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Jay & Nicole Visit Australia (click any picture for enlargement) |
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This is the final chapter of the story about our trip to Australia ... |
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We are
just entering Byron Bay, which was one of the nicest places we saw while
traveling north. We decided to return here for a couple days before
finishing the trip back to Sydney.
The nearby coastal cities were also very nice, but much smaller. Byron Bay has plenty of places to stay and a large number of bars & restaurants ... so we won't have a shortage of things to do! |
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We parked the van at the campground and headed to the beach area ... ... which was very nice ... ... and only a 2 minute walk! |
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campground was crowded and no spaces were available. We were able to
rent the last open cabin, but only for 1 night. We visited the 'tourist info' booth and they helped us to reserve a room at a guest house (bed & breakfast) for the next two nights; we then spent the evening walking around town. |
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We slept late the next morning, which felt great; we got to the beach late in the morning. |
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There
were many tourists on the beach near town ... most of them were in their
early-20's. |
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Later we checked into the B&B, which was away from town and tourists ... yeah! |
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We
returned to town for dinner and supplies ... not cheap ... $50 for a case of
decent beer! |
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On our
last full day in Byron Bay we decided to get some exercise and walk out to
the lighthouse. |
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As we walked up the hill, we could see a secluded "locals" beach which we would visit after our hike. |
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Two ocean currents meet here, the eastern-most point of Australia, causing weird wave patterns. |
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Because
of the heat, we didn't bother to walk all the way out to the tip of the peninsula. |
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We finally got to the lighthouse ... it was one of the most beautiful that we have ever seen! |
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toured the lighthouse, which sadly turned out to be only a tourist souvenir
shop.
We continued walking along the cliff, which fell sharply to the ocean. |
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We heard someone yell & point towards the water ... at some dolphins playing in the waves ... cool! |
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| The trail continued along the top of the rocky cliff ... the railings were solid and kept picture-taking tourists, like me, from a nasty fall. | ||
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As the trail turned inland, we had a nice view of a beach going northwards to Balina ... wow! |
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The trail took us into a forested area for a short period of time ... it felt nice to get out of the hot sun. |
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At the top of a hill we got a decent view of Byron Bay ... the town, beaches and surrounding area. |
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We also saw luxury hillside homes ... and our secluded beach destination for this afternoon. |
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As we got nearer to the beach area, we saw more people than we expected ... but no big deal. Both of us were hot & sweaty ... ready for cold drinks and an afternoon of swimming! |
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We set up our beach camp in the only shade we could find. We took turns swimming so that no one would invade our spot :) |
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We were impressed by how active the local people were ... it's easy to stay fit in Paradise! |
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awoke as the sun began to rise. It was too early for the normal B&B
breakfast,
but the owners dropped the food and beverages off to us last night ... quite
thoughtful! We ate, packed the van, and took a short walk on the beach. |
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We aren't the type of people who like getting up early, but the colors made it worthwhile! |
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The brownish-red color of the sandstone was quite nice. As we left the beach & returned to the B&B trail, a hidden bird sang a goodbye tune for us :( |
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All in all, Byron Bay gets a top recommendation from us ... but bring plenty of $$$ ! |
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Our drive back to Sydney began under perfectly clear skies; the terrain had gently rolling hills. |
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This
portion of the highway was brand new; it was fun to watch the GPS device get
confused. This highway bypassed many towns, which made our drive quicker ... but many of their businesses will not be happy! |
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For the most part we had 8 hours of nice views & little traffic, with only sporadic construction. |
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We passed rivers with luxury homes along the banks, but most country homes were quite "normal". |
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We
passed many big rivers and bays that opened to the ocean. In many cases
we had to pass over
old " draw bridges" that can lift up to let boats pass under.
The newer bridges are much bigger and higher ... but will take many years to finish. |
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As we got near Sydney, big gas stations like CalTex, with their McCafes begin to appear ... yes, major civilization is just ahead. |
In town we got behind an old Ford Escort ... in great shape! |
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We arrived in Sydney early enough to drop off the van and finish all the paperwork. We then could relax during the evening and pack up for our return trip back to Israel, via Hong Kong. |
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On our last morning, we arose to a great sunrise and said our goodbyes & thanks to Ursula. |
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We had a wonderful time in Australia and hope to go back some day to see the rest of the country. |
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Some of these are our favorite memories/places. |
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