We set off about 10am on Wednesday, March 16th for Crowdy Bay National Park. Had lunch at Wang Wauk Rest area and arrived at Diamond Head Campground at about 2pm. Had a good day of travel on the Pacific Highway. Dual lanes all the way except Bulahdelah which is being constructed. Great road! The campground is about 9km south of Laurieton and is a beautiful location! Shaded campsites with about a 100m walk to the beach. Lots of wildlife to be seen with Goannas and Kangaroos wandering the camp site upon our arrival. Cold Showers, firewood, and level party shaded campsites.
Please click attached link to view location on map, http://fms.ws/4Q7oZ//-31.71877/152.79433
We took a good walk on the beach Thursday morning then had a nice drive up to Port Macquarie and back on the Ocean Drive. Went through Bonny Hill and Cathie Lake on route. Had lunch at latter on return. Port Macquarie has a lovely road along the coast all around it with numerous lookouts and park areas. Walkway appeared to extend the whole route as well. Stopped at Lighthouse built in 1800s and at the Glasshouse visitor centre. Beautiful building built upon/above the original cabin in Port Macquarie.
On Friday we went into Laurieton and did some shopping and laundry. Lovely town and somewhat bigger than we had expected. Drove out to Katai Lookout at Dunbogan. Had a bit of a walk to lookout and could see our campground at far end of beach. Had a relaxing afternoon with beach walk and a quick trip into the surf.
Saturday saw us up early and walked the Diamond Head Loop walk. About 5km and took us about 2.5 hours with lots of photo stops. Quite windy with lots of climbs but well worth the effort. Highlights of the walk were the Natural Arch and Rainforest section. I have attached a couple of pictures but there are many more in our attached photo album.
Upon our return to camp we found our car fridge/freezer had run down our auxilliary battery and needed recharging. As the Park did not allow the use of our generator and their was little sun to utilize our solar panels we decided a drive in the car was our best option to recharge. Took gravel road through park to Crowdy Head. Quite the road and not one recommended if you are in a hurry but a good adventure. Crowdy Head is small but pretty. Show on map: http://fms.ws/4QyP1//-31.84021/152.75053
We picked up some prawns and oysters at the Fish Co-op and had lunch on the water near the surf club. Life is good! Came back through Harrington which is another beautiful town with a lot of new residential developments.
Sandra and I did a short walk through the rocks (Split Rock) at the Diamond Head Beach. Interesting rock formations and rock pools were amazing.
Had dinner with a group of our neighbors in the campsite. There was a big group that moved in all around us so they included us in their group. Had a nice evening with a few cold drinks and some good food.
Sunday we had another beach walk and a swim before we packed up for our short trip to Valla Beach.
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