A short break down the South Coast was definitely a welcome break from the hectic pace of the past weeks. With Easter behind us, we headed south to a small seaside town called Gerringong.

We were in no hurry so left after a coffee at home with our lunch packed. The plan was to lunch at Kiama then continue on south. With an arrival time of 2pm we thought it would all fit in nicely.

The weather was so beautiful. Warm and sunny with the promise of the same for the next few days.

Even though it was a beautiful Sunday afternoon, Kiama was not overly busy. We had our lunch overlooking the water.

Views of the sea from both sides of the headland

The Blowhole is always a place to visit in Kiama

Today, however, not a sign of anything blowing through the hole

The lighthouse from below the blowhole

 We continued our drive following the main road. We stopped at a lookout just north of Gerringong where we had a beautiful view of what was to be our location for the next couple of days.

View across to Werri Beach and Gerringong

 We were a little too early to check in to we decided to have a look around the town. Views abound in this part of the world.

View of Werri Beach looking north

 Once we had checked in to our accommodation, we realised the views from the balcony of our room that the views were pretty good from there too.

The adults only pool from our balcony

Sunrise from our balcony

 So the start of another day. From a brochure we had picked up in Kiama we had booked a day out on Jervis Bay. We breakfasted promptly then headed off allowing ourselves an hour to get to Huskisson.

We had booked ourselves on a 2-hour eco-cruise on Jervis Bay. The weather was beautiful, but some dark threatening clouds suggested we may not see the sun for the whole day.

The weather held and we had no rain. I hope you enjoy these photos we took.

 

The main street in Huskisson

Huskisson waterfront

Only five minutes from the harbour and the dolphins came out to greet us

The water was so clear it was easy to see them swimming alongside even underwater

Jervis Bay has many beautiful secluded beaches

This one is accessible via this stairway

Beautiful clear water with a sandy bottom make for the changing colours in the water

Hyams Beach, known for its white sand

But also for its prime real estate

The clouds hung around

Close to the naval base, but the kangaroos still graze on the grassy areas

The captain's house - prime location

A naval training vessel

Still known as the hole in the wall, but now with the top missing

The cleansing sea grass - keeping the waters of Jervis Bay in pristine condition

The weather was still threatening

The island at the entrance to Jervis Bay is a fairy penguin sanctuary

Point Perpendicular, the northern headland of Jervis Bay is aptly named

Many interesting rock formations can be found along the walls of Point Perpendicular. Can you see the east coast of Australia?

Sea caves and gorges abound

Stack left separated from the main wall by erosion

Powerful waves create some wonderful coves

Kelp found only in this part of the Bay

An eye in the sky

A different eye - a local sea eagle turns up

These boulders have been pounded and collapsed like dominoes from the heavy seas

This ship ran aground further to the right on this rocky headland. The seas push it a little further along with each storm

Honeymoon Bay - very secluded

The clouds still threatened, but still no rain

With the tide out it was a very careful return to the harbour in the shallow water

Colourful apartments, reminiscent of towns in Europe

 After our boat trip, we took a look around the town. It has a lot to offer including this area behind the Lady Denman Museum, which is a mostly maritime museum. Set in lovely grounds just on the edge of town, sadly we did not have time to visit.

The stairway to Hyams Beach

Hyams Beach claims to have the whitest sand in the world. Watch out for later blogs when we visit Whitehaven Beach in Queensland and Lucky Bay in Western Australia which have also been vying for the title of having the whitest sand in Australia. But Hyams is the only one in the Guinness Book of Records.

The whitest sand in the world - according to the Guinness Book of Records

The boat we were on two hours earlier now out on another trip

After our day in and around Jervis Bay, we had other spots to explore on our way back to Gerringong. We had stayed in Shoalhaven Heads when the children were younger. The beach has not changed.

Shoalhaven Heads is at the mid point of Seven Mile Beach - this picture looking north

Seven Mile Beach looking south

Seven Mile Beach from the Kingsford Smith Lookout

 Sadly our short break had to come to an end, but one more stop before we headed home was up in to the hinterland to visit Minnamurra Falls Rainforest. One of our National Parks the walk is all on boardwalk or paved so very easy going, but steep in parts.

A pair of lyrebirds were doing what they do best - mimicking other birds, most notably a Kookaburra

They are so well camouflaged in the undergrowth

Not far from where we saw the real thing

Lower Minnamurra Falls

A gorge created by the Minnamurra River

Minnamurra Falls were worth the hike

Tree ferns abound in this rainforest environment

A beautiful part of the world - go and see for yourself

Blue Mountains Feb 2013

A short break in the Blue Mountains, west of Sydney was a welcome relief after a hot January then torrential rain for a couple of days. The weather was fine and sunny, just perfect for some bush walking.

We left home after coffee and headed west through Windsor, Richmond and up into the mountains via Winmalee and Springwood.

We made our way to Katoomba - the main regional centre - where I bought some new hiking boots at one of the local climbing stores. Then it was time to explore some areas we had not been to before.

On the northern side of the highway we headed for Minnie Ha Ha Falls. We had our lunch, then it was time to test those new boots.

One of the few summer flowering natives

Minni Ha Ha Falls

After our walk we made our way back to the eastern side of the highway, but decided to check out a couple of other places before heading to our accommodation in Leura for two nights.

We stopped in Leura for a milkshake and some people watching time then went and checked out Gordon Falls and the lookout at Olympian Rock. Gordon Falls had not benefited too much from the recent rains, but the view from Olympian Rock was gorgeous. Much of the vegetation on the path to the lookout had been affected by bush fire but was growing back and provided a stark reminder of the fragile nature of our native flora, but also it's capacity to regenerate after such events.

New growth on an otherwise 'dead' banksia

View from Olympian Rock lookout

The stairway down to the lookout

 
 
Our first evening we had dinner in the hotel restaurant which was included in our package for the stay, but it was not too flash so made enquiries about other restaurants locally.

After a leisurely start to the morning and a good breakfast we headed for Blackheath to take a walk in that part of the mountains which we hadn't taken before, the cliff top walk between Evans Lookout and Govetts Leap.

Bridal Veil Falls and a rainbow created when the sun shines down on the back spray

The narrow track from the valley along Rodiguez Pass

 

 Some beautiful examples of how the Banksia trees were immortalised in the books by May Gibbs. This is how the Big Bad Banksia Men come to be

The Banksia tree

A fresh flower

Seed pods emerging

The Big Bad Banksia Man

 We did not walk the entire cliff top walk as we were going to visit Govetts Leap lookout anyway. So we returned the way we had come after soaking up the beauty overlooking Bridal Veil Falls. The return walk provides an opportunity to see views and the flora and fauna along the way from a different perspective.

There were dragonflies, butterflies, lizards to be seen. Bellbirds constantly calling in the valley way below. Few people on this walk made it a very peaceful morning.

A burnt through tree - but still it lives. Such is the nature of our flora

A beautifully camouflaged lizard

Most colour is seen in the Spring but there is the occasional spash

 Driving around to Govetts Leap we called in to Blackheath for something to drink and some more people watching. Then we drove down to the lookout

This is a more popular spot, but being mid-week it was not too busy.

These stone structures were built in the early days for visitors to the Blue Mountains

One of our magnificent eucalypt trees - commonly called gum trees

Horseshoe Falls from Govetts Leap lookout

 With plenty of the day to spare to drove back along the highway towards Wentworth Falls. Being of the nature to find less crowded walks and lookouts, we took a different route to overlook the falls.

Wentworth Falls and Yester Grange in the upper distance

 After substantial rain the previous weekend, the Falls were probably better than they would otherwise have been. Rain has been in short supply over the summer months.

Our second night we headed into Leura for dinner - a lovely meal early in the evening and we were back at the hotel for a good night's sleep after our busy day.

After checking out of the hotel we headed just down the road to Sublime Point. Being early in the day it was not busy, so we had the place to ourselves. A beautiful Yellow Tail Black Cockatoo sat squawking  in the trees as we headed down to the lookout. He did not mind having his picture taken either.

The Three Sisters from the Leura side of the Jamison Valley

 I took a couple of quick videos - one of the view over Bridal Veil Falls and Govetts Leap and the other looking over the Jamison Valley