Pacific Coast Scenic Route from New South Wales to Queensland

Sydney

Upon arrival at Sydney Airport on the 23^rd of December, we caught the Airport Train that brought us to city in 15 minutes.  Once we’d reached the City Rail Network, it took only another 15 minutes before we could check in and drop our baggage at the hotel.  Already at this point we started to like Sydney as its transport network was so adequate, convenient, and tourist-friendly.  After that long-haul flight and a busy morning, we decided to spend a relaxing afternoon lying down at the well-known Bondi Beach where people learn to surf.  Unless surfing is a primary goal, however, Bondi Beach is nothing more than a nice clean beach.  For those with a tight schedule, Bondi Beach might not be a must-see.

We went sightseeing on Christmas Eve.  The iconic Opera House was smaller than expected; nevertheless, it’s the most impressive architecture in Sydney.  Royal Botanic Gardens was probably not a main attraction, but from which we got a best view of Opera House together with Sydney Harbor Bridge.  We spent most of the day wandering around this prosperous Sydney Harbor where there were street performances, shops, ice-cream and local snacks, and diversified choices of restaurants, before walking to Darling Harbor, which was only 3km away.  While we were about to dine in a roofless table in a seafood restaurant beside the Harbor, there was a firework display right over.  What a surprisingly wonderful Christmas Eve!

Blue Mountains

On 25^th morning we left Sydney and headed northwest by car.  We had a Christmas day in Katoomba, the most visited town in the Blue Mountains.  First, Scenic Railway, the steepest railway incline in the world, brought us down the valley.  It was a very exciting ride.  Second, there were a few pretty waterfalls on the way of various walks clearly signposted when strolling along the Scenic Walkaway.  I was enthusiastic to boost calorie consumption.  Finally, Scenic Cableway took us on a 545 meter ride during which there was a breathtaking panoramic view into the Greater Blue Mountains World Heritage Area rainforest of the Jamison Valley.  Three Sisters were magnificent.  No wonder they deserved to be an icon of Katoomba. 

Hunter Valley

From Blue Mountains we headed northeast and spent a night in a small town called Gosford.  The next day morning we set off to Brisbane Water National Park, which was just a 15-min drive away.  Again, it was a day of hike.  Resting points were some rocky platforms in front of pretty waterfalls that cooled us off.  We really loved the peaceful and beautiful nature in Australia.  Likewise, the view of extensive fields in Hunter Valley or Wine Country, the Australia’s premier wine growing district 170km north of Gosford, was another bit of picturesque nature.  We sampled some of Australia’s finest wines and enjoy top quality cuisine, before reluctantly leaving this whole piece of spacious green for continuing our journey to the north.

Port Stephens

This holiday heaven called Port Stephens composing of 26 beaches was simply marvelous especially when the clear seawater mirrored the azure sky and shiny sun.  The first stop was Nelson Bay.  There was lots of parking, but so were the people.  Luckily we were able to park shortly outside Nelson Head Lighthouse where we visited the lightkeepers house and the attached light room.  Tomaree National Park was the next stop.  Instead of seeing pretty waterfalls, it was an exciting adventure into wildlife.  Right at the entrance I was frightened as a huge lizard came all of a sudden crawling across the trail just 4 meters away in front of me.  It was really huge!  It was a pity it happened so fast that we were not able to capture this huge friend.  Various animals also showed up to say hi while we were on our way to reach the top.  It was quite an exhausting hike at about 28 degree Celsius, but we had no regrets when we were standing at the top enjoying perfect panoramic views over the bay.  We then left Nelson Bay for other nice spots such as Shaol Bay and Fingal Bay for the rest of the day.

Last Few Stops in New South Wales

Continuing up the coast, Seal Rocks was another popular area for its many premier surfing beaches.  Even though we never surfed, all these nice clean Australian beaches were best spots for a relaxing sedentary day.  On 30^th morning we were approaching the very north of New South Wales.  We didn’t do much in Coffs Harbor, except for getting a photo of the famous Big Banana, in order to earn more nice times in the beachside town Byron Bay and meet our schedule to arrive in Brisbane by New Year Eve afternoon.  Unexpectedly, after a 3-hour drive, we could do nothing but shopping in Byron Bay, as the blue sky and sunshine finally wanted a day off.  It was the only rainy day throughout the 18-day journey.  We settled in a hotel early this night. 

Brisbane

Here we were in Queensland on 31^st morning.  After a nice walk at the long Broadbeach and a happy lunch time at one of Queensland’s largest shopping centers called Pacific Fair, we departed Gold Coast for a stop at Tamborine National Park on the way to Brisbane.  There were some more pretty waterfalls.  It was a bit of a rush.  We arrived at Brisbane City Backpackers at 19:00.  While we were about to head to South Bank to watch the fireworks display, it was quite an amazing discovery when I came upon the rooftop garden of this hostel where everybody was ready for the 20:00 fireworks tailored for family with kids who needed to go to bed early.  It was a full clear view there!  We had a very happy New Year.

Nothing was planned for the 1^st of January.  We wandered around a central district of Brisbane where we came across a big tourist information center.  We intended to ask whether there were anything interesting to see in Brisbane city, but then we realized all most featured destinations were about animals.  Since we needed to head 300km north and settled in Hervey Bay this night for catching a tour next early morning, we picked Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary which was located only 15-min drive away from where we were.  I had already come close to koalas and kangaroos years ago, but this was an unforgettable first time I held a koala in my arms and was surrounded by a mass of kangaroos enjoying themselves freely at their spacious home. 

Fraser Island

Fraser Island is considered the largest sand island in the world.  It was also Queensland’s largest island, and the largest island on the East Coast of Australia.  Shortly after arrival at Fraser Island at around half past nine, we boarded a big four wheel drive that brought enough excitements as it drove along bumpy roads.  The first stop was the well-known freshwater lakes called Lake McKenzie at which the beach sand was nearly pure silica.  I loved the beautiful water color of this lake.  Also noteworthy was the Seventy-Five Mile beach running along most of the east coast of Fraser Island.  We had a long ride on this beach.  It was fun!  Other spots included Central Station, Wanggoolba Creek, Pinnacles, the wreck of the cruise ship Maheno, and Eli Creek. 

Fraser Island is definitely a holiday paradise.  Joining a tour, however, isn’t the best option for us lovers of freedom.  We woke up very early just to catch the tour bus that spent lots of time detouring around Hervey Bay to pick up everyone at different hotels before departing for the pier.  Also, we were obliged to follow a schedule.  For example, we could spend only one hour at the paradisal Lake McKenzie, but too much time at spots that we didn’t find extraordinary.  We always prefer individual visit to tour group, but visiting Fraser Island without joining a tour sounds quite hard.  Individual visitors on the islands were mostly Australian vacationers, but not overseas travelers.

Great Keppel Island

Most time of the next day we were on the road, as Hervey Bay and the next stop Rockhampton were 400km apart.  We did understand the advantages of being on a coastal scenic driving route in Queensland, so we stopped at coastal towns and beaches on the way for lunch, tea time, and relaxation.  On 4^th of January, we headed to the ferry pier where we departed for Great Keppel Island.  Passengers were deposited at the island’s main beach that didn’t appear exceptional.  We hiked for more than half an hour before arriving at the beautiful Shelving Beach best for snorkeling.  Seawater there was clean, clear, and baby blue.  We had lots of fun swimming with fishes over coral reefs.  There was no tour schedule to follow.  We just needed to be very aware of time of departure of the returning ferry, because the ferry did only one round trip to and from Great Keppel Island each day.

Whitehaven Beach

The next morning we arrived at Meridien Marinas Abel Point of Airlie Beach, a popular point of departure for Whitsunday Island.  As we realized how clear the seawater right at the marina was, we were expecting much more at Whitehaven Beach, Queensland’s cleanest beach well-known for its  distinctive white fine sands on which we walked barefoot comfortably on that hot day.  Water was clean, clear, and perfectly blue.  We were certain it’s the most beautiful beach we’d ever seen.  I always appreciate how successful Australia government is to protect nature.  Dogs are not permitted on the beach and cigarette smoking is prohibited.  It was a great day.  What a pity time was quite limited as it took a long time to travel to and from Whitsunday Island.

                                      

Paronella Park

While we were looking for something to do on 6^th of January, we were told that Paronella Park, located exactly on our way towards Cairns, was worth a visit.  The park was built by a Spanish man named Jose Paronella in the 1930s with diverse facilities inspired by Spanish castles.  The spectacular Mena Creek Falls attracted my attention the most.  The pretty waterfalls, fountains, bridges, and plants in the gardens were all best choices of shooting background.  It was fun feeding the starving fishes too.  Regarding wildlife mentioned in the tourist brochure, we hardly saw anything else except for lizards, animals found almost everywhere in Australia.  We were happy we didn’t miss this nice park, though the entrance fee was AUD38, fair enough.

 

The Great Barrier Reef

The Great Barrier Reef is the world’s largest coral reef system composed of over 2900 individual reefs.  In order to minimize chances of disappointment caused by adverse weather conditions or even just cloudy sky with a little rain, we’d booked separate tours to two coral cays, Michaelmas Cay and Green Island, for 7^th and 8^th of January respectively.  It turned out to be two perfect sunny days, yet we were right anyway to go on two tours, firstly because the two cays themselves were different beauties, secondly with the long way from and to Cairns time allowed at the Cay was just not enough for scuba diving, snorkeling, and sightseeing all in one day.  It was an unforgettable experience to swim with sea turtles and abundant fishes over the beautiful coral reef.