Day 270
Monday –
25 September 2017
Wauchope – Crescent Head – Settlement Point – Port Macquarie
– Lake Cathie – Dunbogan – Wauchope
The night stayed quite sticky and without the air con we
were feeling uncomfortable, so there wasn’t a lot of sleeping. I was awake
early enough to hear the quintessential Australian bird soundtrack, it was like
I had been transported into an episode of Skippy. This was different to the
weekend traffic noise of motorbikes traveling down the highway. Wauchope is a
biker friendly town and sits at the beginning of a 45km drive into the
hinterland on bikers’ roads, as such the weekends have the constant thrum of
motorbike engines.
Being awake early, we both went to the loo and were tempted
by the smells of toast emanating from the various vans, so on our return we
walked across to the local IGA for a loaf of bread. Once back though, we were
happy to go back to bed and read for an hour before getting out properly.
Toast made and consumed, showers had, lunch packed and we
were ready to start our day. It began with a wander of the main street of
Wacuhope checking out the various shops. Paul had been keen to check out the
chopper shop at the end of the street. I was particularly taken with the colour
of the bike outside.
Once we had completed our walk, it was back into the car and
on to Crescent Head.
The GPS took us on a goat track route past Pembroke before
depositing us on the highway heading for Kempsey. We made our way along the
road, passing the Slim Dusty Museum before finally heading towards the coast.
We made our way through the small town and down to the
parking area at the beach. The place was overrun with tourists and we were
fortunate to find a park. We then got out among the sun’s rays, walking the path
between the surf beach and the golf course out to the headland. We took in the
Pebbley Beach, which reminded me of an English beach, all covered in stones,
but as Paul pointed out, it was far too warm.
We stood at the lookout, before returning to the main
swimming beach. This looked like a lovely place to spend the day and the
hundreds of people doing so obviously agreed with me. Paul on the other hand
could not handle the crowds.
We made our way back to the car and drove on. We followed
the tourist route that took us down Maria River Road. Once again it was a
gravel goat track that shook the proverbial fillings from their placements.
It did however eventually pop us out on a decent road in
Settlement Point where we could catch the car ferry across the Hastings River for
$5.
Once on the other side, we stopped at a riverside park and
had our lunch. We then went for a walk checking out the water and watching the
car ferry cross over a couple of times.
From here, we wound our way through the suburbs of Port
Macquarie. This end of town reminded me of the Gold Coast and Noosa with its
expensive looking canal homes. We travelled through the centre of town and out
to the beach so that we could follow the coastal road. Unfortunately we weren’t
always able to see the water as the road veered away and scrubland was
prominent between us and it.
We eventually ended up in Lake Cathie, parked and went for a
walk along the edge and up onto the bridge to watch the fishermen attempt to
catch the numerous fish we could see below us. There were a few bites but
nothing successful. From our spot we could also see stingrays darting below the
surface.
We returned to the car and continued the drive through Bonny
Hills and Laurieton before arriving in Dunbogan where we again parked along
Camden Haven Inlet and walked along the waterside path. This spot was
particularly idyllic and peaceful. There were plenty of boats just bobbing
about and a number of kids out in their little dinghys, what a life.
We returned to the car once again, making our way back to
the highway at the Kew entrance and then driving on to Little Brewing so that
Paul could pick up some more of their beer. Although it wasn’t open, the Sri
Lankan brewer was in and he was able to help Paul out. From there it was back to the van.
As expected, it was hot and stuffy inside the van, so I
threw open the windows to let cool air waft in and hot air escape. I then went
for a quick walk around the premises of Timbertown, before returning to the van
to get cracking on our future travel plans. Everything came together, which was
great.
Paul rang Damon and then we went for a walk to clock up some
extra steps for the day after yesterday’s poor showing. Once we were back at
the van, it was time for dinner. I loaded photos at the same time and then
after dinner worked on the blog before finally heading for bed.
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