Sunday 14th and Mon 15th October Port Stephens / Blacksmiths / Port Stephens

Sunday 14 Oct 2012 Port Stephens and Blacksmiths

We were up and on the road by about 9:30am  for a morning of markets.

Our first stop was the Nelson Bay Markets.  It was a busy little market and so much better than the one in Scone.  There were the full array of stalls you’d expect and most of them had good fresh produce.  We picked up some avocadoes and few a other bits and pieces.

It was then onto the Newcastle Farmers Market at the Newcastle Showgrounds.  It was a large market.  It reminded me of a mini Adelaide Central Market. There were lots of stalls selling a huge assortment of products and produce.  There were lots of people there and it was all very enjoyable just wandering through and taking in the buzz.

From there went to  Blacksmiths to catch up with a friend of mine from the distant past, Michelle(Ungley) Felk.  We hadn’t seen each other for many more years than either of us would admit to.  It was great catching up with her and her husband Shane.  It was fun filling each other in on what we had been up to in the last 25+ years since we had seen each other.  Michelle and Shane are renovating a home 100m from Blacksmiths Beach and are doing an amazing job. It will be a gem when they have finished and have added their personal touches to make it their home.  We enjoyed lunch with them at Swansea RSL and then went for a walk along the beach with Michelle, Shane and their dogs.  It a fantastic beach unspoilt by people, so the dogs had a great time getting Shane to fetch the ball he was throwing for them!!   Michelle and Shane made us both so very welcome and relaxed, we really enjoyed the afternoon.

But all good things must come to an end and we said good bye and headed back to the van in Port Stephens.  We had the fish I caught on Saturday for dinner(and there is enough for Monday as well) and then a quiet night.

Monday 15 October 2012 Port Stephens.

We both got a good nights sleep and woke somewhere around 8, I think we are settling in to this holiday.

I took my new fishing Kayak/Ski out for its first expedition this morning.  It was lots of fun but I came home empty. It was fun learning the little tricks of it (where to store stuff and where NOT to!, etc) It was also good to find out that I could carry the Kayak, paddle and all my fishing gear at once, without too much of a struggle.  But the wind, the swell and a pretty strong rip got the better of me and I headed back in after about an hour, no fish and no squid! 🙂

After I got cleaned up and we got ourselves ready we headed out to have a look around the other little villages that make up Port Stephens.  First we headed into Nelsons Bay. We parked down near the Marina and then walked along the marina wharf area and sat on the wharf, dangling our feet over the edge and taking in all the boats and marine life.  The water around here is just sooo clear, we watched cormorants chasing fish underwater, boats coming and going and the fish swimming around the wharf.  Very relaxing.  We continued to walk along the marina foreshore and out along a stone breakwater where there were lots of people fishing but not catching anything, but they didn’t seem to mind. As we walked back we decided to have lunch, it was 11:45 and we were on the water near several restaurants and cafes. We chose a place that advertised that they were vote the Best Fish and Chips in NSW for 7 years running ( we still aren’t sure which 7 years they were referring to!) We had a seafood platter, with oysters, prawns, octopus and the usual fried things with chips and salad. We both enjoy the octopus the most, it was just wonderfully tender and marinated in a very tasty brew.

After lunch we had a look through the Nelson Bay shopping district, and were disappointed in it, it just had nothing much to distinguish itself.

We then drove back to Shoal Bay and had a look around this little village, its much smaller than Nelsons Bay and very sleepy. There is a pier there that stretches out into the water, but it was closed “Due to an Unacceptable Risk” to the public. We were both bemused by the sign and disappointed by the exclusion.

We then went back to Fingal Bay and drove up to a lookout at the southern end of the bay.  It seems that in the right season you can do a bit of whale watching from the lookout.  We enjoyed the view and relaxed there for a time.  Then it was back to the van for a cuppa and then a bit of fishing for me and a walk along the beach for Deb.  It was low tide and the lack of water was matched by a lack of fish!

Looking forward to seeing mum tomorrow, and a game of golf with Craig