep in under the great shady trees due to early morning road works, followed by school drop offs (aren’t all kids on holidays now?) Oh well…

Worried now about our brakes, we popped into a brake place, forcing us to stop and relax for the afternoon. Enjoyed a thorough walk around the town, but in the heat and with no trees, all we could really manage was a sit down at a café and reading magazines from cover to cover and drinking lots of water.

With the brake fluid the only causality of my high geared jaunt down Mount Tamborine, we trundled on our way down Highway 1 – The Pacific Highway, there being no “back” roads.

Surprisingly we found single lane highways with large stopping lanes each side, and a metal post and wire fence down the middle (like the new bit down our Perth freeways). I guess it stopped overtaking on dangerous roads, but found it stranger to find the large overhead signs (also like Perth freeways) indicating a traffic accident ahead. We slowed to a halt and were eventually greeted just before a bridge, to a huge truck roll over. I guess the truck somehow lost control and ran off a straight road, right up an embankment and rolled (due to the steep slope). You could see the flattened trees in the path the truck took before being winched out. What was left of the truck and its cargo was spilled all over the road. A whole double trailer load of beer. Surprised there weren’t more workmen providing assistance in picking up the prize haul. The accident was being managed with German-like precision. The fact that they already had traffic lights in place was impressive. We weren’t held up for too long before we were on our way, over the bridge and finally off the highway.

Arriving at Yamba, the next substantial dot on the map, we were pleasantly surprised. Although the apartments are in excess of $1m (for new 3x2’s), its laidback feel and slower pace, made me think its Byron perhaps 20 years ago. I guess there aren’t as many hippies, but I think they’re more around Nimbin now, but anyway Yamba’s alright in our book. A lovely river inlet making safe boating places, swimming places as well as surfing all possible in this great little town. I think we’re about 60kms from Grafton, which is the closest “big” place, and just 14kms off the Highway its an easy drive.

Found a nice “no camping” free area and pitched for the night.

Had a lovely morning stroll around Bangalow. Actually the carpark we parked in was full around 9am. A popular little spot for all and sundry. Decided it was time to move on to Byron and get down to the beach as it was going to be 34o today!

Took the long and windy and now horrid roads to Byron. Arrived to a fit of holiday traffic. We couldn’t believe the state of the place. There were more pot holes than original road. It was worse than driving on corrugated roads. There is also one road out to the point and a little peninsular (the most easterly point on the Australian coast) and a housing development and beautiful lighthouse out there. The road out is narrow so a wide suspended footpath has been built alongside the road for pedestrian and bike traffic. A large section had broken and fallen away. It was replaced with a huge section of weeds now growing where the path used to be. To allow access they closed one lane of the roadway and installed a temporary stop light system to allow a few cars from each direction access at a time. We were shocked that the system appeared to be a “permanent” installation by the fact that the weeds looked like they’d been there for some time! I can’t believe they put up with this.

The rest of the town wasn’t much better. Tired and worn out old streets and pavements made the town look really unappealing to us. Parking was a nightmare. The town was chockas with tourists and holidaymakers alike. The shops were buzzing. The cafes were full. We couldn’t believe that with money coming into the place like it was that it wasn’t in better shape. We spoke to one shop owner, and import from Melbourne. She said NSW was bankrupt and that there was no end in sight to the repairs that are needed all over the state. We did find some great shops, but boy are they expensive. Decided this place was too stressful and it was time to move on.

Went on to Ballina as we met some people who had an investment property there and they said it was nice. It was certainly a much quieter town than Byron, and certainly the average age was about double Byron, but it had one of the most amazing RSL’s we’d seen. For those of you not aware, on the eastern seaboard, the pokies subsidise huge RSL clubs and they usually have cheap drinks and food. Ballina RSL was no exception. It was alive and thronging with the huge flow of dinners to their flashy abode right on the rivers edge. The town itself is interesting. Its seen a few 5 storey apartment buildings hit the riverside one block back from the main street. The only absence was trees from the rather boring looking main street. It didn’t have any particularly nice buildings so trees would have improved their streetscape immensely. But the upside was its streets were in really good nick. They were extra wide (I think a NSW tradition) and so there was plenty of parking around the place. There are also lots of great little eateries around the town many trying to compete with the flashy RSL and the pubs were offering $15 meal nights etc.

Awoke freezing in the middle of the night. I had to get the doona out – a huge paradigm shift for the brain that has been overheating for the last few weeks.

Enjoyed a quiet morning and headed off south towards Nimbin. Through yet more winding and narrow roads. Once we crossed the boarder into NSW, we hit roads that were so pot holed that it felt worse than driving on corrugated roads! So we took it easy and pulled over often to let the local pass. Our first NSW stop was Chillingham. A gorgeous little town. We enjoyed a lovely lunch and picked up some local fresh produce before continuing on our very picturesque journey. Passed through a gorgeous little town that’s made the best picture it can for tourists called Uki. Looked lovely. Cute little shops and nice street signs.

We then passed through hippy camps with tepees and the like. When we arrived at Nimbin we were a little disappointed. There were so many people walking around stoned and generally looking off their faces. But we found a lovely art gallery. They have some fabulous talent around the area. There was also a lovely shop with hand made hats and other clothing, and a nice organic grocery shop. We grabbed some lovely organic milk and butter and Steve enjoyed a goats milk strawberry ice-cream. It was lovely. After we were offered dope for the 4th time, we decided to move on.

We plotted a course to Byron Bay and passed through The Channon, Dunoon (and all the macadamia plantations) and Clunes and arrived at Bangalow. What a gorgeous little spot. One we really felt comfortable in, but checking out the prices, can't afford. Took a walk around the area and found all the lovely houses and fabulous traditional main street complete the stunning shops and verandah’d buildings. Just gorgeous. Camped just behind the main street in their overflow parking area in the forest. Fabulous!

Nimbin

Wise Words

Bangalow Main Street

Food for ALL (you're not feeding me)!

Had a lovely morning parting breakfast with Janis and Warwick and left for the Gold Coast. On the way we stopped for a coffee in Tamborine at the Spice of Life Café and picked up the most gorgeous loaf of bread from the Bakery that Warwick and Janis’ son, Alan, works at. It’s the most lovely light rye and caraway. Ooooh. Thanks Warwick and Janis for your amazing hospitality and helping your kids get the best jobs!

Almost set our brakes on fire going down the hill. Had to stop half way down for a bit and let them cool down before continuing down into the concrete abyss. Found a lovely free shady parking spot (no mean feat when you cant us underground parking and there’s little free parking close to the main mall area). As there were no dogs permitted in the mall (what’s wrong with these places) we didn’t stay very long. Janis suggested going to Q1 to view the tower view on the tallest apartment building, but we balked at the $18.50 fee per person. So we quickly decided to get out and took Janis’ other advice and plotted a course to Springbrook.

What a stunning drive. Hairy, narrow, very windy roads magnificently blended with stunning views and outlooks along the way. Stopped at The Best Lookout (that was its name) and were amazed to see the Artic Pine – from Antartica – surprising its survived in this climate. We found a lovely place to camp right next to the carpark. There is an air traffic control facility right next door with a large carpark. Lovely and quiet.