Friday June 26
Grafton/Port Macquarie
After a mild night, we woke to an overcast sky, which cleared up while we packed the caravan. Bye to our new friends Pam & Mike, and also to Geri & Michael going our separate ways. We took the scenic route to Grafton, a lovely town on the Clarence River. Jen’s been wanting to see its famous Jacaranda trees since moving to Sydney 30 years ago. Will have to wait a bit longer, as they don’t bloom in winter! I have linked this to how beautiful it looks for those who are not likely to get there. We wandered around a little, had a coffee and took a few pictures.
On to Port Macquarie to stay overnight, where we arrived around 3.45 pm, dropped the van, and headed into the town and walked around the riverfront/mouth around to the ocean side and enjoyed the sunset. It is one of the most popular coastal holiday destinations, especially for families. A few decades ago many Sydneysiders retired here, but just researching it seems that the average age these days is 47. A lot has changed over the past 20-30 years that’s for sure – it seemed really quite busy for a mid-winter, off-season day.
A huge NRMA caravan park along the breakwater wall was completely packed -all cabins occupied, and caravans or tents on every available site which are close together. Have never seen anything that big and that crowded in Australia…
Sunset view for the campers on the first row facing out. 
Town beach (with surfers) 
Hastings river mouth
Went for a drive along the coast up to the Lighthouse, and caught the last light over the beautiful hilly landscape Lighthouse Beach (did some camping there in the 90’s).
Had a recommendation for a nice seafood restaurant which happened to be a 2-minute drive from our caravan park. Reviews were excellent, so we made a booking and had a surprisingly delicious seafood dinner in a beautiful place on the river (which was dark though) on our last night. Guess it would be a top spot for lunch as well. Last night in the van for a while…. We can start thinking about the timing of our next trip. While we can’t leave the country, we may as well enjoy it. Until then!
A few maps:
Woody Heads to Port Macquarie via Grafton
Port Macquarie – home
Ah jammer dat jullie trip weer ten einde is maar veel dank voor de mooie verhalen , ik heb ervan genoten.
Weer mooie foto’s en wat bijzonder die gekleurde stenen langs de rivier.
Die plaats met de klok op de rotonde komt me bekend voor, waren wij daar ook? ?
Dat het lekker vis eten is langs de kust bij jullie dat herken ik ook en ook dat er lunchplekken zijn met bijzonder uitzicht. Volgende keer weer veel genieten dus..
Nu ff uitrusten en bijkomen? Succes met het herstel van de Van!
Liefs en tot een volgende reis 😘
Het is een fijne reis geweest, dat is wel duidelijk.
Fijn dat we hebben mogen meegenieten van al dat moois, bedankt!
Nu maar verder wat uitrusten.
Groet
Ton
Hoi vacantiegangers.
Wat een mooi land (werelddeel) is het toch. Genoten van jullie belevenissen en van de prachtige foto’s.
Wij zijn ook weer thuis na 4 weken. Leuke tocht door Nederland met af en toe nederlands weer maar ook soms temperaturen van 32 graden het leek wel Spanje.
Tot de volgende Zoomsessie. Het cameraatje zat bij de post.
Leuk leuk om ook jullie comments te krijgen! Ook wij hebben jullie aventuren gevolgd!!xx