Muddle Through Memoirs

Newcastle, Port Macquarie and Byron Bay: A Week in Three Parts

This week I finally left Sydney behind to make my way up the East Coast. The first stop was Newcastle (of New South Wales, not the North East of England), a beautiful if sleepy beach town just a few hours north of Sydney. After the hustle and bustle of the city, a couple of days with little to do but stroll along the coast, enjoy the near empty beaches and watch the sunset was exactly what I needed.
On my first day I walked along the extremely windy break wall at Nobbys Head (Whibaybanba) and did my best not to be swept away into the sea or be overly battered by the salty spray of the waves hitting the rocks. Along the walk were several information boards, my favourite of which told the Dreamtime story of the area. Local lore told of a giant kangaroo hiding within the island who caused earthquakes by thumping his tail and to this day gives an explanation to the turbulent waters around the rocky area. The quiet, chilled day was rounded out by a beautiful sunset I had all to myself with the beach beautiful but deserted.

The next day I headed along the coastal path towards Merewether beach, a route which took me along the iconic Anzac bridge, a beautiful and striking memorial to the service people lost in the wars. Also on the way was the oddly named ‘Bogey Hole’ a man-made swimming pool dating from some time in the 1800s, constantly washed through with seawater and a great place for a dip or to watch the crashing waves.

After my short stay in Newcastle, I headed up to Port Macquarie, another lovely and criminally under-appreciated stop along the East Coast. On my first day I headed to the Koala Conservation Hospital, a free-to-visit rehabilitation home for injured koalas from across the area. The koalas were gorgeous as ever, though their stories were heart-breaking, each having arrived at the centre following trauma from the bushfires or a car accident. What the workers and volunteers do here is amazing and I was very keen to donate and support their cause. Also at the site is the preserved Roto House, historic home of the Flynn family from 1891. As a lover of National Trust stately homes I enjoyed this unexpected insight into the past in the area, including how the house was used by the Red Cross and fundraising for the war effort.

On my second day in Port Macquarie myself and two friends headed down towards Lighthouse beach to ride camels along the shore. My camel was named Obama and he was very well behaved and friendly. We all loved this unexpected activity, especially as we spotted a couple of dolphins in the bay.

After our camel safari we headed for the Sea Acres Rainforest centre. Walking up from the beach took us through the bush on a fairly long trek which also brought us face-to-face with a rather large goanna who, thankfully, made his way peacefully into the trees upon seeing us rock up. After making it to the centre itself we walked along the boardwalk through the canopy and managed to spot some beautiful butterflies, a lot of noisy birds and even a water dragon.
The thing I loved most about Port Macquarie though was probably the hostel I stayed in, the YHA Ozzie Pozzie, which, alongside having a pool and some pretty awesome murals, was also the most friendly and social hostel I’ve stayed in so far and it was a pleasure to chat with so many fellow travellers.

Having survived my first overnight coach, albeit with very little sleep, I arrived in Byron on friday to beautiful weather and promptly made for the beach – it did not disappoint. I think Byron must be my favourite stop so far, the town has such a lovely vibe with live music on the street corners, gorgeous clothes, restaurants and bars, all set in such stunning scenery. On my first night I quickly befriended two girls in my dorm and we made our way to the iconic Piano Bar at The Northern, something I had seen on tiktok and was just as much fun in person. The setup is two duelling pianos with a setlist based entirely on requests. Everyone in the bar then crowds around these two pianos and sings along (rather raucously). I am a great lover of karaoke so this was going to be my scene for sure and we definitely had a great time.

The next day I headed off on the most incredible bus ever seen, named the Happy Coach, to the town of Nimbin, a relatively short trip inland from Byron.

The town is very hippie and is reportedly the weed capital of Australia – no comment. It was lovely walking around the town centre, getting a feel for the place and visiting the Nimbin Candle Factory, a cool and quirky little place that makes candles for films and tv such as Pirates of the Caribbean and Thor. Stopping for lunch at a sweet nearby cafe, however, we were slightly startled to find a garden full of fully naked men and women. As it turns out the naked bike ride through Nimbin had taken place just an hour before and evidently they too had stopped off for lunch. Though unexpected it’s certainly not the strangest thing I’ve seen so we made the best of it and did our best to ignore the one guy dancing enthusiastically in the pathway.

The reason this blog is named Muddle Through Memoirs is because, as I have often found, things are always going a bit wrong when you’re backpacking and sometimes you just have to come up with something different on the fly and make the best of things. My whole time in Byron, though there was beautiful sunshine, there was also a lot of strong winds, and so two of the activities I’d booked for Byron (dolphin kayaking and a surf lesson) were cancelled. We had a little cry, we dusted off, picked up and made a new plan. If that hadn’t happened I never would have had such a lovely day with my friend Kari.

On Sunday, Kari and I decided after breakfast to head towards a nearby local attraction ‘The Farm’. As a result of the lackluster bus schedule we decided to hire (barbie pink) bikes from the hostel for the day and cycle the half hour to the farm. On arrival we found out that on Sunday Afternoons they have live music which was such a lovely surprise. The whole place is very wholesome with a plant nursery, farm animals, a macadamia orchard and a very nice restaurant.

On the way back from this we stopped in at the local brewery, Stone & Wood, for a schooner and a break from the beating sun. I’d really started struggling on the way back from the farm and thought maybe I was actually less fit than I originally believed, though it quickly became apparent when my whole back wheel’s inner tube popped out that I had a fairly substantial puncture. I was vindicated. This did, however, mean we had to walk the last 20 minutes back pushing the bikes. Nevertheless it was a lovely outing.

The next morning, in a fit of madness, I agreed to wake up at 5am and make the sunrise hike 50 minutes uphill to the Byron Bay Lighthouse. I think the 3 of us loathed every step until we got up there and saw the view. The Lighthouse marks the most easterly point of Australia, and thus made an ideal place for sunrise.

After this brutally early but admittedly unmissable start to my day I headed off (whilst my friends went for a nap) on the Behind the Bay tour.
Our first stop was the Killen Falls, a picturesque little waterfall and rockpool with a couple of turtles milling about on its edges. It was really amazing to be able to walk behind the waterfall as there is a sort of cave behind it. It did require a fair bit of clambering across slippery rocks though, something that seems to be a mainstay of my travelling nowadays.

The next stop was Lennox Head for a spot of lunch. One of the things I’m loving most about Australia is the awesome little cafes dotted about that make such incredible sandwiches, this one was halloumi, rocket, tomato relish, fried egg and pesto – an elite combination.
Also at Lennox Head was Lake Ainsworth, a tea tree lake infused with the oil from the surrounding Melaleuca trees. The oils made the water appear orange and so it did make me look a bit like I’d been at the sunbeds but thankfully it didn’t stain and are supposed to be very good for the skin and hair.

Our final stop was the Broken Head Nature Reserve were we took a short walk through the reserve to see the broken head rocks and beach. Called the three sisters by the aboriginals (though different to those in the Blue Mountains) the story behind the rocks is a cautionary one to warn against the power of riptides. Nevertheless, the rocks were a lovely viewpoint to finish the day.

Closing out my time in Byron Bay I spent a laidback day making my own anklet from beads we purchased from the ‘Trinkets’ store, perusing the shops in the town centre, chilling by the hostel pool, and finally making it down to the beach one last time to watch the sunset and listen to the live music. What a perfect end to an awesome week.

I’m having such an amazing time on this adventure and I can’t wait to share more as I go. x