Day 257
Monday
11 September 2017
Ballina - Goodwood
Island – Iluka
On the road again. We were up at 8am and starting our
morning prep ready to move on a little further down the NSW coast. The day was
delightful, with less wind and no clouds, it was almost a shame to be taking
our van down the road, but new adventures awaited.
At 9am we were all done and making our way out of the
caravan park. I had chosen another park to head to on Goodwood Island
surrounded by the Clarence River and nestled between the towns of Iluka and
Yamba called Browns Rocks.
The drive was just over an hour and 20min and about 90km
along the Pacific Highway. The drive itself was slow in parts with a lot of
road works going on. It is needed as the roads are shocking and we were
bouncing around all over the place.
The drive was quite picturesque in places as we drove
through deep forested areas, road side signs warning to be aware of koalas and
emus, gone are the signs for cassowary and crocodiles. This made the mundane
highway drive more manageable, though of course, it is nothing like the dreary
drives of the NT.
At 10.30am, we pulled into the small caravan park, met the
host and picked a spot. The park is nothing to write home about. It appears it
was part of a sugar cane farm and the farmer has elected to forgo some of the
farming land to put in a small park. It suits us as it is quiet, kid free and
cheap at $30 a night as opposed to those in Yamba and Iluka at $46.
Once we were all settled in, we packed up our lunch and
drove the 6km into Iluka. This town was on the news yesterday after a surfer
was bitten by a Great White. We drove through the small fishing town, much like
that of Dongara at home making it out to the main beach. We watched a couple of
boogie boarders try their luck, but the swell was still surging, making the
conditions a little hazardous. We also watched from the north wall of the
Clarence River before driving back into town and finding a place to park.
We sat at a bench to eat our lunch while being watched over
by ibis. We enjoyed sitting in the warmth of the midday sun before checking out
the seafood specials and then beginning a walk along the foreshore of the
Clarence River. The water here was far more peaceful and it was lovely chilling
out watched the fish and the water birds as we moved along the edge.
We walked as far as we could, before returning to the car
and driving to the IGA for a few groceries . Once stocked up, we made our way
back to the van for a afternoon siesta and to read our books.
Feeling lazy, we left the van and walked along the roadside
checking out the waters of the Clarence River. It was calm and peaceful here as
well. I was surprised Paul hadn’t taken out the fishing gear but with people
telling us not much was biting I can understand.
We walked about a km before returning to some benches
outside the park. We chatted with one of the permanent residents as we watched
the orange sun descend leaving a blush across the sky.
We returned to the van and I went through the photos for the
day before setting up the next lot of brewery bits to be added to the website.
We then cooked dinner so that we could enjoy the evening.
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