South Ballina June 2009

Participants : Alan & Laurel Boughen, Peter & Elaine Warren, Chris & Pam Gilfoyle, Paul &Debbie Hough,, & their children Kevin & Thomas,  Dave  & Heather Fillingate, & children, Lewis & Lauren, Dick & Margaret Stoppelbein.

We made our own way to the CaravanPark at South Ballina. Settled in and had a good night’s sleep, before the weekend battles ahead.

Peter went out for a reccie of the local beach. He said it was high tide and some rocks along the beach should be OK to pass when the tide dropped.  We had an early lunch, and then set out to brave the towering sand cliffs, which were up to 4m high.  Like the Gold Coast the storms had played merry hell with the beaches, as we were about to find out. There were many fisherpersons on the beach, but few if any catching anything.

When we reached the rocks before mentioned, we found they were still too high to drive over. A little way back along the beach, there was a low part in the dune which had wheel tracks  over it.  Peter had the first attempt to drive over it, but bellied out on the crest. With a little spadework horsepower and manpower, he cleared the obstacle. We all succumbed to a similar fate, except for the Jeep!  With an almighty low range, high power run, it was up and over the dune. That was one way of doing it.

By the time we found the road and had returned to base it was looking a lot like happy hour. This was to be in the Camp Kitchen, but it was full of rowdy bikies, so we had it on the verandah of our cabin. We negotiated a table and barbecue for our meals.  Apart from being a bit noisy, it was an entertaining night. When we pulled up stumps, the two wheelers were still going strong, planning tomorrow’s ride. The noise disappeared when the cabin windows were shut and sleep took over.

Sunday’s trip started with a visit to the Big Prawn. Our local expert assured us a climb up into the head was worthwhile. However, we were told that it has been closed for over eight years, due to insurance reasons! The next item on the agenda was to visit the local markets….there was a fun run in full swing on arrival and nowhere to park. So we “chucked a uie” and headed south to Broadwater and found some markets .Good, cheap “stuff” was negotiated.

From there we went to Evans Head with the view of the beach access.  The erosion had closed all beach access around here, necessitating another plan of attack. After walking up to the crest and of South Evans Head and taking in the great views from on high. It was decided to go to The House With No Steps at Coraki.  We inspected the gift shop, and then visited the Coffee Shop, where there was a comprehensive menu. This became lunch and a short forest trip was mooted but due the heavy rain over night, it was deemed too risky, and time was running out.

With full bellies, we headed back towards Ballina, using the beach for the last few k’s.
After the usual happy hour, we again had dinner with the bikies and chatted for some time. The trip effectively finished here as the only remaining tasks were to pack up and return home on Monday.
The weather could have been a little easier on us, but “you can’t win them all”.
Thanks to Alan & Laurel for leading the trip (from the rear): and Peter & Elaine for taking us to places we would not have known of otherwise.

Margaret Stoppable & Dick.