Judy & Brian Tour Oz

Port Macquarie NSW September 2, 2015 One of the Commandants of the penal settlement was a Captain Innes. He returned to the district as a retired soldier and built a mansion on his grant of 2000 odd acres overlooking a (then) freshwater lake, which was later renamed by the Governor as Innes Lake in his honour. The house was made from local materials including a million odd hand-made bricks and hand split Bush Casuarina roofing shingles. It rivalled any of the grand homes in Sydney at the time, such as Elizabeth Bay house, Vaucluse House and the government houses. The family lived in it right through to the late 1800s, when it left their ownership. It was already falling into disuse and ruin, but a fire in the early 1900s sealed it's fate . Basically then, it has been a ruin, overrun by the rain forest since that time. I came here as a10 year old in about 1960 and I can only remember some stones and a lot of jungle. I do remember we travelled up from Laurieton via the Innes La...

North Haven, Camden Haven, Dunbogan, Laurieton NSW September 1, 2015 Up early for a trot along the beach: just some swimmers on, lovely in the early morning sun. But when I came back to the van I was looking for my shorts and shirt and jumper! The problem is that there are a heap of mature gum trees in the park, which must be fantastic in summer to get some shade and keep your cool, but in winter they block the sun and it just stays cold. We kept an eye on the pool and the moment the sun reached it we went and sat over there, and had a swim and did a crossword and had a swim... Next thing you know its 1 o'clock. After lunch we drove the short distance to North Haven, where I reminisced over the 'good old days' when we came here as kids and swam, and rode in a bathtub through the waves, and fished off the breakwater. No swimming today as its just too cold and hell, there were no waves so I didn't bother looking for the tub. Grants Beach. North Haven NSW Gra...

Bonny Hills NSW August 31, 2015 A pretty horrible run down the coast yesterday thanks to the vast amount of roadworks being undertaken. At least they are out there doing something about it and the end result will be phenomenal. After 2 hours we had covered only 120km, so we took some time out at a big new servo come cafe complex just south of Kempsey. Made it into Bonny Hills, which is about 20 km south of Port Macquarie. The park is right next to the beach and has a heated pool, so we might survive for  few days. We found ourselves up in 'Port' as you can't help but call it,where we took some snaps and wondered at the 'progress' which has swallowed up the original coastal penal colony turned port and fishing village and turned it into a Sydney suburb. A quote from wikipedia to set the scene for Port Macquarie: In 1821, Port Macquarie was founded as a  penal settlement , replacing  Newcastle  as the destination for convicts who had committed secondary cri...

Emerald Beach NSW August 30, 2015 A few days late but here's a photo-story from my 7am talk around Emerald Beach Emerald Beach, NSW. That's South Solitary Island in the distance Emerald Beach, NSW These guys have a nice spot to lay about and graze. Emerald Beach, NSW That next headland is called Look-at-me-headland, I have no idea why. The Solitary Islands walking path (not just a track, it's a proper path) Emerald Beach, NSW Bit of wave action, but as they say, 'you should have been here yesterday!' Emerald Beach, NSW Emerald Beach, NSW Emerald Beach, NSW Add caption Every holiday-makers beach has one - a Thong Tree Emerald Beach, NSW