We waved farewell to Vic at the showgrounds soon after nine, heading out of Taree for the last time and on to the Pacific Highway. We turned off at Kew, driving eastward on Tourist Drive 10, reaching the charming seaside village of Laurieton after eight kilometres. We stopped and parked a block from the main street, close to the boat ramp, then walked along the Camden Haven River. Camden Haven, Laurieton and North Haven are a collection of settlements surrounding the lagoons, river, islands and Queens Lake. The sun was shining and we made the most of the warmer temperatures, stripped down to about two layers of clothing. In the shopping precinct we picked up the day’s newspaper and some lovely fresh bread. It seemed that most of the people wandering about as we were, enjoying the sun, shopping or heading for the very smart RSL Club, were more senior than us, so we decided that this area must principally be a retirement destination.
Following the Tourist Drive route, we headed up the
coast with the ocean close by on our right and wet scrubby flat land between us
and Queens Lake to our left. We passed through Bonny Hills, a village set high
on the cliff above Bartlett’s Beach and continued on, much of the time
essentially driving along a causeway flanked by wet muddy swamp.
Lake Cathie (pronounced cat – eye) is the name of
both the seaside village of about 2,000 permanent residents and the very
shallow lake linked with the more northern Lake Innes. We stopped on the
northern side of the sand locked entrance, wandered along the shore side park
amongst the families enjoying the same space; paddling in the shallows, fishing
and picnicking. We checked out the small shopping centre, discovering a charity
shop with a wealth of books for sale and remembered the bag of read books we
had languishing in the back of the land cruiser. Assured of the worthiness of
the charity, I returned with the offering and Chris was delighted to be rid of
the extra weight, now hoping for enhanced fuel efficiency.
We sat beside the lagoon-like section of the
estuary, listening to the parrots in the trees all about us and enjoyed our
fresh rolls with cheese. Eventually we roused ourselves and hit the road once
more, soon entering the outskirts of the city of Port Macquarie, still
following the tourist route, now up Pacific Drive. Our first impressions of
Port Macquarie were very good and perhaps skewed because we travelled in
through the most attractive parts of the city. Or did we?
The city is laid out (on early impression) in very
much the same way as Newcastle, the high coastal areas descending rapidly down
to the city centre hugging the river side. For Port Macquarie, or “Port” as it
is called by the locals, a city of about 45,000 people, it is the Hastings
River which provides the centre piece. Unlike Newcastle, the scenic beauty of
the place does not have to compete with the industry of the port. The centre of
town appears to have been razed to the ground and rebuilt in more modern times.
There is none of the drab neglect that is evident in parts of Newcastle
although there are a few very very old buildings tucked between the bright shiny
ones.
The site of Port Macquarie was first visited by
Europeans in 1818 when John Oxley reached the Pacific Ocean from the interior,
after his journey to explore inland New South Wales. He named the location
after the Governor of New South Wales, Lachlan Macquarie, whose name has graced
so very many geographical features, as I have mentioned before.
In 1821, Port Macquarie was founded as a penal
settlement, replacing Newcastle as the destination for convicts that had
committed secondary crimes in New South Wales. After two decades of providing
an isolated unattractive destination for recalcitrant and reoffending
criminals, Newcastle had become a little too civilised and pleasant with the
increasing number of free settlors. Port Macquarie with its thick bush, rough
terrain and local aboriginals who were keen to trade returned escaped prisoners
for tobacco and blankets, offered an excellent alternative solution.
So among the glitzy glamour of this very smart
seaside city, there is a lot of history to be discovered and we will do this in
the coming days.
We found our way to the Information Centre situated
in the Glasshouse, a super modern
cultural centre which was the centre of a huge local controversy. The building
of this arts, conference and entertainment centre, a joint venture project
between council and the neighbouring shopping centre commenced in 2001 and was
expected to cost $7.3 million. By late 2007 despite the work still not
finished, the costs had blown out to over $41.7 million, with interest
repayments likely to extend the council’s liability to $66 million. In 2008 a
full public inquiry concluded that the council had been negligent and the
Minister for Local Government sacked the council and the mayor. It seems that
the interesting snippets of history of Port Macquarie are not only restricted
to the nineteenth century.
It was in this controversial building which was
eventually completed and opened in 2009, we found the Information Centre and
sought a list and prices of caravan parks in the area. Here we learned that
most of the parks in Port Macquarie charge more or less the same tariff except
for the one right in the city centre that adds an extra $7 for the privilege of
being within walking distance of the city hub. The staff phoned ahead to Jordan’s
Boating Centre where we hoped to secure a powered site in their small but
intimate park right in the middle of the marinas. We were delighted to find the
road to this park was lined with beautiful homes situated along the waterways
across The Governors Way but then disappointed when we arrived to find the
proprietor had decided the remaining site was too wet to hire, so we were
turned away. Instead we headed to this park, one of the many other parks in the
directories, all of which are charging tariffs far more than advertised. The girl
at the Information Centre said that this was normal; nowadays with the
internet, it is only there you can expect to find up-to-date prices. Another
reason why we should have an iPad, my husband will say.
Speaking of whom, the stress and toil of being an
armchair sportsman is starting to take its toll; he has joined the ranks of the
Grumpy Old Men. The good news however is that he will be able to return to his
normal sleeping routine soon, once the London Olympics are over.
No sooner had we arrived here at the park did the
rain start. Once set up, we walked down to the far end of the park to discover
the wharf right on the Hastings River. In sunshine and better weather I think
we will find ourselves in an absolutely lovely caravan park. But then so it
should be with a tariff of $32; school holidays are still underway and there
are no discounts on offer for seniors, CMCA members or any other special
people. The birds were unperturbed by the rain; I look forward to their morning
chorus.
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