Lemon Tree Passage and Whale Watching at Crowdy Head

SUNDAY, 4th JUNE 2017

Beach at caravan park

Rain clouds brewing

Nelson Bay local

View from Nelson Bay Lighthouse

Lighthouse Keepers Cottage

Communications!

Evening Waterfall

Harrington Poo Machines

Waiting patiently at the fish cleaning station

Some of the Harrington statues

End of the track

Beach shot with rain clouds forming

Friendship stones

Himself's "little" friend

Crowdy Head Lighthouse

Thar she blows!

Gumtree sale next week!!!

The rain commenced Friday evening, with some heavy falls overnight; the rain continued on Saturday morning, with some heavy falls; the rain continued on Saturday afternoon with some torrential falls with extended into Saturday evening.  The grounds surrounding the caravan were underwater and the roadways had become rivers; we had a beautiful waterfall with the water running off the awning.

Instead of sitting and watching the rain through the window, we decided to have a drive to Nelson Bay after lunch.  At times, visibility was reduced to a few metres as the rain was so heavy.  However, we did manage to leave the car for a quick dash to the Inner Lighthouse and Marine Rescue Base, with a look through the lighthouse keeper’s house and spend some time listening and watching the three men on duty in the MRNSW radio base.  The Nelson Bay area of Port Stephens appears to be more popular with holiday makers than Lemon Tree Passage – but there is still a possibility (probably none!) of us seeing a koala.

The heavy rain continued all night but did abate for a short time after breakfast, which allowed a quick trip to the communal showers.  We both fail to see the attraction, especially when able to use our own private shower in the caravan.  Roll on Wednesday and the new hot water cylinder!

Of course, the rain started again as we were ready to pack up, so our departure was a little delayed.  Once again, we turned north towards Taree, the highway very good but a bit hilly before flattening out into dairy farms and the large rivers of this coastal region.  We turned off the highway towards Harrington – a new experience for us – and discovered a holiday town with many permanents.  The Discovery Harrington Holiday Park is quite large, mainly very old caravans/permanent annexes which are left on site, with some very modern cabins scattered among them, as were the limited number of caravan sites.  These are quite large, usually with a double shade cloth mat acting as a slab.  There are no koalas here, but there are plenty of wild ducks which make a far worse mess than koalas!

We decided to brave the Ninja Turtles having a large party in the camp kitchen and follow the track which was signposted “Beach.”  After the track petered out in a swampy area (one of us hoping it was too cold for snakes by this stage), we retraced our steps and headed for the car and a drive to Crowdy Head.  We stopped at an immense beach, complete with friendship stones, before finally arriving at the Crowdy Head Lighthouse.  To our delight and surprise, there were whales playing offshore, with lots of blowing, jumping and tail thumping.  Certainly made standing in the cold wind worthwhile.