CENTRAL COAST - 15 TO 31 DECEMBER 2020

15 December

Back home.

Some basic home cleaning and emptying the van.

16 December

Yard work was a month's worth of fallen sticks and leaves. It took me a few hours to get it looking reasonable.

17 December

A morning surf at Wamberal Beach. I was surfing terrible but the waves were okay. Haha!

Jacinta and I spent the mid morning setting up the Christmas tree and other decorations. Yo ho ho!

Kara returned early from Armidale as she had finished work quicker than expected.

18 December

An early surf at Wamberal Beach. The waves were small on a low tide. There were a few okay waves. The sunrise was very yellow and there was a mist over the ocean. Very pretty!

I caught up with Ken at the Haven for coffee.

We went for a second surf at Wamberal but the tide was a bit too high so only had a couple of waves.

Family dinner with the girls at Kincumber Hotel. Sort of an early Xmas get together before they both went on holidays.

20 December

Jacinta and I drove to Somersby Falls. The water was flowing and it was very pretty. It was also very slippery. 

21 December

A fun surf at Wamberal. The waves were much better and consistent today. Smiley face time!

22 December

A mid morning surf at Pelican Beach with ken. The waves were excellent - hard lefts with size and a killer shore dump ending. Big smiley face time.

23 December

A surf wandering with Ken ending in a crap surf at Birdie Beach

A hike on the Girrakool Loop with Jacinta in the late afternoon. So pretty in the land of cool waters.

24 December

A fun surf at Wamberal Beach and coffee with the boys later.

An afternoon sit at the Terrigal Haven with Jacinta. A nice way to end the day.

25 December

Xmas - a quiet one for us due to the girls away and covid restrictions. 

26 December

A morning kayak at Fagans Bay. There was a light rain at times and a contrasting of light and dark due to the clouds.

A hike from Putty Beach to Bullimah Beach with Jacinta. Along the rocks, over the sandstone cliffs and along the path to Bullimah Beach. 

27 December

A mid morning snorkel at Terrigal Haven – stingray and schools of small fish.

29 December

A kayak at Avoca Lagoon – light rain, quiet, birds, a bird's nest and eggs.

30 December

Rain - inside chores

A great dinner night with Bryson and Jeanette.

REFLECTIONS

This period of Summer has been wet with varying winds. It was hard planning activities but still, make the best of what you can.

TERRIGAL HAVEN, NORTH AVOCA, BRISBANE WATER, BOUDDI NP - 1 SEPTEMBER 2017

22 August 2017

I felt a bit better this morning.

I drove down to North Avoca beach and walked down to the sand. It was a pretty morning with the golden hue of the sun to the north playing across the ocean, random nice waves, a lone surfer paddling out and birds flying over head. All very nice.

My next stop was Terrigal Beach, where I sat on the steps overlooking the sand and had a cappuccino. The sun was warm and it was very relaxing.

Back in my car when I saw a lady  looking intently at her mobile phone walk into a wall. She looked a bit shaken but preceded to go back to the phone and then cross the street oblivious to traffic. Luckily, the cars stopped but the driver in front looked stunned at what she was doing.

Back home and later,  Kara and I took Mr Archibald down to the waterfront at Gosford. We ate fish and chips while Mr Archibald looked apprehensively at the crowd of aggressive seagulls around us. Food was finished and the gulls departed.

I got my bike out of the van and took Archibald for a ride along the promenade. He sat on my shoulder and loved it. So did I.

23 August 2017

Later in the morning, Kara and I met Chloe for lunch at the Lotus Cafe at Wamberal. A nice lunch where I ran into friend Larry and his wife. After eating, we walked to the beach and sat on the sand enjoying the sunshine and watching the small waves.

27 August 2017

In the warmest part of the day, Jacinta and I made lunch and took it down to the Haven. We sat on the stone wall out of the wind and watched the world go by while we ate our sandwiches. It became so warm that we ended up shirtless and enjoying the rays.

1 September 2017

I was feeling better, I think, and decided on a hike. I drove to Putty Beach and decided a short hike would be okay.

I wandered along the beach which had a lot of bluebottles along the high tide line. Bluebottles are a type of jellyfish with a painful and prolong sting from the tentacles. They swarm in the ocean on mass so it is not a good idea to swim when they are going towards shore on the high tide.

The waves were large, the tide mid and the waves erratic so I thought it best to hike along the cliff edge rather than the rocks on the water's edge.

I walked up the wooden staircase from the beach to the top of the headland. At the top, there were two glossy black cockatoos (endangered). They squawked a bit then flew off. I followed the track through the bushes and after a short distance it opened up to rocks and clumps of vegetation which characterize the area.

There were great patterns and shapes  on the golden sandstone formed by rain, wind, salt and wave action. In parts, the sandstone was tessellated.

The waves were large and put on a great show crashing into the cliffs or roiling over the rock shore platforms.

At one point, a sea eagle spiraled slowly over the land and ocean. A pretty sight.

The track varied from a rustic raised wooden walkway to over the natural rocks. The walkway does protect the landscape and looking at it from a distance on a cliff backdrop, I think, it looked pretty.

The final destination was Bullimah Beach. Access to the beach, was via a precarious looking stairway. The beach was small and cliff surrounded. The sand looked virginal as the tide had wipe the clear the footprints and mine were the first for the day.

I plodded back to the van and drove a short distance to Killcare Beach Cafe for a cappuccino and scones. A nice ending to a pleasant hike.