Day 8 to 11 One Mile Beach to Coffs Harbour

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Wonder where my habit of getting up early on holidays has gone?? Used to always be the first one up and off for a walk in the peaceful time of the day. Not anymore, Ben beats ,me up every day and has had a swim and breakfast before I even wake up! Anyway on Saturday (23rd Jan) this was no different, Ben up and organised and we only just wake up after his 3rd bowl of cereal! We dragged ourselves out of bed, that includes Hayden who has never been an early bird. We hopped on the bikes and headed off to the One Mile Beach, having coffees at the beach café which I would love to have! The beach was absolutely packed with people trying to swim between the flags, which was good because the waves were seriously big and dumping, but it was still fun, but we decided to go back to camp to get our boogie boards and swim at Samurai Beach which is close to our camp. Well, we thought the waves were big at One Mile, I ended up playing in the shallows while Ben terrified me going out so far, with Pete following behind. Pretty scary actually when you see the board go one way and Ben the other, but he is a strong swimmer and so was ok, but still don't recommend it for average swimmers like me! Hayden had had enough of being battered by the waves and so he had stayed in Shazza reading and resting - clever!! Rest of the day was pretty relaxing with our usual late afternoon shower that sent us inside for dinner! Another Scrabble battle ensued with Pete and Hayden both using words that were under dispute (later we find out neither word should have been used) oh so competitive!!

Next morning, by some amazing feat we are all up by 7.30 and packing to get ready to get on the road to Coffs Harbour. Really enjoyed Treescapes and would recommend it as a stop for those who don't want to be in a caravan park with wall to wall caravans. Will be back to Port Stephens as it has beautiful beaches and was very relaxing. It was quite a bit cooler today for the 4 hours 22 minute drive to Coffs Harbour and Shazza really appreciated it. No problems today and we were well on schedule. We did have to stop for the driver to have a nana nap, not surprising as he has done an amazing job handling Shazza on the road and fixing any mechanical problems along the way. On one of our stops we were visited by a rather large Lizard (probably a goanna) who obviously has been there awhile as he came right up to Shazza and ate the bacon that we threw out the window for him. Very tame and not at all frightened when we started up Shazza.

Arrived in Coffs Harbour and stayed in the North Coast Caravan Park in Coffs Harbour for the night as we were not booked into the Novotel until Monday. By the time we got set up at the Caravan Park I had a bad case of cabin fever and so we all jumped on the bikes and rode down to the beach, which was about a 8km ride, that really got the cobwebs out. We had a great swim with waves I could handle!! We rode back slowly and stopped at a café on the creek for a drink and dips. Bit of a problem riding the bike home after two glasses of sparkling, and in the dark!! We made it home safely, had hamburgers for dinner and then the heavens opened for our usual nightly drenching, and this found Hayden and I out in the absolute pouring rain putting on the fly for his tent and ending up absolutely drenched. Good thing about the rain here is that it is not actually cold so you don't mind the rain, it is quite refreshing, just need to be better prepared!

During the day I got a great surprise, Rosie and Fleur had had their babies - two baby girls so cute!! Thank you to Chris White and her friend for going down and finding the afterbirth (not a great job) and checking that the girls were all ok, cant wait to get home for a cuddle.

On Monday I had promised scrambled eggs for breakfast, but alas we woke up late and I didn't get to do breakfast much to everyone's disgust!! Well we had to get to the airport to pick up Robbie who was arriving on a Tiger flight at 11.00am. Thanks to Nick who had Robbie stay the night on Sunday (to make sure he was actually up on time) and who drove him to the airport at 6.00am so he could catch up with us here in Coffs Harbour. We had to park Shazza in a bus stop so I could run in and get Robbie and he could start his holiday with us.

After doing a big shop to see us through the week we took Hayden to his caravan park, the Banana Coast Caravan Park and set him up so he was comfortable (located just across the road from the Novotel) and then we went to check in. Unfortunately our room wasn't ready, and it was so hard when they gave us a free drink voucher to use while we waited, oh if you insist!! Great set up for us, 2 rooms and a kitchen and lounge with a deck overlooking the lagoon and a view in the distance of the beach. Pete really not sure he wants the room so he set up Shazza so he could go there if he gets withdrawal symptoms. Ended up having dinner in the restaurant here, as we realise that there is nothing within walking distance of the resort that serves dinner and I have frozen all the meat!! Hayden has some friends turning up and so he is off doing his thing and we return to the room to watch the tennis. Great way to finish the evening.

Australia Day dawns with thunderstorms and lots of rain. Not quite sure what to do as plans of going to a park or pub beer garden to listen to the Triple J countdown are dampened. I decide we need a car and so I get Hayden's friends drive me to the airport (under the guise that I have had enough of the weather and am flying home 😊 ha ha). At least now we can get around easier whatever the weather. We spoke to a couple in the caravan park in Coffs Harbour who have a motorhome and tow a little car behind. Apparently it doesn't add mileage to the car and so I think it is a good option. Pete still likes the trailer idea as he wants to put the motor bikes on it. Guess we will work that out on the next trip!! We end up going to the Big Banana with Hayden and his friends and play Laser Tag, which certainly is a bit of fun and finished off the afternoon there with a toboggan ride and then a swim in the pool at the resort listening to the Triple J countdown. Dinner of course was lamb chops and we watched the tennis again!

The next few days will be pretty relaxing I think as we make the most of resort and the beach which it is situated on, and I will update you all on the exciting events that occur, or just the relaxing times by the pool or beach. Happy Australia Day everyone!! PS Even Shazza is in the mode, Pete put a big flag on her aerial - now who is the bogun????

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Hi Sandra, Love reading your blogs and the antics of shazza. Enjoy the rest of your holidays