Driving South from Sydney

After our days in Sydney, we picked up our car and headed south to Wagga Wagga. Rather than take the main road, we decided to head directly south along the coast. Our reward was a drive of beautiful curves through two forests and many miles of ocean views. Google maps did not want us to take this drive so it took come creative mapping to find the road as we left Sydney. To make the drive even more interesting, we missed the first turn as we left our hotel which forced us north across the Harbor Bridge before returning south through a tunnel we will probably result in bill from the car rental company for the tunnel toll. Fortunately, we avoided any accidents as I relearned driving on the ‘wrong’ side of the road.

Otford Overlook in Royal National Park

After many miles of urban driving, we saw a sign for Royal National Park. I remembered our Wagga host David Bryan telling me that this is the second oldest national park in the world (after Yellowstone) so we took the chance and spent the next 15 miles curving down into the park and then curving back up through a dense rain forest. The road was so empty of cars we saw three times as many bicycles as we did cars. We skipped the turn that would have taken us to the beach, but thoroughly enjoyed the time in the forest.

When we finally emerged from the forest we were greeted with a pair of spectacular overlooks. The first, Otford Lookout, is also the beginning of a ten-mile trail hugging the coastline. The sign recommends making this a two-day trip. The sign also reminded those using the ‘natural’ beach to remember to dress before heading back up to the trail. The second, called Stanwell Tops, is also the takeoff point for hang gliders and para sailors. Over a dozen were there when we arrived. It reminded me of watching surfers waiting for the perfect wave. Sometimes I think it is more about the camaraderie than about the actually surfing.

We chatted with a few of them as they hung out waiting or preparing their machines. We also chatted with one young lady who paid the $200 for a piggy back ride. She was nervous, but excitedly looking forward to the adventure. Reminding ourselves of the time and distance yet to drive, we did not wait around to see her fly.

The point could easily have been called the Lawrence Hargrave Overlook and might have been if the road were not already named for this early experimenter. In the early part of the last century he spent many hours at this very spot using box kites to study the aerodynamics of flight making him one of the true pioneers of flight. His statue is prominently displayed overlooking the ocean.

The view includes a good look at Sea Cliff Bridge, built over a two year period to replace the road destroyed in an avalanche. The new bridge extends out over the rocks to avoid any further avalanche damage. Unlike most of the coast road, the bridge includes wide shoulders and a sidewalk on the ocean side of the road. This is also the area of the first coal mine in Australia. While the quality of the coal was less than exceptional, the convenience of the location was perfect and the mine operated for many years. A coke plant is still in operation.

After another hour along the coast we stopped for lunch at a restaurant overlooking the harbor in Wollongong. From there we headed inland over Macquarie Pass on another winding road through a forest. By the time we emerged from this forest, we realized that the leisurely portion of the drive was over. We needed to keep moving if we were going to make it to Wagga before dark and in time for dinner. We passed several interesting looking towns, but only took a quick detour through one. Several more had inviting signs announcing their historical importance, but we had miles to go before we slept, miles to go ...

Wollongong Harbor