Agnes Water and 1770

                                             

Only three and a half hours further south is Agnes Water and 1770. Like many coastal places in Australia, both are hidden little bays and off the main highway but are definitely worth the trip. We stayed at Agnes Water, a township which is currently expanding with new holiday and housing developments. Our van park was situated right on the beach so we only had to stroll down each morning and sit on the golden sand and watch the waves rolls on in. Mel was excited to see waves and have a crack at surfing so off to the local surf shop we went. 

 

Chillin at the beach

We hired a long board and spent that time closely watching others surf and trying to use the same techniques. We were able to casually eavesdrop on a few surfing lessons to get more tips and Glenno the country boy was quite the surfer and stood up more times than Mel the North Wollongong Beach city chick! The surf at Agnes Waters is perfect for learning. The sets roll in slowly and are small and slow enough for a learner to ride a perfect wave. We spent two whole days relaxing under our beach tent, swimming, making more sand castles and surfing and it was bliss. And without being biased we’ve gotta say, Bruce looked quite good with the surfboard on the roof!

Action shots! Obviously before we got any good at it!

Cam's first wave!

We ventured to the town of 1770 a couple of times (only five minutes away). 1770 in particular has a significant history for Australia as it was named in honour of Captain Cook's landing at the location in 1770 when he arrived on the HM Bark Endeavour in May 1770. It was his second landing on the Australian continent, after his first landing in Botany Bay, Sydney. Every May the town of 1770 re-enact Captain Cook’s landing which would be fantastic to watch. 1770 is also the gateway to Lady Musgrove Island. Unfortunately we did not go but heard it was great for snorkelling. The area is apparently great for fishing (although we tried and failed) and fabulous for families with little kids as there are no waves. Apparently it is also the only western facing location on the east coast that you can watch a sun set. And trust us when we say it’s a magical sunset each night. It slowly melts down over the water and behind the mountains and was worth visiting just for that!

Snagging lures

Sunset at 1770

We would never have known about these places had we not been told by Glen’s brother and family. They had visited this beautiful place last year when they were on their Australian camping pilgrimage. They had also buried a treasure for us somewhere at 1770 so we had a date with a shovel and the pirate treasure map they drew for us. We carefully followed the directions which were perfect and AHHH ME HEARTYS we were able to unearth the treasure that had been buried and untouched for a year! There was a treasure chest full of toys, two soggy artworks and lollies. A big thank you to Pirates Darren, Miffy, Archie and Rosie for the awesome treasure hunt!

TIPS: Definitely stay at Agnes Water if you are looking for some surf. Book early at the Caravan Park as it is small and very popular. It has clean facilities and a coffee shop. Otherwise if you are staying at 177 there is no surf but has a few good spots for fishing.

The treasure hunt

The lookout at 1770