Bellingen NSW

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The first stop on our tour of Country NSW was Bellingen, a beautiful little town just inland from Coffs Harbour on the northern NSW coast. We stayed in a lovely timber cabin overlooking the Bellinger river. Each morning, we took the canoe and the kayaks up and down the river. The girls are now old enough to kayak on their own, and the current is gentle. Rarely would we see anyone else on the river, so it became our playground. There were plenty of pebbly beaches on which to linger. The girls even found a long 2x4 floating in the water and a small channel. They placed the wood plank across the channel, and our little bridge became a balance beam, across which we performed gymnastics moves under instruction from Mia, our coach!

The river was the highlight, but we also got into town regularly to shop for groceries at the local IGA. There were a few boutique shops (mostly clothing), but I failed to find just the right thing. We also got out to a most enchanting picnic area called "Never Never Creek."

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Photos

The Bellinger River and kayak
What could be more inviting than a gentle glide on the Bellinger River?

Lush and green
It was a surprise to see so much rich green and plenty of water--we've been used to drought for so long.

Timeless beauty
I took this one in B&W because the scene reminded me of landscape images from times past.

The girls at Never Never Creek
What a beautiful site for a picinc!