Jervis Bay

Our first holiday within a holiday! We set off early to get down to Jervis Bay in time for a lunchtime dolphin cruise. The drive was very chilled thanks to Nigel and the fact that we just had to follow the same road for 3 hours. When we arrived, we had a wander down the main street (only street) of Huskisson before waiting to board the boat for our dolphin cruise. I was excited but wasn’t sure how likely we were to actually see dolphins so I tried my best to manage my expectations. We set off and I spent the first twenty minutes with my beady eyes focused on the ocean, nearly mistaking every bit of white water for a fin! It wasn’t long before our guide spotted some dolphins and took the boat closer. Seeing the first dolphin popping out of the water and slinking back in was so exciting! That was awesome enough in itself but I hadn’t prepared for the incredible spectacle that followed. It felt like the dolphins were putting on a show especially for us. They literally frolicked around the boat and kept popping up all over the place. I tried to take some photos but they were too quick and it was much better just to enjoy it and watch without a camera lens.

After this, we headed over to our AirBnB to find out where we’d be staying for the next 2 nights. As we were driving down residential streets, we took in all the unique bungalows and it was

clear that this really was Australia. We parked the car and, just as we were getting out, a huge kangaroo came bounding down the side of one of the houses and hopped across the road right in front of us! The first kangaroo we had seen in the wild! We tentatively knocked on the door, hoping that we had found the right place and the lovely Maureen answered the door. She quietly greeted us as she explained that Jim was having a nap! So, with hushed tones, she showed us around her home. It was clean, cosy and comfy. It had a feeling that reminded both of us of staying with our grandparents which, when you are 10,000 miles from home, was pleasantly comforting. Next thing we knew, Jim woke up and was introducing himself in a larger than life kind of way. It turned out he was even chattier than Maureen and was so keen to give us endless recommendations and show us around their home and garden (putting out copious amounts of birdseed, much to Maureen’s dismay, to try and entice the lorikeets and parrots). Their garden backed on to a golf course where hundreds of kangaroos were dotted around. He explained that this is their

home and that they are completely unphased by humans, even when they have a joey in their pouch or when they get hit on the head by a golf ball!

As per a recommendation from Jim and Maureen, we then packed a couple of beers and ciders into a backpack and, using their bikes, we cycled off to St George’s Basin to watch the sunset. It was the most serene and peaceful point to just sit on the bench, drink a cider and watch the sun go down. Although when we first got there and checked the actual time of the sunset Matt reacted with “What the hell are we gonna do for an hour?” Maybe relax, chat and enjoy the incredibly beautiful view in front of us?

The next morning we headed down to Huskisson for some kayaking. The waters in Jervis bay are incredibly calm and clear so it was perfect for cruising around in a kayak, although our arms were pretty tired by the end! In the afternoon we headed to Booderee National Park to check out some of the

beaches. We went to Murray beach, which was beautiful and almost deserted but by this point the wind had picked up so the sea was a little rough to swim properly. We then went to see the ruins of an old lighthouse, well a very unsuccessful lighthouse. The information showed that there had been a ridiculous number of shipwrecks off the coast there. Still, there was an amazing viewpoint to look out onto the vast Pacific Ocean. Supposedly it is a good site to spot whales from as they migrate up the coast so we stayed for a while looking for that classic tail splash but had no luck.

That evening might be one of the strangest we’ve ever had. Jim had been persuading us since we arrived that we should go for dinner at the ‘club’ that he is a member of. What tempted us was the fact that it was the only place within walking distance meaning that we could have a drink. So we decided to make Jim happy and give it a go. Now we knew it would be old fashioned, quirky and that we would possible be the youngest people there but nothing prepared us for what we discovered. The ‘restaurant’ Jim had been raving about was no more than a canteen, there was a group of people having a line dancing lesson, a poker competition going on, some people nursing a pint watching the rolling sports news and a depressing room full of pokies. But the worst part about it was that it wasn’t at all cute and old fashioned but horribly modern. However, it was really funny and a place we will never forget! Plus the meal was the cheapest we’ve had in Australia by a mile.

The next morning we set our alarm for 4:50 to get up early and go to Hyams Beach to watch the sunrise. We took cereal, yoghurt, bananas and some hot tea in a thermos flask. It was pretty chilly when we first got to the beach at 5:30 but we had towels and a hot drink to stay cosy and enjoy the amazing changing colours of the sky. It was actually a bit of a thrill when the sun first popped its head over the horizon. We got quite excited and it was awesome watching it emerge fully. This only took a few minutes and it wasn’t long

before it was too blinding to look at without sunglasses. A few minutes later (and this might be the best part of the morning) another couple arrived on the beach. The guy had a ridiculously high tech, long-lensed camera while the girl had a face like thunder. He loped around taking endless photos while she slumped on the sand looking miserable. We were laughing our heads off that they had clearly got up early but missed the actual sunrise – hahaha suckers! Anyway, once we had got over our smugness we went for a lovely walk along the beach before heading back to Murray beach with our snorkel gear. This had been described to us as the ‘jewel in the crown of Booderee National Park’ and an ideal spot for snorkelling. When we got there the beach was completely deserted apart from a lone wallaby chilling on the sand. This was of course a perfect opportunity to get the ultimate Australian photo so that was the first thing I did. We then had a great time playing with our Waboba ball (the best thing we brought to Australia by far) and splashing around in the sea. Then we thought we’d try out our new snorkels so we tentatively plunged into the sea but we quickly decided that firstly it was too cold and secondly that with no one else around it was too scary! So we got out and the snorkels will just have to wait for their first proper outing. Just as we were drying off we noticed another wallaby just behind us so we amused ourselves greatly by taking a ‘selfie’ with him in the background.

After investigating a few other areas of the National Park we went to get a sandwich and ate it on one of the other beautiful beaches in Jervis bay. This was an awesome ending to an awesome holiday. It was a great trip and definitely one of the most amazing places I have been to in the world.