KOORAGANG WETLANDS MTB - 5 OCTOBER 2017

2 October 2017

Fun surf at North Avoca with Micheal. Some okay ones amongst the not so okay ones.

3 October 2017

Surf check but not so good.

Jacinta and I had coffee at Terrigal Haven. The wind was light, there was a cloud cover and it began to sprinkle lightly with rain.

Afterwards, I parked at Kincumba Mountain and had a ride on the tracks.

It was a quiet ride and the tracks were very sandy in parts. Some rain needed to firm it down.

In the afternoon, Kara, Mr Archibald and I drove to Copacabana beach for coffee and to watch the ocean.

5 October 2017

Jacinta and I left early morning for a bike ride at Kooragang Wetlands at Newcastle.



We crossed a bridge made in 1956 to Ash Island and parked the van. there were a number of conservation volunteers there who were about to start removing reeds from certain areas of the wetland. A nice thing for young people to do.

We rode along the raised pathway above the mangroves. I learnt that there are 20 species of mangroves in Australia and two of them are here - River Mangrove and Grey Mangrove.

We followed a track that took us to the Roselle Track. This track was marked as circular but we actually had to backtrack the way we came. It was an interesting track next to mangroves and salt pans. We saw a few birds as well.

We continued along the road then followed the rainforest track. That was a fun track through overhanging trees and curving paths.

The track continued around the edge of the island along the Scotts Way track until old Milham's Farmhouse. It was interesting with remnants of the old farm house, a well and a garden. The mulberries were delicious.

Unfortunately, as we rode over the grass off the track towards the farmhouse a number of thorns had punctured our tyres ... four flat tyres. Jacinta's bike was a bit okay so she rode back to the van while I walked my bike to the road. Eventually, after Jacinta's tyres going flat again and a magpie attack, we connected again, loaded up the bikes, and visited the old radar station and the schoolhouse.

The radar station was ordinary but the old schoolhouse now an administration building was a beautiful building especially the interior. We met the project manager for the restoration of the island and were amazed by all the work that had been done.

On the drive home, we stopped at Caves beach for ginger beer and fish n' chips on the sand and in the sun.