Monthly Recap – July and August, 2020
A recap of my adventures in the months of July and August 2020
With restrictions easing in NSW, and winter in full swing, I enjoyed some inside and outdoorsy adventures, both local and across the state. Borders opened briefly, so we headed to sunny Queensland for a few days by the beach. Read on for my monthly recap.
SOUTH COAST – ULLADULLA
As ‘intrastate’ was now allowed, a good friend and I headed south for 3 nights, along with her three children. We stayed with my parents in Mollymook on the South Coast. All 7 of us did a bushwalk at Ulladulla, the Aboriginal Sensory Walk, perfect for children and lots of amazing views. We were treated to a chatter of black cockatoos having their morning snack, right above our heads!
SOUTH COAST – LAKE CONJOLA
We drove north for ten minutes to Lake Conjola, a small seaside village ravaged by the bushfires 6 months ago. It was devastating to see the damage to the bush and many houses, but hopeful to see the repairs and regrowth, albeit a slow process. We walked around the lake and sand dunes and then were spoilt to see a family of kangaroos grazing in the caravan park, complete with joeys in their pouches!
MINAMURRA RAINFOREST AND MINAMURRA FALLS
After two nightS in Mollymook, we drove north to the Minamurra rainforest and waterfalls in Minamurra National Park. I had previously done the rainforest walk but hadn’t ventured to the falls. It’s a beautiful walk, but I don’t think the falls are worth the extra hour trek, mostly uphill!
LAKE ILLAWARRA
After leaving Minamurra Rainforest Walk, we drove to Windang on the mouth of Lake Illawarra. We stayed the night in a 2 bedroom cabin that sleeps six. Despite the rain, we had an enjoyable walk in the afternoon to see the bridge and the lake, complete with a rainbow and pelicans. In the morning we walked along the breakwall to the ocean. We couldn’t believe people were surfing and stand up paddleboarding in the middle of winter! Beautiful views all the same.
NORTHERN TABLELANDS ROAD TRIP
The borders to Queensland opened briefly so The Artist and I jumped in the car and took the inland route to the Sunshine Coast. It had been years since I had drive through the country towns of Gloucster and Armidale, and we had an overnight stay in Glen Innes. Covid-19 restrictions had not been kind to the small country towns, many a shop and pub were closed. Still we managed to see some country scenery, browse a second hand bookstore or two and visit the Australian Standing Stones of Glen Innes. These stones are a link to the areas’ Scottish history, it’s own mini Stonehenge. Being a wet day in winter, we had the place to ourselves.
MOOLOOLABA
We were so lucky to have 6 days in Queensland, arriving the day after the border opened and leaving a few weeks before it shut again. We had a relaxing, quiet time hanging by the pool and beach at Mooloolaba . Eating out is expensive so we mainly cooked our own meals. We did a few road trips around the coast, but mainly spent our time swimming, relaxing, walking and reading. We did spend a day at the Bellingham Maze and Mini Golf complex in the Sunshine Coast Hinterland.
NAMBUCCA HEADS
We took the coast road back to Sydney, and after having lunch with a friend in Kingscliff on the far North Coast we arrived at another Cubana Motel in Nambucca Heads. As we were there overnight, we grabbed lunch at the RSL on the Nambucca River and then drove around town in the morning, with an all important breakfast bakery stop and to see the beaches and lookouts. Nambucca and nearby Macksville are sleepy coastal, rural towns, with plenty of beaches, rivers, inlets and estuaries to play in and enough services to get you by. I can see why many people visit here as a holiday spot. We’d like to come back in Summer!
So that was July and August! Quite exciting given the year that had been, with lockdown grounding most of us. Stay tuned to see what I got up to in Septempber and October.
