KINGSCLIFF TO REDCLIFFE VIA BRISBANE AIRPORT

Well we said goodbye to Karen and Jeff did our shopping and were on our way for 9 30am. The weather was lovely and we made our way to Coolangata but stopped along the way at Point Danger (strange name) met a lovely guy called Alick who gave us great advice on our route. Thanks Alick1. A quick lunch and then a ride along the coast to Burleigh Heads, Broad Beach and Surfers Paradise which was lovely but all high rise flats . The beach was fantastic so I think that was the attraction. It was then time to go to Brisbane Airport and meet up with Lynn and Pete. Great to see them both and soon got on our way to pick up their camper van and change ours. That went well and we were on our way. Didn1t go too far but there was a lot of traffic it was rush hour. Found a site and settled in at Radcliffe which was an hours drive from Brisbane. Had evening meal and a good drink and gossip and so to bed goodnight bet & bri x x x

LAZY DAY ON THE BEACH

Well today started off a bit strange we actually had a lye-in this morning,it must have been8.00 clock(that`s good for us).No rush or as they say over here no worries,we had got the day off we've booked in for another night which will give us a chance to recharge the batteries,we seem to have been on the go for quite a while now and i think that a day with nothing to do should be good.Anyway after breakfast we had a good walk into Kingscliff which was about 30 minutes away and what did we find ,charity shops.Well after looking around Betty came away with a top ,shorts,sun hat,and a beach throw over oh and a table runner and a hand towel.(nothing changes).The Salvation Army seem to do quite well over here,they have a shop in most towns that you pull up in.So after visiting Woolworth's(yes Woolworth's)they are still going over here and going well,nearly everywhere has a woollies and not as we know them they are more on the size of Morrison's or sainsburys,selling everything. We had a walk back to the camp after having a nice cup of coffee and milk shake along the front .Lunch was about 2pm and after that we went down to the beach which is about 20 metres away through a path from the camp,another great beach you look either way and the sand stretches for miles with hardly anyone about, Now nobody is patrolling these beaches and the sea looks very inviting but you would hardly want to venture into them very far because the waves that break all the way along could be quite dangerous.Anyway after coming off the beach we cooked ourselves a sweet and sour chicken and a chilli for Lynn and Pete tomorrow night,had a couple of glasses of wine and off to bed.goodnight Betty and Brian xx

WOOLI TO KINGSCLIFF

Hello well we left Wooli at around 9am after Bri`s tasty bacon and eggs! We made our way along the coast still not lfinding any Kangaroos. We have seen 5 dead ones that have been hit by vehicles! but not any jumping around. We were trying to get as far as Byron Bay now Bri has got those beads! he says he`s leaving them on when he gets home sorry kids this could be embarrassing. They were only cheap so hopefully they won`t last long. We only needed his ponytail now for Byron Bay! We lunched at Lennox Head and watched the kids surfing, washed up and set off for Byron Bay. Must admit it wasn`t for us (must be getting old) very commercialised and a bit tatty and of course so busy with it still being the Easter Holidays. So decided to move on. Just up the coast we found Kingscliff which looked a bit strange at first. New houses which looked very clinical and looked like something you would find on an industrial estate. But I`m glad we carried on to the beach because there we found this great spot. Karen and Jeff run the place and its small but very friendly. They have some tents which they call "Safari Tents" they are brilliant. Built on decking with their own en suite! not expensive to hire. Jeff said he was getting more for next season. They call the toilet block the "Melody Block"" I thought that was great! We booked in for tonight as well because Brisbane isn`t far away. After evening meal we had a look round the town and had a drink at the beach club and so back in the back of the van for the night. Betty & Brian x x x

KEMPSEY TO WOOLI BEACH

Ok another vanilla milk shake at MC Donald's and time to catch up on yesterdays events.Well we left Kempsey at about 9.30 after doing our blog and getting some more supplies for our travels,had a lovely ride along the pacific highway(keeping well out of the way of the road trains that trundle up and down this road)some of them are huge ,most of them painted up in bright colours and highly polished chrome bumpers and wheels.Stopped for a cup of tea at Nambucca Heads(this is a nice little place),we had a walk around and then found a little beach at South Valla.This spot was right alongside the beach so we decided it was lunch time,enjoyed a walk along the beach(few surfers around and lads fishing for mullet).After doing the washing up we got on our way and passed through some banana plantations and finally arrived at Coffs Harbour,now this town is quite big(even got an airport) very pretty place ,little harbour and plenty of fishing boats,had a walk around here.Time was getting on now and we finally realised that the clocks here went back on Sunday morning so although it gets light about 5.30 am it is dark for 6pm (suggested to Betty that we should get up at the crack of dawn so that we could make most of our day but i don`t think she was impressed).We certainly miss those king size beds that we had in America.After leaving Coffs Harbour we carried on to a village called Grafton where we decided to go off the main road about 30kms to a little place called Wooli,now this place was only small(we prefer these sites)we had a river at the back of us and the sea in front of us.Now the beach here was great ,lovely sand and stretched for miles in both directions.Had a good evening meal and a chat with one of the neighbours ,whose name was Brian.He spends six months on site and six months travelling(seemed to have a good life with his fishing)had a little drink and off to bed.Goodnight Betty and BrianXX.

TUNCURRY FORSTER TO KEMPSEY

Dad, this is bringing back so many memories of all those camping trips and all that training is coming in very useful! like using the same pan twice and not wasting a drop of water! we can just about get past each other in the van,I think it`s all these milkshakes at McDonald's. Going to the shower block is a big deal with all the makeup,hairdryer and straighteners. It just used to be towel and soap. I am the navigator and I must say Brian is being very patient! I can get lost on the site!

Anyway must get on Bri has gone to do the shop fancy some bacon and egg (that always tastes better outside) Well we did get up to rain yesterday which wasn`t fun but by the time we were ready to leave the sight it was lovely sunshine. We headed north to Kempsey (named after our Kempsey in Worcs) On route we had a brew at North Haven and Lunch at Port McQuarie. Jo I remember you telling us about this place and yes its beautiful. We had a great walk along the beach, it was busy with families on the Easter break and surfing lessons. So then we looked for a McDonalds which is never hard to find. After blogging we just found a lovely site up the road. Just a quiet one with our own patio and palm tree! well you can`t do better than that oh and a shower block that only we seemed to use. When we were asking the manager where we could park we went into so much discussion you would have thought we were buying the plot! Getting like mom ! Brian had a swim ,set up camp wine and dinner on the go. Paul we have got John Williamson on in the van!

lOVE BETTY AND BRIAN X X X X X X

WYONG TO TUNCURRY FORSTER

OK before we left the campsite at Wyong we crossed over the road to do our shopping ,the shops were back to normal after good Friday .Then we started out on the coast road through Swansea ,Belmont,Newcastle stopping on the way for lunch on the side of the road (we shared a table and chairs with them) they told us that they were on their way to Tuncurry Forster and it probably would be a good place to stay so that is what we did.we carried on through bulahdelah and then followed the coast road round to tuncurry.Had a job getting into a campsite being the Easter weekend but the fourth one we contacted had just had a cancellation so we had the last powered site.very busy site and the guy in the reception mentioned to Betty that it was bingo tonight (she was over the moon!).cooked evening meal and after getting freshened up went for a walk and found a RSI club,really big club with lots of facilities but not many people there but they all seem to run courtesy buses to and from the clubs,so we took advantage of a lift back to the camp and slept well.love Betty and Brian xx

BACK WHERE I STARTED IN THE BACK OF A VAN!

Hello well it`s a good job it`s easy to find a McDonald's and the milk shakes are lovely! After a lovely walk Thursday along the beach the weather was great and as we hadn`t got any nice pictures of Sydney we went back into the city. It looks completely different when the sun was shining. Everyone eating and drinking along side the Harbour. Great atmosphere so decided to stay for the evening. Found a great bar with music and sat at the waters edge. Met a couple and spent a couple of hours with them. They were deciding whether to move to Sydney or Stay in Stevenage. Well we mulled over all the pros and cons with them and had a good night. So yesterday we left the hotel at 9am to go and pick up the camper van. That was a long and drawn out process,we had to watch a DVD. It wasn`t the exact van we wanted but said we can swap it when we meet up with Lyn & Pete in Brisbane. Anyway it is ok it just hadn`t got a pullout BBQ but we can live without that.

Now this is the big test on a relationship!!! I was putting everything away in one place and then Brian would move it. We have got a shower and loo but emptying it seems a bit of a pain so we will try and use the sites facilities. We didn`t get very far on our first day we stayed at a place called Wyong which was only 80 miles from Sydney. Lovely place and we cooked our evening meal and had a drink at the local rugby club. Were taking the old pacific highway north and our next stop will be Newcastle. Hope you are all well and don`t eat too much chocolate Betty & Brian x x x