Australian Coastal Adventure - Part 1

Whenever I mention to people that I am going to Australia, it is apparent their first thought is BEACH! But wouldn’t you know, my in-laws live two hours (at least) from the ocean. Their home (Canberra) has its own charms, but every visit back I like to go on at least one adventure away from Australian’s capital city.

Yesterday we made our way to the coast!

Our final destination was a town called Narooma. My husband lived here from 4-9 years old, and really wanted to come back and visit this particular area. This area of the coast is beautiful and we made some fun stops along the way.

^{Our route: Canberra to Narooma via Cooma, Bermagui and Tilba Tilba}

The change in scenery from Canberra to coast is quite interesting. Canberra has a relatively dry climate and is surrounded by bush land (aka eucalypt forests) and pastoral areas. The city sits at the base of the Brindabella Mountain range and several low peaks dot the town.

^{The start of our journey out of Canberra.}

The first part of the drive took us through rolling hills and past little towns dotted with trees. Our first quick stop was in Cooma. Cooma is the gateway to the Snowy Mountains. Had we continued south from Cooma we would have entered Australia’s alpine region. Instead we turned east and made our way through a fairly dry and desolate stretch of country.

^{Lots of brown empty countryside.}

On our journey from Cooma towards the coast, we crossed Australia’s Great Dividing Range. The Range is a series of Mountain ranges that runs from Queensland in the north down to Victoria in the country’s south. The range separates the country’s coastal lowlands from the rest of Australia. The drive takes you through a forest of ferns and offers stunning views down to the coast with every break in the forest canopy. However, the drive is a DOOZY. There are SO MANY SWITCHBACKS. I didn’t get any photos because I was keeping my eyes glued to the road as my husband drove.

Near the town of Cobargo, NSW my husband spotted a creature on the side of the road I had NEVER before seen in the wild. It was an echidna! It was soooo cute and round and about the size of one of those personal watermelons. We were able to stop so I could get photos and watch the little fellow waddle around for a minute.

^{Echidna in the wild! 😍}

We finally arrived to the coast at a town called Bermagui. Bermagui is located at the northern end of Australia’s Sapphire Coast. (All sections of Australia’s coast are named. It is kind of cool.) We didn’t stop and explore the business district of the town, but we did explore a couple of beach areas. The views were absolutely stunning from every angle.

^{Pelicans in Bermagui.}

^{Stunning beach views.}

One place we did spend a bit of time in Bermagui was the Blue Pool. The pool itself is man made and rests at the base of a rocky cliff face. However, the pool is filled with water from ocean waves! This makes it a great spot for swimming and snorkeling as some smaller ocean critters makes their home inside of the pool!

^{The Blue Pool}

^{Looking south from the Blue Pool. Gorgeous coastal and water views. Plus, we could see seals swimming just off the shore.}

We made it to Bermagui mid day. There is so much more to share from yesterday, but it is time to get today rolling. So, I will save the rest for another post.

Have a beautiful day friends!

All photos are my own, taken on an iPhone 7. November 18, 2019

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