24th November 2021
Katoomba to Port Macquarie
We spent most of Tuesday preparing and packing everything
into our little caravan. This is not as
simple as it sounds as even though it is only for 3 weeks, we have limited space,
and this is a test for our much longer trip next winter so what we pack will
mirror what we will have to be prepared for then. I expected that we would have way too much to
fit in however we got everything together so we could decide what was critical
and exclude what we really could do without.
I put both the van and the fridge in the car on power and got everything
to temperature and all charged up. In
the morning Sharon finished her packing and I took Gemma (Our Dog) to the vet
for her monthly needle. We had an early
lunch and then at 12.30 we set off.
As we finally eased out of our driveway, and I felt the van
hook up and fall in behind the truck I felt a sense of relief. This is our first trip since we purchased the
van around late January this year (2021)and due to Covid 19 lockdowns we have been in
forced restrictions of one kind or another.
I turned off the side road onto the Great Western Highway and we were on
our way.
The big diesel pulled the little van with ease, I had to keep checking it was still behind me which is exactly what I wanted. Unlike our previous setup where we were towing a very heavy 3 ½ ton van which had mind of its own this lighter option was stress free for us and quite enjoyable. We made one pit stop on the freeway at Wyong where I topped up the tank and we had a coffee in Oliver’s and toilet breaks. Port Macquarie is a 5 ½ hr drive and freeway all the way so all in all a smooth ride all the way.
We finally pulled into Reflections Holiday Park at Bonny Hills around 6.30 pm and set up camp just as it started to rain. That evening we were joined by Sharon’s brother Brad and his partner Rhonda and as it was wet, we cooked dinner in the Camp kitchen out of the rain and wind.
Reflections is right on the headland looking out over Bartlett’s Beach. The sound of the surf is deafening, and I just loved it. The rain had made the temperature quite humid and balmy having the camp kitchen all to ourselves we sat down to enjoy dinner with a spectacular view.
The Calm Before the Storm
That night after we retired to bed the sky opened and it really let it pour down. I peered out of the rear window behind the bed and the water was just streaming like a flood from the roof and down over the window resembling being under a waterfall. Our little van was snug and dry and even though humid was a nice end to a long day of driving.
Next morning, I put out the awning and set up our outdoor kitchen and after Sharon made breakfast, we set off on a walk to visit Sharon’s brother and look at the renovations they were undertaking in their old house on the hill above the park. The view from the upper levels took my breath away and looks right down Rainbow Beach on the left and Bartletts Beach on the right. I thought to myself “what a cool place to live”
After lunch we showered and took Gemma and drove the 20km to Port Macquarie and walked along the promenade before meeting up with Brad and Rhonda for dinner in Rydges which fronts the Ocean. Port Macquarie really has a holiday feel and for the beach types it really ticks all the boxes.
On Friday we had grand plans to go into town again after breakfast however the rain is too heavy, so we are learning to spend some quality time in a restricted space in out tiny caravan. This will be a great test of our ability to adjust to our new life on the road and the demands of living together in a small space.
Reflections Holiday Park-Review
This is a beautiful holiday park on the headland overlooking the ocean in Bonny Hills NSW. The staff are friendly and helpful and keep the park in excellent condition with crisp and clean facilities. It gets quite busy on the weekend (noted during our stay). The sound of the surf crashing all night was like music to me and the mildly humid condition suited my temperment. However, on the other hand my wife could not sleep due to the crashing surf and the humid conditions, so we have a stalemate LoL. As we have an outdoor kitchen on our little van the very wet conditions did have a negative effect. We ended up using the camp kitchen and hade it all to ourselves and dined in style with a million-dollar view. I highly recommend the higher sites as they have slabs and will negate any bad weather and also have better views. For the ocean lovers the park is in the junction of Rainbow and Bennet’s beaches, so you have a choice of where to swim or surf. There is a surf café just below the site if you want breakfast or lunch and a surf bar to cool down
My only negative on our 3-night stay was the wet ground conditions. We had a muddy site which just got worse the heavier the rain came down resulting in a mud pit which meant we carried a lot of mud into our small space making it quite uncomfortable. This spoiled what was otherwise a fantastic stopover.
We stayed on site 61 on grass however in future we will be selecting either site 68 or 69 which are higher up and have a concrete weatherproof slab with ocean views
Most of the newer sites in the park have been refurbished with Astro turf so I imagine next time we visit this will not be a problem
This stopover gets a 4 out of 5 for me.
