12 February 2014

Seal Rocks Camping

We've been to Seal Rocks once before, just B.C. when we spent a weekend at nearby Bluey's Beach. The location is stunning, with about 70 houses, mostly what NZ-ers would call baches nestled between the Pacific and a national park 280km north of Sydney.  There's one road in, a fair hike from the highway and partly unsealed - something the locals fight to keep, because it puts people off.  They've managed to keep the developers at bay and apart from a general store the only commercial ventures are cottage holiday letting and a couple of camp grounds.

For our extra long weekend stay we chose the more family friendly, situated across the road from a delightful sheltered beach, bush lined and fringed by rocky cliffs. At one end was an outcrop that became an island at high tide, with waves sloshing through a narrow opening making an exciting spa for splashing about. We dubbed the island "Kirrin" as we've been reading the Famous Five recently and had a great time exploring it. The boys also discovered the fun of boogie boarding in the gentle waves.

The camp ground was great, with a brand new kitchen block, a pair of goannas clumping about the boundary with the national park, and heaps of kids.  In hindsight, we needed to pack Charlie's bike as his scooter wasn't robust enough for the unsealed paths.  However, the boys had a super time making friends and we had all the gear we needed for our unpowered site.

Other highlights included a visit to the local lighthouse, with amazing views of rocky crevasses with big surf surging in from the more exposed side of the Rocks. We were also lucky enough to spot a dolphin. We will definitely be back.

Sand castle fun

"Kirrin Island" (left)




Rock pool inspections

Wave spa between the island and mainland

Cliffs and blow holes on the way to the light house

A much wilder surf beach South of the light house

Forbidding rocks

Playing spotlight with other camp kids

Tent life

Spot the goanna (a 4 footer on the tree; our tent in the background)

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