Narooma

Narooma is one of my favourite places. Just love coming across the bridge on the first day of holidays - seems to make me feel relaxed almost immediately! My mums family came here regularly for holidays and for the past few years we have spent a few weeks here every year.

Narooma is on the South Coast of New South Wales, about 4-5 hours drive south of Sydney and is situated on the Wagonga Inlet. A breakwall at the bar crossing has created a deep passage into the inlet, but also an extensive shallow area which is ideal for kids.

Where we stay

My parents have an onsite van at Easts Caravan park. It's a large caravan park just as you come over the bridge heading south on the highway. There are a range of different accommodation options here, from basic campsites to fully furnished cabins. The kids have the pool to play in, a jumping pillow, & push carts. The caravan park is on both sides of the highway, with one side overlooking the shallow area formed by the breakwall

There are other places to stay - 2 caravan parks, a number of motels and holiday rentals. We've only ever stayed at Easts so can't recommend any other places.

Where we eat

There are 3 shopping areas in Narooma - on the flat near Easts, the main part of town & Narooma Plaza (where Woolworths is situated).

There are some great places to eat in Narooma. Opposite the Easts Caravan Park is the Narooma Ice Creamery Cafe. It has a great range of ice cream & home made gelato. In addition there is a full cafe menu for breakfast, lunch & light dinners during summer. The fish & chip shop nearby does great fish & chips & has a small range of fresh fish & seafood. Montague Coffee is the best place to get coffee in Narooma - they roast their own coffee on site. They have a small range of food items. 

In the main part of town our favourite is Caseys Cafe - they have had some good gluten free options when we've been there in the past. We haven't eaten at the pubs in this area but they have been recommended to us.

At Narooma Plaza there is Roxy's Cafe & Takeaway & Sugar Pie Patisserie. We haven't eaten there recently, but both were good from memory.

We've eaten at both the Golf Club (fantastic views of the ocean & Montague Island) & the Bowling Club (close to Easts & fairly recently renovated). Both have bistro type menus & we like both places but usually chose to go to the Golf Club for a special treat.  

View of Montague Island from the Golf Club

At Forsters Bay, there are 2 places to eat, both in old boat sheds jutting out over the water. Taylor's (now apparently called The Inlet) does takeaway fish & chips as well as eat in options. We haven't been to Quarterdeck just next door for a number of years, but the last time we were there the food was pretty good. Might be a good idea to check its opening hours though. 

What we do

Well mainly we chill out & do as little as possible! We have a boat that we haul down there & spend a bit of time on the inlet fishing. Our kids are still happy playing in the tidal flats in front of the caravan park - or at Bar Beach just inside the breakwall - the beach does run on the other side of the breakwall but is unpatrolled. 

There is a rock formation called Australia Rock on the other side of the breakwall. The shape was formed by a large chain that was holding a ship in rough seas.

Australia Rock is a hole in the rock shaped like Australia (minus Tasmania) The island that can be seen is Montague Island.

Along the breakwall we've seen seals sunning themselves & whales can be seen from a nearby lookout at the right time of year. 

Forsters Bay is on the inlet & is another shallow tidal area. This is where we usually launch the boat. You can hire kayaks etc near the main part as well as tinnies from The Inlet. If you want something a bit bigger, there are a couple of places that will hire you a BBQ boat - one is Narooma Marina. If you are interested in the history of the area, then the 'Wagonga Princess' does tours throughout the week (see the information centre for information & times)

Not far off the coast is Montague Island. A number of companies run tours out to the island depending on weather conditions (Narooma Bar Crossing is particularly dangerous in certain types of weather). There are also deep sea fishing tours - again check at the information centre or one of the fishing shops for details.

There is a 6 km cycle path that goes around to the next town north of Narooma - Dalmeny. This runs in front of Easts caravan park then across the bridge (if you cross the highway just before the bridge, you can walk around to Forsters Bay). The next part is across the Mill Bay Boardwalk where a range of marine life can be seen in the shallows. There are usually a number of sting rays hanging out quite close to shore.

View from the Mill Bay Boardwalk looking towards the bridge

We sometimes go for drives to nearby towns such as Central Tilba, Bermagui, Mogo or Moruya, but I'll leave those for other blog posts! We're quite happy just hanging out enjoying the views & the cooler weather we usually get when we are there.

Manly

We have spent some time in Manly over the last few years. Living in the country means a lack of services we needed to assist Miss 13 who has Down Syndrome. So we were referred to Royal Far West - a fantastic service that assists country kids access services such as Occupational Therapists, Speech Therapists, Paediatricians etc. About every 6 months over about 6 years we stayed onsite for a week to attend a multitude of appointments.

In the times between appointments, while the kids attended the onsite school, I got to wander around, discovering a lot of things about Manly that I didn't know before! Growing up on the North West outskirts of Sydney we often went to Manly to escape the sumer heat. It usually involved a walk down the Corso, an ice cream and sometimes fish and chips. Of course things have changed since my childhood days!

The Corso runs from the Harbour side of Manly, where the ferries from Circular Quay arrive, to the Ocean. On the wharf there are a range of restaurants & food outlets

Lining the Corso are a range of shops, from supermarkets & surf shops to touristy shops and the best newsagent around. But the main attraction for most people at Manly is the beach. Where the ferries come in there is stretch of beach perfect for kids to play. Manly Sea Life Sanctuary is a short walk away - I haven't been for a long time, but my kids said the penguin exhibit was really good. At the opposite end of the Corso is the ocean beach. It can get quite busy here in summer & is well patrolled by life savers.

Although the Corso is the main centre of activity for visitors, I've found a few gems in the streets surrounding the Corso. Infinity Sourdough Bakery is in a laneway behind the Corso (go through the arcade next to Smiggle & turn left). Their gluten free chocolate brownie is one of our favourites. They have a few gluten free choices, and all the rest looks very yummy! They do light breakfasts and the coffee is really good.

Fika Swedish Kitchen has great coffee, & an interesting range of food. I've had breakfast here and appreciated being offered avocado when I asked for no bread. We've been to In Situ a number of times and the food is always good. They do a fresh mint & honey tea which I love. Bean Rush does great coffee, but the last time I went there didn't have any gluten free food options.

There are plenty of restaurants as well as cafes in this part of Manly. Our favourite fish and chip shop is Mongers in Rialto Square (go down the alleyway between a pharmacy & Hungry Jacks). It's not a cheap choice for fish & chips but nowhere really is these days. Mex & Co is on the ocean front and according to my 12 year old son does the best Mexican food. We've had great steaks & ribs at Manly Grill which is also on the ocean front. Next door is bluewater cafe where I've enjoyed lunch on a few occasions.

And if you need dessert there are a range of different ice cream shops. Ben & Jerry's is on the ocean front (right across from Royal Far West). My favourite is Movenpick, while the kids prefer Royal Copenhagen - both in the Corso. The last time we were there a Yoghurtland had opened up much to Miss 8's delight!

I'm not much into clothes shopping - well other than op shops - so many of the shops in this part of Manly don't interest me at all. There are a range of surf shops, clothing outlets and a number of 'cheap' shops along the Corso.

Desire Books would have to be my favourite shop - not suprising when you know how much I love books & reading. It has an eclectic collection of second hand books. There is usually a typewriter of some description also on display towards the back of the shop.

There is another secondhand bookshop - Andy's Book Echange - where I have purchased a few books. It's a tiny store & I feel like I'm going to knock piles of books over whenever I go in there but it has a good range of newer books. Humphreys Newsagent is a fantastic newsagency with a huge range of stationery, toys, magazines, & books.

I've found 3 ops shops in walking distance from the Corso in Manly. The Salvos shop is next to the Post Office, Lifeline is close by while the Vinnies shop is a bit further away. I found my current favourite winter brown suede jacket at the Vinnies a few years ago.

Miss 13 has been discharged so we will no longer be regularly visiting Manly. I will miss having the time to just wander around seeing what I can find but we will definitely be going back to visit when we can.

Muswellbrook

Muswellbrook is in the Upper Hunter, in an area where coal mines & power stations are predominant. It's another town we drive through regularly on our way to Sydney. Just recently my DH spent some time in Muswellbrook for work so we got to spend a bit more time than usual looking around. 

This statue shows a Blue Heeler dog - the first ones were bred near Aberdeen in the 1840's

Where we stayed

I've stayed at the John Hunter Motel (91 Maitland St, Muswellbrook Ph 02 6543 4477) a couple of times with Miss 13 a few years ago. It was ok, but nothing special. The decor was old and worn then, but the bed was comfortable enough. We ate at the restaurant on the first occasion. The food was nice, but it was expensive and the second time my daughter preferred to go to McDonalds next door. I felt that it was quite expensive for the night - but we had not prebooked, it may be cheaper through Wotif etc. 

This year we have stayed at Noahs Mid City Motor Inn twice - both times in the same room! If all the rooms are like this one then anyone staying here should be happy. The room looks to have been renovated recently and are lovely. The bed was comfy and although the room was smallish, overall it was quite comfortable. We had breakfast at the motel on the first occasion. It was a buffet type arrangement with all the usual breakfast items. Breakfast is only available Mon - Fri. Although the motel is on the highway (all the motels in Muswellbrook are), I didn't find it too noisy at night.

Where we ate

Carmens "A Little Taste of Italy" 91 Bridge St, Muswellbrook Ph 02 6542 5166

We really enjoyed the meal we had here. It's a lovely little restaurant attached to Noah's Mid City Motor Inn. I had a really yummy seafood risotto while DH enjoyed his steak. It's advertised as family friendly & certainly seemed that way from the few family groups that were there.

Artiste Expresso Bar 1-3 Bridge St Muswellbrook Ph 02 6541 2277

Artiste is a small cafe adjacent to the Art Gallery with a number of tables outside. We've had breakfast here twice. The menu is listed on the wall and has a simple variety of foods. The gluten free cake range is larger than most cafes. The breakfasts we had were simple but quite tasty. We were told all the sausages, ham etc used were gluten free and gluten free bread is available on request.

Lucky Star Bistro 113 Bridge Street, Muswellbrook Ph 02 6543 1700
The Lucky Star is a part of the Muswellbrook RSL Club. We ate here on two separate occasions, once with just DH & I, the other with our kids & other family members. I had steak & vegies both times as it's usually what I have when there's nothing else that is gluten free and it was what I felt like at the time. It came with a vegie dish that had been cooked in I think oyster sauce which I put to the side. While there with our daughter, the waitress said to let them know & they would leave that off. The chinese meals others tried looked good, my son found the sate a bit hot, but loved it anyway!

Hunter Belle Cheese Cafe 75 Aberdeen Street (New England Highway) Muswellbrook  
Ph 02 6541 5066

Hunter Belle Cheese is a small cheese factory that has cafe & gift shop on the premises. There are viewing windows where you can watch the cheese being made, a tasting area and a pretend cow that the kids can try their hand at 'milking'. We ate here with our 3 kids and everyone enjoyed their chosen meal. There were a couple of gluten free choices. I chose the pumpkin soup (without the included bread after checking that the soup was gluten free) for Miss 13, while I had the Nundle trout with potato pancakes & poached eggs. My serving was larger than expected but yummy nonetheless. The menu looks to have changed since we were there. 

My Nundle trout with potato pancakes was delicious

The cheese made here is really good. There are a number of different ones to chose from as well as butter & yoghurt. Our favourite is the washed rind, Mr 12's was a Italian herb & garlic cheddar. There is also a range of fudge (which we sampled on a later visit) and gelato made on the premises. Throughout the cafe, which is quite large with rustic timber tables and chairs, there are various gift items to purchase most with a cow or cheese theme. We found it to be a relaxed place where the kids enjoyed checking out the cheese making process.

Where we went

Muswellbrook has a newly redeveloped park which the kids loved. Highbrook Park now has a huge enclosed slide + other cool playground equipment. Turn into the road next to the showground, follow it to the T intersection & turn left, the park is on the right. There are toilet facilities, a number of picnic tables and a bike track. 

The weekend we stayed, the St Heilers Heavy Horse Field Day was on which I was very excited about. I love heavy horses and had seen signs advertising it on many of our previous trips to Sydney but it was never the right weekend. We went on the Sunday. There weren't a lot of classes running (apparently the Saturday is busier), but we enjoyed wandering around checking out the stalls and of course the many heavy horses. The kids and I enjoyed a ride in the wagon which had the added advantage of giving us a different view of what was going on. Lots of photos were taken!

This four in hand won their class pulling a slide with a large log on it.

We did visit Denman, but it was on Sunday and basically the only things we found open were the cafes. Another day we drove down to Singleton, then came back via Jerry's Pains. We had a map we'd picked up at the Information Centre, which had a lookout marked on it that looked out over the Coal operations. We went to have a look, it was freezing cold so we didn't stay out of the car long. It was also really noisy, basically it looked out over the centre of the mine operations, complete with giant dump trucks etc. 

There are a range of shops in a couple of different places. An Aldi, Coles and Harvey Norman are close to the Showground, while the rest of the shops are in the main street and a complex just behind the main street. DH & the kids loved the hobby shop, while I enjoyed the 2nd hand bookstore - unfortunately didn't find anything interesting enough to buy. Three op shops are spread along the main street. We found some good bed linen & towels at the Vinnies and a cheap rice cooker, mugs and some hardcover books at the Lifeline.

Hickeys Falls

Hickeys Falls is on the road between Gilgandra and Coonabarabran. It's a rest stop about 39km SW of Coonabarabran with the waterfall situated at the back of the rest stop. DH had been introduced to it by a work mate and when he visited the first time there was a lot of water coming over it. 

Hickeys Falls April 2013

It is accessed through a sign posted rest stop, with the waterfall being visible from the back of the carpark. There is a track (not sign posted but very easy to work out where to go) along the right hand side but after a short distance you basically find your own way to the pool at the base of the waterfall by scrambling across rocks. How far you get depends on the amount of water there is. Our kids especially love the scrambling across rocks bit! There is a place to cross to the other side - it involves well placed steps across some rocks. DS ended up with a wet foot on one occasion after misjudging the step!

April 2014 - showing more of the rocks in front of the waterfall

There are a few picnic tables in the rest area & usually a caravan or two - but there are no toilets. The lack of toilets makes it not the most ideal place for a picnic (especially when you have kids who like to check out all available toilet blocks...), but it is a great spot to stop & let the kids burn off some excess energy.