It serves me right for tempting fate. We had only been on the good old Pacific Highway out of Harrington for less than an hour when I commented to Liz how well the tug had been performing. You guessed it....within no more than five minutes a very nasty warning light flashed up on the dashboard....potentially contaminated fuel!
Of course there was no where to pull over instantly, so whilst Liz scoured the owner's manual for information I was scouring the roadway for any sign to indicate a rest stop. And the more Liz discovered, the more intently I was looking. In essence the manual and another bit of blurb we were carrying relating to fuel all screamed warnings and advocated an immediate stop and consultation with "your nearest Toyota dealer". I'm trying, I'm trying, was all I could think.
We eventually found a rest stop and thankfully same to a halt. Then the real fun started. The Australian wide dealer enquiry number is one of those damn voice activated things. Do you remember the advertisement where that poor girl who had just been involved in an accident was trying to convince the robotic voice at the other end of her insurance phone line that she was 'Moira' not 'moron'.? Snap. The variations of 'Bulahdelah' which came down the line when I was trying to confirm our present location had to be heard to be believed. And, despite the odd name (or perhaps because of it), it is a quite well known highway location.
Our only other option was to manually enter a post code. Now of course everyone on the road carries a post code book in their kit.....god bless her, Liz actually does! We finally confirmed that our nearest dealer was at Port Stephens, at this stage some 100 kms distant, and our destination for the day.
My real question was simple. Could we safely continue? In desperation I had rung Jarvis Toyota in Adelaide only to be told that no-one in their service department was answering the phone. This was just going from bad to worse. So I then rang Port Stephens. "Not a problem, sir, you can safely continue here and we'll happily replace the fuel filter (which had actually reached water saturation point) for you when you arrive".
Relief! And as if to make up for the earlier messing around, Jarvis Toyota in Adelaide responded and confirmed this advice. Within another five minutes Liz also received a text message letting us know that our concerns had been registered and that someone would be in touch shortly. No need...on our way again, finally rejoicing. And just to add to the yarn, the local dealer in Port Stephens was a mere 200 metres from our caravan park entrance. $100 later and we were all ship shape.
Our choice of parks in Port Stephens was virtually made for us in that none but one would take pets in school holidays. As it was, we were delighted with 'The Bays'. Apart from the coincidental fact that we were do close to the Toyota dealer, the park was open, well grassed and dotted liberally with magnificent shade trees.
As we later discovered, the more fancied parks near the various waterfront areas of Port Stephens were absolutely chock-a-block with families enjoying the last week of the school holidays. We were even more pleased with our particular camp.
Apart from the fact that PS lay a comfortable distance from Harrington, the main reason for this choice of destination lay in the fact that we were to catch up with the Hendersons, folk we had met in Townsville some months previously. They had recently moved to the area from Sydney and proved to be wonderful local hosts.
In the course of arrival happy hour drinks and nibbles 'chez Marshies', Malcolm suggested a climb up Tomaree Head the following day to take in the view on offer. He did point out that it was something of a climb but would be worth it. Having checked that I was still carrying my trusty knee bandages (my right knee is shot...bone on bone in parts and whilst it performs reasonably well on the flat, hills an stairs do present something of a challenge), we readily agreed to the plan.
The following day dawned sunny and warm. We were full of the enthusiasm which only touring generates....something new and spectacular to see. Off we go. And then we came fact to face with reality!
The higher of the two peaks on the headland on the left of this photo (taken a day later from another vantage point) was our climbing goal. A mere kilometre the signs said..but all uphill.
Apart from the fact that PS lay a comfortable distance from Harrington, the main reason for this choice of destination lay in the fact that we were to catch up with the Hendersons, folk we had met in Townsville some months previously. They had recently moved to the area from Sydney and proved to be wonderful local hosts.
In the course of arrival happy hour drinks and nibbles 'chez Marshies', Malcolm suggested a climb up Tomaree Head the following day to take in the view on offer. He did point out that it was something of a climb but would be worth it. Having checked that I was still carrying my trusty knee bandages (my right knee is shot...bone on bone in parts and whilst it performs reasonably well on the flat, hills an stairs do present something of a challenge), we readily agreed to the plan.
The following day dawned sunny and warm. We were full of the enthusiasm which only touring generates....something new and spectacular to see. Off we go. And then we came fact to face with reality!
The higher of the two peaks on the headland on the left of this photo (taken a day later from another vantage point) was our climbing goal. A mere kilometre the signs said..but all uphill.
We did agree that the powers that be have done a magnificent job in providing stairs,
and some interestingly precipitous walkways to aid in the ascent.
Notwithstanding all the infrastructure to assist the adventurous, it was still a climb, but oh, so worth it! Malcolm's assurances were anything but shallow.
Port Stephens is indeed a very picturesque part of our country. I have no trouble accepting as fact the claim that it holds more water than Sydney Harbour, particularly when looking across the waters of Nelson Bay to the north.
The views from the same spot at the top of the Head are equally inviting looking down
at the small, unnamed beaches which lie to the south of the headland. In fact, Port Stephens reminded us in a number of ways of some of the features of Magnetic Island.
This was especially the case when we reached the top of our climb to come across the remnants of a WW2 radar installation. Large guns were apparently also placed high on Tomaree Head to protect the entrance to Port Stephens in a manner similar to the 'Forts' area of Maggie, and like those, they never fired a shot in anger. We read with interest that the climb up to the radar station was so torturous that bunks were installed in the radar shack so as those who came off shift before daylight could have a kip before attempting the descent. What staggered us was the effort it must have taken to build all this infrastructure in the first place. No helicopter lift in those days!
A number of islands lie to the seaward side of the entrance to the bays. It is past these that the numerous cruise boats (a couple of which can just be seen making passage back past the outer island) which make Port Stephens their home, ply their seasonal daily trade of transporting loads of hopefuls on the quest for whale sightings.
The entrance to Port Stephens, which is really the name given to a collective of bays, inlets and peninsulas, is quite narrow, as can be seen in this shot looking north across to the northern headland and the coastal beaches beyond.
This feature of the area creates an interesting spectacle on the turn of the tide. The massive volume of water of the incoming tide is squeezed between to the two headlands to create (well, for me at least...Liz couldn't seen anything to get excited about) a real surge which is so obvious from the vantage point of the top of Tomaree Head.
Of course, after the exertion of this adventure, drinks were clearly in order. This need was very adequately met at one of Nelson Bay's beach side establishments which most conveniently puts on a a daily happy hour at just the time we arrived. Mind you, I would hate to be buying the merely average bottles of bubbles at full tote odds! But with such a delightful outlook, wonderful weather and good friends for company, the hell with the expence.
And the Port Stephens revelry did not stop there. Sheelagh and Malcolm hosted us on a marvellous bayside picnic the following day. Fish and chips sourced from a place of some renown at the quayside, complemented by an excellent green salad and washed down with a perfectly acceptable bubbles, provided the perfect way to end our sojourn in this lovely part of the world.
Reality and a return to the real world of travelling was soon upon us. The following day dawned overcast and threatening and our trip along the Pacific Highway, past Newcastle and Gosford to our northern Sydney suburban destination of Dural was completed in fog and drizzle, and with the inevitable delay because of an accident.
Welcome to Sydney! Fortunately we were only a part of this traffic snake for a few kilometres. The park we had chosen for our overnight stay was quite close to our route around the northern and western suburbs which, apart from this section, we completed on motorways and freeways. The convenience of these is well worth the toll payment, even at the obscene 'heavy vehicle' rate we were levied.
Next stop Picton and our good friends Sue and Pete Tansell who had graciously invited us to make use of their driveway and hospitality before we headed off further south to Gerringong.
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