In this post, I would like to write down the details of our one day trip which just happened last Sunday. It was a journey of about 280km that lasted about 5 hours driving. We took turns driving and whenever we needed a break we would stop by a place of interest on the map to observe the beautiful scenery of the area. It was a very random trip. On the evening before the departure day, my husband visited my Hive Blog and told me that I had not been as active there as I had been in the previous months. In my reply to him, I explained that since we weren't able to go anywhere, my photos were running out, so I could not do any posts about travel. I am quite interested in travel and food, so I also want to build my Blog specializing in these 2 topics. Maybe in the future I will also have a few posts about personal and work stories. However, at this time, I am glad to see people coming to my Blog to find out more about places to eat and travel. Since I started blogging, one of the most valuable things I have learned is my keen sense of curiosity about historical sites and the unique characteristics of the places that I have visited. While before I would simply admire and marvel at the beauty of a place when I visited it, now I take the time to learn about the place, which equips me with knowledge and when I write it down, it's stored, so I can read it later and recall all of the places I've visited.
Sometimes, it's quite interesting to go on an unplanned trip. You can stop anywhere that you'd like to and enjoy every moment with nature as you want. No one will rush you. The two of you are on a long journey together, where you are telling each other everyday stories and discussing future plans. After a stressful week, that is more than enough. Our trip last Sunday was iust a sort of that unexpected trip, completely unplanned. Just that Sunday morning, I was thrilled by a picture of a pink cave I accidentally saw on the internet. And that's it, we packed up and started our day trip.
First stop - Mooney Mooney Point Rest Area
The location of this place is so scenic. Every time we go to the Central Coast, we always stop here to rest. This rest stop has a stunning view of the Hawkesbury River and the Hawkesbury River bridges. The grass field next to the river is very cool. They also put some tables and chairs there so people can have a picnic. Since there is a boat ramp here, a lot of people come here with their boats, canoes, or jet skis...I saw many people just park the car there and enjoy a whole relaxing day on the Hawkesbury River. While we walked around before continuing our trip, I saw a lot of people fishing on the river bank. Some of them came back on their boat with a bucket full of fishes. It's so convenient because they arrange a fish cleaning table right there for people who go fishing. Standard sized fishes can be cleaned on site and taken home, while smaller fishes must be released back into the river.
Despite the busy life, during the weekend, the Aussies like to spend time for sport and outdoor activities. That's a very cool lifestyle that makes me feel really admired and worth to follow them.
Catherine Hill Bay Beach
Catherine Hill Bay is a State Heritage Listed historic mining village. There are only two towns included in the list: Catherine Hill Bay and Middle Camp Village in Lake Macquarie. Catherine Hill Bay was formed as a village in 1873, when the New Wallsend Coal Company opened a mine in the area and the jetty was built. I had been operating in 4 years and was closed in 1877.
The Wallarah Jetty is considered the signature of this place. It is such an icon of the town, associated with this village's coal mining history. For safety reasons, there is no access to the jetty. But you still can just wander around to observe the ancientness of the bridge from the beach site.
There are 2 residential sites. There is the new section of town which has just been built after 10 years of court battles and community protests against urban development. While the other site is the old village with the old style cottages which remind us about the history of this land.
This is not a popular tourist spot so the beach is quiet and peaceful. Families with small children can enjoy activities such as swimming, surfing here. If you want to have lunch, the Catho Pub is the only place in town to head to.
The Pink Caves
Being known as the "Cotton Candy Caves", there are many questions have been raised about whether the stone color of this cave is natural or artificial. The quick answer is it's 100% natural. Due to the constant crashing of the waves on the rock split year after year, as well as the unique rock formations and the drainage of water, the cave has formed the bright pink color.
There are two way to access the cave. The quicker way is to find a parking slot on Hooey Street at the new buildings area and walk down the stairs to get close to the beach while the other way is to take the Mooney Beach track which is about 4km return.
We took the quicker way, at the beginning, it was a bit struggling to find the entrance to the stairs because it's hidden in the bushes.
We'd done a bit of research on the internet before heading to the cave. It's recommended that you should only try to get into the caves in the right condition when both the tide and swell are low. Waves can crash over the path of the cave causing an accident. Unfortunately, on that day, the waves were really strong and the tide was high so we couldn't make our way into the Pink Caves. So instead of keeping our way on the lowest level of the rock to head to the caves, we climbed on the rock to the highest level. Couldn't really observe the Pink Cave on the day but the higher view was absolutely amazing though.
The Entrance
After visiting the Cave, we decided to head back to a busy place for lunch rather than being stuck with only one option, the Pub at Catherine Bay Hill. Just 30 minutes drive from Catherin Hill Bay, The Entrance is a coastal town on the Central Coast of New South Wales. This is a popular holiday destination for families and young people. The town centre is always busy with a big playground, cafe', restaurant and holiday apartments. We had been here once and were eager to come back for the best duck pie at Ken's Humble Pie Shop. The pies were just so good and we were too hungry so I totally forgot to take photos of the shop. If you're around the area, I highly recommend this Pie Shop. We have tried Green Curry, Beef and Cheese, Pepper Beef and Duck Pies. They are all absolutely amazing that we don't mind coming back anytime we pass through this town.
