Stage 3 Around Oz With The Winters - Warnervale to Laurieton

 

^{Welcome back to the first Blog of the year.  I hope you all had a good, relaxing Christmas and New Year, although it probably seems a very long time ago for you by now!!!}

^{In the last blog I posted in December last year, we were leaving Western Australia and headed back to New South Wales.  We arrived back on The Central Coast on 9th January where we were based in our friends’ driveway at Warnervale on The Central Coast, affectionately called “Camp Cox” for 3 ½ months.  During that time my girlfriend Maggie came over from New Zealand for a 2 week holiday and it was fantastic to see her again and show her around.  We also helped Kate and Jeff out with household jobs, handyman repairs and child/dog sitting during school holidays and an extra 10 days whilst Kate visited her parents in New Zealand, I nursed Hayley through her wisdom teeth extraction in hospital and at home, and we helped Kieran and Karina move house.  I trod a well-worn path from Warnervale to Sydney by train to visit the girls and friends as often as possible.  We originally came back for a cousin’s wedding in The Hunter Valley in March - the rest was just a sideline.  Another major reason we ended up staying longer than anticipated was our van needed major warranty repairs.  Jayco in Newcastle couldn’t fit it in until 10th April and needed it for at least a week.  We tried unsuccessfully in Perth to get the repairs done, but gave up and decided to wait until we were back in NSW.  After it was finally fixed to our satisfaction, it was school holidays once again, Easter and Richard’s 60th Birthday.   We did manage 2 separate trips to Jimmy’s Beach Caravan Park in Hawks Nest and Shoal Bay, which we really enjoyed.  Jimmy’s Beach had new owners and had been extensively renovated since our last visit there 4 years ago.  My, how time flies when you’re fully occupied!!!   That wraps up 3 ½ action-packed months.}

^{At last it was time to head off on our travels once more for “Stage 3 Around Oz With The Winters”.}

^{MONDAY 28TH APRIL   -   We left Warnervale travelling 267 kilometres north to visit our dear friends Chris and Tony in Laurieton, near Port Macquarie.  It was lovely to see them again.  Laurieton is such a pretty area with a great surf beach at North Haven, river, walkways and picnic areas.   A 35 minute drive takes you into the major town at Port Macquarie.  Chris and Tony live at Laurieton Gardens Caravan Park which recently had new owners that have really spruced the place up with garden beds full of gorgeous, bright marigolds and lush grassy areas.  Most of the residents had coloured solar lights in their garden patches and surrounding their homes.  At night time it was really colourful and stunning to watch.  It was a small park with mostly permanent residents that backs onto the sports oval and Laurieton RSL Club. We spent a fun-filled week there with them and our other great friends Paddy and Mary came up from Sydney and spent 3 nights with us all.  It was so good for the six of us to be together again.   We had too much food and alcohol and plenty of laughs, a few trips to bingo and the raffles at North Haven Bowling Club.}

LOOKING DOWN ON LAURIETON FROM BIG BROTHER LOOKOUT

A LAURIETON KOOKABURRA

ANOTHER VIEW FROM BIG BROTHER LOOKOUT

THE BOARDWALK THROUGH LAURIETON

GORGEOUS NORTH HAVEN BEACH

ANOTHER VIEW OF THE BOARDWALK

VIEW FROM THE BRIDGE LOOKING UP TO BIG BROTHER

 

^{SUNDAY 4TH MAY - The main roads from Laurieton to Port Macquarie were closed as The Australian Ironman Event took place from 8am to 4pm.  There were over 2,000 competitors taking part from all over the World.  The oldest male was 72, the oldest female was 64 and the youngest competitor was 18.  We watched the cyclists roaring up and down the roads in front of the caravan park and it was quite a spectacle with people lining the road cheering and hosting sausage sizzles from their balconies and gardens.  Others had moved their lounge suites outside and placed them along the footpath for a good comfortable vantage point.  Everyone was having a great time and the riders appreciated the support.}

^{MONDAY 5TH MAY - We left Laurieton at 9am for a 690 kilometre drive to Yelgun Rest Area at Brunswick Heads where we have stayed a few times before.  It was a long drive with a few rest stops along the way and by 4pm we arrived there.  The area was already quite busy as it was a popular stop-over.}   

^{TUESDAY 6TH MAY -   We left Yelgun Rest Area for a 260 kilometre trip and 4 hour drive to Nambour in Queensland to visit our friends Janet and Paul plus their 3 dogs Matrix, Rusty and Lulu.  We met Janet and Paul in Shellharbour Caravan Park 5 years ago.  They have been based in Nambour for the past 3 years.  We last met up with them on Stage 1 of our travels when we were in Queensland 3 years ago, but keep in touch by email and Skype regularly.}

^{We stayed at Palmwoods Caravan Park in Palmwoods on The sunshine Coast.  It was a small caravan park with mostly permanent residents.  There were lots of trees and palm trees around the park and it had a nice feel. It was well maintained and everyone was very friendly and helpful.  There are only a few caravan parks on The Sunshine Coast that take dogs and they’re all about 20 – 30 minutes drive from Maroochydore or Mooloolaba.}

THE LIGHTHOUSE AT ALEXANDRA HEAD, SUNSHINE COAST

 

OVERLOOKING THE SUNSHINE COAST FROM ALEXANDRA HEAD

 

^{WEDNESDAY 7TH MAY   - We went to Mudjimba Beach near Maroochydore which is a big dog friendly beach. It was a 25 minute drive from Palmwoods.  Sally was happy to have a good run along a beach again and meet more doggie friends.  After a good long walk, we headed to the famous Eumundi Markets, held on Wednesdays and Saturdays each week. They were pretty big markets and had lots of stalls offering crafts, foods and clothing for sale.  They took up both sides of the road and parking was a real problem.  They were well worth a visit and we came home with bags of cheap fresh fruits and vegetables.}

^{THURSDAY 8TH MAY   -   We went for a drive along The Blackall Ranges in The Sunshine Coast Hinterland, passing by some really picturesque rural properties, green hills and valleys.  Our first stop was at Montville, an absolutely gorgeous “olde worlde” village with lots of small vintage shops, cafes and restaurants looking into the deep lush green valleys of the Hinterland.  It was really breathtaking.  Next we headed to Maleny to visit the well-known Cheese Factory that made its own cheeses and yoghurts.  We tasted so many cheeses and, spoilt for choice, ended up buying some garlic/herb feta cheese and mango yoghurt which were delicious.   The feta cheese was a welcome part of happy hour that night and got rave reviews from everyone.  When we left Maleny we drove through Witta and Conondale and onto Kenilworth, an interesting old town with its own Cheese Factory.  We passed by The Showground which is a popular stopover for camping and caravans .  It was fairly crowded.  We were told it gets very cold there in winter as it is nestled amongst the hills of The Hinterland.   We couldn’t help ourselves and taste-tested lots more lovely cheeses.  It was a bigger factory than at Maleny and had a good range of sauces also.  We had lunch in the park opposite with many other grey nomads firing up their weber bbqs.}

LOOKING DOWN THE VALLEY AT MONTVILLE

 

 

ME AT THE BIG PINEAPPLE SUNSHNE COAST

 

 

^{We had happy hour (or two or three) with Janet and Paul and their neighbours every night.  They were very friendly and made us feel so welcome.  We hosted a sausage sizzle under our awning one night which went down very well with everyone.}  

^{We really enjoyed our week on The Sunshine Coast and were very impressed with the facilities everywhere and the amount of beaches, parks, picnic areas, cycle and walking paths around the place (lots of them dog-friendly).  We could quite understand people wanting to retire up there.}

^{NEXT WEEK:  We will be continuing to travel north to The Fraser Coast to spend 2 weeks at our favourite Queensland spot Woodgate Beach near Bundaberg.}