28 June 2012 - Belmont Bayview Park, Lake Macquarie, NSW

Our departure from Sydney was a little reliant on how the driver felt on rising however he announced that he was no worse, was not willing to risk boredom hanging about convalescing and was willing to take on the Sydney traffic. And so we pulled out of the Sydney Tourist Park a little before 9.30 am, launching ourselves onto the narrow undulating roads north across the city, crossing the Parramatta River at Ryde and travelling north to Hornsby where one suddenly leaves the city roads for the freeway. The forty two kilometres across the city took us just over an hour and seemed much longer. Both Chris and I were surprised when we reviewed the statistics tonight to learn how short it really had been.

By this time the rain had set in diminishing the pleasure of travelling northwards along the wonderful highway carved through the rocks of the Ku-ring-gai Chase National Park and up through the hills toward the coastal lakes.

We stopped for a break at the rest stop near Ourimbah where we had overnighted at the end of the summer last year. Today there were just as many vehicles taking advantage of the facilities but great puddles lay all about and the temperature had barely reached the forecasted 17 degrees. It was a joy to hear the bell-miners that we had encountered there last year, still in residence and still in full “throat”.

We had found a puddle of water in the caravan directly below the airconditioning unit when we moved it from storage to site the day before yesterday and put it down to freak weather conditions in our absence. Today when we stopped en route we found more water in the same spot and so when Chris phoned the caravan servicing people in Belmont to book the van in, he asked that they check this along with the bearings and brakes. Telephoning Five Star Caravans was quite a mission; our call was met with a five minute revolving promotional spiel to entertain until eventually a real person took the call. Chris threatened to hang up between uttering curmudgeonly (and worse) utterances into his cellphone, however I convinced him to hold because he would surely be subjected to the same all over again when he rang back. Last year we were so impressed with their service done under warranty, we felt obliged to revisit them for this needed service tomorrow. Perhaps we should tell them that such long and wordy telephone intros do not go down well with middle aged and older men calling on their cellphones!

Even with an appointment made for tomorrow afternoon, we were still undecided as to where we would stay. We left the freeway just south of Morisset and drove up the western shore of Lake Macquarie, pulling into Toronto to check out the motor camp advertised with a simple sign nailed to a gum tree beside the freeway. Toronto is an absolutely charming spot, the main street running directly down to the lakeside then turning along the foreshore. Unfortunately the camping ground is some distance away and since neither of us are currently up to much exertion, we decided we would carry on.

The caravan park at Teralba sounded promising however it was even further back from the lakeside and the immediate neighbourhood did not appeal, so yet again we drove on. Here the lakeside road turned south east and we followed the lovely eastern shoreline, travelled last year, down to Belmont to this caravan park; a tried and true destination.

We found that the price had gone up by 25% but managed to secure a 10% discount from the manager who is professional rather than warm and friendly. I remembered him from last year, Chris did not; perhaps that says it all?

I had hoped the weather would have cleared enough to encourage us to wander over to the lakeside, however it soon became too cold to drag by poor ailing husband out. Better to keep in and feed him cups of tea and more Vitamin C tablets. Note to self; buy more vitamins tomorrow.