NSW - Urunga

This is one of our favourite camping spots on the northern NSW coast, just south of Coffs Harbour. We have been here several times in our camper trailer before we bought our caravan.
The caravan park is on the edge of the river, walking distance to the small township and golf course. It is also a short drive to Bellingen which is a delightful township in the hills with delicious local produce,“arty” shops and beautiful scenery.
The council at Urunga has built a walkway along the rivers edge beside the break wall, to the ocean. It is about 1 klm long and a great viewing spot to watch the rays and small fish in the calmer waters on the inland side of the break wall, and the dolphins are often splashing about in the river. Sitting here we watched the small boats crossing the bar heading out to the ocean to fish.

This is all very familiar territory and we realise that our trip around Australia is coming to an end. Very sad but grateful that we have been able to do this journey, seeing so many incredible places and meeting many wonderful people along the way.
Thank you to you all for making our journey so very special.

NSW-Brunswick Heads

Well, here we are back in New South Wales, hoping to find the sunshine, but like Queensland, the skies are still cloudy with some rain.
Brunswick Heads is a lovely sea side village with great coffee shops, restaurants and a beautiful old pub beside the river. On Sunday night we went there for a glass of wine and enjoyed a live band while sitting in the outside beer garden. Great atmosphere.






The main beach is long and always has people walking along it enjoying its’ beauty.
If you feel like a quiet break this is the place to visit.

Qld - Scarbourough

We have met several people on the road who had told us about the Redcliffe Penninsula just north of Brisbane, so we decided to stay a few days and check it out.
We stayed in a caravan park at Scarborough by the harbour. Unfortunately, while we were here the Queensland weather once again was storming and wet, but on the last day it was sunny so we checked out the area.
The bike and walking tracks are fantastic, running along the entire coastal areas with rest stops, work out areas, barbeques and parks. It was a Saturday morning and Redcliffe was humming with a market on the foreshore which was a “must do” for us, where we picked up some wonderful fresh fruit and produce. The restaurants were packed with people which is always good to see.
We spent a couple of hours watching the local kite surfing. As there are no surf beaches in the bay to jump the waves, they had built ramps, similar to skate board ramps, close to shore, where they would fly up to them and “sail” along them and jump off the end. Incredibly skillful and very entertaining to watch.

Qld - Noosa

We stayed at Tewantin which is a five minute drive from the main tourist strip at Hastings St in Noosa. Last time we were here, about 18 months ago, the beach at Noosa had been totally washed away by storms but it is now beautiful again. Amazing! It must have taken thousands of tons of sand to build it back up.
We had a delightful trip on the Noosa ferry cruise which takes you on a round trip from Tewantin boat Harbour to Noosa. The captain is very informative and gives a running commentary on the history of the area as well as a view of some of the beautiful homes and units on the waterways.
Staying at Tewantin was very relaxing and out of the hustle and bustle of Noosa. I guess because we have been on the road for so long now, we really enjoy the quieter places.
We stayed here for three days and then we parked our van in the driveway of friends in Mooloolaba for four days. We were hoping to take the kayak out on the waterways here but it stormed for the entire time which put an end to that idea.
Since being in Queensland the last three weeks, we have had rain, rain and more rain. So much for the slogan ‘ Beautiful one day, perfect the next!”

Qld - Hervey Bay

When you think of Hervey Bay, the first thing that comes to mind is whales, and we were not disappointed. We decided on a morning boat trip out on the bay, as the weather had been deteriorating in the afternoons.
We were picked up by the bus at 7:00a.m in the caravan park and the boat left the dock at 7:30. On the way to the northern tip of Fraser Isalnd we were served a hot breakfast and coffee which is my sort of trip. (Not having to think about cooking!) We had only been out for about ten minutes when we saw our first few whales. During the early part of October the majority of the whales are mothers with their babies. Most of the males and teenagers have already left for their long journey back to the southern oceans. We were entertained all morning by the young whales jumping in the air with Mum close by. The mums were spending a lot of time on their sides or backs slapping the water with one of their massive pectoral fins. There were also quiet times while the babies were feeding which was beautiful to watch.
The beaches on Fraser Island have very white sand which was a beautiful contrast to the deep turquoise blue water in the bay. They looked very inviting and we were watching many campers fishing and swimming as we hugged the shore line on our trip home.
Hervey Bay is a growing area with new resorts being built along the foreshore and noticed that many of the older homes have been torn down and grand new ones built.
The harbour area is worth a visit with restaurants, the fishing fleet, whale tour boats, rental boats and pleasure craft.

Qld - Bundaberg

This was our first trip to Bundaberg and we were very impressed with the beautiful old buildings especially in the main downtown area.
Sugar cane fields dominate the local landscape with most of this being used for the making of Bundaberg rum and ginger beer.
We went on a tour of the Bundaberg rum factory and at the end of the tour we were each given two sample drinks. I must say after Mike and I had our two drinks (It was 11:00 in the morning), I was ready for a nap.


The “Barrel”, another tourist stop, is the home of Bundaberg’s renowned ginger beer and several other flavours.







While in the area, we stayed at Bargara, which is on the coast, about a 10 minute drive from Bundaberg. We fell in love with this delightful beachside town where we found great coffee shops, beaches, a golf course and walking tracks along the coast line. Mon Repos, a Turtle Rookery, is about 5 klms from Bargara. The nesting season is from November to early March. We were a little early to see any turtles, but during the season you can purchase tickets to watch them laying which I think would be fantastic.

Qld - Gladstone

Gladstone, a city of 33,000 people has managed to balance a huge amount of industry with beautiful waterways and has one of the highest boat ownerships in Australia. This area lays claim to being the gateway to the Southern Great Barrier Reef with Lady Musgrove , Heron and Wilson Islands only a couple of hours boat trip from shore.

Gladstone is the world’s fifth largest coal exporting port and has the world’s largest Alumina refinery. While in Weipa, on the west coast of Cape York, last year, we watched ships being loaded with bauxite and it was fascinating to see where the journey ends here at the refinery. The final step is the making of aluminium at Boyne Smelters, near Gladstone, which is Australia’s largest smelter.

We stayed at Tannum Sands, a quiet town 20 klms south of Gladstone on the coast. Each morning we would take advantage of the fantastic trails, Mike on his bike and I would walk. Turtleway Bikeway, a 18klm trail hugs the coast and the river, which has great picnic areas along the way. Queensland really knows how to make the most of these areas - here the barbeques, picnic tables, covered areas, play grounds for the kids and toilets facilities are second to none and encourage the outdoor lifestyle.

We loved our stay here but we were glad to say goodbye to the sand flies which made sitting outside at our caravan park impossible.