October 15
For the second day in a row, we woke up to the sounds of nearby activity. Peeping through the curtains, we discovered that the tranquil rest area was transformed overnight to a hub of frenzied activity. Large trucks were unloading equipment all around the grass, and people were setting up booths for what looked like some kind of local festival. A few minutes later a man knocked on our door, informed us that we were parked on a spot designated for one of the trucks, and politely asked us to vacate the place. By the time we got ready to move a big traffic jam has formed, with trucks trying to get in and motorhomes trying to get out. With some effort we managed to get out of the crowds, and stopped a couple of hundred meters from there, in front of a shack offering oysters for sale. We recalled that the shacks along the shore in Karuah were recommended as a good place to get fresh oysters. However, the sign on the shack in front of us said “uncracked”, so when someone stopped nearby and purchased a large bag of oysters, we exchanged some pleasantries (“Nothing like a bag of oysters for a Saturday brunch!”), after which I asked him if he knew where I could have a dozen oysters cracked for us. He confirmed that the guys from whom he bought the oysters usually don’t crack them but advised we talk to them nevertheless (“they are very friendly – maybe they can help you”).
The oyster growers were very friendly indeed, but explained that they were not licensed to sell cracked oysters, and may get a stiff fine for doing so. “But why don’t you try the oyster festival?”, they wondered… We didn’t want to spend much time at the festival, even though it turned out to have the appealing dual theme of oyster tasting and axe-men competitions. So we just parked next to another shack that looked better equipped to satisfy our need, and bought a dozen oysters, cracked and ready to eat. Daniel and Tamar tried the oysters with mixed reviews. So eventually Tamar had one, Daniel tasted one and passed it on to me, and Lilach just watched the strange spectacle. The oysters were good, by the way.
Before entering the Myall Lakes national park, we wanted to stop at a dump point, and also refuel, fill our water tank and buy some beer. The nearest place where we could do all that was in Bulahdelah, about 45km north east – quite a detour from our destination at Mungo Brush camping area. But it was 9am when we left Karuah, and we were in no hurry, so we headed to Bulahdelah and by 10:15 all these tasks have already been successfully completed. At that point we were happy to discover that Google Maps recommends going to Mungo Brush through the north rather than going back the same way we came. This northern route took us through a point on the shore called Seal Rocks, where seals can sometimes (though apparently not very often) be seen basking on offshore rocks. We didn’t see any seals, but the beach was beautiful, and we did see some variegated fairy wrens in the bush by the parking lot, and a couple of pelicans wading in the shallows.
When the time came to continue to Mungo Brush, we discovered that the route indicated by Google Maps turned very close to Seal Rocks into a 4×4 road locked by a gate, so we had no choice but to go south through Bulahdelah, then back north along the coast – a nearly two hour drive. We derived some consolation from the fact that right by the locked gate we saw a grey fantail nesting, on a nest resembling in both shape and size a small Italian ice-cream cone. Our presence caused it to leave the nest and watch us from a safe distance, but at least we got a picture of the nest.
On the coastal road leading to Mungo Brush we saw two lace monitor, one of them right at the entrance to the campground, which we interpreted as a very good sign. We picked a free site and completed the online registration thanks to the miraculous presence of reasonable cellular coverage. After that we finally grilled the meat we didn’t get to eat the previous night, and ate it by the lakefront. We spent the early afternoon lazying about on the lakefront and in the water, where Tamar climbed the papaerbark trees on the water’s edge, and Daniel sprayed us all with water.
In the late afternoon we took what was supposed to be an easy and pleasant bush walk in a circular trail that started right next to our site. But 20 minutes into the wal Lilach’s boot gaped wide open, with the sole half hanging from it and impeding her walk. We looked for some plant with which we could tie the sole to the boot, and while I was busy cutting a piece of climber that seemed suitable for the task Tamar inadvertently touched what turned out to be a Giant Stinging Tree (Dendrocnide excelsa). She quickly drew back her hand, but three white spots immediately started forming on her hand, causing what she described as an acute burning pain. While I tied Lilach’s boot using the climbing vine, Tamar exercised self-hypnosis, “thinking the pain out of her hand”, and after a short while informed us that this was actually working. In fact, she was exhilarated by the fact that her mind can exert such miraculous control over her body, and spend the whole way back perfecting the technique and vividly reporting her sensations.
Around midnight, after the kids were sound asleep, we decided to have a short late night flashlight walk. When we stepped out of the caravan we met two teenage kids sitting nearby, drinking beer and talking rather loudly. They thought they had woken us up and apologized. They were rather amused to discover that we were actually going on a walk in the middle of the night, and told us that they were”prawning” (i.e., fishing for prawns) in the lake, at which point we recalled that we saw some people dragging nets in the water around dusk. We had our doubts whether this was a legal activity in a national park, but decided not to share these with the juvenile delinquents. The walk was rather rewarding, with Ringtail and Brush-tail possums seen at close range, as well as some unidentified frog. When we returned the two prawners asked if we’ve seen anything, and when we showed them some pictures of the possums one of them started explaining how tasty possum meat was. Oh well…
October 16
The first sight when we stepped out in the morning was the two prawn kids sitting across the road and sifting through their catch. They seemed in much the same position we left them last night. We laid the table for a huge breakfast by the lake, and leisurely made our way through it while enjoying the view and the laid back atmosphere.After breakfast, Daniel and I went looking for birds around the lake. By the time we were finally packed and ready to leave, it was 2pm – the official checkout time which had originally seemed to us absurdly late. Our last site upon leaving the camp was a large and beautiful lace monitor that came to say goodbye. We stopped at some point off the dirt road running back south along the shore, and Lilach climbed the trail running up the dune and to the shore, to see if she could spot any dolphins or whales in the ocean. She soon ran back to the car and informed us that she gave up that quest after encountering a Brown Snake on the Dune.
We drove about 200km south to Umina Beach, just north of Sydney, with a short stop on the way to purchase another suitcase in order to ease the packing. In Umina Beach, the kids enjoyed the water park in the caravan park, while we enjoyed packing. After dinner, on my way back from the bathroom, I saw a fearless brush-tail possum very close to our site. Daniel couldn’t let this last opportunity to photograph a nocturnal marsupial pass, and spent long minutes attempting to capture a good image, giving me accurate instructions on where and how to place the spotlights.
Family Trips 