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Sunset over the Clarence Estuary
An enjoyable stroll took us out to the mouth of the river and we sat and watched the sunset.With the prospect of a five day holiday weekend this Easter. including Anzac Day we booked a pitch at the Blue Dolphin Caravan Park at Yamba on the coast, at the mouth of the River Clarence, in Northern New South Wales with our good friends Anne Marie and Mark.
We set off early keen to avoid any traffic jams leaving Brisbane on the Pacific High Way and found ourselves enjoying breakfast at our favourite restaurant at Twisted Sistas in Byron. We love Byron and never tire of its shops and boutiques, book shops and galleries and always welcome an excuse to pay it a visit. We decided to take the coastal road down to Lennox Head and enjoy the different views along the way before joining the highway again and driving down to Ballina. The traffic was increasing in volume and delays met us as we negotiated our way around the town on down to Evans Head where we mat up with Anne Marie and Mark at the lookout. With only a short drive to the campsite we joined the rest of the caravans and trailers on the single track highway, difficult to believe that this is the
Friends
Anne Marie and Mark who we have known for 30 years. one and only road to Sydney, no wonder people prefer to fly!
Armed with prepared meals, a good book and Yatzhee for our evening entertainment we pitched our tent and set up our camp kitchen in beautiful sunshine and shade for the tent in plenty of time enabling us to go for a lovely walk along the river spit out to sea and to sit and watch the fishermen take their trawlers out for a night fishing whilst the sun set behind, it was very relaxing and a sight to enjoy.
After a very noisy evening shared with thousands of roosting Lorikeets neighbours partying till the early hours we set off the next morning to find ear plugs, beer and wine to help us sleep that night. Apparently the birds had only recently decided to adopt the three trees on the campsite for their latest meeting point and made it very clear that they had arrived during dusk, we were just glad we were not camping directly underneath them, the mess and noise was deafening!
The drive to Brooms Head via Maclean took about 40 minutes and we found ourselves returning to the very same spot Kevin
and I had sat and accepted a job offer in Brisbane in 2007. It was very busy with tents and caravans perched along the beach edge but the views out to sea and along the bay were just as beautiful as we remembered. From here we drove down to Sandon and the estuary there and enjoyed wading across a sand spit to a small rocky outcrop that pin pointed the mouth of the River Sandon. We discovered that we could drive the car onto the beach and enjoyed eating our lunch on a deserted beach over looking the ocean. After lunch we drove north beyond Brooms Head again to Red Cliff and watched kangaroos on the headland under lovely blue skies and attempted a walk to Lake Arragan but was prevented from navigating across the beach through a river inlet and the incoming tide.
Sunday was a complete wash out and rained solidly all day. A trip to Grafton was aborted after discovering everywhere was closed and deserted so we drove to Coffs Harbour and enjoyed lunch at the Rowing Club over looking the old pier, shame we could not see all of it due to the rain!
Lennox Head
This beautiful beach and headland is a short drive south of Byron. Monday brought the sunshine again and we enjoyed a return 8km walk along the coastal path to Dirrangan lookout in the Yuraygir National Park. We could look south to Shelley Beach and Red Cliffs, Broom Heads and Sandon, visibility could not have been better. We stopped at the Green and Blue Pools at Angourie Bay but preferred the natural beauty of the coast line to the quarried lakes offering safe swimming spots.
Sadly the weekend came to an end too quickly and we had to decamp in the pouring rain and crawl back to Brisbane with everyone else, negotiating past no more than six traffic accidents, it was crazy, the roads were terrible and visibility poor and still people drove to fast and close. We were glad to get home safely, tired but refreshed after our time away.
More pictures below!
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