Advertisement
Published: November 10th 2009
Sooooooo cute
Don't you just want to take him home with you?Picking up Mitsy took forever because
Apollo are the most laid back company I have ever encountered. Over an hour after starting the process we finally pulled out into Sydney school-rush traffic. We didn't really have much of a clue of where we were going, but after stopping at a random shopping centre to do our food shop, we eventually found the road towards the Blue Mountains.
The Blue Mountains seemed more grey than blue as the whole area was covered in a dense fog. It was 'barely see the tip of your nose' fog and it was getting late in the day. The first campsite we pulled into was full and closed for the evening, so we had to travel on through the mist to a campsite 15 minutes away. As we bedded in for the night we were wondering whether we would get to see anything of the beautiful views this area was famous for.
Thankfully the following morning the sun was out and the fog was nowhere to be seen. We rose early and made our way to
Govett's Leap to begin a three hour, 'medium' difficulty, hike through the bush around the canyon. The colours
as we looked out over the forested canyon were absolutely beautiful. It is true, there is a kind of a blue haze in the air over the forests. It adds a mystical vibe to the scenery.
We set off through the bush, climbing over red rocks, jumping streams and generally giving our lazy bodies a good workout. Sixty minutes later we had worked up a good sweat by the time we reached
Pulpits Rock, the other lookout. Pulpits Rock is a peaceful spot, with a bench on a rock that hangs out over the canyon. There were very few tourists around so we had a chance to really take in the spectacular views in peace. We didn't loiter for long though, as the return leg of the walk was heavier than the way over. We had several steep inclines ahead of us that would test the mettle of our walking boots and make us earn the picnic lunch that Philippe was carrying.
We made it, and ninety minutes later we were back in Mitsy, trundling down regional roads, making a conscious effort to avoid the motorways. We were headed towards Palm Beach, so that I could satisfy my
need to walk on the beach that beamed into my sitting room at 6.30pm every week night for about 10 years when I was younger. Yes, we were in search of the
'Home & Away' beach.
It was too late to make our way as far as Palm Beach, so we took refuge in a campsite a little south of there in Narabeen. Early the next morning we set off to find the set in the hope that I could be the new Irish foster kid or something. If I'm honest, it was a bit of a let-down. The only thing we found was a closed up 'Surf Club'. There were no actors hanging around (not that I'd know who is in the show these days), but I did at least manage to walk the stretch of sand I was looking for.
On the road again we had to double back on ourselves to find the Pacific Highway to take us north. A combination of the Lonely Planet write up and large road signs drew us towards the Australian Reptile Centre near Gosford. Our principle aim was not to see the reptiles, but to see cuddly Koalas. The
Centre turned out to be home to several friendly Kangaroos jumping around freely, eager for food and attention. We also saw a friendly emu, massive alligators, Hugo the Galapagos turtle (absolutely huge!), two real live Tasmanian Devils (so cute!), lots of weird and wonderful birds, and then we got to the Koalas.
Koalas are the cutest animals I have ever seen. Apparently they don't do much in a day - sleeping for up to 20 hours per day, eating up to a kilo of Eucalyptus leaves per day, but I don't care - I want one! When we wandered by their enclosure they were up and active, crawling and climbing all over the place. They were a delight to watch. Philippe had to drag me away from them as I was so enraptured with these small cuddly creatures.
On our way back to the van we also took a walk by the frog house and the the snake pit. One of the main benefits of this park is that is collects venom from the snakes to create anti-venom against a whole host of snake bites. The process of collecting the venom is very dangerous, but quiet interesting. They
basically have to get the lethal snake to spit in a glass, and not get bitten in the process. From what I gathered they do that about 20 times and then inject the venom into a horse and it creates the anti-venom. But walking around looking in the various tanks full of killer snakes gave me the shivers so we left pretty soon after.
We pulled up in a town called Toowoon Bay on a caravan park next to the sea. It was nothing more than a stopover though, and we were on our way again early the next morning. Our next destination was Nelson's Bay, in Port Stephens. We had been told about Port Stephens by a friend, and I can imagine it is a stunning town in good weather, but shortly after we arrived the wind rose and the rain started pelting down, so we got a takeaway and hid out in Mitsy for the evening.
From Port Stephens we made our way to Port Macquarie, arriving in town just in time to visit the Koala Hospital in time for feeding hour. (Yes, I am obsessed!) Apparently Port Macquarie has enough Koala incidents to justify its
very own hospital. As we walked around it was interesting to learn more about Koalas, but it was heartbreaking to see all the injured and damaged animals. With only about 50,000 of them left in the wild they are not yet considered an
endangered animal, just 'threatened'. The hospital was doing great work in rehabilitating them and releasing them back into the wild. We left a donation and went to find a campsite for the night.
The next morning we set off towards Coffs Harbour. Jonny and Dee from the Rock tour had told us about the town. We looked into the possibility of swimming with Dolphins here, but at 260$ per person for 30minutes, it was hard to justify the cost (especially when there is a free dolphin in Dingle). We are now settled in on a lovely campsite by the sea. Philippe spent today trying out our new body board in the surf, and I worked on topping up my (non-existent) tan. The weather is fine so we've decided to spend a couple of days here.
Please keep the comments from home coming. It is nice to know someone is reading this blog from time to
time!
Advertisement
Tot: 0.073s; Tpl: 0.012s; cc: 9; qc: 23; dbt: 0.0307s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1;
; mem: 1.2mb
Sonia Peter
non-member comment
You are so lucky
Hi I love the way you cook dinner outdoor while weare freezing cold in Dublin... Weather really cold here so I so wish Iwas over there with you... continue the Travelblogs... they are brillant. Take care Sonia & Famille Molloy