Sharks, Whales & Dolphins...

A Sunday morning stroll has never been so interesting or exciting! Around the corner from Joe and Vicky's house, (where we stayed last night), is a river that leads out to the breakwater and beach of North Haven. So within minutes of leaving the house this morning, we were watching Dolphins making their way upstream beside us. 

Then, as if that wasn't unusual or exciting enough, a few minutes later we glanced down into then clear waters to see a massive shark glide slowly past!! 

A 'Grey Nurse Shark' to be precise! And about 7-8 foot long!! 

It was a real jaw dropper for us, but the locals seemed much less surprised! We saw three altogether, graceful swimming up against the currents. They sure were big, but not scary like the Jaws films, which is the basis of most, if not all, of my shark knowledge. 

It followed us as we headed out to the breakwater, where as if on que, we looked out to sea and saw some whales splashing around in the bay! Quite extraordinary!  

Later we took a drive (well Sunday is supposed to be a day of rest after all), up the nearby mountain to get to the local viewpoint. From here we could clearly see the town, river and breakwater where we had spent the morning.

Inland, in the other direction were big lakes, rivers and estuaries. It was a fabulous view. 

As Vicky had to work in the afternoon, she left us to go for a quick surf at 'Rainbow Beach' before going to see her at the rainforest park, where she is employed as a park warden. It was a lovely spot, mostly gentle waves, no sharks and well set up for surfing; it even had showers and changing rooms on the beach. We both got a few good waves, although I was a bit stiff and sore from yesterday - I definitely need to build up a bit of surf fitness!

We got to the rainforest in the late afternoon and did a quick lap of the boardwalk trail. 

It was totally fantastic, made all the better by Vicky's knowledge. We'd have never have stopped off otherwise and it turned out to be a real hidden gem. We only saw four others on the boardwalk, which went for over a kilometer through dense jungle and rainforest. It almost felt a little spooky at times and we were both quite glad to not be on the actual forest floor!

Finally, we checked into the hotel that we had booked tonight, as Clare has some coaching to do online. It's a fantastic work life balance, when before doing an evenings work, you can spend the day watching incredible wildlife and go for a surf! 

Catching an Ozzy Wave - Surfing at Middle Rock

Got to test out the new board today and it gets the thumbs up from me!

We spent the morning driving north towards Port Macquarie, before coming across the point break of 'Middle Rock Beach'. It wasn't exactly where we had had in mind, but it looked great. Only a few surfers in and some gentle(ish) waves to get used to the board on. It's been a while since I last surfed, so we tentatively got into the water, but after a few great rides, really relaxed into it and enjoyed my first taste of Ozzy surfing! The water was warm enough to be pleasant, but I wouldn't say it was hot! And best of all, the  board rides really well. It's much shorter than my normal board, so really easy to turn and calve across the wave face.

The van came into its own afterwards - not only for getting changed in, but also for the ability to brew a coffee and for providing chairs to sit in and watch the remaining surfers in the last of the sun! Just as we were about to leave, two surfers came over and very calmly told us that they'd got out as they'd just seen a shark!! A good reminder not to still be in the water at dusk!

Just down the road, in North Haven, our friends Vicky and Joe had invited us to stay. On the short drive over, we stopped to check out these big Pelicans! 

It was a really tranquil spot, that turned out to be just around the corner from their house!

We had a super fun evening of catching up, over Chinese food and a glass of Australian wine, while getting plenty of surf and trip advice from the 'locals'...

Time Out In Toowoon

Having been on the move in one form or another for quite a while now, it was decided that we should just stay put and relax today. We were both pretty tired (as usual) from the city pace of life, so took things easy this morning. Anyway, it's hard to rush away, when this is right outside of your bed!...

After a very nice beach walk in the morning sun, we had a slow and leisurely breakfast outside. By the time elevenses had come around we'd still not moved, so carried on reading, after serving coffee and raisin toast from the van kitchen. This was soon followed by a lunch of avocado and eggs, before eventually agreeing that we ought to move or at least stretch our legs a bit before the sun goes down! 

We popped a short way up the coast to check out the nearby Pelicans at the water front of the nicely named town of Toowoon. They are such great birds and so improbable. And enormous.

This conveniently took us near a few surf shops, so after a bit of browsing, deliberating and haggling, we both managed to get ourselves a bargain. It was exciting to get them, and feels like we are about to start a new phase of the trip.

By now, it was a bit too late to be getting in the water, so we'll find out tomorrow how the boards ride. We still walked down to watch a few of the locals having fun. It looked idyllic. 

Feeling well rested from the day and glad we made the decision to have a breather. 

Climbing at Point Clare

There was a parrot in the camp this morning! The cheeky little fellow was after my breakfast and ingored all requests to keep out of the van! He would have landed on my shoulder had I let him and certainly wasn't shy!

We bid some fond farewells to Sydney and continued our travels northwards, feeling a little bit sad to be leaving. After a quick re-supply in Gosford, we spent the afternoon doing some great rock climbs at the little known, but splendidly named 'Point Clare'.

It was a small, compact sandstone outcrop, with some nice looking routes. The weather was the perfect climbing temperature, although the sun was right in our eyes as we looked up in search of the next handhold! 

We did three good routes on the slab area. All involved small crimpy holds and had us both puzzling out the moves. It's amazing how a slight shift in body weight or re-position of a foot can suddenly put you in (or out) of perfect balance.

There were more routes on the next good looking slab, but we needed more carrot bolts than the 'one' that we had with us! Having said that, we did get the chance to try it out and although they are a bit fiddly, they actually fit on quite snugly, so I was re-assured a bit about using them in future.

Around the climbs, the rock had been eroded into the most wierd and wonderful patterns. How this happens, I have no clue, but the details were incredibly intricate. 

Point Clare:

- Mr Window, 16**

- Master Window, 15* (carrot bolts)

- One Day Wozza, 18*

Bondi Beach

North Ryde, our local train station, was once again spookily deserted of people as we descended down to the platforms..

A train ride over 'the bridge' and a connecting bus soon put us down on the sands of one of Australia's most famous beaches - Bondi.

As far as beaches go, it was a 'beaut' (as they say around here). Perfect sand, turquoise waters and clean waves - all set in a neat little cove.

I would have bought a surf board there and then, but didn't fancy the bus ride home with it, so we settled for a bit of spectating instead. 

At each end of the bay there is a salt water swimming pool that fills up with the tide! Clare tested the waters and reported back with news of 'wetsuit essential'!

We caught the last of the light up at the city observatory which gives great views of the surrounding area, then lucked out by accidentally finding ourselves in the Theatre bar, which is way out on the docks and with the best, up close, views of the bridge.

We finished off our little 'city section', by meeting up with another old friend of Clare's. We shared the kind of great dinner and chat, where nearly four hours can fly by in the blink of an eye.

On the walk back to the station, we passed this 'interesting' roundabout?...

And finally said goodbye to the Opera House.. 

Climbing at Narrabeen Slabs

For those with the time, inclination and motivation, there is a little bit of rock climbing to be found around the Sydney area: the best of which is at Narrabeen. There is a mix of bolted and trad climbs as well as an Australian type of bolting called carrot bolting. I've never come across this particular type of bolt before and can't say I was massively encouraged by it! The idea is that a small (unnoticeable) bolt head is drilled into the rock. The passing climber can then insert the hanger part and clip into this. Sounds good in theory, but the hangers look and feel pretty flimsy to me - and the warning label did nothing to inspire confidence either!

We set off through some pretty dense bush, with Clare out front to ward away any snakes, spiders and other such bad things.

We found the crag quite easily. Yey! But the main area was wet from seapage. Boo! 

There was one dry area which looked good, but was considerably harder than our recent endeavours. It was this or nothing though, so we had to pump up our grade a bit! 

Just about made it the lower off without too much drama (but with a few rests!). The rock is actually superb. Really grippy gritstone - probably what Stanage in the Peak District felt like before people started climbing there?!. 

After climbing the couple of routes that we could, we packed away and went to the beach at Narrabeen, which was empty and beautiful. 

Finished of the day with a quick look in at Manly Beach for a bit of surf board shopping! Didn't get one in the end, but have started to get an idea of what I'll need for this stretch of coastline...

Narrabeen Slabs:

- Show us your Ticks, 22 

- Kiosks, 22

Sydney!

We're out of the mountains now and have spent the day (and well into the night) exploring in the city! Surely no trip to Australia would be complete without a visit to this most famous and iconic place.

We had a fantastic introduction to the city, by walking across the harbour bridge. We'd left the van out at the campsite and taken the train into the city, then set out on foot.

It's a whopper of a bridge, and the views from it were first class.

There were loads of boats and ferries coming in and out and all able to make very tight, improbable turns to get in and out of the docks.

Once across the bridge, we had a look around 'The Rocks' area, then found the best cafe view we could, to settle down and soak up the sights. There was a lot to take in. There were even parrots (instead of pigeons) looking for crumbs around the tables.

Feeling replenished, we wandered over to the most impressive building around...

It really is a very cool design. We went inside to see what shows were going to be on, only to find out that we were a few weeks too early; one of my favourite musicians - Ben Folds - is going to be playing here in August! Rats!

Right next door to the Opera House, are a very tranquil Botanical Gardens, through which we strolled on our way through to the main city centre. Some of the trees were really enormous. 

By crossing a street, we went from acres of grass, flowers and gardens to deep into a world of concrete, glass and steel. Which to be fair, to us, seemed equally as wonderous. 

We were headed to the city centre, and in particular a notably fine area called 'Martin Place'. Here it was more marble and mirrors than concrete and steel. Very cool and all rather classy. We felt right at home.

It was also home to the Commonwealth Bank of Australia. We went inside because Clare has an account there, but also because the building was like a Palace! Inside was a strict no photo policy; the the ornate ceilings must have been over 20ft high and the room was held up by big pillars of marble. There was even a lift to 'Safety Deposit Boxes' which I wanted to explore, but didn't dare get into! We even got some candy as we had a short wait to see the teller!

Back out on the street, we explored a little further, before retreating inside for some warmth (and maybe a beer too). Although the sun was still fully out, the size of the buildings, soon blocks the light (and therefore heat) from the streets, long before sunset.

After a bit of searching, we found a tucked away 'speakeasy', underground and disguised as a Taylor's Shop. We snuggled into a little alcove and perused the menu. There was a fine choice of food and drink, of which, a bottle of 'Mountain Goat' seemed most appropriate!