Meandering around the Myall

The beautiful Myall Lakes

The captain and I have many wonderful memories of the Port Stephens area, captured while staying at the first mate's parents'  holiday apartment over several summers. With speedboat in tow we would make the annual pilgrimage up the Pacific Highway almost every summer, making the most of the generous accommodation for as much of the school holidays as we could. And each year we would pack the boat with as much camping gear as we could manage and take the journey up the Myall River and into the Myall Lakes for at least one night on the water, enjoying the solitude and serenity of the area. So, having our floating "home" with us, we were keen to relive, and expand on, this experience.

The shallow Myall River!

On Saturday, after our delicious prawn lunch at Jimmy's beach, we cruised up past Nelson Bay and Soldiers Point to pick up a courtesy mooring at Fame Cove (another favourite place). Then, next morning, the captain had us on the move early, to make the most of favourable tides to navigate the Myall River. We stopped at Hawks Nest for a few supplies, then headed upstream. Many parts of this meandering river are quite shallow, and even though we knew we could make it all the way, there were a few tricky parts where Manookatoo nudged the bottom. We were traveling on a rising tide so there was never too much to worry about, but it can be quite unnerving to see little or no depth on the chart, and we were pleased to reach Tamboi and enter the Broadwater, cruising across to Myall Shores for lunch. The ferry across Bombah Point is closed for its four year service, which made navigating the narrow stretch quite easy. Later that afternoon we continued cruising up through all the lake systems to Kattaway Bay, where we pulled up a courtesy mooring for a night on our own - just us and  wildlife.

Manookatoo from Johnsons beach

Monday was forecast to be wet and windy, but it started out fine and sunny so we made the most of the morning to do our exercises and take a short trip in the dinghy to shore, recalling where we had pitched our tent, strung the hammock and had the fire for cooking in years gone by. Returning to Manookatoo we cruised into Neranie Bay and back across Myall Lake in the rain, choosing a courtesy mooring out of the wind at Violet Hill. After lunch we took the dinghy ashore and walked from Violet Hill campground to Bungarie Bay. Later that evening, we saw fisherman stringing a net across the channel - they checked we weren't planning to move before they would remove it next morning - they were hoping to catch silver bream (we don't know if they did or not but they didn't  share with us!).

Sunset at Professors Cove

The sun was back on Tuesday morning as we left the mooring and cruised around the corner to Johnson Bay, another favourite camping place. Taking the dinghy to shore we walked to the top of Johnson Hill and admired the view, marveling at how a family of eight had farmed here last century, the six children rowing across to Violet Hill then riding their horses to the local school each day. Later we continued cruising through Boolambayte Lake and into Professors Cove, where another courtesy mooring took our fancy. In the afternoon we took the dinghy across to Korsmans Landing (another old farm site) and followed the fire trail to Cutlers Cottage and back. The whole area is so beautiful, with a myriad of bird life flying, swimming and singing all around us. As the sun set we enjoyed the swelling chorus of birdsong before the evening chill drove us inside. 

Rivermouth

Wednesday was another beautiful morning, with fog rising off the water as the temperature increased. After our morning exercise routine we cruised off again, past Bombah Point and across the Broadwater, heading into the upper Myall River and anchoring just near Rivermouth. We took the dinghy up to Nerong to explore the little township, returning to Manookatoo for lunch in the sunshine. A 4.9km return walk from Rivermouth  campground to the start of the Sugar Point fire trail capped off another lovely day and we enjoyed another glorious sunset before retiring inside as the night closed in.

Fishing shacks at Tamboi

Thursday was another lovely clear morning. We took our time leaving Rivermouth as the captain had calculated which time was best to work the rising tide on our return trip down the Myall River. The best laid plans don't always work in a tricky river system, however, and a couple of times we hit sand and had to wait for the tide to rise enough for us to float off and continue downstream. We were very pleased when Tea Gardens came in sight and we tied up at the public jetty with some relief, enjoying a "well earned drink" before lunch. We explored the area around the jetty after lunch, buying seafood from the local co-op for dinner. An afternoon drink the pub before dinner was also quite enjoyable! 

Checking the depths

Friday dawned wet so we set off soon after breakfast under the "singing bridge" following the Myall downstream and through Corrie Creek - at low tide  it is also quite shallow! - into Nelson Bay. With inclement weather forecast for most of the day and strong winds in the afternoon, we took a berth at D'Alboro Marina, in the heart of Nelson Bay. We look forward to spending some time in the area and the opportunity to see what has changed in the last seven years. 

Farewell Myall River!!

Broken Bay and beyond

When places are named after Governors, locations can be confusing. Governor Brisbane is best remembered by the capital of Queensland, but he also has a mountain range near Geelong in Victoria and a waterway on the Central Coast of New South Wales named after him, and the latter is where we have been this week.

A most confusing, serpentine channel!

The Rip bridge

Leaving American Bay at 6am on Monday, we cruised back into Broken Bay, passing Lion Island, a penguin rookery, on our way. As we entered the serpentine channel up towards Brisbane Waters with waves breaking on the shallow sandbars on one side and rocky shores close by on the other, the first mate was a little nervous, but the captain steered a steady course and we cruised into the calm waters of Hardy Bay for breakfast. A walk around the foreshore to Pretty Beach followed before we cast off the mooring and continued north. We passed under the Rip Bridge, where currents run at up to 6 knots, then followed the channels between oyster leases into the Gosford Broadwater. We pulled up a courtesy mooring and took the dinghy ashore to  enjoy a seafood lunch at the Gosford Sailing Club overlooking the calm Brisbane Waters and Manookatoo.

Pelican guarding The Entrance

With swells rising in the Tasman Sea for the next few days, we decided to stay moored at Gosford on Tuesday and enjoy an "on land" day. After breakfast we went ashore and took the bus to Erina Fair for some shopping, then continued on the bus to The Entrance. The day was warm and sunny and the views over Tuggerah Lake and along the seaside walk were quite lovely; we could see waves breaking out to sea so we were very glad to be ashore! We enjoyed fish and chips and salt and pepper squid for lunch at the lovely old seaside pub, then returned to Gosford and Manookatoo on the afternoon bus.

Beautiful Hardy's Bay

On Wednesday we enjoyed a morning walk along the shore and over to Caroline Bay, returning for breakfast aboard before casting off the mooring. We cruised around the Gosford Broadwater and into Lintern Channel, venturing up the Cockle Channel as far as Empire Bay, where a shallow sandbar across the channel encouraged us to turn back downstream, cruising under The Rip bridge and around into Hardy's Bay again. There we pulled up a courtesy mooring and enjoyed a lazy afternoon in the quiet harbour.

Palm Beach from Barrenjoey Head

Thursday was another beautiful morning and after breakfast we cast off the mooring and headed out along the channel and across Broken Bay. There was a bit of a swell to make the journey interesting, but once we were past Barrenjoey Head we were back into the calm waters of Pittwater. We anchored between the moorings and met the first mate's parents for a fish and chip lunch on the shores at Palm Beach before cruising back to Barrenjoey and picking up a mooring under the headland. Ashore again, we hiked up the steep track to the lighthouse, with sweeping views up and down the coast, before returning to prepare Manookatoo for continuing our journey north in the morning.

Looking down on Pittwater and Manookatoo

 The captain was up early on Friday, waiting for the sky to lighten up enough for us to depart. We cast off just after 6am, passing the Barrenjoey Lighthouse and making a track north east. The seas were "chunky" (as described by another sailor on VHF radio) so we stayed downstairs for the journey, managing to balance cups of coffee or toast as we cruised along. There was a favourable current so we cruised at between 7 and 8 knots, entering the Hunter River at The Nobbies before 12:30, happy to be in smooth waters again. We had booked a berth at the Newcastle Yacht Club Marina, where we tied up, organized our laundry and enjoyed a leisurely lunch before a walk along the waterfront into town and back. A seafood dinner with a Pinot Noir at the Yacht Club overlooking the water capped off the day.

Entering Newcastle harbour

We didn't rush leaving Newcastle on Saturday morning, but we were casting off our lines by 7am, heading back down the Hunter River and into the Tasman Sea. It was much smoother today, to everyone's relief and we cruised along the Stockton Sandhills and past Fingal and Point Stephens, turning to port and heading in between Tomaree and Yacaaba Heads to one of our favourite destinations, Nelson Bay. We anchored just off Jimmy's Beach for prawn rolls while reliving many lovely memories - we intend reliving many memories while exploring the waterways around here in the next couple of weeks.

Tomaree and Yacaaba Headlands

Captain's Log
Distance from Pittwater to Port Stephens: 77 nautical miles
Duration of journey: 10 hours, 55 minutes
Fuel used: 122.4 litres

We're going to have a lot of fun in Port Stephens!!

Exploring the Hawkesbury

Leaving Sydney Harbour

In 1788, not long after the first British settlement in Sydney, Governor Arthur Phillip set off to explore the 'broken land" north of Sydney. On Monday, 1st May, 2017, we set off to do the same.....
An early (6am) start saw us departing Sydney Heads just on sunrise on Monday morning, bound for our next adventure. A calm three hours and 15 nautical miles later, we rounded Barrenjoey Head, past Palm Beach and  into Broken Bay.

Twilight Cove, Kuringai Chase NP

We headed south to explore Pittwater first; lots of beautiful houses hugging the waters edge and moorings full of expensive boats. We stopped at Church Point to check out the general store, but as ferries use the local jetties regularly it was a quick stop!
Rounding Scotland Island we headed north past West Head, to where the Hawkesbury River begins, then we set our course west into Cowan Creek and the Kuringai Chase National Park, where bush and rock escarpments replaced the houses and the water was calm, clear and deep. We cruised far into the National Park, past numerous bays and inlets, finally settling on Twilight Cove, in Smiths Creek, pulling up a courtesy mooring for the night. We took an afternoon cruise in the dinghy to explore Coal and Candle Creek and Akuna Bay, but were happy to return to our own peaceful cove.

Kuringai Chase NP

On Tuesday we dropped the mooring and headed southwest to explore Bobbin Head, enjoying a walk through the mangroves and up the escarpment before cruising back downstream and into Jerusalem Bay, where another courtesy mooring took our fancy. The scenery in the area is breathtaking - with clear waters, thick bushland, rocky cliff faces and no other sign of human habitation it is hard to believe we are so close to Sydney! We took another afternoon "squirt" in the dinghy to explore American and Refuge Bays, both full of yellow private moorings but no boats, where we could hear the sound of the waterfall at the end of America Bay. Back on Manookatoo we enjoyed another peaceful night.
On Wednesday morning we continued west, stopping at Brooklyn for a walk in the rain then continuing along the Hawkesbury River, under the Pacific Highway bridge at Mooney Mooney. We travelled as far as Spencer, tying up to check out the small village then returning to the boat and dropping anchor for lunch. We retraced our journey downstream and turned into the Berowra  Creek, another beautiful waterway surrounded by bush, with occasional groups of houses which are only accessible by boat. We picked up a mooring in Joe Crafts Creek, with Muogamarra Nature Reserve behind us and the houses of Collingridge Point opposite.

On Thursday morning we headed up to the Berowra Waters Marina, where the first mate's parents met us for a leisurely day's cruising. They enjoyed seeing a familiar area from a different perspective and we returned to Joe Crafts Creek for lunch, watching the fish jump out of the water in front of us! That night was our first ashore in four weeks, spent at Glenhaven enjoying their hospitality and doing some much needed restocking at the local supermarkets.

Fun with Sue and Mal

On Friday we returned to the boat, meeting friends Sue and Mal for another leisurely cruise, with prawn salad and bubbles followed by "Mal-made" apple crumble. We have been blessed by good weather almost every day and this was no exception. That night the captain headed further along the Hawkebury, dropping anchor near Big Jim's Point, while the first mate returned to her parents, having planned a couple of appointments for the next morning.
On Saturday the captain cruised 3 hours to Wisemans Ferry where he met Matt, Anne-Marie, Benjamin and Nicholas for lunch and a lovely afternoon cruise, followed by drinks with the first mate and her parents then dinner at the local bowling club.

Enjoying lunch with Matt, Anne-Marie and the boys

Continuing upriver on Sunday, we travelled past many waterski resorts and waterfront houses, pulling up a mooring for an early lunch before we farewelled the family and began the journey back downstream.
The Hawkesbury River is certainly picturesque with rocky ranges surrounding it and very few houses or small settlements along its shores. We followed the tide out of the river and under the Mooney Mooney Bridge, past Brooklyn and into Cowan Creek, pulling up a courtesy mooring in American Bay just as the sun set.
We have certainly enjoyed the Hawkesbury River but it is time to move on to new cruising grounds next week.

Heading down the Hawkesbury and onto new adventures

Captain's log
Distance travelled:
Sydney Harbour - Barrenjoey Heads 20 nautical miles Cruising the Hawkesbury 107 nautical miles
Fuel: 150 litres